1. phonegeek#AC's Avatar
    Well my crackberry brethren the Onyx went to field testers this week with at&t. I apologize in advance for this being long winded. I wanted to try to provide as much detail as I can. As I was a tester for Bold last year and some others over the years I will provide my observations.

    First off I measure this against the Bold. The bold was the most advanced blackberry and IMO most advanced smart phone when it debuted last year and that it continues to hold that title. Since the Bold was released for testers in July 2008 I have used 12 other devices (some BB, some WM, and 1 iPhone) when testing completed I put them all back in the drawer and went back to my Bold.

    Item 1 size: The Onyx size is very close to the same size as the 8900. I have a picture of it next to my Bold and a picture of it next to the 8900 that I will try to post on this later in the weekend. I find the size nice to handle, I have an average size hand and average size fingers and I find this very functional from an ergonomic standpoint.

    Item 2 keyboard: The keys are a little closer together than what I was used to on my Bold but I don't find that I make mistakes with any greater regularity than I did with the bold. The keys on the bottom row are smaller as well but it doesn't seem to bother me much.

    Item 3 back cover: Back cover has a leather (real or fake not sure and I am not sure I care) patch on it. That seems to provide a bit more grip when I have it on the dash or the center console. I also like the way this cover slides into place. I personally didn't have any problem with the battery cover on my bold but know others who have and who also have had problems with the cover on the 8900. I like this one better and it will stay firmly in place.

    Item 4 memory card slot: The MicroSD slot is located under the battery cover. It doesn't require a battery pull to access it or anything like that but I did like the bold better the way the card could be inserted from the side. Minor thing IMO and largely a personal preference thing with me.

    Item 5 mute & lock buttons: The Onyx places these on the top of the unit much the same as the 8900 and I like that over the mute button on the bold.

    Item 6 Track Pad: Yes this device came to the field with the long anticipated track pad. As a veteran if the ball and the wheel I will say this feature is VERY impressive. It takes a very short while to get used to it and once you do your off and running. I do have one minor little knock on the track pad though I wish the button had just a little more resistance as I find that I am accidentally pressing it sometimes while navigating.

    Item 7 Memory: For those of you that think this device should come with 512mb or 1gb you'll be disappointed. It comes with 256mb and I will state that this is fine. I don't see a need for more than that, maybe it's just me but IMO there aren't enough useful apps to fill that up at this time so I fail to see the point. So far my application free mem holds at 129.2mb and I don't see any leaks that I can find.

    Item 8 OS: The device came to the field with SW 5.0.0.169 on Platform 5.1.0.30. One of the reasons that I am fine with the memory is that I believe this OS does a much better job at memory management than the bold. The device is quick, very responsive, don't see lag times things of that nature. There are a few minor little SW bugs that I won't go into as they are already being corrected and again they are minor IMO.

    Item 9 Features: There are many similarities between this device and the Bold and Bold users will be comfortable finding things in the same places for the most part. There are a couple of cool things that I like that have changed though. For those that like to use different ring tones and assign them to people you will find that the tasks of assigning ringtones is much more user friendly now that it was with Bold. Another thing that I REALLY like is that you can now also set message tones for people individually so that you can tell if a message comes in from someone important (assuming you assign them a msg tone) or it's just another message from someone else. I like this feature myself as I use this device for work and often get 1500+ messages per week with about 5% of them being ones that I think are important enough to pay attention to.

    Item 10 Screen: I am not sure technically if this is the same screen as the 8900 but I see a big difference in clarity between it and my Bold. Though slightly smaller it's very good.

    Item 11 Media: The way this OS manages media is much improved. I got rid of my iPod when I got my Bold but I listen to a lot of podcasts and always had a problem with the way it managed them as it would never group them by date always in some weird order so I would have to go into iTunes and set the order that I wanted them played before I could launch media sync and update. This is fixed and it seems to sort things correct now on the 9700 (OS 5.0).

    Item 12 Network: Spent most of my time in a 3G environment and the device does very well. I don't see any degradation between the bold and the Onyx when it comes to 3G service and IMO call quality seemed slightely better on the Onyx.

