Well the wait is over, and I received my shiny new Blackberry Bold yesterday, on the Orange network. It is my first Orange contract and my experience was very positive. I put in the sim and the phone started up straight away.
Going through the setup process was very easy and impressive with the amount of control is afforded the user.I was not ready for the quality of the display. I had heard it is good but seeing it in living colour was an experience on its own.
I was gutted that the signal strength was wavering on 2 bars and am worried that this might force its return. I am a bed-bound paraplegic with poor eyesight and was excited to find that there are extensive font options. User Selectable Fonts should be the standard of all phone makers. If RIM can do it why not all the others.
I found the keyboard easy to get to grips with and there is ample spacing of the keys.
The camera is reasonable and surprised me how well the pictures came out. Built in flash is a must and is provided. Video Recording is easy and reasonable.
Next I wanted to check out the GPS and maps but there was no icon. The GPS failed to find any satellites and the maps were missing although the sofware was supposed to be loaded. I am informed that there is a software update on the way to correct this.
I also liked the feature to set times when the phone was on or off. I found the browser to be tiny and wonder how long it will be before reducing mobile phone sizes will have a negative effect on our young peoples eyes. In any case it was too small for me to see and use. It is a pity the Font setup does not include all fonts including menu's and browser.
Each Blackberry has a unique PIN number and this can be user to send sms and email without going through the email system.
I was surprised when Edge was not listed as a connectivity option. Mine only lists 2G & 3G. So in all mine leaves a few problems but I love the Blackberry Bold and would only return it to Orange to get another one on a network with better coverage for me.