[SarcasmsFinest]

I was considering picking it up on the cheap on verizon until the tour drops. I only really need email and calling on it, everything else is just gravy. How is call quality and internet on it? Anything its really bad at?

[jeffh]

The 8830 is a very nice phone. Call quality and internet access is as good as any other BlackBerry. It does not have a camera, and can neither send nor receive MMS messages. It does not have wifi. It is still a currently sold and supported model, but that will likely change when the Tour comes out. So you may not be able to resell it for much. Assuming you don't get a defective unit, there is nothing that it does that it is bad at doing.

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[SarcasmsFinest]

Sorry, what is MMS?

[jeffh]

Multimedia Messages: pictures, for example.

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[esalonia]

Sorry, what is MMS?

multimedia messaging, like if someone were to send you a picture message from a phone with a camera, you wouldnt get the picture, it would tell you to log into vzwpix...

Other than that, I agree, this is a GREAT phone. It has served me very well over the past 2 years. I tried the 8330, and also the storm but this one is my favorite so far... That is until the 9630 comes out

[K-Pock]

I did the same thing, bought a cheapie from eBay to give me a phone to use till the tour, but I'm thinking I may just stay with this one. It seems to do everything I need just fine, but I've never used another to compare it with.

The MMS bit is slightly annoying, but can be worked around by giving people your email address to send MMS messages to instead of your phone number.

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[SarcasmsFinest]

Great great. Thanks for the help.

How is the browser? Does it move well or are there problems using various websites?

[jeffh]

I use the BlackBerry browser almost exclusively and have no problems with it. I also have the Bolt browser installed, which is much more like a PC browser. One point to mention: if you buy a used 8830, you will likely have to upgrade the OS to 4.5. That's worth doing, and relatively simple.

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[K-Pock]

Yes, definitely do the upgrade to 4.5. As far as the browser, I've just been using the built-in browser. It can be sluggish on sites that aren't mobile optimized, but it's usually fine. I tried Opera Mini, but it wasn't enough of a difference for me to bother with.

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[codemaker]

I have had my 8830 for just over a year. Running with 4.2 I would not recommend this phone over the 8330 because of memory problems (lost phone logs, lost sms messages), lack of youtube support, lack of mms support and so on (I was doing several battery pulls a day). I have a friend who was 100% fine with 4.2 and didn't have to do battery pulls though so YMMV.

BUT after I upgraded to OS 4.5 and got an SD card, I felt like I had a new phone and now feel confident recommending the 8830 to others. I am on Sprint, so I can send MMS messages but sprint has not set up their network/servers to receive MMS messages directly on the device, although the device is capable of it. Not sure about VZW.

The web browser is capable (I recommend turning off java script) but it has some room for improvement. I am able to view most websites I visit. No flash support of course. With OS 4.5, you can view youtube videos though.

You mention you are only interested in email, phone, and internet, but if you do decide to use a few popular apps, as of recently, most of them are supported on the 8830 (pandora, facebook, poynt, viigo, google apps, twitter). The 8830 is kind of the black sheep of the blackberry family, but has been getting better treatment as of late.

Basically with OS 4.5 this is a good phone and should last you fine until you pick up a tour.

[esalonia]

Agreed, 4.5.x is highly recommended, and is relatively painless to upgrade.

[crmx913]

Other than upgrading to 4.5 is there anything you guys would advise doing to get this phone up to crackberry standards? I picked one up real cheap to hold me over until the Tour hits. Getting rid of this nightmare of a Storm asap while there is still a market for it on ebay. I mainly just text, use facebook, and browse crackberry mobile on the phone so it should be fine until I get my Tour.

[jeffh]

For the uses you describe, nothing more is needed. If you are going to store pictures or documents on the phone, I recommend a Media card. The 8830 is a very capable device, as described above.

[codemaker]

Right. Get a media card if you are going to store anything on the device (ringtones, pictures, music). After I got my media card, I started using my phone to listen to podcasts and sometimes music. That was a nice bonus.

Also any media card you get will also transfer over to your Tour.

You probably want to disable javascript in the browser, and I have experienced some issues with background images so I have that disabled too.

[Cotuit]

The 8830 is my first smartphone and I am very impressed. There is a learning curve, of course. But it certainly meets my needs. My Verizon contract has ended and I wasn't sure about whether to go with the iPhone. But reception in my area is very poor on the ATT system.

I bought the phone on eBay, upgraded to 4.5 and put a 4GB media card in it to hold music and photos. I want to unlock the GSM side to allow me to use sim cards in Europe and Asia. I'll wait to see how the Tour shakes out. But the 8830 seems rock-solid to me.

Thanks for the information on the MMS workaround. Now I can get the grandkids pictures again.

[blackmannx]

This has been my work phone since it launched and I love it. I have the storm for personal use and a tour to test but this phone just feels rock solid in the hand and does went its meant to do quite well. Upgrade it to 4.5 and you will have a unit that will not let you down.. and its built like a tank.

[bell25252003]

I did exactly what you are considering. I wanted a personal blackberry but wanted to save my NE2 for the Tour. So, I bought a 8830 on Ebay about 2 weeks ago for $70 and added a 8gb media card and couldn't be happier. Now, I don't know if I'm even going to rush out to get the Tour when it is released as I was planning to do. The 8830 has good sound quality, it is a good size and fits nicely in your hand, and the buttons feel great. The only downside, in my view, is that it doesn't have a camera. I thought this was going to bother me, but after 2 weeks of ownership, I really haven't cared.

Good luck.

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