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With the arrival of the 8700g, T-Mobile injects some life into its aging lineup of BlackBerry devices, which hasn’t seen a serious new handset (besides a small update to the compact 7100t) in more than a year. Besides the GPRS-only 7290, T-Mobile users have had to make do with the 7105t, a consumer-oriented BlackBerry with a slimmer form factor but a tricky, pseudo-QWERTY keypad. The new 8700g (also available on Cingular as the 8700c) takes the features of the 7290 and adds EDGE support to the mix, along with a speakerphone and mapping/driving directions (courtesy of Google Local). Overall, we were impressed with the 8700g’s performance, particularly when it comes to e-mail handling (no surprise there), and the added EDGE support certainly revved up its browsing. However, both the 7105t and 7290 are tempting bargains now that their price tags have plunged to 0 (with two-year service agreements).

The black-and-silver 8700g looks pretty much like your garden-variety BlackBerry, complete with a bright, 2.5-inch QVGA display and the standard full QWERTY keypad. Measuring 4.3 by 2.7 by 0.8 inches and weighing a reasonable 4.7 ounces, the 8700g is a bit bulky for a jeans pocket – then again, you weren’t really expecting to cram a BlackBerry in your pocket, were you?

The 8700g’s 65,000-color, 320 x 240-pixel display looks sharp and rich to your eyes, although the display is (as expected) tough to see in direct spotlight. The handset’s icon-driven main menu looked colorful and vibrant, as did the full-color images people saw on the web browser.

You will have little trouble typing on the roomy RIM keyboard, although some wish numeric keys and common symbols (such as the period and the comma) merited their own keys; instead, they’re relegated to second-banana status on the letter keys. People have also noticed that the entire thumb board was rattling around a bit inside the plastic 8700g shell; it had no effect on typing and didn’t seem in danger of coming completely loose, but some wish the keypad felt more solid. Back on the plus side, the 8700g is the first BlackBerry with dedicated “call”, “end”, and “mute” keys (the mute control sits on the top edge of the device), and people liked the side and front “convenience” keys, which you can assign to launch any of the 8700g’s various apps.

The quad-band GSM (850/900/1800/1900) 8700g has an Intel XScale processor under the hood, along with a decent 64MB of flash memory and 16MB SDRAM; in different tests, most people found the handset to be relatively zippy (although none of the apps on the 8700g are terribly demanding). The phone also supports T-Mobile’s 2.5G EDGE network, making for speedy (if not bone-rattling) surfing on the RIM web browser.

Messaging is the name of RIM’s game, and the 8700g comes ready to play. Like the latest BlackBerrys that has been seen, the 8700g will check up to 10 e-mail accounts, including Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Notes, and IBM Domino accounts and standard web and POP/IMAP e-mail services, such as Yahoo (whose subscribers get the added benefit of real-time message delivery), Gmail, and AOL. While push e-mails Exchange/Lotus/Domino setup requires the help of your handy IT department (or the use of the included desktop mail redirector), personal e-mail setup was a snap; people just entered their Gmail account info, and within minutes the 8700g was collecting their messages. The fly in the ointment, however, is that the 8700g (on T-Mobile’s network, at least) doesn’t support Hotmail or MSN accounts; T-Mobile reps told customers that talks are underway and that Hotmail/MSN service will arrive in the near future.

While the device’s e-mail management stacks up nicely compared to the rest of the RIM family, come wish (as ever) that the BlackBerry e-mail app did a better job of rendering HTML-formatted messages; even the most basic formatting (such as boldface or paragraph breaks) is often stripped away, while embedded URLs are removed and displayed next to the linked text, making for quite a mess. That said, the RIM’s messaging client will open PDFs and Microsoft Office documents, and does an especially nice job rendering Excel files.

Syncing the 8700g to our PC was a piece of cake; after installing the BlackBerry desktop software, people soon made a wireless connection with the handset’s built-in Bluetooth (a USB cable is also included), and within minutes they’d synched up hundreds of contacts, events, notes and to-dos.