    Item 13 Battery: Ok so this is an area that I was very suprised about. Again I spent most of my time the last few days in a 3G environment with Bluetooth on and connected to my Jawbone II. Battery life seems greately improved from the bold. Similar environments on the bold would result in battery at 50% after 8 hours. I did a hard test as I was out later on Thursday and saw battery life at 70% after a full 16 hours with normal use. Note that I use a display backlight setting of 10 on both my Bold and Onyx as I find that is all I need.

    So that is about it in a nutshell. I am sure there are many specific things people here will like me to test and I am happy to do what I can. As I get updates and find more things I will continue to update and I will get some pics up as soon as I can remember the password for the place where I was hosting pics before it's been a while since I had occasion to upload pictures.

    To sum this up for me I see nothing about this device that would cause me to take my Bold out of the drawer anytime soon. Onyx has become my new favorite device.


    PG
    08-08-09 05:35 PM
  2. arnewayne's Avatar
    Sounds absolutely wicked!! Thanks for all the great info about the device!!
    08-08-09 05:55 PM
  3. Tris's Avatar
    Nice. I cant wait to get it Hope it comes to the UK a little sooner but I havnt heard anything over here about field testing yet.

    [EDIT] If you actually need hosting for the images give me a shout and I can give you 50MB or so of free space
    08-08-09 06:02 PM
  4. cellinator's Avatar
    Thank you very much for the information. I will be getting this the day it comes out (just like my Bold!)

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    08-08-09 06:11 PM
  5. cajunrph's Avatar
    Great, I was about to buy a Bold off of e-bay, seeing as my wife used her upgrade on a 3G S, now I'll wait for the Onyx in January.
    08-08-09 06:31 PM
  6. cellinator's Avatar
    It may come out sooner. The Bold released in November. I remember that the Bold had some browser issues that may or may not have kept it from releasing earlier (I'm not sure). If the Onyx is as sharp as mentioned in this thread, we might see a quicker release. At least I'm hoping for that! Lol...

    I wonder how the browser is on the new test model. Do you have any info about that?

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    08-08-09 07:49 PM
  7. addictedtoberries's Avatar
    So how long from field testing to sale room floor does it take now for the onyx?

    I am very, very, very excited for this phone, the 3G, the track pad, faster processor than my predecessor.

    I am currently on a loaner Pearl after destroying my Curve in a nice clorine bath, and want a new phone, I could get either the 8900 or the bold now, but I really want this phone and if its now in the field and will be out in stores in max 3-4 months I can wait that long.
    08-08-09 07:52 PM
  8. Crackberrykills's Avatar
    Thanks for the write up PG. Very nice. I cannot wait to see the Onyx in action personally.
    08-08-09 07:52 PM
  9. phonegeek#AC's Avatar
    It may come out sooner. The Bold released in November. I remember that the Bold had some browser issues that may or may not have kept it from releasing earlier (I'm not sure). If the Onyx is as sharp as mentioned in this thread, we might see a quicker release. At least I'm hoping for that! Lol...

    I wonder how the browser is on the new test model. Do you have any info about that?

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    There was a lot more than the browser with Bold. 3 hw changes and more SW changes than I care to remember.

    Is there something specific about the browser I should be checking?

    So how long from field testing to sale room floor does it take now for the onyx?

    I am very, very, very excited for this phone, the 3G, the track pad, faster processor than my predecessor.

    I am currently on a loaner Pearl after destroying my Curve in a nice clorine bath, and want a new phone, I could get either the 8900 or the bold now, but I really want this phone and if its now in the field and will be out in stores in max 3-4 months I can wait that long.
    Usually 12 weeks. 10 on an accelerated schedule if the device really has no issues. There is a lot of pressure though to push this through it's paces fast. I believe we are still looking at early November at this point.

    I will note though that Bold had many more problems when it came to the field than Onyx appears to have.

    PG
    08-08-09 08:05 PM
  10. Crucial_Xtreme's Avatar
    Sweet post PG. Thanks for providing the members with some great insight into the device. Keep up the good work my friend.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    08-08-09 08:18 PM
  11. JarceBerry's Avatar
    Thanks for the info, can't wait for this phone to come out.
    08-08-09 08:27 PM
  12. vbev84's Avatar
    This is great news, thanks for all the info. Man I want this to come out soon...
    08-08-09 08:31 PM
  13. juliankueh's Avatar
    Awesome report. Can't wait for it to arrive in Oz.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    08-08-09 08:32 PM
  14. rdawodu's Avatar
    Thank you much. I enjoyed it. I will be buying it unbranded and unlocked from CW.
    08-08-09 08:36 PM
  15. UN4GTBL's Avatar
    Great!!! I can't wait!!!

