BlackBerry Pearl 8100

The BlackBerry Pearl 8100 is a smart phone that combines fun and functionality into a small, stylish device. It is the first in the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 series. The BlackBerry Pearl 8100 is available in black, silver, two tone (black and silver), white, pale gold, sunset, red and blue. Among some of the features available include wireless email, organizer, browser, phone, 1.3 mega pixel camera, BlackBerry Maps, media player, corporate data access, SMS, MMS and two Push to Talk function (PTT).

Specifications
The BlackBerry Pearl 8100 measures 105 mm x 50 mm x 14.5 mm (L x W x D) in dimension and weighs approximately 88 g. It comes in the form of a monoblock candy bar and has a SureType QWERTY keypad that is embedded with SureType software. In addition to that, it also has a Trackball and keyboard backlighting features. In terms of voice input/ output, the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 has a 2.5 mm stereo headset jack and comes with an integrated earpiece and microphone. Besides that, it also has a built-in speakerphone for loud speaker mode. The BlackBerry Pearl 8100 also incorporates Bluetooth v2.0 technology that is suitable for mono/ stereo headsets, handsfree and is serial port profile supported. The BlackBerry Pearl 8100 can also be used with a Bluetooth Stereo Audio (A2DP/ AVCRP). There is also an integrated media player that can play audio formats including MP3, MIDI, AMR-NB, AAC/ AAC+/ eAAC+ and WMA, as well as video formats including MPEG4 Part 2 Simple Profile, H.263 and WMV. In terms of display, the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 has a Transmissive TFT high-resolution colour LCD display that has a resolution of 240 x 260 pixels. Other display features include user selectable font size, colour display, backlighting and light sensing screen. In terms of notifications, the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 has support for polyphonic/ MIDI ringtones, MP3 ringtones vibrate mode and LED indicator. The standard battery of the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 can provide up to 4 hours of talk time. Alternatively, it can last up to 15 days when left on standby mode. In terms of memory, the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 has up to 64 MB of onboard flash memory available to users for storage. It also allows for memory expansion via a memory card port that supports microSD cards. The BlackBerry Pearl 8100 also has an integrated RIM wireless modem. It comes in a box that includes a USB cable and a wall charger. As for device security, the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 features password protection and keyboard lock, sleep mode, support for AES or Triple DES encryption when integrated with BlackBerry Enterprise Server, and optional support for S/MIME. Compatible networks include GSM/ GPRS quadbands including 800/ 1900/ 850/ 1800/ 900 MHz as well as EDGE networks. As for email integrations, the BlackBerry Pearl 8100 works with Black Berry Enterprise Server for Microsoft Exchange, IBM Lotus Domino, and Novell GroupWise. Besides that, it also integrates with existing enterprise email accounts, existing personal email accounts and optional new device accounts.

Reviews

“Though nothing revolutionary, the addition of multimedia features and the already solid e-mail capabilities make the RIM BlackBerry Pearl an attractive device for business users and consumers alike.” (CNET, 2006)

“There’s no doubt about it, the Pearl is a huge step forward for RIM. This smartphone offers features that many current and potential BlackBerry users have been wanting for years.But, for all its progress, I think this company still has a ways to go. Its implementation of some of the new multimedia features in the Pearl is a bit clumsy and are in real need of polish. And it still lacks features business users want, like better and easier access to Microsoft Office files.” (BrightHand, 2006)

“There is no denying that the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8100 is the most phone like BlackBerry device ever. It has the looks and size of a regular handset, yet offers smartphone functionality and the best push email system I have used. Its user interface might seem a bit vast and archaic to the uninitiated, but I think that the typical road warrior user will manage to adapt to it very quickly. The issue is that the general consumer will be less willing, or capable, to deal with that learning curve. As such, RIM has a long way to go before it can expect mass acceptance of their phones by Joe Consumer.” (MobileBurn, 2006)