The 8700g comes loaded with an impressive set of tools. First up is Google Local, which lets you access the all-too-addictive Google Maps (you can zoom and pan around the satellite images using the keypad), search for addresses, and pull down driving directions. Meanwhile, Pocket Express lets you check the latest news, sports, weather, and financial news (while most of Pocket Express’s content is free, some of the channels require a paid subscription). A shortcut on the device lets you download Oz’s instant messenger client, which supports AIM, ICQ, MSN Messenger and Yahoo Messenger. Also on tap are the standard PIM tools (such as an address book, a calendar, and a to-do list), plus a calculator, an alarm, a memo pad, and Brick Breaker.

Call quality on the 8700g was great as far as a Blackberry is concerned. Customers in New York have stated that they had no trouble chatting with their buddies. New York is a difficult place to talk because of the buildings, etc. Most customers got about 4 hours of talk time from the 8700g and five days of standby time.

With its bright screen, full-QWERTY keypad, EDGE and Bluetooth support, and characteristically superb e-mail handling, the 8700g is a strong choice for anyone looking to take the BlackBerry plunge. That said T-Mobile customers who want a BlackBerry device that fits in a pocket might be better off with the slightly smaller (if tougher to use) 7105t, which features a pseudo-QWERTY thumb board.

In fact, with my recent purchase of this wonderful equipment DVD player for my car, my driving has become more relaxing and fun. After all, where can you find a cool player for an unbelievable price? What’s more, the features are simply hard to resist and something that every car enthusiast likes so much.

This Car MP3 Player . It has a USB and SD port, so you can be assured that you can play all the hits in your car even if that is on a MP3 player. The Player feature is simply amazing and matches the price perfectly.

Based on my personal experience, I find the Car MP3 Player worth every penny. Imagine an FM/AM synthesizer radio tuner to give a wider choice of music. Loc control, auto antenna, down front panel, language setting, and disk auto reload function.

Furthermore, a disk repeat, back, fwd, and random play function is another reason why this is such a great piece of equipment.

It memory is also programmable to play anytime. Has a 30 preset radio station access complete with auto scan and auto store.

Apart from what has been discussed, this machine has also a full electronic volume, treble and fader control, mute function is you want to talk to someone while on the car phone, a 4×45 watts power output to match and ESP that runs on 45 second for your MP3.

Like everything else, a sound machine that you can use and control with a remote control is worth your time and money. In fact, I consider this Car MP3 player as the answer to my boredom and exhaustion every time I’m on the road and driving.

So if you will ask me now, what do I think about this Car MP3 Player, I will simply describe it with one word and that is “Amazing.”

The BlackBerry Touch Smartphone is a stylish handset incorporating a touch screen and full Qwerty keyboard. It has been eagerly anticipated by BB fans and also by its rivals, and comes with a new slide facility which makes space for the bigger display screen and keypad.

The BlackBerry Touch Smartphone has a modern look to it but even now retains the BlackBerry signature appear, its cool, straightforward to hold, and works very well. It comes with the typical solid build high quality as seen in all previous models in their line up.

The 35 key Qwerty keyboard is hidden under the sleek touch screen and is operated by a smooth sliding mechanism. It feels nicely put together and robust in comparison with its rivals. The reason for the sliding system would be to make space for a larger touch display screen as this has been popular around the iPhone’s and equivalent models. But the display nevertheless feels somewhat dated compared to other smartphones, around the positive side it is quite clear, easy to make use of and is 3.2 inches big displaying a 480 x 360 resolution.

The Blackberry Touch Smartphone is slightly heavier than the Bold, but is related in size and also it nonetheless retains the optical trackpad for navigation. This button is what most BlackBerry users are familiar with and is 1 the familiar attributes that has been kept around the telephone.

As usual there may be fantastic connectivity with both quad band GSM/EDGE and tri band 3G/UMTS, and for a more quickly connection WiFi is also offered. Internally the cellphone has had some major upgrades, the most important being the 4Gb of memory and a faster processor. There may be nevertheless an SD slot which can handle up to 32Gb of memory if needed.

