BlackBerry Curve 3G 9300 :Review

BlackBerry Curve 3G 9300

The Curve 3G 9300 is basically an updated version of the Curve 8520 - RIM’s previous entry-level model. But rather than merely rehashing that phone, RIM has added in some tempting extras, not least of which is support for 3G, something that the 8520 was sorely missing. Nevertheless, the phone is primarily aimed at first time BlackBerry users, or at least those who don’t want to be overwhelmed with features, so it lacks many of the bells and whistles found on the company’s higher end models. The questions is, then, does the Curve 3G still have enough thrills to tempt those buyers?

As you would perhaps expect, the phone sticks closely to the BlackBerry design blueprint. It has the standard layout with a landscape screen at the top and a full QWERTY keyboard nestled below. The Curve 3G is quite small measuring 109 x 60 x 14mm so it fits comfortably in your hand and the rubberised coating used on the side-mounted buttons and battery cover help with gripping the phone.

As with most of the latest BlackBerry models this one sports a line of three media playback buttons across the top. These are used to skip forwards or backwards through your tunes and to play and pause music. They’re quite a handy addition to have, but their presence on the top of the phone does mean that RIM has had to shift the standard 3.5mm headphone jack to the left-hand edge of the handset, which isn’t ideal as with headphones inserted it tends to snag as you take it in and out of your pocket.

Specifications

Available Features

• 3G network support
• Optical trackpad
• Full QWERTY keyboard
• Simultaneous voice and data*
• Email and text messaging
• BlackBerry® Messenger
• Instant Messaging
• Phone
• Browser
• Camera and video recording
• Wi-Fi®
• GPS
• Media player
• Organizer
• Bluetooth®
• Tethered modem

* The BlackBerry Curve 9330 supports simultaneous voice and data over Wi-Fi networks only.

Size and Weight

Height:
109 mm (4.29 inches)

Width:
60 mm (2.36 inches)

Depth:
13.9 mm (0.55 inches)

Weight:
9300
104 grams (3.7 ounces)
9330
106 grams (3.7 ounces)

Display

• 320x240 pixel color display
• Transmissive TFT LCD
• Font size (user selectable)
• Displays over 65,000 colors

Camera & Video Recording

• 2.0 MP camera (no flash)
• Fixed focus
• Video recording¹

Battery & Battery Life

BlackBerry Curve 9300

• 1150mAHr removable/rechargeable
  lithium-ion cell
• Standby time: GSM® - up to 19 days,
  UMTS - up to 14.5 days
• Talk time: GSM - up to 4.5 hours,
  UMTS - up to 5.5 hours
• Music playback: up to 29 hours

BlackBerry Curve 9330

• 1150mAHr removable/rechargeable lithium-ion cell
• Standby time: up to 10.5 days
• Talk time: up to 4.5 hours
• Music playback: up to 15 hours

GPS & BlackBerry Maps

• Built-in GPS functionality
• Includes BlackBerry® Maps

Data Input & Navigation

• Trackpad located on front of device,
  ESC key to the right, Menu key to the left
• Full QWERTY keyboard with backlighting

Memory

BlackBerry Curve 9300

• 256 MB flash memory/256 MB SDRAM
• Expandable memory—support for microSD card

BlackBerry Curve 9330

• 512 MB flash memory/512 MB SDRAM
• Expandable memory—support for microSD ca

Voice Input & Output

• 3.5mm stereo headset capable
• Integrated speaker and microphone
• Hands-free headset capable
• Bluetooth headset capable
• Integrated hands-free speakerphone
• BlackBerry Curve 9300: M3, T3 Rating for hearing aids (PDF)
• BlackBerry Curve 9330: M4, T4 Rating for hearing aids (PDF)

Media Player

• Video format support: MPEG4, H.263, H.264,
  WMV9
• Audio format support: MP3, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, QCELP EVRC, AAC-LC, AAC+, eAAC+, WMA9, Windows Media 10 Standard/Professional

Ringtones & Notifications

• Tone, vibrate, on-screen or LED indicator
• Notification options are user configurable
• 32 Polyphonic Ringtones - MIDI, MP3

Bluetooth

• Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR with support for the following profiles: Headset Profile (HSP), Handset Profile (HFP), Address Book Integration using AT commands, Address Book Integration using OBEX (Object Push), Phone Book Access Profile (PBAP), Dial-Up Networking (DUN), Bluetooth Stereo (A2DP / AVRCP), Serial Port Profile (SPP), Secure Simple Pairing (SSP), A/V Remote Control Version 1.3, Message Access Profile (MAP)

Device Security

• Password protection
• Keyboard lock

Wi-Fi

• BlackBerry Curve 9300: 802.11 b/g/n
• BlackBerry Curve 9330: 802.11 b/g
• WPA / WPA2 Personal and Enterprise
• Cisco CCX certified
• Wi-Fi® access to BlackBerry Enterprise Server
• Wi-Fi access to BlackBerry Internet Bundle
• Support for UMA (carrier-dependent – BlackBerry Curve 9300 only)

Wireless Networks

BlackBerry Curve 9300

• Tri-band UMTS networks: (800/850)/1900/2100 MHz or 900/1700/2100 MHz (check with your service provider for network availability)
• Quad-band GSM™/GPRS/EDGE networks:
  850/900/1800/1900MHz

BlackBerry Curve 9330

• CDMA Dual Band: 800/1900 MHz
• CDMA Dual Mode: CDMA 2000 1X with EVDO

 In order to record video clips a microSD card must be properly inserted in the BlackBerry smartphone. May be 

old separately.