First Impressions on the Verizon BlackBerry Curve 8530
by The PocketBerry Team
Although the device released not too long ago, we didn’t go through intensive testing on the device and always feel that every Berry needs to have a more hands-on overview. We just received a BlackBerry Curve 8530 for Verizon Wireless in the mail today and I’m quite excited to be using it to see all its ins and outs. As we did not know of the color it was coming in, the device did show up in lavender as we just assumed it would be black with the carbon fiber-like battery door. For being a basic entry level BlackBerry, we are quite impressed by it.
The design of the BlackBerry Curve 8530 is very sleek and simple. Of course it is nothing like the Bold 9700 with the chrome and luxurious look, but the 8530 still appears to be a fashionable device you’ll want to flare out. The back battery door clips right off as the Storm 2, and the leaked Pearl 9100. It isn’t made of industrious material, just plastic which is absolutely acceptable given that it is a basic and cheap BlackBerry to get. The rubberized buttons on the side are the new trend RIM is pushing out as the Bold 9700, Storm 2, and Pearl 9100 are rockin’ out. I am personally satisfied with those new style ones over the chrome just because of the sleeker look and to me they seem easier to push. While the camera lacks a flash, you can still equip night vision mode to take pictures when it is dark. There are no professional photographers using BlackBerry cameras, so this will suffice just fine in snapping away and posting pictures to send to Facebook.
So while we use those terms, how cheap and basic is the BlackBerry Curve 8530? When we saw it on T-Mobile, it seemed very low end running the EDGE network and just a WiFi adapter. Verizon has souped up the bare minimum standards and added 3G and GPS to it. So when thinking of an entry level BlackBerry, you would not expect specifications such as these in a device.
Although it lacks a camera flash, multimedia is still key here. The media convenience keys up top instantly transform your BlackBerry into an MP3 player as it has Play/Pause, Previous Track, and Next Track buttons. Rockin’ OS 5.0 is the new thing these days and yes the 8530 comes with it preloaded. BlackBerry Messenger just had to be updated to the latest (5.0.0.56), but that’s a matter of minutes to do.
It is very impressive to see RIM bring back the classic battery from the BlackBerry Curve 83xx and implement it here as we all thought it was long gone. We haven’t taken it for a full ride yet through a day, so we’ll tell about the battery life in the next few days.
We haven’t even started our journey in discovering further features and experiences with the BlackBerry Curve 8530, so details and stories are yet to come. Stay tuned for more as the PocketBerry team keeps some closer looks on the device.
-by Mac Jadalhack