BlackBerry have created a extremely effortless to make use of and attractive smartphone. It has an array of characteristics and applications to compete against its rivals.

You would constantly prefer touchscreen than a QWERTY keyboard when buying a new BlackBerry. Luck has favored you, mainly because you will discover only two BlackBerry touchscreen phones offered in the marketplace right now. Out of the two offered, Storm 2 9550 is the very best.

BlackBerry phones are not truly well recognized for touchscreen characteristics. In fact, quite a few customers have loved BlackBerry simply because of their QWERTY keypads some thing which several customers discover much simpler to use for composing SMS and email messages. Even so, since smartphones nowadays mostly have touchscreen attributes, RIM had no option but to release their own touchscreen phone – the BlackBerry Storm 2 which now has two models – the BlackBerry Storm 2 9550 and BlackBerry Storm 9530.

I recently acquired a Motorola Krave ZN4 for free with my cell phone contract through Verizon. The following is a review of the Motorola Krave ZN4 in an effort to help a consumer with Verizon in their selection of a new cell phone.

Previously with Alltel, I became a part of Verizon upon the company’s acquisition of Alltel. I was thinking about switching providers upon the conclusion of my contract, but Verizon not only let me keep my former Alltel rate plan, but they offered my a free cell phone with a renewal through their company. I chose the Motorola Krave ZN4 as my new cell phone.

Motorola Krave Reviews

The reviews on the Verizon Wireless website1 were mostly negative for this cell phone. However, my sister-in-law has one and is very happy with it.

Specifications

The Motorola Krave has a touch screen. The clear outer cover flips open for access. This clear cover is also interactive, with a lock and unlock button on the side of the phone. When holding the phone in normal position, you can use the virtual dial pad to make phone calls or send text messages. You can also turn the phone sideways to activate a virtual QWERTY keyboard.

The Motorola Krave supports Bluetooth, has a 2.0 megapixel camera with video and zoom. Additional features can be viewed at the Verizon Wireless website1. With a Verizon Wireless plan, you can get paid subscription services such as V CAST Mobile TV, VZ Navigator, Visual Voicemail and V CAST Music.

Motorola Krave ZN4 – Using the Cell Phone

This cell phone weighs in at about 4 and a half ounces and is a little bulky.

Virtual Dial Pad and Keyboard. The virtual dial pad and virtual QWERTY keyboard are a little difficult to use at times, and sometimes the wrong letter or number shows up when pushed. Texting is not very quick with this phone. I hope to get faster with more use.

Making Calls. The phone is a little difficult to get used to when making a call that you have to press numbers during the call. The touch screen automatically locks and goes dark during the call. However, I have a pattern that works well for me when making this sort of call.

If the screen is dark, touch it to make it light back up. You will see a red bar across the screen that says “drag to unlock”. If you slide your finger across this red bar, the screen will unlock and you can press the appropriate number on the dial pad. It is a little extra work each time you have to press a number, but not hard to adjust to.

The earpiece works well for clear sound when talking. The microphone works well, too, as my husband says our calls are much clearer since getting this phone.

Changing Menus. The touch screen is a little difficult to use on the Motorola Krave, as it’s easy to touch the wrong menu selection on this touch screen. This can become frustrating if you are in a hurry.

Taking Pictures. Pictures are easy to take. Once you take a picture, there are options such as sending the picture to another cell phone or email address.  I have found, though, that the pictures are a little darker when transferred to a computer than they appear on the screen of the Motorola Krave.

Interactive Clear Flip Cover. I usually open the flip cover to use the phone. However, if I receive a call and don’t recognize the number, I can slide the unlock button on the side of the phone to access the interactive flip cover without opening it. This allows me to press “ignore call” to stop the ringer. Another slide of the button and my screen is locked again.

Other Features. There are many other features on this phone that I will probably never use. I can download games and real music ringtones, which I intend to do in the future.

