Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #34 in Cell Phone Accessories
• Color: Silver
• Brand: BlackBerry
• Model: 8320 Curve
• Released on: 2007-09-24

Features

• Smallest, lightest BlackBerry with full QWERTY keyboard--weighs just 3.9 ounces
• Wi-Fi connectivity for Web browsing and access to T-Mobile's Hotspot @Home unlimited calling service
• 2.0 megapixel camera with flash and 5x digital zoom; Bluetooth wireless connectivity with with stereo headset support
• Next-generation media player with audio and video playback in a variety of formats; expandable via MicroSD memory cards
• Includes: Battery, Charger, Stereo Hands-free Headset, USB Cable, Carrying Case and BlackBerry Desktop Software

Amazon.com Product Description
Adding a fashionable touch to Research in Motion's formidable arsenal of telephonic, PIM, and media tools, the BlackBerry 8320 Curve for T-Mobile is also the smallest, lightest BlackBerry phone that includes a full QWERTY keyboard. This amalgam of the svelte BlackBerry Pearl and the more business-oriented 8800 combines RIM's long-valued corporate email and messaging platform with a host of advanced multimedia features, including a 2-megapixel camera and stereo Bluetooth (for listening to music via wireless headphones). In addition to its quad-band GSM and EDGE connectivity, it also offers Wi-Fi connectivity for access to the Internet and email as well as access to T-Mobile's Hotspot @Home service. This version comes in titanium, but it's also available in pale gold.

The Curve's full QWERTY keyboard and the innovative trackball navigation system (placed above the keyboard) makes accessing your data and writing email a breeze..

The 2-megapixel camera makes it easy to capture pictures to send via email or upload to your online photo collection.

T-Mobile Service Options
With T-Mobile HotSpot @Home service, you'll effortlessly transition between Wi-Fi calling and T-Mobile's wireless network while you talk. You can get unlimited nationwide calls over Wi-Fi--at home via your wireless router or at any U.S. T-Mobile HotSpot. You can also use the HotSpot @Home service via most open, or unsecured, wireless routers, as well as any secured wireless router for which you have access to the password from the owner. This phone is compatible with the 802.11b/g Wi-Fi standard as well as the following wireless security protocols: WEP, WPA (TKIP), WPA2 (AES-CCMP), LEAP, PEAP, EAP-TLS, EAP-TTLS, EAP-FAST, EAP-SIM, EAP-AKA. Whenever you're not using a Wi-Fi network, the Curve works just like a regular mobile phone, using your Whenever Minutes under your T-Mobile voice plan.

This phone also includes compatibility with T-Mobile's myFaves service, which allows you to call up to five of your most common contacts--on any network, even landlines--without using any of your minutes. Learn more about myFaves from T-Mobile.

Staying Connected
With BlackBerry's push email technology, your email will find you without having to initiate a connection. BlackBerry devices are designed to remain on and continuously connected to the wireless network, notifying you as new email arrives. In addition to the text, you can also receive and view attachments in a wide range of popular file formats, including Microsoft Office, Corel WordPerfect, and Adobe PDF.

Browse the web with the integrated, full-featured browser, which quickly and efficiently displays HTML pages as well as enables you to set up RSS feeds to stay connected to up-to-the-minute news and blog posts. And keep up with your contacts using a variety of instant message (IM) networks, including the integrated Blackberry Messenger as well as downloadable clients for Google Talk, Yahoo! Messenger, and Lotus Sametime.

For corporate users, the Curve delivers all the enterprise email and messaging capabilities you've come to expect. It's supported on BlackBerry Internet Service, giving you access to up to 10 work or personal email accounts (including most popular ISP email accounts), as well as BlackBerry Enterprise Server, enabling advanced security and IT administration within IBM Lotus Domino, Microsoft Exchange and Novell GroupWise environments.

Phone Features

Click for larger view.

The Curve is fashioned in a liquid silver finish with chrome highlights and subtly curving corners. Measuring 4.2 x 2.4 inches, the Curve is just as slim as the Pearl (0.6 inches) and weighs in at 3.9 ounces--just 0.7 ounces heavier than its predecessor. It features a bright 2.5-inch color TFT screen that provides 65,000 colors and a 320 x 240-pixel resolution, and it includes a light-sensing feature that automatically adjusts backlighting for indoor, outdoor and dark environments. Like the BlackBerry 8800, the Curve includes a trackball navigation system located on the top of the QWERTY keypad, and it also features an integrated spell checker with a customizable dictionary to help maintain accuracy while on the go. It has 64 MB of internal ROM memory, and is expandable using MicroSD memory cards. The battery provides up to 4 hours (240 minutes) of talk time and up to 17 days (408 hours) of standby time.

You can snap vivid photos (though no video) using the 2-megapixel camera on the back of the Curve, which also features a 5x digital zoom, built-in flash, self-portrait mirror and full screen viewfinder. It can capture images in up to three picture quality and size resolutions that can be shared instantly by email, MMS or BlackBerry Messenger, or even uploaded to your Flickr account with the Yahoo! Go service. Photos can also be immediately set as a unique caller ID or Home Screen image. You can edit photos and create albums within the Curve using the PhotoSuite application. Pictures can be cropped, rotated and straightened, and flaws can be fixed by removing redeye or changing the brightness, contrast, and saturation levels.

