I might not be a Blackberry user and I don’t think this charmer will get me to switch, but it sure gets enough right that Palm and others will need to seriously pay attention. The form factor is excellent, the predictive typing works and of course they’ve mastered behind the firewall email and calendar delivery.
In the beginning, there was BlackBerry. A delicious fruit, yes, but also a clever way to get your e-mail on a pager-like device. Then there was BlackBerry: a clever way to get your e-mail plus an awkward phone in a much larger pager-like device. And beginning today, there is BlackBerry: a great cellular phone that also includes that clever way to get your e-mail. [MSNBC]
Walt Mossberg also gave the new Blackberry a go … Here’s the verdict: a very good device, but not as good or as easy to use as the current Treo. I hope the Treo 650 is capable of going even further …
The new BlackBerry is a good phone, a very good e-mail device, and the first serious competitor to the Treo as a combination of the two.
I’m not ready to give up my Treo for the new BlackBerry, mostly because I find the BlackBerry’s user interface slower and more complicated than the Treo’s. Also, the Treo has a better keyboard, is a better organizer, and is much more versatile and expandable. And, with the Treo, you’re not locked into T-Mobile. Every major U.S. cellphone carrier sells the Treo. [WSJ]