BlackBerry Bold 9900 - Gallant Warrior

Conclusion

A Good Fight 

When RIM declared the BlackBerry Bold 9900 as the most powerful BlackBerry yet, we had our doubts. After all, the previous Bold models are seen as mediocre upgrades to the highly successful Bold 9000. BlackBerry phones have also been lagging behind the competition in terms of hardware and software for some years. However, some of this is going to change with the unveiling of the BlackBerry Bold 9900.

The BlackBerry Bold 9900 is the thinnest BlackBerry ever released by RIM, which makes it very portable. It retains the physical QWERTY keyboard that BlackBerry fans and messaging fanatics love. Out is the primitive BlackBerry smartphone OS 6 in the Bold9780 and in is the new BlackBerry 7 OS. The new OS is a nice upgrade from BlackBerry 6, with a faster browser, enhanced universal search function with voice activated search and a more aesthetically pleasing user interface. Powering the BlackBerry 7 OS is the 1.2GHz processor, which makes for a smooth and fluid user experience. We also liked its touch screen which deliver great color clarity and depth. As expected, the battery life is excellent for a BlackBerry device, ranking among the top for smartphones. 

There is however, room for improvement for the BlackBerry 7 OS. While the new OS brings some new features (Liquid Graphics being one of them as a consequence of good hardware and software integration), it is still lagging behind the competition. On one hand, it lacks the simplicity and user friendliness of the Apple iOS. On the other hand, it offers little room for users to customize the user interface. Overall, the BlackBerry 7 OS does not offer any compelling new features that will have new users flocking over to its side. Last but not least, RIM's decision to keep the BlackBerry 7 OS exclusively to new devices may annoy current users of BlackBerry 6 devices. Although current BlackBerry devices are unable to support the new OS due to hardware limitations, we felt that it may be possible for RIM to release a "lite" version of BlackBerry 7 OS. It does not make sense to ditch BlackBerry 6 OS which is just released less than a year ago.

It is also time for RIM to improve the camera performance of its phones so that it can also be positioned as a true multimedia phone to compete with the iPhones and Android devices. Although RIM has done a good job with the display, a flagship model like the BlackBerry Bold 9900 deserves a bigger screen for better viewing and usability. The 2.8-inch screen does feel a bit small for a fantastic touch screen experience.

You can get the BlackBerry Bold 9900 at all the local telco operators for S$927. If you have not jumped onto the BlackBerry bandwagon and you're reluctant to join the iPhone / Android gang, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is a compelling choice as it is the best you can get from RIM at the moment. More so if you need a good QWERTY keyboard, the Bold 9900 provides one of the best available in a compact form factor.

If however you are an existing BlackBerry user, the choice is yours. We do not blame you for feeling annoyed with RIM for making the BlackBerry 7 OS exclusive to the Bold 9900 and future devices. However, if you have the spare cash, by all means, go for the Bold 9900. You will not be disappointed.