Incoming Calls. Often, I do not receive an incoming call, but I’m not sure if this is a problem with the cell phone or Verizon Wireless.

Motorola Krave ZN4 Accessories

There is a large variety of cases and covers available for this cell phone. Ebay has a large selection of snap on hard and rubber covers that allow you to use the phone while the cover is in place. I found many that I like for under .00 that included free shipping. When I’m ready, I’m thinking about getting a purple rubber snap on cover for my phone.

Many other websites offer covers for this phone for under .00. Perform a Google search to see what’s available.

There is also a special stylus for purchase made especially for cell phones like the Motorola Krave. You can get these on Ebay as well, often for under .00. This might make it easier when using the virtual keyboard and dial pad. I will have to try this out at a later date.

Overall Rating of the Motorola Krave

Retailing at 9.99, this cell phone is much more phone than I need. If I had to pay for a new cell phone, I’m not sure the Motorola Krave would be the one. The extra steps needed when making calls that require me to press a certain number and the difficulty of using the virtual keyboard and dial pad are frustrating at times. I prefer a cell phone with actual buttons to push. It is a good quality phone when having a conversation.

I would give the Motorola Krave a rating of 3.5 out of 5.

1) Verizon Wireless; Motorola Krave ZN4; Verizon Wireless

They did it with the MILESTONEs and the DROID X, the BACKFLIP and the DEFY. With the ATRIX 4G, Moto says it has no plans to live in the shadows of other big makers.

Motorola ATRIX 4G official photos

The Motorola ATRIX 4G is the first dual-core smartphone in the Motorola line-up. It’s also the first to flaunt a qHD touchscreen. That’s as solid as credentials get. Add the fact it’s the first handset for Motorola to support the fast HSDPA+ network (hence the 4G moniker) and you’ve got yourself a Droid that’s not afraid of what comes next.

Dual core is certainly the next big thing in mobile phones and the Motorola ATRIX deserves credit for being among the first – our bad really, this review isn’t exactly on time.

But there are other bold decisions that Motorola had to make. The HD and laptop docks for one – though the concept is not exactly original, Motorola is trying to make it mainstream. The added fingerprint scanner is not new either but well forgotten old does just as well. Plus, it will satisfy the privacy freak in all of us.

Anyway, the standard package is what we’re interested in and this is what our review will focus on. The optional extras can wait. The ATRIX is more important to us a phone (a dual-core smartphone, to be precise) than a wannabe laptop or a potential entertainment dock. Let’s waste no more time and take a glimpse of the ATRIX 4G’s key features.

Key featuresQuad-band GSM and dual-band 3G with HSDPA and HSUPA 4″ 16M-color capacitive touchscreen of qHD (960 x 540 pixels) resolution, scratch-resistant Gorilla glassDual-core 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 proccessor, ULP GeForce GPU, Tegra 2 chipset; 1GB of RAM Android OS v2.2; MOTOBLUR UI (update to Gingerbread planned) Web browser with Adobe Flash 10.1 support5 MP autofocus camera with dual-LED flash; face detection, geotagging 720p video recording @ 30fps (to be upgraded to 1080p Full-HD ) Wi-Fi ab/g/n; Wi-Fi hotspot functionality; DLNAGPS with A-GPS; Digital compassFingerprint scanner that doubles as a power key16GB storage; expandable via a microSD slot Accelerometer and proximity sensorStandard 3.5 mm audio jack microUSB port (charging) and stereo Bluetooth v2.1 with A2DPstandard microHDMI portSmart and voice dialingOffice document editorActive noise cancellation with a dedicated secondary micDivX/XviD video supportLapdock and HD Dock versatilityWeb browser with Adobe Flash 10.2 supportMain disadvantagesNot the latest Android versionNo FM radioScreen image is pixelated upon closer inspectionQuestionable placement of the Power/Lock buttonPoor pinch zoom implementation in the galleryNo dedicated shutter keyDoesn’t operate without a SIM card inside

The ATRIX 4G is certainly the most powerful phone Motorola has made so far. With a 1GHz dual-core processor, 1GB worth of RAM and the ultra low power GeForce GPU under its hood, the ATRIX 4G is set to win the hearts and minds of power users.

