Everyone say it with me now: "It's about flippin' time." The CDMA version of the RIM BlackBerry Pearl is finally outand though it's been a long wait (the originalGSM version debuted more than a year ago)we have to say it was worth the extra time.
The Good
The Bad
The Bottom Line
You seethe RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8130 keeps the same compact and sexy design of its predecessor yet manages to pack in even more features. There's built-in GPSadded video-recording capabilitiesand an improved Web browser. In additionyou get EV-DO support and a 2-megapixel camera.
We had some minor complaintsnamely that the SureType keyboard requires a learning curve and that call quality can be slightly spotty at times. Howeverthe new additionscoupled with the tried-and-true BlackBerry messaging functionsmake the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8130 an attractive choice for consumers and professionals looking for a sleek all-in-one device. The silver model is available now through Verizon Wireless for $199.99 with a two-year contract and after rebates.
Design
The hardware on the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8130 hasn't changed much from the original Pearlbut that's not a bad thingsince we're fans of the Pearl's overall look. Howeverthere are some slight tweakswhich we'll note as we talk about the smartphone's design.
Thankfullythe BlackBerry 8130 still keeps a slim profilemeasuring a slight 4.2 inches long by 1.9 inches wide by 0.5 inch deepand weighing 3.4 ounces. You'll have no problem slipping this handset into your pants pocketand it feels comfortable and natural to hold during phone calls. The silver chassis may seem ordinary to somebut we think it's sleek and attractive. For the momentVerizon Wireless will not offer the amethyst colorbut it may decide to add it in the future.
Front and centeryou have a 2.25-inch non-touch screen that displays 65,536 colors at a 260x240 pixel resolution. Text and images look sharp and vibrantand the display features a light-sensing technology that will automatically adjust the backlightingdepending on your environment.
You can choose different font sas well as customize the home screen to your liking with various themesbackground imagesand menu s. There's also a small LED in the upper-right corner of the Pearl that illuminates various colors for different status alertssuch as new messageslow batteryand so forth.
Below the displayyou'll find the same navigation array and SureType keyboard of past BlackBerry Pearls. You get Talk and End keysa shortcut to the main menu pagea back button andof coursethe pearl-like trackball navigator that started the whole Pearl revolution. All the controls are easy to useand you can adjust the trackball's vertical and horizontal sensitivity under Options > Screen/keyboard.
And then there's the SureType keyboard. I've made it no secret that I'm not a fan of the modified keyboard. For those who are unfamiliar with SureTypethere are two letters assigned to one key. As you start to enter the letters of a wordthe SureType software will present you with a list of possible letter combinations or wordsbased on context.
PersonallyI found it irritatingbut I also know plenty of Pearl users who don't mind it and have no complaints. As with anything newit just takes some time to acclimate toand it's a trade-off for the smaller design. One other minor observation: the keyboard's backlighting is a bit uneven and gives the buttons a cheapplasticky look. It's definitely not a deal breakerbut just something we couldn't help but notice.
The most notable differences between the Pearl 8130 and the original GSM version are found on the side controls--all welcome additions. On the left spineyou'll now find a 3.5mm headphone jackso you can plug in decent headphonesand the microSD expansion slot has been relocated from behind the battery to the exterior of the phone for easy access.
There's also a mini USB port and a customizable quick-launch button on the leftwhile there's another convenience key and the volume rocker on the right. The top of the device has a Mute buttonand the camera lensthe flashand the self-portrait mirror are located on the back.
Verizon Wireless packages the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8130 with an AC adaptera USB cablea wired headseta soft protective poucha BlackBerry Desktop software CDand reference material. For more add-onsplease check our cell phone accessoriesringtonesand help page.
Features
The RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8130 is noteworthy for more than just the fact that it's the first CDMA Pearl. It's also the first device from RIM to offer video-recording capabilities and the first Pearl to have built-in GPSnot to mention the EV-DO support and improved Web browser. But first things first: Let's discuss the phone capabilities.
Voice features on the BlackBerry Pearl 8130 include a speakerphonevoice dialing and commandsconference callingtext and multimedia messagingand call-audio enhancementwhich lets you boost the bass or treble. The address book is limited only by the available memory (64MB flash)and each entry can hold up to eight numberswork and home addressese-mail and Web addressescompany informationand notes. For caller ID purposesyou can assign a photo to a contact as well as a group category--business or personal--or one of 45 polyphonic ringtones. The Pearl also supports MP3 and MIDI ringtones.
Unlike the 3G-deprived GSM Pearlsthe Pearl 8130 works on Verizon's EV-DO networkbringing data speeds of about 300Kbps to 600Kbpsthough they could potentially hit 2.4Mbps. This means you should enjoy a faster Web-surfing experienceand it should also be more enjoyablethanks to the improved browser.
