Style and handling summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
This handset is weighty to begin with, and it expands by roughly a third when you slide open the keyboard
User friendliness summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
It might take a while to get used to OS 6 but it produces a smooth experience, and the handset can be totally operated by the keyboard, the touch-screen or both together
Feature set summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
Web browsing using HDSPA and Wi-Fi, a fabulous camera, an app for social networking integration and BlackBerry Maps to help you find your way
Performance summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
While performance is pretty decent, especially considering the device's feature set, the processor is not quite in the same league as some smartphones, which means you need a little patience when it comes to multitasking
Battery power summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
Battery life is very impressive, giving 340 minutes of talk time, 336 hours on standby and music lovers get 30 hours to listen to their favourite tunes
Full Review and Specification for the BlackBerry Torch 9800
RIM has produced its most innovative handset to date in the BlackBerry Torch 9800, which features a touch-screen AND a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, along with the new OS 6.
BlackBerry users are a loyal bunch, as RIM has discovered. Once a BlackBerry user, pretty much always a BlackBerry user, whether they favour the QWERTY keyboards of the Bold and Curve ranges, Pearl's SurePress facility, or the Storm handsets with their touch-screens. Despite this popularity, RIM has never really managed to crack the mainstream market, something which it is trying to do with the BlackBerry Torch series, with not only the new operating system, but a touch-screen, AND a slide-out QWERTY keyboard.
First impressions
No one could say that the Torch is on the light side - it weighs a rather chunky 161 grams - and because of its design, grows in size by about a third once the QWERTY keyboard is popped open.
RIM users will be familiar with the keyboard, whose keys double up for letters, then numbers and punctuation. At the bottom of the device lies a ‘chin', which makes a handy thumb rest and makes the keyboard appear sunken. They keys are rather small, but feel okay in use, although you'll need to take some care to make sure you don't make too many typos.
The top section of the device is home to the 3.2 inch touch-screen. It slips open with a smooth action and manages to feel pretty secure, unlike many other phones of this design. Beneath this screen you'll find four touch keys and a trackpad, all of which are pretty standard for BlackBerrys. The track pad works well, though we did have to alter the sensitivity levels because we kept losing the mouse cursor. If you didn't like the clickable touch-screen of the BlackBerry Storm, the good news is that RIM has replaced it with a capacitive screen, which was both responsive and smooth in use. However, we needed to change its sensitivity levels, too, finally identifying the medium level as the most effective.
Nice touch
Sending texts or emails? Well, while you can choose to use the QWERTY keyboard, it's also possible to conduct all your messaging through the touch-screen. Just turn the device on its side, tap any text box - search bar or email, for instance - and up appears a full QWERTY keyboard on the screen. And if you're fat of finger, never fear. The keys are large enough to avoid any mistakes caused by hitting the wrong keys. In portrait mode, you have two choices when it comes to keyboards. You still have the option to use a QWERTY keyboard - albeit smaller than the landscape mode one - or you can use a SurePress keyboard (like those found on the Pearl range from BlackBerry).
BlackBerry 6 OS
As we said before, the BlackBerry Torch is the first of RIM's phones to feature the new operating system, BlackBerry 6. Like other BlackBerrys, the home screen is still rather bare - only four icons sit at the bottom of the screen. However, they can be swiped from side to side - each swipe comes up with a new home screen, each with its own four new icons - the all-programs menu, a media menu, a favourites menu that can be customised, a frequent menu that automatically fills with your most-used apps and contacted friends, along with a downloads screen where you'll find all the latest apps you've downloaded from BlackBerry App World. So if you can only see four icons at a time, how do you access the rest of them? All you need to do is swipe up from the bottom of the screen to show all your programs. It might take some time to get used to but it's nice to see that RIM hasn't chosen to just opt for a clone of Android or Apple, and with more spacious menus and a clearer font, the new OS is a huge improvement on the old operating system, which was beginning to look rather out of date.
The Torch features the highest resolution of any BlackBerry so far at 360x480 pixels. It certainly looks vibrant and we were especially impressed by the clarity and sharp colours of video. But it doesn't quite match up to the Super AMOLED that the Samsung Galaxy S boasts, or the iPhone 4's Retina Display technology, which makes its screen appear so clear you could be reading a book. A pre-loaded YouTube app allows the user to watch or upload video at the press of a key.
The speedy and smooth web browsing on the Torch 9800 is thanks to the HSDPA and Wi-Fi, which you would expect from a phone of this standard. But RIM hasn't stopped there - a new full HTML browser shows pages just as they would be displayed on a desktop computer. Auto fit works automatically so text never runs off the page, and thanks to multi-touch support it's possible to use pinch and pull to zoom in and out. Double-press on the screen and the page returns to normal view.
