BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220

“With the BlackBerry KickStart it seems RIM has managed to achieve a form factor that is both Small yet BIG. It's actually a little bit weird to experience at first. Sitting on the desk next to a pile of other smartphones (a few BlackBerrys, a Treo 680 and even an iPhone 3G) with its flip closed, the KickStart seems small. With the exception of the Treo 680, the KickStart is definitely the thickest of the bunch, but the width and height of the device is obviously much smaller and the black face with chrome-colored edging makes it look tight. Despite the extra thickness added to the device from having a flip, the KickStart should be small enough to fit into most people's pockets inconspicuously. Busting out the measuring tape, with the flip closed the KickStart comes in at ~ 4 long, just under 2 wide and about 11/16ths of an inch thick.”

“People who have already discovered that they enjoy the multi-functional abilities of the Blackberry Pearl line may take a strong interest in the Blackberry Pearl Flip if they tend to prefer the design features of a flip phone. Additionally, those people who have chosen not to try out Blackberry phones because of the fact that a flip phone was not offered in the past are people who may now want to make the leap to Blackberry with the introduction of this phone. Whether you’re a new smartphone user or a longtime Blackberry fan, it’s likely that you can find something positive to say about the experience of using the Blackberry Pearl Flip.”

“I was a very big fan of RIM's original mainstream consumer device, the BlackBerry Pearl 8100. It offered good functionality in a nice form factor, and had a great trackball for navigation. The Pearl Flip offers much of the same goodness in a new form factor.But while the Pearl Flip 8220 has a great feature set and a pretty large SureType 20 key keypad, it just doesn't feel as rugged or easy to use as the original Pearl. It's a decent phone, it just doesn't seem to be the great messaging phone that the Pearl and Curve models are. With that thought it mind, we give the Pearl Flip 8220 a Recommended rating and feel that there will be many people that love the device - just not everybody.”