The BlackBerry Storm and all of its drama has just about died down, and attentions are turning to a more traditional release from Research in Motion: the BlackBerry Curve 8900. Known by many as its internal codename, Javelin, the 8900 follows closely in the Bold’s footsteps by offering a classic, slick, full-QWERTY device with Wi-Fi and GPS, but notably lacking 3G. Some can’t live without fast wireless speeds, while others who are outside of coverage anyway can make do with EDGE – besides, the BlackBerry’s an e-mail smartphone first and foremost, so maybe EDGE will do. Just like its Curve predecessors, the 8900 is light, slim, and has a snappy, well-spaced keyboard with a new trackball.
Hit the jump to get the full run-down of the BlackBerry 8900 Curve (a.k.a Javelin), coming soon to T-Mobile.
BlackBerry 8900 Curve (“Javelin”)
By Research in Motion (Rogers, T-Mobile – $199.99; T-Mobile Germany – 39,95 €/month; O2 UK – £35.00/month)
Specifications
Available Features
Camera (3.2 MP)
Wi-Fi Support
Built-in GPS
Enhanced Media Player
Video Recording
BlackBerry Maps
Wireless Email
Organizer
Browser
Phone
Corporate Data Access
SMS/MMS
Size and Weight
Height:
4.29 inches (109 mm)
Width:
2.36 inches (60 mm)
Depth:
0.53 inches (13.5 mm)
Weight:
3.87 ounces (109.9 grams)
Battery & Battery Life
Battery
1400 mAHr removable/rechargeable cryptographic lithium cell
Talk Time: 5.5 hours
Standby Time: 356 hours
Display
High resolution 480×360 pixel color display
Transmissive TFT LCD
Supports over 65,000 colors
Screen Size: 2.44 inches (diagonally measured)
Camera & Video Recording
Camera: 3.2 MP camera (JPEG Encoding) with Auto focus, Image stabilization, Flash and 2X Digital Zoom
Video Camera: Normal Mode: 480×352 pixel, MMS Mode: 176×144 pixel
GPS & BlackBerry Maps
Assisted and autonomous GPS enabled
Data Input & Navigation
35 key backlit QWERTY keyboard
Trackball located on front face of device, ESC key to the right, Menu to the left
Dedicated Keys: Send, End, Mute, Lock, VAD (user customizable), 2-stage camera (user customizable), 2x volume/zoom
User Interface: Intuitive icons and menus
Voice Input & Output
Integrated speaker and microphone, Hands-free headset capable, Bluetooth® headset capable, Integrated Hands-Free Speakerphone
Rating for hearing aids (PDF): M3 (in cellular bands only)
Media Player
Video Format Support: DivX, XviD (MPEG4 Advance Simple Profile), H.263, WMV3
Audio Format Support: .3gp, WAV, MIDI, AMR-NB, G711u/A, GSM610, PCM, MP3, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, WMA9/10 Standard/Pro
Ringtones & Notifications
Ringtones: .3gp, WAV, MIDI, AMR-NB, G711u/A, GSM610, PCM, MP3, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, WMA9/10 Standard/Pro
Notifications: Tone, vibrate, on-screen or LED indicator; notification options are user configurable
Bluetooth
Bluetooth v2.0 + EDR; Headset, Handsfree, Serial Port Profile, Stereo Audio (A2DP/AVCRP), SIM Access Profile and Dial-up Networking supported
Keyboard security
Password protection
Keyboard lock
Sleep (standby) mode
Wi-Fi
802.11b/g enabled
Wi-Fi Alliance Certifications: WPA/WPA2 Personal and Enterprise, WMM, WMM Power Save, Wi-Fi Protected Setup
Cisco CCX certification planned
Wi-Fi access to BlackBerry® Enterprise Server
Wi-Fi access to BlackBerry® Internet Server
Direct IP web browsing over Wi-Fi
Support for UMA/GAN
Wireless Networks
North America: 850 MHz GSM®/GPRS networks
North America: 1900MHz GSM/GPRS networks
Europe/Asia Pacific: 1800MHz GSM/GPRS networks
Europe/Asia Pacific: 900MHz GSM/GPRS networks
EDGE networks
The real meat and potatoes of the BlackBerry 8900 Curve (Javelin) review starts on the next page…