Customer Reviews

BlackBerry 8830 Phone, Red (Verizon Wireless)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Verizon 8830 comes in silver, black and this red version. Note that the red is not a bright cherry red, it's darker and richer - closer to a ruby than the picture might depict. The 8830 is slimmer than earlier generations and very easy to manipulate with one hand. And bless RIM for introducing a trackball rather than continuing to use that carpal tunnel-inducing scroll wheel. The other differences from earlier models are the ability to swap in a MicroSD card for more storage, GPS mapping, GSM/GPRS roaming capability, and media playback like the BB Pearl (MP3, unsecure AAC, unsecure WMA, MP4, & H.263). Battery life is fine - all-day phone usage will require a recharge like most phones but web browsing and email management all day hardly nudges the meter.

The cons? The keys are smaller than earlier generations so if you have big hands, you'll have trouble texting long messages. The default function of the left side button is voice-activated calling which is annoying because it's easy to accidentally press it. Fortunately, it can be switched to a different function. The silver version of this model has a blue backlight, which makes the keys difficult to see in the dark. This red and the black model from Verizon have a white backlight.

If you are an experienced BB user, you won't have any trouble transitioning to this model and if your company will pay for it, add broadband service so that you can use the BB as a broadband modem as well as a phone/data device. If you're new to Blackberrys, you may prefer a Curve, which has a built-in camera and is thus closer to the feature set of other non-PDA phones. Highly recommend for corporate customers and consumers who have a high volume of email to manage.

This phone is so user friendly it's ridiculous. My adult sons have IPhones and love them, but I didn't need all the extra media features so I stayed with Verizon and chose this model. First of all, it's larger than the curve so it sits well in your palm; secondly, the keyboard has a white light behind it for those of us with failing eyes and it's very easy to type txt and emails; thirdly, web browsing is very good with this larger model screen and when you upgrade to the latest software ( which I just did with a Verizon tech who walked me through the entire process) 4.5, it becomes even more user friendly to browse.
Finally, all the global features which the phone offers can be activated when you need them, or set up at purchase time.
I am so pleased with this phone that when I went into the store to buy headphones ( I forgot to say I use this phone as a version of an IPod by logging onto [...] and listening to my own music and the speaker is crystal clear)and the clerk said I was entitled to a $100 credit and could upgrade to "the Storm" I said,"No thanks."
The only feature missing- a camera- I would love that and I hope RIM is working on that right now. Otherwise, a perfect phone.

I bought this phone about a year ago right after my trusty old Thinkpad bit the dust. I thought about replacing the computer but I'd heard so many good things about the Blackberry that I decided to give it a look. I travel for my job and need to have email access throughout the day. In addition I use a CRM called Maximizer Enterprise that keeps track of all my appointments, notes and customer information. The Blackberry is one of the devices that will run a mobile version, Max Mobile, of this software.

The biggest objection that I had to getting a Blackberry was that the screen and fonts would be too small for these 60 year old eyes. (59 at the time). But when a co-worker bought one and I looked at his and saw that the fonts were adjustable and that I could indeed read the screen easily, I decided to give it a try. I'm so glad I did! It's so nice not to have to lug a laptop around and pull it out of my briefcase (along with taking off shoes, jacket, earrings, belts and all) every time I go through airport security. I can view all recent customer notes on my CRM and it's as simple as connecting a cable to my desktop and hitting "Synchronize with MaxMobile" to download or sync all my latest info to the Blackberry. I can check email all day as it comes in instead of having to wait until I get back to the hotel at night or am in a location with WiFi like I did with the laptop, and it will even give me a signal when email arrives.

Surfing the net is a bit difficult for some sites because of the small screen, but it can definitely be done. Going to my favorite forums in the evening or checking out Amazon's Gold Box deals is easy enough. One click works from anywhere! This has not slowed down my shopping online. :)

The battery life is good and I carry a car charger so that I can keep it ready to go all day. Since I am not a big "texter" it took me a while to get used to the keyboard, but I can reply to an email when I need to although they're a lot shorter and to the point than when I use a desktop. It has all the bells and whistles you could want as far as applications and you can download still more if you need to.

The Blackberry makes my life a lot easier and I don't think I'll ever go back to a laptop for traveling.

This is my third Blackberry, it replaced a T-Mobile 8700g which replaced a T-Mobile 7230 before that.

Pros:
- Wireless broadband works well, easily connects to laptop via bluetooth and so far has been reliable with very good coverage (much better than T-Mobile)
- Seems physically well designed and well built, very good keyboard, smaller and easier to hold than the 8700 it replaced
- Mouse trackball makes for easy navigation
- Voice dialing good for bluetooth headset
- Improved Blackberry browser (although I still use Opera Mini most of the time)

Cons:
- High cost of service ($30/mo for Blackberry data plan plus ANOTHER $30/mo for laptop tethering)
- Locked GPS. The device has GPS built in but Verizon has "locked" it so that it cannot be used with Google Maps, photo geotagging, or any other third-party GPS program, because they want you to spend another $10 a month for the privilege of using THEIR GPS program.
- Poor quality camera
- No way to have the phone announce the caller/caller ID - so when I'm wearing my bluetooth headset I still have to dig the phone out to see who is calling
- Awkward delivery and registration. Amazon could not give me a straight answer on the unit's shipping/arrival dates. Verizon sent me a welcome email and invited me to register my online account, so I did, then at the end of the process they told me they'd just sent a text message to the phone that I must retreive with 24 hours to complete the process... which was impossible because I didn't have the phone yet!