[richard371]

I've been using the ATT Blackberry Bold I got at the SF launch party since tuesday and here are a few comments/observations:

1) 3g reception and switching to EDGE etc is about the same as the Iphone. (clearly an ATT issue now.) ATT has disabled the option to turn off 3g on the Bold which sucks. On the Rogers model you can.
2) The UI is very fast. Everything runs perfectly in the background and opens instantly. Multitasking with Jivetalk etc is a much better exp on the BB even when push is released for the iphone. I will chat in JT go out to email, send an sms ,go to BB messenger, back to jivealk all with ease.
3) Battery life is decent but hard to judge since it's new I play with it a lot so its runs down faster.
4) screen is sharper then the Iphone because its the same resolution but smaller pixels
5) Voice quality about the same.
6) External speakers are awesome can use it to listen to music when in hotels etc. Best I have heard on a phone period.
7) Iphone has much cooler apps and is more fun to use.
8) The Bold still uses the Blackberry software that has been around for years where the Iphone is more innovative.
9) cam has a flash which is great when inside dark bar or club etc.

If I had to pick one it would be a very hard choice. The Iphone feels more solid, sexier, more innovative, much better browser, maps. Now that my Bold is breaking in the back is creaky when I type. The Bold smokes the Iphone when it comes to email, messaging, Jivetalk, copy paste, multitasking etc. I now reply to emails and chat with friends online with the Bold because the KB is so awesome. The iphone kb kills me.

My ATT sim is a Blackberry account so I love how I can switch back and forth and I get data on both devices just no visual VM. So I will carry which ever one I am in the mood for as i get my corporate email on both.

Just my 2 cents. Feel free to ask any questions. the Bold will be out Nov 4th for ATT.

[conker]

Hi thanks for the breakdown. You mentioned that the battery is running down faster because you are using it heavily right now testing out your new device. Can you be more specific as to how long the battery is lasting for you under this heavy use?

Which BlackBerry did you own last?

Thanks.

[NJBlackBerry]

No task syncing on the iPhone
No notes syncing on the iPhone
Can't add people to a meeting (Calendar) on the iPhone
No quick way to go to the top of the Address book on the iPhone

But it is cool and sexy so functionality is secondary.... The iPhone IS a great iPod. Best one I've had since the iPod Touch.

All of those things are easily accomplished on a BlackBerry. And with BES you have access to Internal web sites.

[BBFanboy]

Now with OS .162 and with heavy email useage I get about 55% battery remaining on the Bold, unplug at 7:30 am - plug back in at 12:30 night.

To define what I mean by heavy use; I get about 500 messages on a heavy day from monitored systems - plus 30-60 from people. With less than a hundred messages on a low use day I get around 70% battery remaining at the end of a day.

My 8800 was about the same. My wifes curve seems about the same.

I find that the number of messages you recieve really makes a huge difference. 1 hour of browsing seems to be the equivelant of about 100 emails.

[hnsimpson]

Wirelessly posted (8310 AT&T)

Hey- thanks for posting!

I was thinking about getting an iPhone to use as a social device, while keeping my curve as a professional device.

I think that, from what you've written, that my plan is solid.

-simpson

[holden]

Originally Posted by richard371

I've been using the ATT Blackberry Bold I got at the SF launch party since tuesday and here are a few comments/observations:

1) 3g reception and switching to EDGE etc is about the same as the Iphone. (clearly an ATT issue now.) ATT has disabled the option to turn off 3g on the Bold which sucks. On the Rogers model you can.

Richard;
Thx. for the update !!
I wonder if they were abel to shut of the EDGE/3G switching with software??
What is the version of OS your running?

Regards;

H.

[test54]

Originally Posted by NJBlackBerry

No task syncing on the iPhone
No notes syncing on the iPhone
Can't add people to a meeting (Calendar) on the iPhone
No quick way to go to the top of the Address book on the iPhone

But it is cool and sexy so functionality is secondary.... The iPhone IS a great iPod. Best one I've had since the iPod Touch.

All of those things are easily accomplished on a BlackBerry. And with BES you have access to Internal web sites.

Same answer as always but not many people outside the BES crowd care about tasks / notes / calendar meetings. If thats important then choose a BES BB as you have pointed out many many times.

BTW if clicking the search icon is not fast enough to go to the top of address book (one touch) then I'm not sure how much faster it could be.

Everyone does not need the same device or the same 1998 OS.

[JSanders]

I'm running .167 on the ATT Network, on a Rogers 9000, I have the option to use on 2G (as it is called) or 2G and 3G.

[NJBlackBerry]

Originally Posted by test54

Same answer as always but not many people outside the BES crowd care about tasks / notes / calendar meetings. If thats important then choose a BES BB as you have pointed out many many times.

BTW if clicking the search icon is not fast enough to go to the top of address book (one touch) then I'm not sure how much faster it could be.

