BlackBerry Curve 8320

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By Bonnie Cha
Oct 01, 2007

AT&T may have scored the RIM BlackBerry 8820 last week, but we're thinking T-Mobile got the better deal with the just-announced RIM BlackBerry 8320, aka the BlackBerry Curve with Wi-Fi. Why? Well, first it has the same sleek design of the original Curve with a more spacious and easy-to-use QWERTY keyboard. You also get a 2-megapixel camera, whereas the BlackBerry 8820 is sans camera. Of course, the latter is definitely aimed more at the business set, whereas the BlackBerry 8320 will appeal to a wider audience, and we're thinking it'll be a hit. The Curve offers solid performance, a great design, excellent messaging features, and the addition of Wi-Fi is icing on the cake.

Editors' note:

This review first appeared on CNET.com. This 8320 was tested using the T-Mobile network in the US. Some operator-specific features may not be available outside of the US. When contacted, BlackBerry was not yet able to confirm when the 8320 will be available in Asia Pacific. Portions of the design section were taken from our review of the BlackBerry Curve 8300 as the two devices share many of the same physical characteristics.

The BlackBerry 8320 pictured next to the first BlackBerry Curve.

Design

We loved the design of the first RIM BlackBerry Curve, so we're glad to see the company didn't mess with a good thing when the RIM BlackBerrry 8320. It still offers a best-of-breed design that beautifully combines a full QWERTY keyboard into a sleek and compact form factor (107mm high by 60mm wide by 15.5mm deep; 111g). With such a slim profile and small weight, the Curve is comfortable to hold and use as a phone, even though it has a wider body than regular cell phones. The outer edges also have a soft-touch finish to give them a rubbery texture, thus making the device easier to grip.

On front of the device, there's a 2.5-inch diagonal, 65,000-color screen with a 320 x 240-pixel resolution. The display features a light-sensing technology that automatically adjusts the backlighting of the screen as well as the keyboard, based on your environment (indoors, outdoors, a dark room, and so forth). In addition, you can customize the screen with various themes and wallpaper, as well as adjust the font size, family, and style. We didn't have any problems reading the contents of the screen under various lighting conditions, and both text and images were sharp and vibrant.

As with all BlackBerry models, the BlackBerry 8320 does not have a touchscreen, but we still found the device easy to use and navigate with the provided controls. You'll find these controls beneath the screen; they include the Talk and End/power buttons, a Menu shortcut, an Escape key, and the trackball navigator. You can adjust the sensitivity of the latter under the Settings > Screen/Keyboard menu. Along the right side, there is a volume rocker and a user-defined launch button that's set to activate the camera by default. The left side holds a mini-USB port as well as another programmable convenience key, and--good news--the Curve is equipped with a 3.5mm headset jack, so you can plug in Walkman-style headphones.

The BlackBerry 8320 features a spacious QWERTY keyboard for easy messaging.

One of the biggest complaints about the BlackBerry 8820 was its keyboard. RIM switched up the layout and feel of the keyboard on the 8820, and many users found the buttons to be slippery and cramped. Happily, the BlackBerry Curve's full QWERTY keyboard offers a better typing experience as it reverts to the styling of the keys found on the BlackBerry 8700g. This means you get more spacing between the buttons, and they're tactile and less slick.

Finally, the camera lens, flash, and self-portrait mirror are on the back of the device, and a mute button is located on top. The Curve is equipped with a microSD slot, but it's located behind the battery, so it's a bit inconvenient to access.

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