Another Bold Move, Taking tHe Flip Phone World by Storm
Written: Jan 21 '09 (Updated Jun 05 '09)
Product Rating:
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Pros: Gourgeous looks, clear calls, speaker phone works well and more.
Cons: Menu, key navigation fluidness are not the best, surprise freezes often requiring long reboots.
The Bottom Line: I recommend it because it has load of standard features which will in the end make one a happier camper the others. The updates are on the way.
First Reactions (description) I can't believe it is a flip! The on-screen menu system have a cool-blue glossy finish (icon seem like they could be skinable) interesting hidden hinge (makes your conventional flip phone seem obsolete). Good size, not too wide and not too small; reason being that you have to be able to read messages. This pearl also looks very stylish and a lot of work seems to have gone into the designing. It looks shorter but opens up bigger and taller than the previous model. The whole layout and screen looks so bright and sharp. Dual screen display, it has a 128x160 external screen that shows caller ID messages (with a neat picture ID) and a clock while on the inside show taller version of the pearl screen with a higher resolution (320x240). No need to lock keys (but it will still let you for what ever reasib), just open to answer.
Beginners Section (New Comer to Pearl? )
Is this for me? Yes it could be. I believe it was originally designed for new comers and those who are looking for a slimmer touch. New comers won't notice much on their side; the main thing is learning to use the menu key and back button. It is packed with a lot of useful application and games, so you will not be board easily soon. The whole essence of the blackberry phone, is that it is a useful phone used for more than just making calls. It simply a better phone than your average. I rate it as better than average. Blackberry was designed to be the most expensive phone becuase it is for bussiness but one doesn't have to go that route; it still has a lot on board that one does not have to pay for and they are also a handfull of free application floating around. I posted a few links at the bottom.
Intermediate/advance users (Old timers)
should I upgrade? For us users who are accustomed to the previous pearls. I would not quite consider this one as an upgrade, but it is rather more of an update. Why?...well the 8220 appears to run the latest version of the BlackBerry OS, 4.6, but does it on the older 312 Mhz chipset and not the newer chip; shame -shame it must be the economy; or they thought that one would not notice the lag in processing or we would not venture skin deep in the elegant pearl. Rim should have beefed it up at least for the music and camera (have they not learned from windows that more power work better more often). Makes you wonder how much thought went into or when it actually made it out of the lab, and/or if it was rushed. Someone will be getting a mount full on that mistake unless they are able to fix it to where the software is efficient. Speed is the number one complaint among most devices in general, so speed is really crucial and not to be joked around with. We shell out big bucks to have that thing running, and not to sit around twiddling our thumbs as one waits for a process to complete. I have plenty of that in my basement where I store my outdated windows computer. Yeah my old computer creep even with word processing, so I know where to find slow stuff and do not need it in a phone (everyone needs to learn how to thumb through tasks like the iphone, only quality I like about them). So a good processor will speed up word processing. I wish they took note from apple in that aspect that it has to work right and fast so that one doesn't a trail of thought. I believe it will catch up.
So if you can wait, do so. This one is slightly better on some aspects than the previous but it is one I would skip if I had the choice, there seems to be a lot of icing one this one. I used to have a flip phone way back when it was happening with Startek Motorola. So now I thought it was a good idea to try them out again, and I finding out it works really well. Oh I had lost my previous pearl and had to get new one (smiles). Most of the old issues and wishes have been granted in this model. For example you can save document to the card, you can save voice notes to the card as well a record for much longer periods, speaker is louder, alarm clock is enhanced plus one you can set multiple alarm, it has a clock with many faces and more.
Currently the full Qwerty Berries seem to gotten more attention so they pack a bigger punch when it come to speed and more bang for your buck; they have more power, the bold, the 8900 curve and the storm all seem to share the newer 624 Mhz Tavor processor . May be in the future they may find the need to do the same for the Pear. They should not be like the motorala phone which attempted to go with less. Pearl can be way much better.
