Need to stay connected while you’re on the go? Get the BlackBerry® 8700g smartphone. Email, phone, web browser and text messaging keep you in touch — virtually wherever you are. And the thin, lightweight design — with a full QWERTY keyboard — lets you do it all in style.
| Size: | 4.3 x 2.7 x 0.77 inches (LxWxD) |
| Weight: | 4.7 oz. |
| Display: | Font size (user selectable), Backlighting, Light sensing screen |
The BlackBerry 8700g, the latest addition to RIM’s 8700 series of PDA/phones, adds more of a consumer flavor to BlackBerry’s notoriously business-geared devices. To the BlackBerry’s already stellar messaging capabilities, it adds support for consumer instant messaging clients and even easier handling of personal e-mail accounts.The new BlackBerry 8700g from T-Mobile is available right now for a price of $299 with mail in rebate and instant savings, they are really $399 without. The contract required to keep your BlackBerry talking is just $30 per month and that includes EDGE GPRS in the package.
While we’re on the subject, the BlackBerry 8700g’s screen is gorgeous. It displays 65,000 hues with a 320×240-pixel resolution–a vast improvement over the BlackBerry 7290. Colors are vibrant, with sharp, clearly defined images and text. It’s great for navigating the intuitive menu or for viewing Web pages and images. The display also features a light-sensing technology that automatically adjusts for your environment, depending on whether you’re indoors, outdoors, or in the dark. We put it to the test, and we’re happy to report that the screen was always readable. You can also adjust the backlight’s brightness and time-out settings, as well as font size and type, all through the Options menu. A small LED above the screen flashes different colors to alert you to various messages: green for network activity, red for message notification, yellow for low battery, and blue for Bluetooth connectivity.
BlackBerry devices are known for their fantastic e-mail capabilities, and the 8700g is no exception. It features RIM’s push e-mail technology, which brings your messages directly to the handheld–you don’t have to check for them. It can accommodate up to ten e-mail accounts, and supports Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Notes, IMAP, and POP3 e-mail accounts. The 8700g expands the push e-mail technology to include Yahoo Web mail accounts, but doesn’t work with Hotmail or Gmail. A new feature called “Set up Internet E-mail” makes it a snap to add e-mail accounts; you simply enter your e-mail address and account password, and within 20 minutes your messages are delivered to your handheld. Messages sent from the handheld are now reflected in the “sent” folder of your desktop e-mail client as well.
Specifications:
Navigation: QWERTY (Keyboard), Thumb-operated trackwheel, Keyboard backlighting
User Interface: Intuitive icons and menus
Memory: 64 MB flash memory
Microprocessor: No
Modem: Embedded RIM® wireless modem
Email Integrations:
- Works with BlackBerry® Enterprise Server for Microsoft® Exchange
- Works with BlackBerry® Enterprise Server for IBM® Lotus® Domino®
- Works with BlackBerry® Enterprise Server for Novell® GroupWise®
- Integrates with an existing enterprise email account
- Integrates with existing personal email account
- Integrates with optional new device account
Device Security:
- Password protection and keyboard lock
- Support for AES or Triple DES encryption when integrated with BlackBerry® Enterprise Server
- FIPS 140-2 Validated (FIPS validation)
- Optional support for S/MIME
Network:
- North America: 850 MHz GSM/GPRS networks
- North America: 1900MHz GSM®/GPRS networks
- Europe/Asia Pacific: 1800MHz GSM/GPRS networks
- Europe/Asia Pacific: 900MHz GSM/GPRS networks
- EDGE networks
