BlackBerry Bold 9700 review
The BlackBerry Bold 9700 is the sequel to the much loved, but muffin-topped BlackBerry Bold, promising 3G surfing and push email in a handset the size of a Curve. Does it mix the best of both worlds? Read on and find out in our full Bold 9700 review.
We’ll say it up front, the BlackBerry Bold 9700 is one of the best handsets ever built. It’s a phenomenal feat of industrial design: it’s slim, with a sharp screen, snug leather back cover and an optical trackpad that replaces the grit magnet trackball for the better. It’s not just the most beautiful BlackBerry ever, but one of the finest looking phones ever constructed, full stop.
If we had one fault with the BlackBerry Bold 9700, it’s that the keypad is ever so slightly wobbly. We prefer the hard, clicky feel of the BlackBerry Curve 8520 over it, but the spacious keys more than make up for the difference.
It’s the software though that makes or breaks a phone these days, and it’s BlackBerry’s OS which will clear up whether the BlackBerry Bold 9700 is for you. It’s a new version, number 5. It’s still got the same general look – and of course, perfect email – as seen on the previous Bold, but there have been a few tweaks. You can now scroll smoothly through photos with the trackpad, for instance, and the text message inbox has had a revamp, to show messages as conversations better.
But despite strong work and office support for the BlackBerry Bold 9700, its lack of consumer friendly apps compared to the iPhone is beginning to show: if you want all sorts of ways to watch mobile TV on the fly, or tweak snaps you’ve just taken, an Android phone or Apple’s baby could be for you. That’s not to say the BlackBerry Bold 9700 isn’t an excellent media player – it is – but the small square screen is starting to feel a bit limiting.
The real decision to make here is what you need your smartphone for. If you like to fire off emails as often as you take breaths, you’ll love the quick scrolling and fast typing of the BlackBerry Bold 9700. But that 2.4-inch screen, though sharper than ever, is a bit too cramped for full on web browsing, not helped by RIM’s slow browser, which doesn’t let you open more than one window at a time. What gives? If you’re about surfing the net, watching videos and taking shots on the fly, there are other smartphones out there to better suit your mood. But if you just want to get things done, the BlackBerry Bold 9700 cannot be beaten.
Verdict
The best BlackBerry ever made. Fact.
Love
3G hook-up
Incredible build
Hate
The BlackBerry browser falls far behind the competition
Keyboard not as good as other new BlackBerrys
The spec
Screen: 480×360 pixels, 2.4-inches
Connectivity: 3G, Wi-Fi, A-GPS
Camera: 3.2MP
Storage: 256MB flash, expandable up to 16GB (via microSD card)
What do you think of the BlackBerry Bold 9700? Shout up with your thoughts in the comments below…
October 27th, 2009 at 8:38 pm
Poor review, nothing mentioned about the camera-especially if theres any shutter lag/GPS software/price/performance of processor/photos of the actual device held in hand etc are all missing…plus theres a few grammer mistakes:
1. “and it’s BlackBerry’s OS which will”. You clearly have no idea how to use the apostrophe, correct: its.
2. “let you open more than window at a time”. You forgot “one”.
I haven’t seen any other reviews of phones on this website so maybe this poor level is normal for you. I won’t be coming back that’s for sure…
October 28th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
You slip in the devastating comment at the very end that the keyboard is not as good as other blackberrys – how can you do that? The keyboard is one of, if not THE most important aspect to a blackberry user. Please explain what you thought was wrong with this keyboard – I was about to buy this model but now I’ll hold off until I understand what this is about.
October 28th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
Noman,
Are you joking? Your review contains more grammar mistakes than you found in the whole of the 9700 review.
Grow up, and work out what’s important in life. Grammar, quite frankly, is not.
October 30th, 2009 at 9:23 am
Hi Norman – Linsey from Fonehome here. Apologies for not mentioning the camera, but, the BlackBerry Bold 9700 is not primarily a camphone – it’s a business tool, and therefore it’s about its processing power, apps and its ease of use when emailing and connecting to the web.
That said, the camera has been improved to 3.2MP with increased light sensitivity, but we think that prospective camphone buyers would look to offerings from Samsung, LG or Sony Ericsson.
I’ve also changed the missing word in the review, but kept “it’s” as it is – in this instance it’s a contraction of “it is” and so correct.
Hope this all makes sense!
L
November 1st, 2009 at 11:00 pm
@ Jonathan
Are you joking?
My review contains virtually no grammer mistakes you fool but lets say it did, it wouldn’t matter because my job isn’t writing articles which requires someone with excellent grammer. I wouldn’t be surprised if your ‘Sam’, the reviewer disguised as ‘Jonathan’!
I was simply stating that the Camera had improved but wasn’t mentioned in the review. Plus the other points I mentioned. Thanks Linsey for attemping to clear some things up. I have the BlackBerry Curve and I’m not a business user.
November 2nd, 2009 at 8:56 am
Grammar and the web are not synonymous! I am a Bold 9000 user,
on his fourth trackball since purchase Dec. ‘08. So, if the
new trackpad is impervious to dirt/grease and the 9700 is otherwise basically
the same as a 9000 updated to OS 5.0, I’d buy it – once it also included a
flash player.
November 2nd, 2009 at 4:27 pm
@noman
Did you pay to read this review? Did it provide the information that it said it would? Did it promise perfect grammar? By the way you spell grammar with an “ar” not and “er”. Take it easy on a writer that provides free information to you.
I found that this review was acceptable for what I needed. Thanks reviewer.
PS I can’t wait to own this phone.
November 21st, 2009 at 7:19 pm
Good review I will be buying my first blackberry for business. Good old Norman sounds by the nasty tone of his e-mail, like he has no mates. Well done Lynsey for not telling him where to place his blackberry.
November 23rd, 2009 at 9:00 pm
1. “and it’s BlackBerry’s OS which will”. You clearly have no idea how to use the apostrophe, correct: its.
* * *
You know, it’s always embarrassing to point out someone’s “mistake,” only to find out that they were right and you were the one who was wrong, isn’t it?
I mention this only because “it’s” is correct in this instance. It’s short for “it is.”
But then, being a punctuation expert, you probably already knew that, and were just testing the rest of us to make sure we were paying attention.
November 24th, 2009 at 8:49 am