Question: Would you buy a new computer with an older processor? It possible a good idea if one is willing rewrite the entire just like open source do all the time. It is a tough call because the pearl flip (8220) is cuter size wise. Skip down to the quick notations if you need a quick decision. The Story line take in dept will the quick note provide a highlight of my general observation.
Story Line
Most of the reviews I've read sort of skimmed over the 8220 Pearl; they mostly spoke about the suretype word recognizing technology which actually works well. If one does favor suretype, is simple, it is not for you (I can't stress that enough). What people do not understand is that a phone, is a short cut device and one should not always expect mobile devices to sport a full QWERTY like a computer; think short hand. I don't have problem with that aspect. I know it works better than the standard alphabet layout on a STD simple phone. It takes a little brain power which isn't that bad when one is trying to accomplish tasks one handedly. It is not that bad with two hands either; it work just as well as the full keyboards, if not better (you'll be surprise). I can write just as fast with the pearl as on a full key board. Now with that said, let us get down to the real issues. What is cool though is that the phone is exclusive to T-mobile so one will be able to wow their friends with the pearl flip; however it does remind me about the old Samsung SGH-T719 blackberry phone which T-Mobile once carried though it was short-lived, it looked like bat which was not too impressive. The question is...is this flip pearl phone so last-year, or this-year; I am leaning towards so last-year simple because certain aspect are so last year. The body style is one on the border line and could this-year; it looks good but it is designed for those with bigger hand while the previous pear suits those with smaller/average hand.
Looking Further
That is right, this PDA cop is back on duty; let me see what else I can sniff out on the device. Well I will keep this simple or not... as I try to get the point across. In my opinion this is a bitter sweet phone. A lot of ancient features are still retained beneat the glossy appearance. It is sweet because of all the cutting edge features it exhibits (good hardware) while on the sour note there is still more work to be done or left. It seemed the creators where either lazy or quick to send it out & hope that one does not notice the glitches. It is such a shame indeed. The operating system is not fluid at all and has a less response time over the previous pearl; it simulates fastness scrolling around the program menu; but for the most part an icing over the old one. The individual application seem to work well on there own but not together as a whole. A lot of work seems to have gone to the body but the phone apps and system seem to have been neglected as they might have focused on the flagship storm and bold versions. They should have put in more to it to make it fluid instead of taking a cheap way out. For instance the iphone works but this one takes a lot of getting used. I am familiar with most of the version and that why I was able to make it work for me until t-mobile gets a replacement. As of today they have not released an update. Aulthogh the navigation isn't the best on the phone, this problem is rescused through the many shortcut keys. I expect a build on to apple invention on the ipods navigatability. If should match it if not beat it. Trackball did not do and track wheel was so old school which I am glad they dropped. Okay one may be thinking why I got; I took it for one reason, for that fact that it seem to still meet the basic needs and options which I look for in a phone; secondly they does not to be another better match at the t-mobile mobile store that combines all the basic feature which it exhibits. Now if they can rewrite the software we should be in business. Okay those of you in accustomed to blackberries will benefit more from the notations bellow. In conclusion the phone has set new standards, the voice calls and speakerphone call work really well; but it still leaves much more to be desired. I am sure an update would take care of that. The storm version got it own update but this one still awaits it much needed help. Should have increase the processing power and memory management, especially since they added the new operating system. video recording demands a fast processor, also a bigger screen format for viewing on the computer just like the photos. It is like running vista on an older machine. An optimist would say at least you have vista. Well now it needs to be tweaked to where is runs smoother. Despite all said, the 8220 pearl still remains above average but I must place this review on hold to Be Continued... You should have an over all idea by now. Bellow is the highlights.
QUICK NOTATION SECTION (could be a deciding factor)
STRENGTH/GAINS clear voice calls wifi enabled and wifi calling, no more dropped calls at home due to lack of signal; one can sign up for unlimited call on wifi. Pretty amazing technology Crystal clear can't tell the difference. This redefines reliability as wifi is ready available most places. You might be able to use it on the moon if you had wifi service no problem and still keep your number. (Tell that to those who have the storm version because they don't have wifi, i wish they consulted us before making the executive decision in leaving out wifi because wifi is still very much used today). So that is a great bang for your buck. Also because it is a flip-phone, you don't have to worry about accendental key presses besides it is able to continue working on useful tasks even when screen is close. for example when rendering a web page, saving a voice or movie clip; this something unique to this flip phone, you can always continue where you left off.
