Today I went to buy one and spent about 40 mins playing with both because they both have such equal yet different stengths and I didn't want to have buyers remorse. I'm mostly concerned with productivity and ease of operation so I'll focus on those aspects.

I was convinced I'd prefer typing and texting on the Blackberry Bold because it's a tactile keyboard with real keys but aparently in an effort to make the Bold seem more like an iPhone they have made the keys much flatter and more flush with one another thereby compromising it's single most important advantage. By contrast the Blackberry Curve's keys are nice round nubs that are easy to feel. It's still not that comfortable to use either. It's so small that you don't get much grip on the object while thumb typing, and so the fact that more pressure must be applied to press a key while the iPhone requires a feathery tap is a minus for the Bold despite it's having real buttons.

The Blackberry is bigger and lighter while the iPhone is smaller and heavier. Smaller is more pocket friendly, and the iPhone is no paper weight either. The iPhone's larger screen is easier on the eyes. The Bold had a higher dot pitch so it's screen real estate was comparable to the iPhone but you have to stair at it more closely.

In terms of usability the touch screen is a very big deal. With the Blackberry Bold you have to scroll around and do tricks to get from on feature to the next, with the iPhone you simply touch what you want. It's almost a given that the next Blackberry with a hardware keyboard will also have a touch screen to compliment it.

Not pertaining to function but something that struck me; I've always thought Apple's styling was a bit fruity, puting interior decorating concerns before function and economy, but the Blackberry Bold comes clad in leather. Not just a trim either, the entire back side of the object, clad in leather. Village People Special Edition?

So I picked up a iPhone, and I have to recommend the iPhone to anyone who doesn't use their smart phone for text and email over 80% of the time. The Bold's keyboard is better but not by much, meanwhile the iPhone has a whole lot more going for it in most other respects, and the larger screen and smaller size are like icing on the cake.

 

i'd agree.

i don't really use my phone for emails and texts so the iphone is perfect. the apps do it for me, really.

and if i really needed a phone for emails, i'd definitely get a blackberry (not the storm) because i hate typing on my iphone!

 

If email is more important to you than surfing the web, get a Blackberry.
If surfing the web is more important to you than email, get an iPhone.

 

My problem is I use it for both, apps/web and e-mail/text.

Iphone all the way. Everytime I pick up a blackberry, I'm bored within 1 minute.

 

BB just makes more sense to me for productivity. I have had a few BBs (Curve, 8820, Bold) and also the 1st Gen iPhone. The iPhone felt like a toy to me. The only advantages I gave the iPhone are browser and app support.

 

nice review. asian nokias, available as expensive unlocked models in the us from those shady looking import cell phone websites, have had leather backs for years so blackberry just copied them. i like them

 

I own both a Bold and a 3g iphone. Ive also had the v1 iphone, so its nothing new.

In terms of function, both are fine. If all i did was deal with text and email, i would still buy an iphone. The bold can't keep a 3g signal to save itself, and has quite poor battery life considering. I love the volume of the speaker, ringtones and speakerphone alike.
Camera, including flash and video - BB is garbage in comparison. Everyone always bitches about flash and so forth, and to be honest, i have yet to see a smartphone with a flash that does anything... why is it an issue. My blackberry cant even take great quality pics in perfect daylight. Iphone wins bigtime here. In terms of email, yes, perhaps the bb is slightly faster... however, i use email push on my iphone, and its a difference of less than a second. Web browser, no contest. Even bolt and opera are worthless.

Menus and ease of use, has RIM heard of this? Everything setup related is an ordeal im not willing to go through for a phone that considers itself smart. The settings are great, especially with the ability to change all the audible alert settings, but i dont know anyone that needs that damn many options. Thats accessory garbage thats worthless really.

I really appreciate the ability to rebuild the bold quickly. Its a good thing that all the parts are available quickly, and they are some of the easiest phones to reassemble.


Keyboard, well, initially i would have said bold. But after using both for many months, the iphone is the more efficient way to go. The autocorrect feature is lightyears greater than any other corrective software ive seen. It learns, and even seems to adapt to context changes!

I like them both, but realistically there isnt a comparison. Iphone kills my bold when i hold both of them side by side. Blackberry desktop manager is garbage as well. Keep in mind i will never own an apple, and think the majority of the shit they sell is overpriced junk.
I think the leather bound bold is tacky and fairly silly. But ive learned to deal with it and hardly notice it anymore.
The only thing i really like better about the blackberry is the OTA updates and downloads.

 

I just ordered a bold. Ive had the 1st gen iphone now i got the 3g and im simply bored of it. Battery is a big down for me on this phone. Hopefully the bold has a better battery life.

 

I've never owned the iPhone, but I have played with it before. I currently have the Bold and love it. I'd rather it over the iPhone any day.

 

i have had both and i ended up dropping the iphone. i text alot and get tons of emails so iphone was horrible to text on. as far as apps from what i read on i think boygenius is that blackberry is releasing an app store.

 

the iphone is easy as pie to text and type on.

The apps are nothing short of amazing.

And the integration with my mac is bar none.

iphone = winner

 

Sorry, bro, I've found that the Bold's battery life is about the same as the 3G iPhone's. But, I constantly have bluetooth/WiFi/3G enabled.

Either way, I prefer my BB.

 

Yeah i always leave on my bluetooth,wifi and 3g. Whats the point of having it if your not going to use it. comes in this week, lets see. The iphones nice to use the internet/youtube at work and when not home. Never used internet on blackberry. Had a curve a while back and it was nice. Hopefully this will be a BIG upgrade from the curve.

 

Blackberry>iPhone

I had the first gen iPhone, and to be honest got bored of it. Didn't want to upgrade to the 3G iPhone. So I sold it and went back to my curve 8320 back then. Now I got an unlocked Blackberry 8900 Javelin (aka curve 2) and must say, I'm very impressed. 3.2MP camera is great and e-mails are easy. and it has wifi too!