    Thanks, I hope to hear updates as they come!

    Anybody know if its gone to Rogers for field testing too?
    08-08-09 08:43 PM
  16. bbdub's Avatar
    Thanks for the detailed report PG!! It is much appreciated.
    08-08-09 08:45 PM
  17. cellinator's Avatar
    Earlier versions of the native browser have had issues such as having trouble with Javascript and loading very, very slow. I'm just wondering if the browser is snappier than its predecessors. Also, is there anything new you notice relative to the Bold's browser?

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    08-08-09 08:48 PM
  18. UN4GTBL's Avatar
    Earlier versions of the native browser have had issues such as having trouble with Javascript and loading very, very slow. I'm just wondering if the browser is snappier than its predecessors. Also, is there anything new you notice relative to the Bold's browser?

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    do you mean like tabbed browsing?

    or is that only going to the storm?
    08-08-09 08:53 PM
  19. carsmovies's Avatar
    One thing that should also be mentioned about the Onyx is that it'll sport a 800+mhz processor making it a very fast and responsive device including greatly improving browsing speeds.
    08-08-09 09:10 PM
  20. cmbkcaruso's Avatar
    what do you mean by a difference in screen clarity? Is the size of the querty key board exactly the same as the 8900 or slightly larger? And thanks for the good info phonegeek
    08-08-09 10:07 PM
  21. boilerjohn94's Avatar
    Great information - thank you very much for posting it. My wife and I have been debating a Bold vs. Iphone 3gs and I think that if we wait til this is out, it could sway her away from the iphone.
    I'm a newbie so forgive if this is a dumb question, but is the browser less "text like" and more "IE like" as the iphone is? Or is it the more text-based (seemingly) browser like on the Bold?
    Thanks again for the great info - I can't tell you how much us regular people appreciate it!
    08-08-09 10:56 PM
  22. cellinator's Avatar
    do you mean like tabbed browsing?

    or is that only going to the storm?
    No. I'm referring to the general problems/issues with the browser everyone has mentioned over multiple versions of Blackberrys. The native browser has been notoriously slow, has problems loading some pages, doesn't render some pages very well, etc.

    My question simply asks whether or not the new browser:
    1. Is faster and more functional than prior buggier versions.
    2. Has any new features or settings that did not exist prior.
    3. Has any new bugs or new issues we should know about.
    08-08-09 11:46 PM
  23. y0us3f's Avatar
    COOL ! thnks bro.

    tell us more when u get more info .. and maybe pictureS
    08-08-09 11:58 PM
  24. tediprude's Avatar
    Well my crackberry brethren the Onyx went to field testers this week with at&t. I apologize in advance for this being long winded. I wanted to try to provide as much detail as I can. As I was a tester for Bold last year and some others over the years I will provide my observations.

    First off I measure this against the Bold. The bold was the most advanced blackberry and IMO most advanced smart phone when it debuted last year and that it continues to hold that title. Since the Bold was released for testers in July 2008 I have used 12 other devices (some BB, some WM, and 1 iPhone) when testing completed I put them all back in the drawer and went back to my Bold.

    Item 1 size: The Onyx size is very close to the same size as the 8900. I have a picture of it next to my Bold and a picture of it next to the 8900 that I will try to post on this later in the weekend. I find the size nice to handle, I have an average size hand and average size fingers and I find this very functional from an ergonomic standpoint.

    Item 2 keyboard: The keys are a little closer together than what I was used to on my Bold but I don't find that I make mistakes with any greater regularity than I did with the bold. The keys on the bottom row are smaller as well but it doesn't seem to bother me much.

    Item 3 back cover: Back cover has a leather (real or fake not sure and I am not sure I care) patch on it. That seems to provide a bit more grip when I have it on the dash or the center console. I also like the way this cover slides into place. I personally didn't have any problem with the battery cover on my bold but know others who have and who also have had problems with the cover on the 8900. I like this one better and it will stay firmly in place.