Listen to your favorite music and watch downloaded videos using the included stereo headset, or use an optional wireless headphone thanks to the Curve's support for the Bluetooth stereo audio profile (A2DP/AVRCP). The Curve is compatible with a wide variety of file formats, including MP3, WMA and AAC/AAC+/eAAC+ audio and WMV, MPEG4 and H.263 video. Dedicated volume controls are conveniently located on the side of the handset.

With the Voice-Activated Dialing (VAD) feature, you can initiate a call just by telling the Curve who to call from your contact list--either via the integrated speakerphone or using an optional Bluetooth wireless headset. Other advanced phone features include advanced sound technology that cancels out background noise and echo, dedicated volume and mute keys, and the ability to customize the Curve with polyphonic and MP3 ringtones.

Vital Statistics
The Blackberry Curve 8320 weighs 3.92 ounces and measures 4.2 x 2.4 x 0.6 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 4 hours of talk time, and up to 408 hours (17 days) of digital standby time. It runs on the 850/900/1800/1900 GSM/GPRS/EDGE frequencies.

Customer Reviews

A word on international calling with WIFI
This is a great phone. I just wanted to let everyone know about TMO's rules regarding international WIFI use because there is a review on this site which claims that you can use this phone overseas and call the US w/o additional charges. Based on TMO's terms and conditions, that is not true. Here is the language:

"Service Limitations, Connectivity & International Use: Wi-Fi Calling is not available at T-Mobile HotSpot locations outside the U.S. You acknowledge and agree that your use of any Wi-Fi network is permissible and that you (and not T-Mobile) are responsible for your use. Cell Broadcasts (alerts that go to certain customers) and Wireless Priority Service (WPS) may not be available with Wi-Fi Calling. If you have the Wi-Fi Calling add-on feature and use the Wi-Fi Calling service outside of the U.S., calls to U.S. numbers are not included as part of the add-on feature and are charged under your Rate Plan; calls to international numbers are charged under international rates. Please see important international 9-1-1 information below. You will be responsible for all internet access charges. "

So my question is: Has anyone tried WIFI calling from overseas to the US and if so, how were you billed?

BB Curve vs. TMO Dash - Blackberry wins!
Now that the price has come down, this is just a fantastic bargain for a very full-featured phone.

First of all, the connectivity is impressive. WiFi and stereo Bluetooth, and it even supports VOIP (i.e., Tmo's @home service). Email and messaging is superb, I do lots of txt and get IM notifications, plus all my IM clients on this phone and the conversations are all integrated into one list, very handy. I have the Blackberry Unlimited data plan + unlimited texts, which i consider necessary because this slick messaging interface tends to lead to excessive messaging. But that's why you get a Blackberry, right?

I had a Tmo Dash before this, and this just blows it out of the water. They have a similar feature set, but the Dash's camera is all but unusable, takes lousy pictures, the screen is hard to see in bright daylight, and the Blackberry OS makes Win Mobile seem clunky and confusing by comparison. It would be nice if the BB took video too, but cell phone video kind of sucks anyway.

If you're one of those highly connected social networking types, there is a Facebook app, numerous IM clients, and a Flickr uploader that makes posting pictures effortless. I installed Google Maps, and even though the Tmo version of the Curve has no GPS, the gMaps application gets it close enough by triangulating your location. It won't give you turn by turn nav but it really helps if you're lost, plus it's close enough so that using the traffic overlay is very helpful to avoid delays. The internet browsing is very satisfactory and superior to the Dash's mobile IE. Also, installing all these add-on apps is extremely easy. There are even some cool free versions of games that are quite fun to play with the little trackball.

I keep logged in to all these different things, and Bluetooth running all the time with WiFi wherever available - this is one busy little phone - but the processor is more than adequate to the task of keeping up, and the battery life is impressive with all these things running. With the Dash, "out of memory" errors trying to run the worthless camera were common, and the WiFi, Bluetooth, and any kind of multimedia usage would drain the battery way too fast. With the Dash, I had to constantly make sure I was being conservative with what I had running, and that's just no fun at all.

Multimedia capabilities are very nice, I have a 4 gig micro SD and some stereo bluetooth peripherals (i recommend Altec Lansing T515 Portable Speaker for Stereo Bluetooth Phone) and you've got a very slick portable entertainment system.

The little scroll wheel was a bit awkward for me at first, but now when I try to navigate other phones, I really miss it. If you've not had a BB before, it's a good idea to run through the tutorial when you set it up, there are some very very handy keyboard shortcuts that will make things much easier.

All in all, this is a fantastic smartphone that can actually keep up with me, and that's saying a lot.

Beware of cheap plastic trackball "collar" on Blackberry Curve 8320
Beware - Blackberry Curve 8320 design flaw!!!! The cheap plastic collar (ring) around the track ball will fall out and when you try to replace it, if not done precisely, you will break the little "legs" that are supposed to hold it in place. The track ball does not move easily as it is and really lacks any precision. When the collar piece finally is broken to the degree that it cannot hold the track ball in place, Blackberry will tell you you caused the physical damage and will not replace the phone under the warranty!!! It's their design flaw - but they will not own it! Very convenient for them to deny responsibility for this flaw. With a phone costing as much as this one does, why is this cheap little plactic piece used at a place on the phone where most of the work is done - mousing! If you have this phone, please return it under the warranty if you have the least little problem with the track ball - before it gets to the point where they can contrive any excuse to deny your claim!!!! And T-Mobile is not helpful at all on this subject. I used to hold T-Mobile in high esteem. This is not the case after my conversations with their representatives last evening after I took the Curve out of it's leather holster and the track ball fell out of the phone!!!