BlackBerry Curve 8900

“The BlackBerry Curve 8900 is less controversial than the TouchBerry Storm. It comes to update the Curve line and it does its job quite well. We guess only the missing 3G won't let us call the 8900 Curve the perfect upgrade. Anyway, on home Blackberry turf the Curve 8900 certainly holds a high position. As to reaching outside the BlackBerry realm, the Curve 8900 does have the looks and some of the skill to try and earn new customers for the company. But the very concept of the closed BlackBerry ecosystem is a limitation. In our case, the Curve 8900 is not a bad phone, but once the BlackBerry Internet Service account is out of the equation, it is much worse a deal than what the competitors can offer.”

“Barack Obama would love to get his executive mitts on the new BlackBerry Curve. Just like our new prez, RIM's latest smartphone is full of change. But unlike Mr. Obama, not all the change is promising. RIM claims the Curve 8900 is the thinnest and lightest full-QWERTY BlackBerry Smartphone to date. The body design is actually gorgeous, combining the Bold's sleek, noir face and brilliant screen with the 8300's graphite-hued back and silver accents. If there's one glaring flaw in the chassis' design, it's that the top of the phone slants abruptly, making it hard to press the Lock and Mute buttons — especially since the phone is noticeably longer than its predecessor. In fact, that extra bit at the top made us seriously consider rounding the edge off ourselves with a power sander, just to revert back to the Curve's near-perfect curves. But we're not completely superficial here at Wired. We really know it's all about what's on the inside that counts. And inside this new Curve are some seriously necessary upgrades.Urbanites with deep wireless broadband penetration or frequent connection to hotspots will appreciate the device's killer Wi-Fi support, which is quick and easy to set up. The camera gets an upgrade from 2 to 3.2 megapixels (take that, iPhone!) with well-designed autofocus, image-stabilization capabilities and a flash powerful enough to cause a few of our subjects to wince. Even better, the amateur Spike Jonze in you can now record up to 20 hrs of video by maxing out the Berry's 16-GB MicroSD storage. That's about 20 hrs of pure YouTube taser-footage possibilities, though the sound quality is definitely sub-par. Viewing videos and pictures on the 2.5-inch, 480 x 320 pixel screen is fantastic, especially since the screen's ambient light sensors adjust brightness deftly no matter how dark a room we were in.”

“Along with the Pearl, the Curve series represents the kinder, gentler side of BlackBerry, it's the side that appeals to consumers without sacrificing power, and from time to time, it's the side that's even been known to show some sex appeal. The Curve 8900 really takes that sex appeal to the next level, delivering one of the most drop-dead gorgeous phones ever to grace a corporate boardroom - and it just so happens that T-Mobile USA's the first American carrier to deliver it, so we've taken the opportunity to put it through its paces. Does it out-Bold the Bold? Read on. Flaws aside, is this the best BlackBerry RIM has ever made? Not necessarily - we bet we could find a diehard Bold lover for every 8900 lover out there - but until the Storm gets its act together, it's certainly in the top two. Think of it as a Bold with the style-to-power ratio knob turned just a tiny bit further in the direction of style. Sure, you give up 3G, but who needs high-speed data when you're hypnotized by all that chrome?”

“If the BlackBerry Bold is too bold for you and the BlackBerry Storm doesn't float your boat, then you may want to check out the BlackBerry Curve 8900, RIM's latest email-friendly handset. One of RIM's most compact phones to date, the 8900 looks great, and made us keen to discover whether good things really do come in small packages. You can get the 8900 from T-Mobile and Carphone Warehouse for free on a monthly contract.”