[gatorback]

I purchased an 8830 on July 2 and now having second thoughts about trading it in for the Tour (30 day exchange policy). That being said, the 8830 is mature and works well, however, the Tour is new (the rep said there are some bugs) and has a nice interface. The incremental cost is not that much ($150).

I'd like to hear opinions on upgrading from the World Phone to the Tour from World phone owners. Is it worth the incremental cost or should I stick with the World phone? Is there some compelling reason (functionality) to upgrade to the tour? Ideally, it would be good to hear both arguments and wrap it up with a conclusion.

Thanks for any constructive commentary!

OK, I did find this negative negative review (click here). Hopefully someone, can confirm \ refute the problems (sound quality, pointer problems) identified in this review.

[skunkd]

definitely get the tour, i had an 8830 for over 2 years, and while it was a great phone it doesn't have enough app memory to be a functional berry for those who love to try new apps out. memory leaks eat up the small amount of memory quickly and slow the phone down.

you'd even be way better off getting the curve 8330 since it has more memory than the 8830! i have tons of apps on my 8330, my 8830 on the other hand i could only have a handful installed at one time. plus the curve has full MMS and a camera

tour is def the way to go right now. much more future proof than the ancient 8830... although for the prices 8330's are going for right now i might consider them a nice second choice if u dont have the funds to get the tour!

[shatiek]

Man, go play with it for an hour. I love mine.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[postflight]

Hi GB,

I've had the 8830 for about 2 years. It does what it was designed for and where it was designed to work as a "world phone"--if you travel internationally other than Western Europe, you may have issues with the GSM coverage (frequency bands that the 8830 supports). Also if you travel internationally, the Tour is GSM 3G, the 8830 is not.

If you only travel internationally to areas that are supported by the 8830 and don't mind slower GSM data overseas, the 8830 does ok. The bigger picture is, "what do you want the phone to do?" If all you do is voice, email, sms, and PIN, the 8830 will likely meet your needs. If you'd like a camera, unlocked GPS, and data heavy apps--get the Tour.

Just my opinion. FWIW, I'm moving from the 8830 to the 9630 tomorrow.

The 8830 has been a good phone, I need the added international capability, MUCH larger memory, and a bit more umph from the processor, but that's just me.

By the way, if you're new to VZW and can return the 8830 within their 30 day period, Best Buy is offering the Tour to new VZW customers for $99.99 with a 2 yr. contract (I'm doing my upgrade through them for $149.99).

Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me if you have specific questions.

Regards

[deejayrunner]

I also upgraded from a 8830 to a 9630. World of a difference between the two phones. Tour has 4x the memory of the 8830, built in 3MP camera and video capability which means MMS capability. It was very annoying for me when someone sent me a MMS on the 8830 and i'd get an email saying i'd have to log onto VZW pix to see what the MMS was. Upgrading the headphone jack from 2.5mm to 3.5mm is also a huge plus. 8830 was a great solid phone but the 9630 practically beats it in practically every aspect

[ARSC]

get the tour man...u will love it my friend in the US just got it.

[mrgregory29]

Definitely get the Tour. I didn't think twice about giving up my World. Its a good phone but the Tour is so much more. Plus it has a camera lol.

[mededitor]

I've had my 8830 for a couple of years and I still love it. I switched the old silver housing and keyboard to a black housing and keyboard. I added a blue trackball. I put a BSE skin on it and found the perfect car charger/cradle for it (SmoothTalker). In other words, for me it was (and is) perfect and it still works like a champ.

Since updating the OS to 4.5, I now have Docs to Go, which actually completed the 8830 perfection for me.

The only reasons that I'm getting the Tour are the increased device memory so I can have and use more applications, the better browser, and the camera. I'm hoping that I like it at least as much as my 8830. I'm keeping my 8830 and all of its accessories just in case I want to switch back---I don't anticipate that, but I'm not ready to just get rid of the 8830. It may be "ancient" in the BlackBerry world, but it's still a great phone.

The Tour is the first phone that has tempted me to change. It's coming on Tuesday and I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

[anon(2254645)]

I just switched. Only had the 8830 for 3 weeks, so I exchanged it for many of the reasons already mentioned (memory, memory leaks, constant hourglass spinning, etc.). The Tour is wonderful! You won't be sorry.

[gatorback]

Awesome post. Where can I find and print out a BB ad for $99? I found a BB $150 ad and VZW was willing to match it through a credit. It would be really nice if I could produce the BB ad for $99. Thanks in advance.

Hi GB,

I've had the 8830 for about 2 years. It does what it was designed for and where it was designed to work as a "world phone"--if you travel internationally other than Western Europe, you may have issues with the GSM coverage (frequency bands that the 8830 supports). Also if you travel internationally, the Tour is GSM 3G, the 8830 is not.

If you only travel internationally to areas that are supported by the 8830 and don't mind slower GSM data overseas, the 8830 does ok. The bigger picture is, "what do you want the phone to do?" If all you do is voice, email, sms, and PIN, the 8830 will likely meet your needs. If you'd like a camera, unlocked GPS, and data heavy apps--get the Tour.

Just my opinion. FWIW, I'm moving from the 8830 to the 9630 tomorrow.

The 8830 has been a good phone, I need the added international capability, MUCH larger memory, and a bit more umph from the processor, but that's just me.

By the way, if you're new to VZW and can return the 8830 within their 30 day period, Best Buy is offering the Tour to new VZW customers for $99.99 with a 2 yr. contract (I'm doing my upgrade through them for $149.99).

Hope this helps. Feel free to PM me if you have specific questions.

Regards

[gatorback]

I got the tour and felt that it was worth the cost. Anyone reading this should get it from BestBuy or Amazon for $99