Motorola ATRIX 4G live photos

Garnish all this premium hardware with a 5MP camera with dual LED flash and a 4-inch capacitive touchscreen of qHD resolution of 540×960 pixels, and the ATRIX 4G is more than ready to play with the other dual-core kids.

As for us, we are about to take a closer look at the design and build of the phone and find out if it matches the premium hardware that resides within.

The Nokia E72 is said to be one of Nokia’s ‘power-phones’. Like other E-series devices, Nokia E72 is an enterprise-based smart phone. In this phone too, the company resides all the attractive features as it were present in the previous version E-71. Nokia E72 has been introduced into the market with some major modifications which can easily entice anyone.

If you are thinking about buying this phone, don’t forget to check out the best deals on Amazon for Nokia E72

Its standard features include mobile email, calendar and instant messaging, along with that it inherits almost all features of E71. One of the most appealing features of the Nokia E72 is its dainty design. This makes E72 a complete business-oriented cell phone that comes with compact size and reliability. Now, when we talk about upgradations and enhancements that are included in this phone in comparison to its predecessor then, we have list, long enough to convince a business phone user to change over to the Nokia E 72.

Symbian OS 9.3, USB charging, Accelerometer and Magnetometer sensors, Digital compass etc are some of its new added features. Above all these features, the major addition is that Nokia E72 has a new Optical Navi Key feature rather than standard D-pad. This will surely overwhelm you as a user, as it improves the ease of scrolling through menus, emails, Internet browser and images as it is an optical sensor rather than closely-spaced buttons.

5-Megapixel camera has much better image quality than most other business phone. The 600MHz processor which gives higher level of performance, twice the amount of ROM, HSDPA support of up to 10.2 Mbps, Tri-band instead of Duo-band, improved CPU clock speed etc are some of its main and major upgradations. Nokia has improved the design of the functional keys to make it easier to use and they look as if made of polished metal. Its display measures 2.4-inches and has QVGA resolution which makes it totally useable in direct sunlight.

So, it can be said that it is a perfect Personal Digital Assistant for the corporate users. The Nokia E72 is extremely stylish handset and a phone which can fulfill today’s every demand. Despite of being introduced as a business phone, it may even win over people’s heart who are looking for a phone which is high on features, good looking and hip.

If you are thinking about buying this phone, don’t forget to check out the best deals on Amazon for Nokia E72

Introduction:

Let’s reminisce for a bit shall we? It was roughly a year ago when we were all finally entertained as AT&T ushered in the era of Android as the carrier introduced the socially right round Motorola BACKFLIP. Being the last of the major carriers to enter the Android game, customers were probably hoping to be entertained by some kind of high caliber device, rather, they were only subjected to the mid-range offering. Since then, and up to the beginning of the New Year, customers had to endure and wallow with a sea of forgettable devices from Motorola’s camp – such as the BRAVO, FLIPSIDE, and FLIPOUT.

Call it an injustice or whatever you want, but now they aim to erase all prior memories as we open up our arms and embrace all the loveliness that the Motorola ATRIX 4G is about to offer. Not only it is the first truly respectable offering from Motorola’s camp for AT&T, but it’s gunning to position itself as the best smartphone device in its class amongst the carrier’s lineup. Naturally, there are plenty of goodies strapped in for the ride. But it’s taking things into new territories that haven’t been explored yet. But in the end, will these new ventures actually transition to something that consumers want?

