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# Full QWERTY keypad and legendry trackball navigation

# A-GPS with Wi-Fi

# 3.2-megapixel camera with autofocus

# Complete Office applications

The BlackBerry Curve 8900 is the latest offering from RIM and an addition to the Curve 8000 series. The Curve 8900 incorporates features from the Curve and the Bold series and makes it a good choice for messaging and e-mailing. The device has a 2.4-inch screen, which is smaller than the Bold 9000. However, the 8900’s screen resolution is higher at 480x360 and it gives sharp and bright results.

The legendary trackball navigation is fast and versatile and has been the best feature of BlackBerry devices. On the left of the trackball navigation is the menu and the calling keys. On the right is the return and end/power key.  The QWERTY keypad is of a superior quality and has a design (a raised edge) that makes tracking with the thumb easier.

There are two hard keys on the right and one on the left of the 8900. On the right are the volume rocker and camera button (both are default settings and can be changed to start any applications). On the left is the default button to activate voice commands. The right side also has a 3.5 mm jack for handsfree (on top of the volume rocker) and below the camera button is the charging-cum-USB port. The 3.2 megapixel camera and the LED flash are situated at the back.

The Curve Function

A dedicated e-mail device, the BlackBerry has always won many hearts. In fact, other features like instant messaging, Word To Go and enterprise applications are also good. The Web browser is easy to use and the 8900 has retained everything from its predecessor the 8300.

The RIM BlackBerry Curve 8900 has great multimedia features. It has a 3.2-megapixel camera with autofocus and an LED flash. A Xenon flash could have been better. The pictures clicked are sharp and give good colours. The maximum resolution can be set at 2048x1536 pixels. The camera can also record videos at 240x180 pixels. The 3.5 mm headphone jack port and the music player give the 8900 good music features.

The device supports MP3 and AAC audio formats and plays some divx video formats as well. Videos look particularly good on the 8900 because of the screen quality. The speaker gives decent sound quality. The phone has a good memory, which can be expanded up to 16 GB with a microSD card.

Accessing the Internet through Wi-Fi is an amazing experience on the Curve 8900. GPRS and EDGE are also fast. Sharing or downloading content is easy. However, the lack of 3G is disappointing.

The BlackBerry Curve 8900 runs on BlackBerry OS version 4.6. The 8900 has the best UI so far in BlackBerry devices. It has stylish icons and translucent colour effects. The homescreen has the Curve feature, six shortcuts and the menu at the bottom of the screen. This menus can be altered according to users’ needs.

Word To Go, Excel and PowerPoint applications are preloaded on the device. The BlackBerry Curve 8900 gives an excellent performance. RIM has made numerous changes in the Curve series and it looks more stylish now. In fact, the 8900 is the best in the series so far. It has a 1300mAh Li-ion battery, which gives a decent performance (of around five hours) while browsing the Internet with GPRS and Wi-Fi, listening to music and making and receiving calls. This figure is close to the company’s claims.

Conclusion

The BlackBerry Curve 8900 is one of the best smart phones in the market. The autofocus camera, good Web browsing experience and WiFi are also good. However, the absence of 3G is a little strange and disappointing. Hopefully future models will include this feature.

Alternatively

The BlackBerry Curve 8900 costs Rs 29,999. Other options include the Blackberry 8830 (Reliance) for Rs 30,990 and HTC Ty Tn II (Windows) for Rs 28,400.

Tech Specs

Size: 109 x 60 x 13.5 mm

Weight: 110 g (with battery)

Memory: microSD (16GB)

Battery: 1400 mAh Li-ion

Screen: 2.4" Touchscreen

Talktime/Standby: 5.3hours/356hours

Bluetooth/infrared: y/n

Phonebook Capacity: shared

Speakerphone: yes

Camera: 3.2-megapixel

Frequency: GSM (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900)

Others: Qwerty keypad, 3.2-megapixel with auto focus, Wi-Fi, Word To Go, A-GPS

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