Rumors of a new BlackBerry with the codename "Gemini" have been running around the interwebs since early 2009, evolving slightly with every new blog post made about it. After some back and forth on device model number (previously labeled as the 8325 after some initial confusion), the prevailing thought on what has been now named the BlackBerry 8520 is that would it would be a new "low end" EDGE-only addition to the popular Curve line. In other words, the Curve 8520 was not something to get too excited about.
However, this changed after seeing the first live shots of the BlackBerry Curve 8520 surface this past week, which showed off a slick looking device with the traditional trackball replaced in favor of an optical one... the "Gemini" was officially now a device we couldn't wait to learn more about. And good news - it didn't take us long to get our CrackBerry-addicted hands on one. So grab a bevvy, sit back, and read on to see plenty of photos, a video and our initial impressions on the newest Curve.
As far as pre-release reviews go, the BlackBerry Curve 8520 in this hands-on feels very much like a production unit. The hardware is well put together and the OS is running smoothly. Edge devices like this are old-hat for RIM so that's no surprise. The BlackBerry Curve 8520 reviewed here is running OS 4.6.1, but we expect (hope) to ultimately see this hit store shelves running OS 5.0 (click here to learn about the improvemens in OS 5.0). With it now being fairly clear that devices running an operating system version older than 4.6 won't be getting an update to 5.0, it makes sense that RIM refresh the 83xx series into the 85xx series, which will get the newer OS. And like the Curve 8300 series, where you have your choice of one big feature (8310 for GPS, 8320 for WiFi, 8330 for CDMA), we expect to see more than just the 8520 be rolled out in the months ahead. Again, think Curve 8510 with GPS, Curve 8520 with WiFi, and Curve 8530 for CDMA carriers (this is unconfirmed... just think of it as logical speculation for now).
Many of you reading this will go "No 3G, Fail!" but you need to remember that there is and will be (at least for a little while longer!) a market for EDGE-only devices and RIM needs to have a base model, full QWERTY Edge device in their next-generation styling to fill that need. Thus it seems logical that the 8500 series is simply the replacement to the Curve 8300 series. This also justifies why a base model device will be the first to introduce a cool feature like the optical trackball. The Curve 8300 series lineup has been hugely popular and has a lot of loyal users (Curve is the #1 Selling Smartphone in the USA) and there are likely a lot of existing owners out there who would make the jump up to this device.
As for attracting new users to BlackBerry, it has also been suggested by many people that the 8520 is device built with Pay as You Go in mind. We haven't heard much yet in terms of carrier pickup for the 8520 (who's getting it) so whether this 85xx series rolls out to a lot of carriers as a replacement to the 83xx series or becomes a prepaid play by a few select carriers, we're honestly not quite sure at this point. Time will reveal all.
A few things are more certain though:
- With GPS and WiFi in one and overall better hardware specs (better camera, display, battery, etc.) the BlackBerry Curve 8900 is clearly the current flagship of the non-3G BlackBerry line. So the Curve 85xx device model falling in between 83xx and 8900 makes sense.
- For those of you upset with the lack of 3G here, keep in mind that's simply not the point of this device model. If you read the BlackBerry blogs, you'll know there are a lot of other upcoming rumored devices (who's drooling for Magnum?!) that will fit into the 9000 series of BlackBerry devices sporting 3G. Hopefully we'll see some new and exciting things in that lineup soon!
- Based on the unit reviewed here, while we don't have any sort of concrete release date information on the 8520 at the time of this writing, we'd bet that it does get announced sooner rather than later. It feels good to go.
| GENERAL | Network | 2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 |
| LAYAR | Tipe | TFT, 65K colors |
| Ukuran | 320 x 240 pixels, 2.46 inches | |
| DIMENSI | Ukuran/Berat | 109 x 60 x 13.9 mm / 106 g |
| AUDIO | Fitur | Vibration, MP3 Ringtones |
| Jack | 3.5mm jack audio | |
| Speakerphone | Ya | |
| MEMORY | Internal | 256 MB |
| Eksternal | Slot Micro SD card up to 32GB | |
| DATA | 3G | Tidak |
| EDGE | Class 10, 236.8 kbps | |
| GPRS | Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps | |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n | |
| Bluetooth | v2.0 with A2DP | |
| Infrared | Tidak | |
| USB/Port | v2.0 microUSB | |
| KAMERA | Primer | 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels |
| Sekunder | Tidak | |
| Video Record | Ya | |
| BATERAI | Tipe | Standard battery, Li-Ion 1150 mAh |
| Standby | Up to 408 h | |
| Talk Time | Up to 4 h 30 min | |
| FITUR | OS | BlackBerry OS |
| CPU | 512MHz processor | |
| Browser | HTML | |
| GPS | Ya, A-GPS | |
| Messaging | SMS(threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Mail, IM | |
| Java | Ya, Fitur Lain: - Organizer - Voice memo/dial - Predictive text input | |
| FITUR LAIN | Multiple SIM | Tidak |
| Video Player | MP4/H.264/H.263 player | |
| MP3 Player | MP3/WAV/eAAC+ player | |
| Audio Record | Ya | |
| TV | Tidak |
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