Bold 9700 or Curve 8520?

So you’ve decided to buy a BlackBerry. A great choice for email or communicating with your BlackBerry owning friends via the excellent BlackBerry Messenger. But you’re a little stuck when it comes to picking the right phone for you. In one hand you have the sleek Curve 8520 and in the other, the sturdy Bold 9700. Both brilliant devices, but which is going to be the correct choice for you?

Our in-depth comparison should make your decision a little easier!

The Phones.

As both the Curve and the Bold feature fixed QWERTY keyboards in a candybar form factor, a quick glance doesn’t reveal many differences between the two, so one has to explore a little further. Pick up the Curve and you’ll notice how light it feels, in fact it feels lighter than the quoted 106 gram weight, whereas the Bold tips the scales at 122 grams, and feels far more solid. The chassis’ are also almost identical in terms of size, with both measuring 109×60mm, but the Bold’s depth coming in at 14.1mm, making it slightly thicker than the Curve’s 13.9mm. The Curve does live up to its name though, with a more flowing line than the professional looking Bold.

Keyboard layouts are the same, plus the 9700 employs the same optical trackpad as the Curve, shunning the trackball found on the previous model. However, it’s around the sides that the key difference between the Curve and Bold becomes apparent, as the Curve has a set of dedicated music keys, subtly blended into the casing. These make a huge difference if you’re planning on using your new phone to listen to music, and since it has a 3.5mm jack socket, there seems no reason not too!

The Connection.

Aside from both having Wi-Fi and being able to be tethered to your computer, there is one big difference between the two here, as the Curve can only connect to a GPRS or EDGE data network, whereas the Bold uses GPRS or 3G HSDPA. If you want to be using the Internet, then HSDPA speeds are essential, but if you’re going to be an email-only person, then the Curve’s GPRS/EDGE combination is fine.

The Curve’s Bluetooth is v2.0 with A2DP support while the Bold has v2.1 with A2DP, but both the Curve and the Bold work with BlackBerry’s Enterprise Server for Microsoft Exchange, Novell and Lotus Notes, plus most popular personal email accounts too.

The Basics.

How about everyday use? Well, the Curve’s battery should return 400 hours standby with 4 hours talktime, but the Bold’s slightly larger 1500mAh battery capacity gives 500 hours and 6 hours respectively. The Bold’s screen has a better resolution too, despite being the same size, with 480×360 pixels over the Curve’s 320×240. Around the back you’ll find the lens to the camera, with a 2 megapixel item on the Curve and a 3.2 megapixel on the Bold, which also has autofocus and an LED flash, however both can shoot video.

A hot-swappable MicroSD card slot is hidden underneath the battery cover on both phones, and both have essentially the same music and video player, but be aware that the Curve could come with version 4.6 of the BlackBerry OS, while the Bold has 5.0 installed, therefore some differences may occur here.

The Tech.

As the Bold is placed higher in the range than the Curve, this is where it wins over in terms of specification, with the main addition attempting to sway buyers being the inclusion of GPS.  Under the skin the Bold packs a 600MHz processor which is a touch speedier than the 512MHz one inside the Curve, but as both share the same 256MB of RAM and Flash memory, the speed increase is hardly breathtaking.

Which Will be Your Phone?

Here are the key points from our comparison:

• The Curve’s dedicated music keys are a big advantage.
• The Bold’s 3G HSPDA connection is a must if you’re planning to browse the web, but isn’t essential if you’re only sending email.
• The Curve’s lighter frame makes it perfect for pockets.
• The Bold has GPS built-in.
• If you’re planning on taking lots of pictures, the Bold’s 3.2 megapixel camera, flash, autofocus and image stabilisation software makes it the best choice.
• Minor differences include the Bold’s slightly updated operating system, Bluetooth v2.1 and a faster processor.

The final point to make is that the Curve will likely cost considerably less than the Bold on a per month basis, so you really need to weigh up the importance to you of its extra features.  Whichever you end up choosing, we’re sure you’ll be pleased, as both are fantastic smartphones!

So have you decided which one would be your best choice if you're planning to buy a BalckBerry after reading my revied? :)

[sneak peek] Coming up next : How to personalize messages on Bold 9700.