The package contains:

Motorola ATRIX 4G

microUSB Cable

Wall Charger

microHDMI Cable

Quickstart Guide

Design:

With all the impressive hardware under its hood, one can easily overlook the less than tasteful design it’s sporting. There’s no arguing about it, but when it’s compared to some of Verizon’s babies, say the Motorola DROID X, the ATRIX 4G doesn’t come off as boasting a stellar design. Rather, it resorts to a minimalistic approach that’s rounded on the corners and is constructed out of some marginally acceptable plastics. At the same time though, it’s very lightweight (4.76 oz.) thanks to its plastic housing, while still tucking away easily in the pockets due to its slim (0.43” thick) looks.  However, we do find its back cover intriguing thanks to the pattern painted on here that provides a shimmering effect when the handset is tilted at various angles. It’s not sexy by any means, but its design is tolerable enough to accept.

The Motorola ATRIX 4G resorts to a minimalistic approach that’s rounded on the corners

You can compare the Motorola ATRIX 4G with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

Looking past its design, our eyes are greeted to an illustrious 4” qHD (540 x 960) LCD display that packs plenty of crisp details that make even the tiniest of text extremely visible to the naked eye. Moreover, color output is fantastically natural looking and luscious to behold without having the over-saturated looks of an AMOLED display. In outdoor settings under the gaze of the sun, it’s still workable without the need of being shielded thanks to its strong luminance output. Plus, viewing angles are actually good with the handset since colors retain their level even at some extreme angles. And lastly, the display is quite receptive in registering all of our gestures and presses.

The Motorola ATRIX 4G has a 4” qHD LCD display

Viewing angles

As always, the usual set of capacitive touch Android buttons line the bottom area beneath the display. Though, we still had a tendency of accidentally pressing on them since they’re placed somewhat close to the edge. Next to the earpiece, the 0.3-megapixel front facing camera is perched nearby, while the proximity and light sensors are there as well.

Front facing camera

Placed alongside one another, we find the microUSB and microHDMI ports built into the left edge of the phone. The tandem enables the handset to offer some new innovative features that truly deliver in making the ATRIX 4G a great handset, but we’ll explain more about that later on.

Now the only thing found on the right side is the ample sized volume rocker that provides a reasonable amount of feedback when pressed.

The sides of the Motorola ATRIX 4G

While on the top, we’re presented with the 3.5mm headset jack with the dedicated power button placed awkwardly towards the back and at angle. Rectangular in shape, some might be thrown off by it, but it actually doubles as a finger print reader which is used to unlock the device. Definitely adding yet another level of peace of mind, we like its tactile response and ability to unlock the device – which is still rarely found on most of today’s smartphones. Additionally, the noise cancelling microphone is found close-by as well.

The dedicated power button doubles
as a finger print reader

Turning it around to its rear, we’re greeted with its unmistakable 5-megapixel auto-focus camera with dual-LED flash, while the speakerphone grill is found towards the bottom portion. Removing the back cover is simply done by yanking it off from either the top or bottom edges, and once that’s done, you have access to its larger than normal 1930 mAh battery, SIM card slot, and microSD card slot.

Nokia has announced Nokia E7 QWERTY slider smartphone at Nokia World 2010 event in London on 14th September, 2010. At this event, it also announced Nokia C7 and Nokia C6. AT Nokia World, it has a 4-inch tilting touchscreen display on the front and an 8 megapixel imager capable of 720p video on the back. The E7 also features Nokia’s new ClearBlack Display. It is also comes with operating system, which allows users to work on documents, review spreadsheets as well as read/edit slides. With the Nokia E7 being designed for business users, a security solution is also available for the device.

Nokia E7 is called as the ultimate business smartphone with Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync on board. It offers direct, real-time and secure access to corporate email inboxes and other personal applications. IT comes with both touchscreen and QWERTY keypad.

Nokia E7 Specs & Features

Symbian^3 operating system

8 Megapixel camera with dual-LED flash

720p video recording and editing

4-inch touchscreen display

16 GB microSD memory card slot

mini-HDMI out

Bluetooth, Wi-Fi

FM transmitter

Adobe PDF reader

OVI Maps

Keys and input methods

Full QWERTY keyboard

Home key, Power key, Lock key, Camera key, Volume key

Finger touch support for text input and UI control

On-screen alphanumeric keypad and full keyboard

Possibility to use capacitive stylus

Full screen handwriting recognition

Handwriting recognition for Chinese

The expected price of Nokia E7 is 495 EUR or 638 USD and it is hit the stores before the end of the year. It is available in three colors Darkgrey, silver white and blue.