Compared with Windows MobileSymbianor Palm devicesthe BlackBerry Web browser has always been kludgy and laborious for viewing sites; it requires a lot of scrolling up and down with the trackball or scroll wheel. Howevernow you get an onscreen cursor that you can move in any direction and place on any part of the page where you can click a link. In additionthere's a Page View option that enables you to easily zoom in on part of a page. It's definitely a huge improvementand the boost of EV-DO speeds is heaven-sent. Disappointinglythe Pearl 8130 does not support any of Verizon's V Cast services.
Other wireless options on the BlackBerry Pearl 8130 include Bluetooth 2.0 and GPS. You can use Bluetooth to connect to mono and stereo Bluetooth headsetshands-free kitsand dial-up networking. To use the Pearl as a modem for your laptopyou will need to purchase a Broadband Access Plan from Verizonwhich starts at $15 per month. It does nothoweversupport the object exchange profile.
The built-in GPS enables you to use the Pearl as a handheld navigation device. The device comes preloaded with the BlackBerry maps application that can provide text-based driving directions and search for local businesses. Howeveryou can also get more robust programssuch as Google Maps for Mobile or Verizon's VZ Navigatorwhich can provide real-time trackingtext- and voice-guided directionspoints of interesttraffic dataand more. Be aware that the latter is an add-on service and costs $9.99 per month or $2.99 for 24-hour access.
The camera also gets an upgrade to a 2-megapixel lens (from 1.3 megapixels)but more importantlyyou can now record video--a first for a BlackBerry. For still imagesthere's a 5x zoom and flashas well as three picture sizes and three quality options. You also get white-balance settings and several color effects you can add to the photo.
Video options are limited with just two video formats (normal or multimedia message)three color effectsand a video light. Picture quality was pretty good for a camera phone. Objects were sharply definedbut we wish there was a bit more brightness to the colors. Meanwhilevideo quality was subparas our recorded clips looked dim and jerky.
Other than these new capabilitiesthe BlackBerry Pearl retains many of the same features that has made BlackBerrys popularsuch as e-mail. The smartphone can sync with your company's BlackBerry Enterprise serverwith support for Microsoft ExchangeIBM Lotus Dominoor Novell GroupWiseto deliver corporate e-mail in real time. It also supports up to 10 personal/business POP3 or IMAP4 e-mail accounts. Instant messaging is limited to the proprietary BlackBerry Messenger client.
For mobile professionalsan attachment viewer opens popular file formatssuch as Microsoft WordExcelPowerPointCorel WordPerfectPDFJPEGGIFand more. You can also view tracked changes and embedded images and zoomand rotate documentsbut you can't edit documents out of the boxthough third-party software is available that allows this functionality.
The built-in media player remains pretty much the same. You can listen to MP3WMAAACAAC+eAAC+AMR-NBand MIDI music filesand MPEG4WMVand H.263 video clips. For musicyou can create playlists as "folders," and shuffle and repeat songs within a certain folder. It also displays song titlesthe artistand album artif available.
In video modeyou get the option of full screenreplayand repeat. Other applications on the Pearl include a calendara task lista memo padan alarm clocka password keepera calculatora Brickbreaker gameand a voice recorder.
Performance
We tested the dual-band (CDMA 850/1900; EV-DO) RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8130 in San Francisco using Verizon Wireless serviceand call quality was OK. On our endwe could hear a slight background hissbut there was clear audio and plenty of volume. In other wordsit wasn't anything that prevented us from carrying on a conversation or interacting with our bank's voice-automated system.
Meanwhileour friends said we sounded finealbeit a bit hollow. Activating the speakerphone didn't diminish the call quality too much. Finallywe had no problems pairing the Pearl 8130 with the Logitech Mobile Traveller Bluetooth headsetor the Motorola S9 Bluetooth Active Headphones.
Overallthe Pearl 8130 was a responsive device with minimal performance lags. We tried out the GPS capabilities with VZ Navigatorand it took about 3 minutes for the Pearl to get a fix on our location--pretty impressive for a cell phone.
Once locked onit did a good job of tracking our position and offered accurate driving directionsthough we think in-car use is a bit limitedgiven the smaller screen size. Multimedia performance was OK. There was a bit of hollowness to songsand we craved more bass.
We are glad to see the inclusion of the 3.5mm jacksince plugging in some decent headphones improved the sound. We got the usual pixelation when watching video clipsbut at least the audio and images synced up.
The BlackBerry Pearl 8130 is rated 3.6 hours of talk time and up to 9 days of standby time. We are still conducting our battery drain tests but will update this section as soon as we have final results. According to FCC radiation tests the Pearl 8130 has a digital SAR rating of 1.48 watts per kilogram.