ENHANCEMENTS Alarm: easier to set and you can set multiple spell check auto complete camera : flash MegaPix speaker: louder/clearer 3.5 phone jack: standard headphone jack you can use your choice of headset not problem. Stereo Bluetooth support: stream music to your stereo wireless headset Birthday field now standard (thank you RIM it was about time) document edit support: color and format support. html email support: your email are now dressed and look like they should when formatted even the embed pictures come true.
LOSSES Lost camera mirror cannot navigate photos with key only menu lost ability to organize music or video in folders
MY WISHLIST/ (Might be coming with updates) Ability to view a self portrait preview on the external screen.
DOES NOT HAVE GPS, and 3G service, it is blackberry why limit it? I think they should pack more stuff into the pearl for a wow effect.
WEAKNESS Boot time body scratches easily rubber skin does not fit well and add a significant weight. not a fluid navigation and random pauses.
SKIPPED CHANGE I don't care for the trackball (it has never been a great idea), it is annoying and rattles a bit. The track ball sound like a great idea but it is just not practical. It didn't work well for computers, why should it work in a phone. I would take other options first. There are much better solutions though, but that is not the point at the moment. They should have replaced it with something else; but that may be and expensive investment.
KNOWN ISSUES input systems freezes a lot keeping one from accomplishing tasks especially when inputing on the web; system is good when it works but when it atempts to restart the input system, your best bet is to remove battery to break the endless cycle. alarm clock time-notification stays glued to the screen if one fails to acknowledge it, and the ability to acknowledge it is lost. Scrolling in forms (input boxes) is a pain, it has to be done carefully or else it is impossible to scroll to the end or beginning of a sentence. zoom is not like the iphone one web pages Refresh rate is very slow in certain application (switching to full screen on playback). Phone is a bit sluggish and over all response is slower than previous. The Led flash lights up the subjects eye and makes it seem like glow warms in very low light conditions. wireless services gets jammed and requires a reboot to properly connect to the network.
ANNOYANCE No accessories (no pouch) in the box just the headset the standard charger is no longer (two piece) interchangeable as a USB the mini usb is now micro usb, have to be more care when plugging micro usb no way of organizing your video media no playlist management or directory management I put in my 16GB SD and have to scroll through an endless list. Web browsing is still challenging. voicemail network message pops up every time you call voicemail which must be acknowlege before one can press any other key. No software update yet...
MAKE YOUR EXPERIENCE PLEASANT get a pouch online or skip (look through accessories) buy mini to micro adapters so you use your previous usb buy you a bigger card to one you know you won't fill download Google maps & facebook apps
CREDITS (I like to give them credit for a few enhancement) The ability to preview message on external For fixing the birthday field. external (screen) messaging center works great. speaker volume great.
IN CONCLUSION Like I made note to earlier, the pearl is not for everyone. Although the pearl has a few problems, it manages to do well on most things. It integrates well with a few application out there, facebook is one them; with a picture preview for each message received. One is able to send/receive messages in different formats much better than most phones out there right out of the box. SMS MMS works better than the iphone. You can also play a wider range of audio and videos mp4, avi, wmv (streaming videos too). You can grab media, pictures, ringtone on the go; if there is a link to it, you can save it right to the phone directly from the web . You don't have to go through iTunes, you are less restricted with portable media. Everything is standard (more standard than nokia, apple, G1 and what have you) this tiny phone does it all. How did they fit is all in… The USB jack is the New Standard, Head phone jack is standard, Battery is removable, Memory card is standard, sound is standard volume, battery life standard, Bluetooth stereo play is standard. I can’t emphasize how this simplifies ones life more than nokia, G1, iphone and more. Finally the keys and shortcuts provide the quickest ways to get around. You find now that you don't have to shop for a lot for this phone. Less things to carry around and you can't beat its dedicated external screen messaging center which protects you from accidental button-push while keeping one in touch as messages arrive. It was a well thought-out device, and only neglected on the processor. The phone likes to do more but it is held back by that and a few other issues (processor, sluggish operating system, poor memory management which occasion reboot fixes).
