I’m always impressed with OtterBox cases, and how they protect my BlackBerry. For the past week or so I’ve been testing out OtterBox’s new Commuter Series for the BlackBerry Tour. The Commuter Series is the mid-range case from OtterBox, which combines the best of both worlds with its tough silicon skin, and hard shell. The Commuter Series basically just combines two already great products, the Impact Series and Defender Series, which we’ve reviews lots.
I know by now some of your might be getting sick of all the hands-on reviews of the BlackBerry Tour, but just think soon enough you will be able to get your own! Until then here is another hands-on review by the team at PhoneMag. In their review they have included some great pictures and a video review for you to enjoy. My favorite is they finish off the review with this line “If a hardware keyboard is a must, then the BlackBerry Tour may just be Verizon’s best device.” which sounds very promising for the Big Red carrier, also known as Verizon. So take a second and browse the review, drool and then post a comment and let us know how bad you want one…
PhoneArena managed to get some hands-on time with the unreleased BlackBerry 8520, which according to the back of the device will be part of the Curve family. Overall the team at PhoneArena was fairly impressed with this new low end Curve. Just case you don’t know much about the Curve 8520 here’s a recap: The BlackBerry 8520 feautres a full QWERTY keyboard with dedicated media keys at the top of device, 2.0 megapixel camera with no flash, Wi-Fi, GPS and RIM’s new Optical trackpad. Here’s a quick excerpt from their overall thoughts on the device:
Overall the BlackBerry Curve 8520 is a fine device for what it is. It may not be the finest in fit and finish, but it brings the best Blackberry features to a low-end device. The size and weight are good, the display is ample and the optical trackpad brings a bit of innovation. RIM has some work to do on the Curve’s performance, but if they fix that we don’t see why this device won’t be very popular.
Check out all of PhoneArena’s review on the BlackBerry Curve 8520 here.
The first part of Boy Genius’ BlackBerry 9630 “Niagara” review has been posted. His review includes some nice new pictures that show this hot little puppy! We won’t go into great detail of his review you can find it here. On big note on this review is that he is using a beta unit with a early OS version (presumably 4.7.1.10) so for the most part he can only review the hardware. Here is the conclusion to the review which sums the device up pretty well:
We went through this with the Storm review and we told most of you to wait for the 9630. Most of you didn’t listen and you’re bitching everyday about your Storm. It’s ok, we’re here to help. Basically, to you know, not beat around the bush. Verizon + 9630 = the best BlackBerry experience on the planet. This is the phone you’ve been waiting for. Smash those Storms, donate them to charity, sell them on eBay or give them to your significant others you want to slowly and cruelly torture. This is it as far as Verizon goes. We said the Storm was the best phone on Verizon (hey, everything is relative, ok?) and this obviously takes it a step further. In its complete buggy state probably more than 3-4 months away from release, this is going to be the big seller on Verizon when it launches. There’s not a single person who wouldn’t want this phone. Young, old, black, white, rich, poor, disabled, not disab… never mind.
I think the question on everyone’s mind at the moment is when the 9630 will be available and who will carry it first…
Just when you thought your mouth couldn’t water anymore! Kevin over at CrackBerry got his hands-on the pre-release BlackBerry Niagara 9630. Kevin is no stranger to the unreleased devices and now its time for him to dig into this hot berry code-named Niagara. Apparently the overall hardware on this prototype model is very good! Unlike previous models he has tested the Niagara feels quite solid its the software (OS) thats the issue so far. The model Kevin tested out was running OS 4.7.1.10 which means its a very early version so he can only review the hardware and design.
All I can say is the Niagara which I’m sure will soon be part of the Bold series will fit in perfect between the 8830 World Edition and the Storm. The 9630 will be the CDMA users call for a BlackBerry Bold or even Javelin/Curve 8900. Here is a blurp about the 9630’s form from the review:
In hand, the BlackBerry 9630 feels awesome. For all those who say the Curve 8900 is too small or that the Bold is too big, you’re going to find this device to feel just right. As you can tell from the photos, the Curve 8900 is definitely the smaller device, which means the 9630 isn’t quite as pocket-able (but it’s still small). It also seems to be a hair thicker than the 8900. There’s definitely a different and distinct feeling when holding the 9630 as opposed to the 8900. I think I like the feel of the 8900 a little bit better personally, but am sure many will prefer the feeling of the 9630.
Software Title: MSDict Concise Oxford American Thesaurus
Price:$14.99
Available at:BlackBerry Sync Store Overall Rating:Rating:
With the thesaurus from my college days being held together with a rubber band, the thought of licking my fingers again to flip through the pages kind of creeping me out for it was passed around a lot back then,well I knew it was time for a new one. So I chose the MSDict Concise Oxford Thesaurus and I am not disappointed.
I decided to do the OTA install on my 8320 with the offline option so I could have it available on those long flights with no bulky book to carry on. The other install option is wireless mode which means instead of the whole database installed on your SD card you have a small part of the database installed then you need a wireless connection to to access the bulk of it. The MSDict program is always installed on the main device. Read More
Verizon’s official launch date is tomorrow (November 21st) for the BlackBerry Storm. A ton of unboxing and actual reviews have surfaced.
We will start off with Boy Genius who has both a Vodafone and Verizon BlackBerry Storm in hand. Here is a sniplit from his conclusion “…At the end of the day, if you’ve been eyeing the Storm, we suggest you either go play with a demo unit at a store, or go ahead and buy one. That way you’ll be able to decide for yourself if you really love the thing, or maybe just don’t care for it. This isn’t a cookie-cutter device, and it’s not for everyone. That said, we’re sure these things are going to fly off the shelves at Verizon stores on Friday, we just have a feeling there will also be a lot of returns.” Read the rest of his review here.
Kevin from CrackBerry also got his hands on a Verizon BlackBerry Storm to unbox. He actually flew down to New York to pick this bad boy up (a true addict!). Here is his unboxing video:
Another great review review (over 20 minutes in length) by the folks at MobilityToday.com:
One thing the BBSync team noticed and was kind of disappointed by is the lack of premium headphones in box. I personally was hoping to see headphones similar to the ones found with the BlackBerry Bold. Of course you will be able to purchase them afterwards.
Three major sites were able to take the BlackBerry Storm for a test drive before the official launch. Engadget, Gizmodo and PhoneScoop all tested it out and snapped lots of pictures and wrote extensive reviews. Here is some of what they had to say about this new sexy device… Read More
