Back to BB: Review of Blackberry 9220

After (literally) giving away my Blackberry Curve 8520 which was my life, I had resolutely stayed away from buying a new one. But last week, I decided enough was enough and went to the store and bought myself a BB Curve 9220.

9220 vs 8520

 This phone has the OS 7.1 which is the latest OS of BB phones. That makes the icons and the display a little different than 8520, but not a game changer in any sense. With a better processor, RAM and ROM, it is definitely worth the buy. The frustrating clock that used to appear while processing in Curve 8520 is a rare occurrence in this one. The battery is 1450mAh as compared to 1150mAh of 8520, which is definitely a big thumbs up. So far, I am able to use my phone for 1.5 days without charging it.

FM Radio

Ah, BB has finally woken up to the fact that we Indians like FM in our phones, smartphone or not. So presence of a basic FM is a big plus and that decided it for me. 2MP camera and music player is okay, but then we don't buy a BB for the camera & the music, do we? Addition of a 5MP camera would have made it even more special though. But I am not complaining.

BBM connected apps for those who are addicted to Social Media

There is a dedicated side key for BBM and camera respectively. You may change and configure them to something else though. Volume keys at the side have a small button in the middle which acts as Pause - for the music or FM. The rubber keys on the top as in 8520 are gone and instead there sits a Lock key which is very useful. This will prevent accidental calling and subsequent embarrassment. The hands-free connects on top, so you can keep the phone completely covered and still listen to FM/music.

When I saw the pictures of 9220 for the first time, I hadn't liked the keypad because they looked very fat and blunt, in person they are not bad at all. The trackpad which was one smooth surface in 8520 has been separated into keys (phone, BB, Return and Ignore). Took me some time to get used to, but nothing to complain about.

Keypad of BB 9220

 As soon as I connected to BB App World, I got to know that there is an introductory offer to download free applications worth 2,500 rupees with the Curve. I was prompted to upgrade BB Messenger, BB App World and BB Protect (which lets you remotely track your phone and erase the contents if you lose the phone. by God, I hope not. Not again!). In the last 8 months, Apps have definitely improved in quality and I hope they improve further. Haan, there is a facility in this Curve to set up your payment channel like credit card or Paypal so that you can use these whenever you require to make payments.

I got a Bluetooth headset free with this phone. I haven't used it, so can not comment on it. All in all, a BB for those who don't want to spend too much yet want to have a BB experience. If you own a BB 8520, you will like 9220 too.