RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650 (Verizon Wireless) – With more memory and Wi-Fi

For:

Has Wi-Fi, onboard memory is doubled, SIM can now be unlocked, offers world roaming capabilities

Against:

Browser could have been better

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650 has a high resolution color display of 480×360 pixels. You can adjust the font size. The phone is 4.43 inches high, 2.4 inches wide, 0.56 inch deep and weighs 4.8 ounces. The device has 3.5 mm headphone jack, supported video formats are H.363, MPEG4 Part 2 Simple Profile, and WMV. Supported audio formats are WMA, Eaac+, AAC+, AAC, AMR-NB, MIDI and MP3. On the back, there is a 3.2 megapixel camera. The rated battery life is five hours for talk time and standby time is 13 days. For storing your data, there is 512 MB internal memory along with 2 GB seperate memory card included.

Razzle Dazzle:

RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650’s function and design is typical of BlackBerry devices. This handset is a bit heavier than Tour but the size is exactly the same. Apart from that, the keyboard, external controls and display too are similar. We are not complaining about the repetitive looks especially because the Tour looks very attractive.

Inside Dope:

This is not a new phone in our labs, we previously reviewed the RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650 from Sprint. But now we got a Verizon Wireless handset in our labs and thought of doing a separate review since the service provider gave it to us in our labs. There are no drastic changes done to this phone but some subtleties are apparent like Wi-Fi, optical touch pad and more internal memory. We have written this review for Verizon’s model only and we will feature on the performance and features by the service provider. If you are looking for a detailed review, check out our Sprint’s RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650. Verizon Wireless is selling this phone for $149.99, it comes with a 2 year contract and after $100 mail in rebate. This smartphone now offers world roaming capabilities and you can also unlock the SIM card. The design of the phone makes it comfortable to hold in the hand. There are a few downsides though, the browser is not that good. BlackBerry phones have never been browsers, they have been working hard to improve but it is still not up to the mark

Networks

RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650 has dual mode functionality as it is a world phone. It supports both GSM and CDMA networks. In the US, the handset works on Verizon Wireless network and it will revert to the GSM network when you are traveling overseas. So you can still make and receive calls when travelling aboard. This device supports 2100MHz UMTS/HSDPA band which means you can access 3G overseas also. Apart from that, the 9650 is the first smartphone from Verizon to support GlobalAccess Connect service through which you can tether the phone to a computer to use it as a modem while travelling abroad. The least expensive plan is $65 with $5 GB data limit in Canada and US. Above that, you will have to pay five cents per MB. In some countries, the limit is cut to 100 MB and every extra MB costs you $5.12.

SIM card

RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650 comes with a SIM card and the service provider lets you unlock the SIM card after 60 days from the purchase. You also need to have a good financial record with the service provider. You get to use an international SIM card while traveling abroad but you cannot put in AT&T or T-Mobile card in the US. Voice coverage is provided in more than 220 countries and the data coverage is there is more than 200 countries for 2G and 110 for 3G. Check out the service provider’s Website for coverage map and roaming charges.

Wi-Fi

RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650’s one big feature is the presence of Wi-Fi (apart from the double internal memory). Verizon has a good 3G network but still it is always nice to have Wi-Fi as an alternative to get online. Speeds for media streaming and browsing are also faster. There is also GPS and Bluetooth but you will have to sign up for Verizon’s Mobile Broadband Connect plans for using it.

Apps

RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650 comes preloaded apps like Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, Bing Mobile, and DataViz’s Documents to Go. You can get more from BlackBerry App World. Verizon provides some of its own apps like Visual Voicemail, VZ Navigator (both global and domestic), V Cast Video and Music.

Camera

RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650 comes in two models, one without a camera and one with a 3.2 megapixel camera. The camera has all the standard options for editing alogn with flash. The camera can also be used to record video. Picture quality is strictly OK. Indoor shots were dull in spite of the flash and the stills had hazy and dull effect to it. Outdoor shots, compared to this, were a bit better. Video quality is not bad, you can use it if you don’t have anything else at hand.

Call quality

RIM BlackBerry Bold 9650 has superb call quality. We didn’t have any problems on our side, the audio was clear and crisp. There was no voice distortion at the highest level either. The background noise was not pulled by the phone and hence we could talk easily. On their side, our friends too had words of appreciation. One guy said that the ends of our sentences were cut off but other people (with whom we tested the phone) didn’t complain of any such thing.

Verdict:

This is an excellent phone from Verizon Wireless. We will recommend this to people looking for a smartphone which has world roaming capabilities.