USEFUL LINKS FOR DOWNLOADS AND TIPS
I don't recommend using the fancy usb connectors with it; use the standard brand, motorola usb works fine. none genric brands wont work work with vista. Same goes for chargers if you want you battery to last a long time.
I found my way around the lack of Video order on the blackberry. If you miss having folders like in the previous pearl. I discovered that I could make an external playlist and save it in the music directory. Winamp does not restrict what you put in Playlists. So you can create smaller lists to suit your desire a short film playlist, cartoon playlist, music videos playlist, more… and simply saved them to the SD card. Of course the original files need to be on the SD card or blackberry as well. Order at last problem solved. I also threw in some extra playlists with all files so that I could customize it later by deleting tracks not need for that list; that eliminates having to go back to the computer, unless I need to change the order. Sound a bit complicated but it isn’t.
UPDATES (06/05/2009) If you bought the earlier once you might want to connect it to the desktop manager to do the available update. I noticed that it greatly improved the sluggishness and responses significantly. It took them a while but they just release an update for the much neglected pearl flip.
PAY/FREE TRIALS APPS www.slacker.com (radio) www.flipside.fm (an iphone like speed scrolling album viewer) http://REXwireless.com/download (productivity) http://www.dynoplex.com/ (documents edit management) The best app I had so far is the shazzam and the iblackberry theme...makes have iphone like icons.
OTHER NOTES Price is not justified, great concept but this may be a candidate for a recall. They definitely need some help in decision making to help them from making obsolete devices. It is great because it is new. Yes it provides for a great experience, it integrates well with facebook mobile. Some of the applications run smoothly so yes fluidity is possible on the device; However, I can not say how many times that I dreaded taking out the battery or hitting the reset after an install. Ok the deal is…Let say one has a few applications installed, a nice theme, a media card, with some media (pictures e.t.c) and a few emails and text; just the way it supposed to be, the average wait time for a reboot will be 15mins. The first time it happened I thought that the phone was going to replicate itself and give birth to another phone. It is a very painful because time is better saved than lost waiting. This is one of the sad but perhaps an inevitable moment in the life of every BB Flip user, even if I had spare time, there is that phobia to initiate that sequence… you could miss a call (but you need to reboot to make that call which equals dilemma). Did they think we won't notice? Or think it is okay. Yes it is for those who use it for other than it was meant for and probably it might still fail; or if you got it free and at a low rate.
not worth extending your contract over this one yet unless you feel it meets your need. Impressive but not quite satifactory given based on time consumption and fluidness. Others phone will steal the market from this by the time the year runs out.
Oh yeah lastly before I call it quites..if you must read on I will end noting I occasionally read other reviews from major sites; but I realize they skim through the information. You never really tell if they are promoting devices. They talk mostly about specs and fill in between the line to add weight. The major complaint I’ve seen so far is the talk about the lack of 3G, which in my opinion is not a big deal, as 3G technology is not quite there yet; for now I will take wifi over 3G amd if they can have both that will be better. First things first, can the 8220 handle 3G is the question, will it make it go faster? I'll say no because it not quite set up for it anyway with low memory and slow processor. I like to see more intelgence built in and more usability. 3G is only a fraction. I feel it was greatly overshadowed by the flashier blackberries (like the storm, bold and curve versions) even though it is also running the latest OS, I still long for speed and fluidness else where. I would compare it to the HTC G1, Nokia N97, LG Chocolate and Motorola Crave. I could go at length how compares to those but I am not going there today; however, I will add that there are it rightful challengers. I wish it was it closer to the LG in terms of looks, I think they did a better job. Okay I am done now, see you next time...who knows what I'll be reviewing. Even I wish all products are reviewed the way they do here at epinions, although all products must sell we have to know what we are getting.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 250 Recommended for: World Travelers - Works Anywhere and Everywhere!
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