Thanks to its size, the screen is eminently suitable for browsing in portrait mode, but turn the handset onto its side and you'll enjoy the web page in landscape view, courtesy of the ultra-sensitive accelerometers.
Getting social
Social networking fans will be delighted with the new Social Feeds app. While Facebook, Twitter and MySpace are preloaded individually, the Social Feeds app streams all your updates into one continuous timeline; it also includes any of your instant messaging services, including RIM's own BlackBerry Messenger. If you're more of a Twitter aficionado, you can filter the timeline just to show your Tweet notifications. Once you're logged into any of your social network accounts, a winking red light will let you know whether you have any updates or email - an icon will indicate which account has updates, along with the number you have received. Click on one of the icons to make a drop-down menu of notifications appear. This list is rather clever, as it can integrate upcoming calendar appointments and friends' birthdays from your social networks. You can even synch your whole phone book with your instant messaging and social network contacts - just type in your username and password.
In the picture
BlackBerrys are not generally famous for their cameras, so it was a pleasant surprise to find the Torch boasts an excellent camera, with five megapixels, auto-focus, LED flash and face recognition. Choose to take pictures in portrait or landscape mode - the five virtual icons along the bottom of the viewfinder are easy to find with your thumb and offer album, geo-tagging, capture key, flash and scene setter. The flash in particular is impressive, producing some really good low-light and night-time images - although we found it better to switch it off - particularly indoors - rather than have it in auto mode as it has a tendency to go off when not needed. There a quickstart key on the side of the Blackberry Torch 9800 - press it and you'll be ready to take a picture in less than three seconds - that's pretty fast for a smartphone. If you're not much of a snapper, you can alter the dedicated key to start up the music player or browser if you wish.
The battery life on the Blackberry Torch was impressive. Naturally, like other similar handsets, if you have a number of apps and features running, it's going to use a lot of power, but we managed to get three days' use out of it, with social network notifications and push email turned on. Mind you, RIM reckons that push notifications save battery power, because you don't need to start up applications to the read your updates and messages.
The verdict
We found the BlackBerry Torch one of the most useful devices available on the market today. It's got a full feature set, excellent social networking capabilities, a superb camera and the new operating system, which is far better than its predecessor while managing to be not so different that it will alienate current BlackBerry fans. But, even with the slower processor, we just weren't that keen on its design, and we're not sure that BlackBerry fans will be either. As the BlackBerry 6 OS is soon to be made available on the likes of the Bold 9700, we feel this would probably be a better option in the long run.
This handset is weighty to begin with, and it expands by roughly a third when you slide open the keyboard
User friendliness summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
It might take a while to get used to OS 6 but it produces a smooth experience, and the handset can be totally operated by the keyboard, the touch-screen or both together
Feature set summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
Web browsing using HDSPA and Wi-Fi, a fabulous camera, an app for social networking integration and BlackBerry Maps to help you find your way
Performance summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
While performance is pretty decent, especially considering the device's feature set, the processor is not quite in the same league as some smartphones, which means you need a little patience when it comes to multitasking
Battery power summary for BlackBerry Torch 9800 review
Battery life is very impressive, giving 340 minutes of talk time, 336 hours on standby and music lovers get 30 hours to listen to their favourite tunes
Full Review and Specification for the BlackBerry Torch 9800
RIM has produced its most innovative handset to date in the BlackBerry Torch 9800, which features a touch-screen AND a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, along with the new OS 6.
BlackBerry users are a loyal bunch, as RIM has discovered. Once a BlackBerry user, pretty much always a BlackBerry user, whether they favour the QWERTY keyboards of the Bold and Curve ranges, Pearl's SurePress facility, or the Storm handsets with their touch-screens. Despite this popularity, RIM has never really managed to crack the mainstream market, something which it is trying to do with the BlackBerry Torch series, with not only the new operating system, but a touch-screen, AND a slide-out QWERTY keyboard.
First impressions
No one could say that the Torch is on the light side - it weighs a rather chunky 161 grams - and because of its design, grows in size by about a third once the QWERTY keyboard is popped open.
RIM users will be familiar with the keyboard, whose keys double up for letters, then numbers and punctuation. At the bottom of the device lies a ‘chin', which makes a handy thumb rest and makes the keyboard appear sunken. They keys are rather small, but feel okay in use, although you'll need to take some care to make sure you don't make too many typos.
The top section of the device is home to the 3.2 inch touch-screen. It slips open with a smooth action and manages to feel pretty secure, unlike many other phones of this design. Beneath this screen you'll find four touch keys and a trackpad, all of which are pretty standard for BlackBerrys. The track pad works well, though we did have to alter the sensitivity levels because we kept losing the mouse cursor. If you didn't like the clickable touch-screen of the BlackBerry Storm, the good news is that RIM has replaced it with a capacitive screen, which was both responsive and smooth in use. However, we needed to change its sensitivity levels, too, finally identifying the medium level as the most effective.