Everyone does not need the same device or the same 1998 OS.

Yawn. Get your iPhoney chargers replaced already?

We support enterprise users. They ARE interested in tasks, notes and calendars. It is important to give both sides of the story. Just because you aren't (and clearly are a big fan of the iPhone) doesn't mean others don't need to know about it. Could be a big surprise when they find out.

On the other hand, I have not found a Phonesaber application for my BB.

[Christie83]

Just to let you know, AT&T requires the iPhone to be used with the iPhone-specific data plan.. You could possibly be charged a crazy amount for data and they reserve the right to add the correct plan. Have heard from Sentries on the AT&T forums that they look for the discrepencies....

Just wanted to let you know...

[test54]

Originally Posted by NJBlackBerry

Yawn. Get your iPhoney chargers replaced already?

We support enterprise users. They ARE interested in tasks, notes and calendars. It is important to give both sides of the story. Just because you aren't (and clearly are a big fan of the iPhone) doesn't mean others don't need to know about it. Could be a big surprise when they find out.

On the other hand, I have not found a Phonesaber application for my BB.

who is this we? its a forum site for BB users, most of which are not even BES users.

[NJBlackBerry]

The "we" meant people who work for corporations. Not necessarily "you".

I didn't realize you did a survey. Look, we agree to disagee. You think the iPhone is the greatest, and I don't. It is a BlackBerry Forum. And I don't recall any statistics on how many BIS vs. BES users there are.

[test54]

Thank you for making this a we vs. them thing as you do constantly in here. I like both devices. I do think that most BBF users are not BES users.

[NJBlackBerry]

I'm sorry if I disappoint you constantly.

[DrjonesUSA]

Originally Posted by NJBlackBerry

No task syncing on the iPhone
No notes syncing on the iPhone

Not natively, but with 3rd party apps it certainly can be done.

No quick way to go to the top of the Address book on the iPhone

Yes there certainly is - you touch the "A" at the top and it jumps up to last names starting with "A" which is also the top of your address book.

You can quickly jump to any letter by tapping it. It takes a little practice because the letters are so small, but it certainly can be done - I can do it!

But it is cool and sexy so functionality is secondary.... The iPhone IS a great iPod. Best one I've had since the iPod Touch.

Email certainly is better on the BB, but that is about it. I actually like the calendar BETTER because it is easier to scroll through, the touch screen is much nicer to use - faster and more fun - than the trackball.

The screen is also twice the size of any BB - enough said.

With a few minor tweaks, the iPhone could very easily leave BB in the DUST. If they made me king of the iPhone engineers for a couple weeks, the device I would crank out would merge the best of both BB and iPhone and would leave RIM SOL.

This is coming from someone who just a few weeks ago considered the iPhone to be nothing more than a fancy toy.

I was wrong, but now I see the light. :D

[DrjonesUSA]

Originally Posted by test54

. I do think that most BBF users are not BES users.

I agree. That BES is expensive for a business to implement!!!

[NJBlackBerry]

How do I sync Notes with a Third Party app please?
I need to do this. It is one of the reasons I don't use the iPhone.

The workarounds I've seen are not useful for me.

[DrjonesUSA]

Originally Posted by NJBlackBerry

How do I sync Notes with a Third Party app please?
I need to do this. It is one of the reasons I don't use the iPhone.

The workarounds I've seen are not useful for me.

Actually, I mis-typed - you can sync Tasks with Outlook, but not notes.

The best Note application I have found for iPhone is Appigo - Notebook - Overview

I too was skeptical about using web-based stuff, but the more web-based you are, the less you have to rely on lugging a computer with you when you travel!

[NJBlackBerry]

Yep - and my original note should have read "No task syncing without third party software".

I still drag a laptop around. Good article in the weekend Wall St. Journal about that very topic.

[BBFanboy]

Originally Posted by BBFanboy

Now with OS .162 and with heavy email useage I get about 55% battery remaining on the Bold, unplug at 7:30 am - plug back in at 12:30 night.

To define what I mean by heavy use; I get about 500 messages on a heavy day from monitored systems - plus 30-60 from people. With less than a hundred messages on a low use day I get around 70% battery remaining at the end of a day.

My 8800 was about the same. My wifes curve seems about the same.

I find that the number of messages you recieve really makes a huge difference. 1 hour of browsing seems to be the equivelant of about 100 emails.

Mixed news - I upgrade to .167 firmware yesterday. I was experiencing random freezes for the first time on .162 after a week of use, which stopped after a few hours. it likely was network related issue but I have never seen this before with a phone. So Upgraded to .167 to see if I get the same.

No more freezes, but also today afer 12 hours use now with approx 150 emails and moderate amount of browsing (30 minutes) I have 80% battery left.

Memory however is down to 16MB, but as long as it does not run out like it did with .126 I don't care how it uses cache.

This phone is still very much incomplete - just like the iPhone.