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| BlackBerry Pearl 8100 Smartphone Black (T-Mobile) | 
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| Brand: BlackBerry
Category: Wireless
List Price: $349.99
Buy New: $0.01
You Save: $349.98 (100%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  133 reviews
Sales Rank: 492
Color: Black
Media: Wireless Phone
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 0 x 0 x 0
Model: 8100
UPC: 610214613370
EAN: 0610214613370
ASIN: B000ID10JE
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Promotion: Data not available Terms and Conditions
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 Great all around except for camera and media player September 28, 2006
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
I've had this phone for a couple of weeks and it rocks.
Its a great convergence device except for two things: The camera, which takes pictures with washed out colors (be prepared to be disppointed), and its media player, which looks like something out of the 1990s. The media player problem can be fixed in the future with a good update from RIM, but the camera.. alas.. wait for the next update of this phone. There are plenty of free services and apps for the 'berry, like Berry Bloglines, Berry 411, Google mobile, and yahoo's mobile site, they all very much complement the berry's email stuff. It syncs great with outlook, though if you're looking for a non-M$ solution, you have may to wait for abit, syncing with Google calendar (google for Gcal Sync to look it up) didn't work for me yet, but there should be updates in the future to fix it. In the meantime, you can also google for "Holy grail of synchronization" to check out other synchronization solutions.
Now if only Apple and RIM made a phone together....
 Limited Mapping Application September 27, 2006
9 out of 16 found this review helpful
Just a quick note about the mapping application...
Mapping does not allow points of interest searches. You can only input an exact address or select an address from your address book. So, you can't use it to help you find a Starbucks, ATM or other POIs.
If you hook it up with a Bluetooth GPS receiver, it will show you were you are on a map. (BlackBerry plans to roll out some tracking services.) However you can't use it for GPS turn-by-turn directions (like TomTom or Garmin) or use it to start your direction request. For directions, you need to input both your starting address and your destination address. It is probably more useful to use a web-based mapping application, like Google mobile maps or Mapquest.
But yes, this phone is sleek and sexy.
Nearly Perfect Phone with Blackberry Features September 26, 2006
30 out of 30 found this review helpful
Here are my thoughts on the BlackBerry Pearl.
Usability: After using a full-sized BlackBerry 7290 for nearly two years, I was skeptical of RIM's new SureType 20 button keyboard. But after a week of using it, I'm convinced that it's brilliant. Text entry on the BlackBerry Pearl is fast and intuitive. After a short period of getting used to it, you begin to concentrate less on the entry method and more on your thoughts. I have been able to type nearly as fast with the Pearl as I did before, although the keys are admittedly cramped if you have big thumbs.
The Pearl is designed with fantastic shortcuts that you can discover over time, which make up for the reduced number of keys. These shortcuts make the Pearl a pleasure to use as a phone and an email device.
Aesthetics: The BlackBerry Pearl is perfect for folks like me who hate carrying around and talking on the clunky bricks of full-keyboarded devices. The Pearl is slim, sleek, and svelte. It's just as much home in the office as it is at a bar on a Saturday night. The shiny casing smudges easily, but stands out, and the brilliant white pearl trackball is pleasing and functional. (I only worry that after months of use, it might get grimy or clogged with pocket lint.) This is a beautiful phone!
Call/Signal Quality: Sound quality is excellent. The speakerphone is loud. People on the other side of the line could not always tell that I was using a cell phone, and I have not yet had a dropped call. Reception is slightly weaker than the T-Mobile MDA, when compared side-by-side, but not unacceptably so. There is no wi-fi, although the EDGE network is acceptably fast for web surfing and downloading attachments.
Downsides to note: Even with the keyboard lock, this phone silences the ringer and vibrations as soon as the trackball or any key is pressed, and in your pocket this can happen easily (causing missed calls). Worse, if pressed down, the trackball might accidentally answer a call without your knowledge. This happened to me twice in two days before I wised up and reduced the trackball's sensitivity. Hopefully there will be a software fix. Also, the vibrate isn't the strongest, and the ring tones (even at maximum volume) are not as loud as that of other BlackBerries and other phones.
One final note: and this won me over big time. The phone comes with a mapping program, standard. Just click on any of your contacts' addresses, and viola, see a map of that place and get turn-by-turn directions. Unlike Verizon, there's no fee for this service. You can even pair the phone up with a Bluetooth GPS receiver, which I haven't tried yet.
Good Phone September 23, 2006
18 out of 20 found this review helpful
Because of my satisfaction with my previous BB, I bought this phone w/o ever seeing one.
It's a bit smaller and lighter then my previous, the 7100t. The Camera is very poor quality. If you take a picture of a computer keyboard you will have a hard time making out what the letters on the keys are.
The speaker (for speaker phone and ringers) is not very loud. The speaker acutally makes a horrible rattle sound -- I think it may be defective.
The total width of the keys are about a 1/2 inch shorter then on the 7100. I thought the keys on the 7100 were plenty big enough; they are a bit small on this phone. Holding the shift while typing numbers makes your fingers bump into each other. This was not an issue on the 7100.
The battery seems to run down a lot faster then the 7100. It has a faster processor then the 7100 (which was slow after the last major software upgrade). It is not as fast as the new larger blackberry (Forget the model).
I did manage to lock up the phone a few times and the media player seems very 'Verson 1.0-ish'. Blackberry updates are frequent and add new features. I expect these issues will be fixed in upcoming updates.
The new 'home screen' interface looks nice, but I think I like the list view theme on the 7100 better. The new home screen only allows 5 icons on the main screen, the rest have to be accessed via a menu. I'm guessing new themes will be coming out eventualy. Especially once other carriers get this phone.
I do not mean to sound negative about the phone, I am very happy with it and glad I upgraded (I've had it almost a week). It's super small, lite, BB email is great, and I like the extra speed of EDGE.
The trackball is a real trackball, not a 4-way stick. It is a nice way to navigate and feels well built and works like you'd expect it to.
The Best Phone Ever September 23, 2006
7 out of 16 found this review helpful
I have been waiting for ever for this phone for ever. I have been checking all the blackberry sites every day for the last 3 months and finaly on September 12 2006 it came out. And now I have it. This phone is one of the
greatest phones ever!!!!!!I absolutly love this phone...The only downside to this phone is that the little timer is always popping up whenever I switch themes. Oh and for all of you other big fans of Blackberry you can change the theme to the old style of the of the menus and applications. Hope this helps anyone on the edge of buying a Pearl...........
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