- Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 106 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
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4 out of 4 people found this review helpful
4.0 stars
"A newbie to the whole Blackberry and hybrid phones"
Pros: Initial review - a good phone
Cons: None yet...
Summary: After my contract expired, I decided that I would jump into the "hybrid" phone market. I wanted something to replace my IPAQ (especially since I lost all my data!!) and cell phone. After reading reviews on cnet and other websites, it was down to the Curve and the Samsung Blackjack. I decided to purchase the Curve (based on the reviews) and jump ship from another carrier to AT&T.
Since I've only had the phone for less than a week, my review is far from comprehensive. This is only an initial impression. I'll break down the functions that I've used and review them briefly:
Phone calls: Since I'm using the phone primarily for phone calls, call quality was important. At first, I hesitated on the Curve as I've read reviews complaining of the "hollow" sound. I haven't had that happen yet and am pleased with the overall quality. No dropped calls yet either, so that's a good thing!
Email: Accessing email away from my computer wasn't of high importance in deciding to buy a new phone. But, I have to admit that being able to view messages is convenient. Sending messages is easy as well.
Keyboard: I'm still getting used to it but so far, it's pretty easy to use.
Calendar and contacts function: I haven't used the calendar yet, but from what I can tell, it should be fairly easy to use. Like my old pda, the Curve has multiple views (daily, weekly, monthly). I haven't sync it yet with my Outlook. Hopefully, that won't be a problem.
Adding new contacts has been pretty simple, so no complaints there.
The Curve is working out to be a good fit for me. I like that the Curve is both a phone and pda in one gadget. It may not have features that a business person might need (wi-fi, ability to edit Excel, Word, etc) however. But, for a "regular" consumer, it might be a worth a look when buying a new phone.
I hope to give a more thorough and updated review down the line. Good luck!Updated
I'll try and update my review that I posted almost a month ago.
Call quality - still pretty good, except that the signal doesn't seem to be as strong in my house as the other carrier. I've had very few dropped calls, but what cell phone doesn't have that issue?
Keyboard - Easy to use so no complaints there.
Camera - takes some pretty good pics, but not enough memory to store them on the phone. Will probably need to insert a sd card to hold the extra pics. But, I didn't buy the phone just to take pics either!
Synching w/Outlook - thought I had a problem doing this at first before someone pointed out to me that I had installed the BB Desktop Mgr software incorrectly (duh!). Now, no problems in synching w/Outlook. I've heard that there is software out there to synch the Curve with Google calendar. If anyone knows about this and info on its realiability, let me know!
Cons - I'm sure they'll pop up at some point or another. But, as of now, can't report on any since I haven't run into them.
No phone is perfect - but, for me, the Curve has been the best so far.Updated
This is an update of my review that I posted almost a month ago.
Call quality - still pretty good, except that the signal doesn't seem to be as strong in my house as the other carrier. I've had very few dropped calls, but what cell phone doesn't have that issue?
Keyboard - Easy to use so no complaints there.
Camera - takes some pretty good pics, but not enough memory to store them on the phone. Will probably need to insert a sd card to hold the extra pics. But, I didn't buy the phone just to take pics either!
Synching w/Outlook - thought I had a problem doing this at first before someone pointed out to me that I had installed the BB Desktop Mgr software incorrectly (duh!). Now, no problems in synching w/Outlook. I've heard that there is software out there to synch the Curve with Google calendar. If anyone knows about this and info on its reliability, let me know!
Cons - I'm sure they'll pop up at some point or another. But, as of now, can't report on any since I haven't run into them.
No phone is perfect - but, for me, the Curve has been the best so far.Updated
Overall, I'm pleased w/the phone. Call quality remains the same - I hear more static on this phone than on previous phones, but it's tolerable. Hardly any dropped calls, so that's good. Haven't had to contact AT&T for customer service, so can't vouch on that end. One complaint: I've had to lock my phone while not using it. This is because I've accidentally hit various keys that are on my speed dial list. As a result, I've called either family/friends by mistake one too many times!
Where to buy
RIM BlackBerry Curve 8300 - silver (AT&T):
$199.99 - $220.00
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$199.99 | Yes |
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$199.99 | Yes |
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Amazon.com Marketplace
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$220.00 | Yes |
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