Nice touch
Sending texts or emails? Well, while you can choose to use the QWERTY keyboard, it's also possible to conduct all your messaging through the touch-screen. Just turn the device on its side, tap any text box - search bar or email, for instance - and up appears a full QWERTY keyboard on the screen. And if you're fat of finger, never fear. The keys are large enough to avoid any mistakes caused by hitting the wrong keys. In portrait mode, you have two choices when it comes to keyboards. You still have the option to use a QWERTY keyboard - albeit smaller than the landscape mode one - or you can use a SurePress keyboard (like those found on the Pearl range from BlackBerry).
BlackBerry 6 OS
As we said before, the BlackBerry Torch is the first of RIM's phones to feature the new operating system, BlackBerry 6. Like other BlackBerrys, the home screen is still rather bare - only four icons sit at the bottom of the screen. However, they can be swiped from side to side - each swipe comes up with a new home screen, each with its own four new icons - the all-programs menu, a media menu, a favourites menu that can be customised, a frequent menu that automatically fills with your most-used apps and contacted friends, along with a downloads screen where you'll find all the latest apps you've downloaded from BlackBerry App World. So if you can only see four icons at a time, how do you access the rest of them? All you need to do is swipe up from the bottom of the screen to show all your programs. It might take some time to get used to but it's nice to see that RIM hasn't chosen to just opt for a clone of Android or Apple, and with more spacious menus and a clearer font, the new OS is a huge improvement on the old operating system, which was beginning to look rather out of date.
The Torch features the highest resolution of any BlackBerry so far at 360x480 pixels. It certainly looks vibrant and we were especially impressed by the clarity and sharp colours of video. But it doesn't quite match up to the Super AMOLED that the Samsung Galaxy S boasts, or the iPhone 4's Retina Display technology, which makes its screen appear so clear you could be reading a book. A pre-loaded YouTube app allows the user to watch or upload video at the press of a key.
The speedy and smooth web browsing on the Torch 9800 is thanks to the HSDPA and Wi-Fi, which you would expect from a phone of this standard. But RIM hasn't stopped there - a new full HTML browser shows pages just as they would be displayed on a desktop computer. Auto fit works automatically so text never runs off the page, and thanks to multi-touch support it's possible to use pinch and pull to zoom in and out. Double-press on the screen and the page returns to normal view.
Thanks to its size, the screen is eminently suitable for browsing in portrait mode, but turn the handset onto its side and you'll enjoy the web page in landscape view, courtesy of the ultra-sensitive accelerometers.
Getting social
Social networking fans will be delighted with the new Social Feeds app. While Facebook, Twitter and MySpace are preloaded individually, the Social Feeds app streams all your updates into one continuous timeline; it also includes any of your instant messaging services, including RIM's own BlackBerry Messenger. If you're more of a Twitter aficionado, you can filter the timeline just to show your Tweet notifications. Once you're logged into any of your social network accounts, a winking red light will let you know whether you have any updates or email - an icon will indicate which account has updates, along with the number you have received. Click on one of the icons to make a drop-down menu of notifications appear. This list is rather clever, as it can integrate upcoming calendar appointments and friends' birthdays from your social networks. You can even synch your whole phone book with your instant messaging and social network contacts - just type in your username and password.
In the picture
BlackBerrys are not generally famous for their cameras, so it was a pleasant surprise to find the Torch boasts an excellent camera, with five megapixels, auto-focus, LED flash and face recognition. Choose to take pictures in portrait or landscape mode - the five virtual icons along the bottom of the viewfinder are easy to find with your thumb and offer album, geo-tagging, capture key, flash and scene setter. The flash in particular is impressive, producing some really good low-light and night-time images - although we found it better to switch it off - particularly indoors - rather than have it in auto mode as it has a tendency to go off when not needed. There a quickstart key on the side of the Blackberry Torch 9800 - press it and you'll be ready to take a picture in less than three seconds - that's pretty fast for a smartphone. If you're not much of a snapper, you can alter the dedicated key to start up the music player or browser if you wish.
The battery life on the Blackberry Torch was impressive. Naturally, like other similar handsets, if you have a number of apps and features running, it's going to use a lot of power, but we managed to get three days' use out of it, with social network notifications and push email turned on. Mind you, RIM reckons that push notifications save battery power, because you don't need to start up applications to the read your updates and messages.
The verdict
written by : Unknown | published In : Rabu, 24 Oktober 2012 | article Title: BlackBerry Torch 9800 | Url : https://doom-mobi.blogspot.com/2012/10/style-and-handling-summary-for.html | Please like and share this article to support this blog
Ditulis oleh:
Unknown - Rabu, 24 Oktober 2012
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