Source: B4tea.com

The Blackberry Bold 9700 is a well-built phone with a solid feel. Unlike many phones on the market, there can be little doubt that the 9700 will still be fully functional two, three or even four years down the line.

It is much more compact than its predecessor(the 9000) and the full qwerty keyboard has been squeezed into the available space. The keys are small, but are well designed. In spite of the size it is simple to type accurately.

The other Blackberry features include the leather back and the carry case that provides protection.

Call quality is better than many of the phone’s competitors. Many phones are feature rich but fail on the fundamental function.

The phone comes with a 2 GB memory card providing enough space to store a reasonable amount of music. This can be upgraded to 16 GB. It falls short of the Nokia 5800 with a standard 8 GB, and the Nokia X6 with 32 GB internal memory. The sound quality is quite good, matching much of the competition and the handset is equipped with a choice of preset equaliser settings that only seem to work when connected to the headset.

The headset supplied with the phone is reasonable good producing somewhat better sound than the speakers. The headset can be connected when the phone is in the holster as can the USB cable.

Of course one of the main advantages of the Blackberry is to get the Blackberry Internet Service that allows you to receive all your emails and use the Internet at no additional cost.

Every email that arrives is accompanied by a vibration. SMSs are grouped according to where they come from.

Many smart phones come ready equipped with GPS but most do not include a licence for navigation software. The 9700 has two applications to fill the purpose. Blackberry Maps Garmaps for Mobile. Garmaps includes voice navigation, traffic condition notifications and notifications of speed cameras. It works well but is rather slow to load.

Blackberry Maps failed to locate a street address but managed to do so under advanced search.

The display on the unit is clear providing excellent visibility even in the sun. The orientation is landscape which works quite well for most applications. The device is DivX compatible and will play most videos well.

The Blackberry Browser makes it simple to navigate the Web. The home site is (not surprisingly) Blackberry. Various downloads are offered including a U2 album. Unfortunately, this download results in a response that the device is not compatible. Then there are a range of Blackberry Applications to be downloaded – many for free.

Opera Mini 5 beta 2 for Blackberry works well on the phone providing a good alternative to the very adequate Blackberry Browser.

The camera is disappointing. It offers 3.2 megapixel resolution that should be able to deliver decent results. But it is outclassed by the Nokia 5800 with the same resolution. Apart from the ability to Geotag the photos and the simplicity of zooming in and out, the camera does not offer much else. I attempted a night shot of an accident scene but could not frame the picture in the dark. With the competition offering up to 12 Mega Pixels (the Sony Ericsson Satio, for example), RIM should have upped the quality and capability of the camera.

The track pad is one of the nice features of the phone. It allows for easy scrolling through pictures, documents, emails and the Web.

The office applications loaded onto the phone make it possible to view and edit MS office documents – Word, Powerpoint and Excel. Many competitors include a view-only licence.

The operating system is so last-century! There are text menus everywhere. The first click of the menu button returns an array of poorly designed icons that take you to the next level of menu options. After that, all menus are in text style. The options are not very extensive either. A throw-back to Dos or Windows for Workgroups 3.11 if anyone can remember that far back.

The other main problem is the Desktop Manager application for the computer. It allows you to sync music using iTunes or Windows Media Player. But trying to download a single song is quite problematic. Nokia has a simple drag and drop process for file transfer. Nothing close to that here. While you can charge the phone using the USB connection to your computer, you cannot access any media files while the phone is connected. Apart from that, the application keeps freezing. It is faster and simpler to use Windows Explorer to transfer files.

