back to article RIM BlackBerry Bold 9780 smartphone

If you’ve seen one BlackBerry, you’ve sort of seen them all: the latest models nearly all talk the same design language of smallish screen and biggish keyboard, the unchanging row of buttons and, generally a chrome frame. Rim BlackBerry Bold 9780 Refashioned but still unmistakable: Rim's BlackBerry Bold 9780 And despite …

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  1. Anton Ivanov
    Thumb Up

    Wrong conclusion

    The conclusion should probably be: compared to 1 grand for an unlocked max spec iDevice who is complaining.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      You're being ripped off

      £600 for an unlocked max-spec iPhone direct from Apple.

      Not as good as £350, but the article doesn't say if that's for the unlocked version or not.

      And it's nowhere near as good as £100 for the Orange San Francisco, so what exactly is your point? Some phones are cheaper than others? I'm fairly sure we all knew that already.

      1. Adam Nealis

        CHF 100 for the Orange San Francisco

        > £100 for the Orange San Francisco

        Or CHF 100 for the same thing in Switzerland.

        The SF is a bit rough (but it's Android, so what do you expect?), but it's damn good value for money. Especially compared to an iPhone or a Blackberry.

  2. whitespacephil

    A title is required

    Meh... move along; nothing to see here.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Email addresses

    "And despite the fact that everybody who has one uses it for e-mails, Research in Motion doesn’t see fit to put the @ and full stop characters – which are essential in every email address –on lower-case keys on its BlackBerry devices. True, if you’re entering such an address you can press the space bar and the software knows to translate, but it still slightly beggars belief. Never mind."

    Just curious: where would you put the @ and . keys?

    Since 99.9% of my emails are to people in my contacts, I just need type in (part of) their name rather than having to actually type out full addresses. I find the @ and . more problematic for web addresses; sometimes it's easier just to Google. I wish Opera Mobile was available (Opera Mini is crap on my Torch) so I could use Opera Link.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Jobs Horns

      Re:Opera

      Opera mini seems to be crap on all BBs. On my 9105, it scrolls horribly, way to quick and sensitive. On my sisters BB, it was the opposite, way too slow.

      Why oh why do opera waste their time developing for the latest iDevice that make it difficult for them when they could improve the experience for existing users?

    2. D@v3

      @ and . keys

      I am inclined to agree.

      Apart from occasionally having to fill my own email address in on web forms, I cant remember the last time i had to type an email address, except for maybe putting them in my contacts in the first place.

      True I occasionally have to send an email to someone who isnt in my contacts, but that is usually through a link on a site (no typing of address) or as a reply (again no typing of address)

    3. TheOtherJola
      WTF?

      Agreed.

      When I read that paragraph I was instantly annoyed, because the fact that it makes sense (to me) is one of the defining features of the device.

      The blackberry is designed for quick and hassle-free data entry. True, it could be mentioned on the "welcome, here's how you use this thing" screen, but including them on the keyboard would, to me, be a massive mistake. When you press space in an email field, you get an @ then a . which is brilliant.

      <rant>Anyone who complains about their omission is obviously a blind advocate of the Jesus Phone and needs to get a life.</rant>

  4. Reg Sim

    Yea the map...

    The single thing I would improve on my BB Torch, more than the annoying niggles/gliches is the freaking map features, it sux big time and if I had played with it more before I got this phone I might never of taken it. Its a shame about the lack of apps/good apps but I can live with that. Still in this case for the most part, if it aint broken don't fix it.

    With that said, BB does have a very large younger market, so I would like to see them cater for them a bit more at some point.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Happy

      You know...

      Google has Google maps for blackberry, much better than the default app.

  5. Jean-Paul

    IMAP Sync

    And yet again no mention that the ultimate device is actually rubbish at synching using IMAP protocols. So home computer and mobile device aren't really in sync as it doesn't do 2-way sync. Big huge fail imo for individuals, not a problem for a corporate if they run their mail on Exchange and are willing to buy a BES but a horrid experience for email elsewhere.

    1. Bear Features

      nope

      an mine works fabulously on my Torch :p

  6. Cunningly Linguistic

    How come...

    ...El Reg phone reviews never actually include info on how a particular phone functions as a telephone? Sound quality etc?

  7. aThingOrTwo

    RIM Leaks

    Most of RIM's 2011 GSM range has leaked and is all over the internet.

    This phone will be replaced this Summer with the Bold Touch, which brings back a similar sized keyboard ala the first Bold, the 9000 and a touch screen.

    1.2GHz processor, Blackberry 6.1,Open GL ES 2, Mobile Hotspots, NFC, 720p HD video recording, 5MP camera, 2.8" screen (640 x 480, 287ppi), 768MB.

    Ok much of that list is catch up, but the point is it is a very bad time to buy Blackberry now, they have some good a much more competitive stuff coming rolling out over the next few months.

  8. Duncan

    Full stop.

    "And despite the fact that everybody who has one uses it for e-mails, Research in Motion doesn’t see fit to put the @ and full stop characters – which are essential in every email address –on lower-case keys on its BlackBerry devices. True, if you’re entering such an address you can press the space bar and the software knows to translate, but it still slightly beggars belief. Never mind."

    A double space changes to a full stop - which works everywhere not just in e-mail addresses. Most normal users query the full stop within an hour or so of having a device. How can a professional reviewer not have noticed??

    But concur with others here - really can we not have some proper hardware reviews? Signal quality? Battery life? Just seems nowadays to be a reviewer you need to play with the device for a few minutes - retype all the "facts" provided by the manufacturer - then go to the pub.

  9. John Sanders
    Linux

    Playing with the device for 5 mins

    Doesn't make a review.

    There is a key with the @ symbol over the letter P, it is very accessible (alt+p), it has always been there for those first two hours in which you do not know that a double space on an email address means to automatically insert the @ symbol.

    Someone suggested that it is not a good time to buy a blackberry because the bold touch is coming out... well what I have to say is that with electronics: IT IS NEVER A GOOD TIME TO BUY ANYTHING, as something better will get released the next six months.

    It happens with mobiles, the ipad, nikon and canon cameras, processors, motherboards, monitors, flat tv's, your broadband connection package, paid TV, etc.

    Aim for what you need right now, or else wait forever.

    1. My Opinion
      Thumb Up

      Re: Aim for what you need right now - That's what I say...

      Two things I say to friends looking to buy anything "tech":

      1) NOW - Buy the best you can for the most you are willing to pay - being wary of the sharp price increment for the very latest / highest spec.

      2) FUTURE - Once you have done 1) STOP LOOKING - otherwise you will see what you've just bought get cheaper and something better will come along for the same price.

  10. Martin Walker
    Alert

    @ key...its only the biggest key on the keyboard.

    I am not keen on blackberries and I generally detest short cut keys, but for flips sake even I cottoned on that within emails pressing the space bar does the job, and surely anyone constantly emailing would soon find that second nature.

    I could not be bothered with the rest of the review after such an idiotic start, and leaped straight to the comment, though plainly I am not the first to take issue with this.

  11. Hayden Clark Silver badge
    Unhappy

    Primitive UI

    The description of the Blackberry firmware as an "OS" just makes me larf. I find it highly amusing that as soon as you leave the pretty front screen, you're in monochrome scrolly menu land. Frankly I don't understand how normal people make sense of them.

    They are just another bling thing now for non-business types (who won't use the enterprise control and security features). I watched someone abandon a HTC Touch (with IMAP/POP email) and get a BB, because he "wanted email". Sigh.

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