The BlackBerry Bold 9900 has been one of the most anticipated releases in recent memory for RIM, the manufacturer of the popular BlackBerry line. The reason behind this is that the Bold 9900 has taken a slightly different approach to hardware design, without straying so far from RIM’s traditional form factor as the new BlackBerry Torch line has.
So what’s the big deal? The two main factors that seem to be responsible for the multitude of positive reviews around the web for this device are the capacitive touchscreen and the almost modern CPU.
The BlackBerry Bold 9900's Touchscreen
The Bold 9900 is the first BlackBerry of this traditional form-factor to receive a fully-functional multitouch display. To accommodate this new approach the Bold 9900 also sports the largest display for any BlackBerry of this design, with a 2.8 inch capacitive screen. As a result web browsing has suddenly become much more accessible for BlackBerry users who can now use a combination of the touchscreen and the trackpad in order to surf their way around the web.
There’s also the added bonus of a pinch-to-zoom function which operates in both the browser and elsewhere. This function appears surprisingly responsive and smooth, utilising the powerful, although not industry-leading 1.2GHz processor of the Bold 9900.
Speed and Camera on the Bold 9900
As far as speed for day-to-day use goes the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is reportedly fantastic. Apps open and close with impressive efficiency, scrolling between menus is fluid and internet functions appear to be slowed down only by network speed, rather than any real software or hardware issues.
One area where the Bold 9900 will fall short, however, is battery life. Unfortunately a paltry 1230 mAh battery, rather than the industry-standard 1500 mAh version found in the previous Bold 9780. As such the Bold 9900 will have a significantly shorter battery life than many BlackBerry users are used to, but should still make it through the day as long as users keep this in mind.
The 5MP camera is also a bit of a letdown. This is not so much because of quality, as we are yet to test it out ourselves, but because of the omission of autofocus. It’s not a huge issue and most BlackBerry users don’t utilize their cameras too heavily anyway. We just thought it was worth mentioning.
BlackBerry Bold specs list:
- BlackBerry 7 OS
- Single core 1.2GHz CPU
- 768 MB RAM
- 2.8-inch TFT screen (640 x 480 pixels)
- 115 x 66 x 10.5 mm dimensions
- 130 g
- 5 megapixel rear camera with LED flash
- Bluetooth 2.1
- Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
- 3.5mm headphone jack
- NFC
- A-GPS
- Accelerometer, Compass
- 1230 mAh battery
We’d like to hear from any BlackBerry fans out there. Are you excited about this release by RIM, or were you still hoping for a little something more from the iconic smartphone manufacturer?
Find a better phone plan
Thousands of cell phone plans unpacked. All the facts. No surprises.
Related Articles
Find Better Phones and Plans
Hundreds of cell phone plans unpacked. All the facts. No surprises.