Connecting using the micro USB allows the phone to charge from your computer. A very useful feature that frees you from carrying a charger at all times. The charger that is supplied with the phone is ideal for travel and includes an adapter for every type of electrical connection.

Battery life is excellent. After a day of full use that included much listening to music, using the GPS, many calls and Internet browsing, there was still plenty of battery power to last through the next day.

The Blackberry 9700 is quite different from most other smart-phones on the market. The big selling points are the reputation that has been acquired for the phones, Blackberry Messenger and the Blackberry Internet and Enterprise services (BIS & BES). The finish is good and feels like a quality product. The email handling is great. The main disappointments are the operating system and the camera. The menu driven system is clunky and long-winded, neither intuitive or user friendly.

Without the BIS, the Blackberry falls short of the competition in this price range. Perhaps RIM should take serious note of the competition that has emerged at this end of the market before its next release. The Blackberry 9700 has the newly upgraded Blackberry operating system 5. This falls far short of the Windows Mobile and Symbian systems available.

Nokia E6 Mobile Phone
Price : Rs. 16999
Nokia E6 Mobile Phone Overview
Key Features:
2.46″ TFT LCD Capacitive Touch Screen
Dual Camera (Front: VGA / Back: 8 MP)
3G & WiFi Connectivity
GPS Support
Symbian Anna
Touch Screen with Qwerty Keypad
Expandable Memory 32 GB using Micro SD card
Office Document Editors
Get the best of both worlds with the Nokia E6 that gives you the finest QWERTY and touch experience. Switch from touch to QWERTY and back to touch again instantly to ease your e-mailing and status updating needs. The E6 boasts of the latest Symbian operating system that comes with five home screens, an improved browser and redesigned interface. Get e-mails straight from your personal and work accounts and 24/7 live feeds from Facebook and Twitter. Its stunning 8-megapixel full focus camera has a 2x digital zoom to capture life-like pictures. Create memories in motion with its HD 720p video recording at 25fps. Discover millions of places and explore new paths with its FREE GPS navigation using the latest Ovi Maps. Everything looks crisp on its bright 2.46-inch LCD display and durable glass. Store more as the E6 comes with 8 GB of internal memory and support for MicroSD cards up to 32 GB. This handset is available in Black color
Specifications: Size & Weight
Display: 2.46″ TFT LCD Capacitive Touch Screen
Dimension: 115.5 x 59 x 10.5 mm
Weight: 133 gms
Design & Display
Type: QWERTY
Camera
Camera: Back – 8MP / Front – VGA
Camera Features: Full Focus, 2x Digital Zoom
Video Recording: Yes, HD quality 720p resolution
Battery
Type: 1500 mAh Standard Li-Ion Battery
Talk Time: Up to 14 hrs 48 mins
Standby Time: Up to 681 hrs
Audio & Video
Music Player: Yes with 3.5 mm AV connector
Radio: Stereo FM radio with RDS
Compatibility: Audio: MP3, WMA, AAC, eAAC, eAAC+, AMR-NB, AMR-WB
Video: H.264
Data & Connectivity
WiFi/ GPRS/ EDGE/ Bluetooth/ USB: Yes
3G/GPS: Yes
Operating System: Symbian Anna
Memory
Internal Memory: 8 GB
External Memory: Up to 32 GB using MicroSD Slot
Other Features
Other Features: Proximity sensor
Ambient light detector
Flight mode
Ovi Store
Web TV
Office Document Editors
A-GPS
MS Outlook synchronisation of contacts
MMS/SMS editor
Warranty
Accessories:
Nokia High Efficiency Charger AC-15, Nokia Stereo Headset WH-207, Nokia Connectivity Cable CA-179, Quick start guide
The Nokia E6 continues Nokia’s business E series with updated version of Symbian^3. The sleek new addition features a 2.46″ LCD capacitive touchscreen, made of Gorilla Glass to protect it from scratches.The phone comes with an 8-megapixel fixed-focus snapper with dual-LED flash which can record 720p HD video. It has GPS, Wi-Fi, FM radio, and Bluetooth.