| Design | 4/5 |
| Display & Interface | 3.5/5 |
| Calling | 4.5/5 |
| Talk time | 5/5 |
| Messaging | 4/5 |
| Music | 2.5/5 |
| Video | 2.5/5 |
| Camera | 2/5 |
| Memory | 2/5 |
| Web browsing | 2/5 |
| Connectivity | 3/5 |
| Productivity | 3/5 |
| Scheduling | 3/5 |
| Laptop sidekick | 4/5 |
| Navigation | 4/5 |
| Gaming | 3/5 |
| Mobile services | 2/5 |
| Accessories | 3/5 |
| Value | 3.5/5 |
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Pros:
Excellent call handling. Push e-mail is business class for consumers. BlackBerry phones have the best battery life of any device. |
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Cons:
No popular IM clients. Ugly calendar. Disappointing music app, with abysmal transfer software. Slow EDGE networking. |
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| Conclusion: |
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| It's no wonder that in the weeks leading up to the iPhone's release, we're seeing a new category of consumer or multimedia smartphone peek its head out of the earth to look for its shadow. The Curve aims to bring the BlackBerry line to a more general audience, and to accomplish this RIM has improved the media player and, well, that's about it. Aside from our lousy experience with the Roxio software, the inclusion of a 3.5mm headphone jack and stereo Bluetooth means that this could be a decent music phone. Otherwise, the Curve is still a BlackBerry, which is good for calls, e-mail, and other hardcore smartphone functions. Still, the aging interface and the heavily textual menus might scare away folks who don't want to nitpick onscreen font sizes, or adjust network settings. Excellent battery life deserves high praise, but every BlackBerry has excellent battery life. We're not sure if this is the one to win over the masses. |
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