When Research in Motion released the Blackberry all those years ago, they unleashed one of the most popular smartphones on the market. Known for its all business performance, the Blackberry was sought after for its email capabilities and other cutting edge functions. To keep the Blackberry at the front edge of the curve, RIM created the Blackberry Bold, a handset that improves upon an already successful formula.
Where the Bold really excels is with its improvements on the screen. The 2.6-inch diagonal screen is slightly larger than the one found on the Curve. The Bold also adds three quarters of an inch to the width of the screen, bringing the total to 2.25 inches. The clarity and vivid colors on the Bold make older Blackberry screens seem dull by comparison. The resolution of the Bold is 480 x 320p, and Samsung has utilized the larger screen and better picture quality by updating the UI with bigger icons that are clearer and easier to handle.
The user interface on the Bold is the Blackberry OS 4.6. Precision Zen provides the default theme with the ability to apply wallpaper to the home screen. Precision Zen arranges icons dock style as a row of six at the bottom of the screen. If using Dimension Zen, only icons that are selected receive color. Since the icons have been enlarged on the Bold only three rows instead of the more familiar four appear, which causes a little more scrolling than usual. When its time to unwind, the Games folder provides Sudoku and solitaire as well as two online games that hook up the player with other Bold users for head- to-head gaming.
The Blackberry really made its name with email, a fact that RIM knows well. That is why the company chose to keep things relatively the same on the Bold. Older Blackberry smartphones did the job so well, RIM only updated and modernized the email functions rather than giving them a complete overhaul. Now, the user can see pictures in message and get full HTML. Attachment viewing is also nice, but other than that, it is still the same email procedure as usual. The text is obviously easier to see on the bigger and clearer screen, but actual mailing hasnt changed much.
Once again, RIM has revitalized a concept that already worked well. The Blackberry Bold freshens up its predecessors proven abilities and tweaks them to remain relevant in the smartphone field. The familiarity combined with the modernity will please longtime fans.
