[Five]

Now that I have owned all three of these phones, I wanted to post a brief comparison if no one minds. This is just my opinion as a slightly higher than average tech savvy consumer, so bear that in mind when you read.

The 8310/20 are very similar both in look and feel. The 8330 is a different animal entirely.

The AT&T 8310 is competent and dependable, however it does feel a bit generic to me in that it seems the most homogenized of the three. It's menus and applications are streamlined, lean and organized. It seems like the Curve for the person who wants a BB, but who may not necessarily know why yet. It has built in GPS, so it may be more attractive to those who worry about things like getting from point A to point B, and the precision of knowing exactly where you are at all times.

The 8320, on the other hand feels like (and God I hate to use this word now with the election going full force) but the 8320 feels like the maverick of the three devices. T-Mobile has packed their version of the Curve with many more useful and demographically specific applications. From the first time you turn the device on, you notice that this is a different phone entirely. The font is artistic, the home screen is less cluttered, and the apps and functions are geared toward the techno savvy and the uber-cool. This phone is WiFi enabled so you can chat, surf, and text all while slouched in the darkest corner of your favorite underground coffee shop far far away from even the strongest cell towers. T-Mo does offer the goods for the geeks at heart as well. UMA calling, effortless tethering with DUN capable devices, and all for less money per month than the bland, yet still competent 8310 paired with AT&T.

And lastly, the Sprint 8330. This phone does pack a punch, but at a price. It's heavier, thicker, and almost subconsciously chunkier than its sleek GSM brethren. This phone when paired with Sprint's simply everything plans will try its hardest to be a workhorse for you--it will surf the web, navigate you to the nearest Pizza parlor, show you the latest episode of Ugly Betty, and let you listen to smooth jazz as you unwind. But, like most overachievers, it does pay for it's over-caffeinated late night zeal. With the 3G speeds of CDMA EVDO technology you will notice a pretty substantial increase in productivity, however Sprint didn't stop there. They included streaming music, TV and video on demand like services. For all it is, however, this phone is not a multimedia hulk in the same vein as the Nokia N95 or say the
Apple iPhone. The applications are very slow to load when compared to the other models, the streaming TV is very often laggy, choppy and pixelated. Navigation seems sub par at best, and often takes 60 seconds or longer to re-direct a missed turn. The battery on this device takes quite a bit longer to charge than the GSM models do, and in terms of overall "feel," the phone just seems to be exerting much more energy to perform at the same basic level as the other models. Probably not the best model for demanding people who must be in control at all times.

Overall, my experience with all of these phones has been positive. I would think if you are lucky enough to have either model, you will be satisfied with the performance and resilience imbedded into each from their manufacturer. In the end, they are three different phones with three different end users to appeal to. Hopefully this may help someone decide which is best for them.

Cheers,

[TinasDay]

Thank you Five, that was very informative and entertaining. As a newbie I was wondering what the difference was in the models. I thought that it was only the carrier but as you explained your 8330 was sprint yet mine is verizon.

[jnieves]

The curve 8330 has more Flash memory, 96MB compared to only 64MB for 8310/8320.

The 8330 supports up to 8 GB micro SD card whereas 8310/8320 only supports up to 4 GB.

[cgnovelo]

I had this exact question in mind, the carriers in my country don't offer the 8320, but I am trying to choose between the 8310 and the 8330... is the speed difference very noticeable? And how would the EVDO compare to the 3G of the Bold? There are Bolds available here but I was told they have to be reprogrammed, apparently the OS issues are true, so it will be a couple of weeks before they are offered again... I got my hands on one and it's a very cool phone, but they do go for almost twice the price of the 8310. Anyway, what would everyone recommend? 8310, 8330 or Bold?

[cmckeegan]

Very good and informative comparison. I have the 8320, and I love it. I have it paired up with my WiFi at home, and it makes sending messages and email a snap, no waiting, as soon as I hit send, it is gone. The only complaint I have is when I am on a call in UMA mode, and I try to pair my Bluetooth, it drops the call. Also, it will drop a call if I wander out of my WiFi zone when it changes back to the EDGE network.