    Item 4 memory card slot: The MicroSD slot is located under the battery cover. It doesn't require a battery pull to access it or anything like that but I did like the bold better the way the card could be inserted from the side. Minor thing IMO and largely a personal preference thing with me.

    Item 5 mute & lock buttons: The Onyx places these on the top of the unit much the same as the 8900 and I like that over the mute button on the bold.

    Item 6 Track Pad: Yes this device came to the field with the long anticipated track pad. As a veteran if the ball and the wheel I will say this feature is VERY impressive. It takes a very short while to get used to it and once you do your off and running. I do have one minor little knock on the track pad though I wish the button had just a little more resistance as I find that I am accidentally pressing it sometimes while navigating.

    Item 7 Memory: For those of you that think this device should come with 512mb or 1gb you'll be disappointed. It comes with 256mb and I will state that this is fine. I don't see a need for more than that, maybe it's just me but IMO there aren't enough useful apps to fill that up at this time so I fail to see the point. So far my application free mem holds at 129.2mb and I don't see any leaks that I can find.

    Item 8 OS: The device came to the field with SW 5.0.0.169 on Platform 5.1.0.30. One of the reasons that I am fine with the memory is that I believe this OS does a much better job at memory management than the bold. The device is quick, very responsive, don't see lag times things of that nature. There are a few minor little SW bugs that I won't go into as they are already being corrected and again they are minor IMO.

    Item 9 Features: There are many similarities between this device and the Bold and Bold users will be comfortable finding things in the same places for the most part. There are a couple of cool things that I like that have changed though. For those that like to use different ring tones and assign them to people you will find that the tasks of assigning ringtones is much more user friendly now that it was with Bold. Another thing that I REALLY like is that you can now also set message tones for people individually so that you can tell if a message comes in from someone important (assuming you assign them a msg tone) or it's just another message from someone else. I like this feature myself as I use this device for work and often get 1500+ messages per week with about 5% of them being ones that I think are important enough to pay attention to.

    Item 10 Screen: I am not sure technically if this is the same screen as the 8900 but I see a big difference in clarity between it and my Bold. Though slightly smaller it's very good.

    Item 11 Media: The way this OS manages media is much improved. I got rid of my iPod when I got my Bold but I listen to a lot of podcasts and always had a problem with the way it managed them as it would never group them by date always in some weird order so I would have to go into iTunes and set the order that I wanted them played before I could launch media sync and update. This is fixed and it seems to sort things correct now on the 9700 (OS 5.0).

    Item 12 Network: Spent most of my time in a 3G environment and the device does very well. I don't see any degradation between the bold and the Onyx when it comes to 3G service and IMO call quality seemed slightely better on the Onyx.

    Item 13 Battery: Ok so this is an area that I was very suprised about. Again I spent most of my time the last few days in a 3G environment with Bluetooth on and connected to my Jawbone II. Battery life seems greately improved from the bold. Similar environments on the bold would result in battery at 50% after 8 hours. I did a hard test as I was out later on Thursday and saw battery life at 70% after a full 16 hours with normal use. Note that I use a display backlight setting of 10 on both my Bold and Onyx as I find that is all I need.

    So that is about it in a nutshell. I am sure there are many specific things people here will like me to test and I am happy to do what I can. As I get updates and find more things I will continue to update and I will get some pics up as soon as I can remember the password for the place where I was hosting pics before it's been a while since I had occasion to upload pictures.

    To sum this up for me I see nothing about this device that would cause me to take my Bold out of the drawer anytime soon. Onyx has become my new favorite device.


    PG
    *SMH* Being a staunch Bold fan - all I can say is that I am thoroughly disappointed in you right now. But I'll get over it soon. Also - I will still have my Bold - in hand - and some day when it dies on me - I will get the thing you were discribing here. Thanks for the info.

    Peace....
    08-09-09 12:13 AM
  25. addictedtoberries's Avatar
    What is the usual transition time for this thing to go from AT&T to go to a carrier like Rogers, I know RIM is a Canadian company but usually the transition time is a killer, can a Canadian still look for this phone to come out this year, or will it be the usual 2-4 months wait after an American launch?
    08-09-09 12:17 AM
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