A little history
So I was never a blackberry person, something I have said many, many times - I tend to prefer Symbian and really didnt give it a second through (this is 10-20 years ago) but after getting the Nokia N9 and being really impressed with what that thing could do compared to a modern device, I wanted to get something I was unaware of but had a good look to it and it came down to the Torch or Sony Ericsson Vivaz pro.. both have an interest look and I have not used either device and... technically speaking they are both revisions of an initial device.
The Blackberry Torch 8810 aims to fix the small weaknesses the 8800 had and in many respects it's the same device but with a slightly better screen, a little more ram a LOT more CPU and double the storage... this seemed like a case of if it's not broke don't touch it.
the device I have had perhaps a little longer than I normally would before posting about it (2-3 days) because I wanted to know what made people love this phone... seriously I went onto the Crackberry forums and just read over a few posts from people still using this device from 2010 in 2018! and not at all wanting to let it go.
Based on my reading, seems the only reason so many of these devices have popped up on refurb and second hand places recently is due to the features they love like the browser, email... yes even facebook, twitter and youtube just do not work anymore (this is fairly common on older devices .. https/web2 is like a foreign language to them... and in general you will end up using Opera Mini.)
So why did this device not save blackberry? Well when the 8800 came out it was said to be the best blackberry ever and it probably was, however the iPhone 4 was available and selling like crazy, so was the Droid X the 8810 which fixes a lot of the issues of the power the 8800 had came perhaps a little too late and despite my liking of this phone ... I feel like it offers too much out of the box to the point of possibly being overwhelimng
The device has - not including keyboard - 10 keys a lock button in the top left, what I suspect is a mute mute switch on the top right, the right side has the volume up and down keys as well as a multi-function key.. the left is nothing just a charging port and the face has (i may get these names wrong) quick dialer?, menu key, central we have the joystick pad thing right of that a back key and then the call end key - all of these keys have a press and a hold option to them..
I do see someone sitting down with a blackberry manual and learning all the little near things you can do with this device that make life easier and slowly applying them to every day task to the point they are a blackberry master - but android and ios did this much simpler and honestly having played with the Z10 I own a lot.. blackberry did not learn this simple lesson, sometimes offering everything is just too much.
Specifications
- Size: 111 mm x 62 mm x 14.6 mm
- Weight: 161.1g
Display
- VGA (640×480)
- 246 DPI
- 3.2"
Camera(s)
- Rear Camera: 5.0 megapixel
- Front Camera: N/A
Hardware
- 1.2 GHz processor
- 768MB RAM
- Storage 8GB
Battery
Li-Ion 1270 mAh battery (Removable)
The Order
The device was ordered on the 15th of March 2022 for the cost of around $37ish USD, it's coming from China and will probably take a few weeks to arrive.
Sellers Listing
The sellers listing says I'll get the following
- mobile phone
- 1 charger
- Cable
- Box
Normally I write this bit out in advance, but I did not this time so it's all a bit backwards honestly...
Arrival
The device arrived on the 4th of March 2022 and came in a fake blackberry box in a small brown box and shipped with what I assume is a fake charger and generic cable.. the cable will be used the charger.. not so much!
The Device
Top side view (say high to my trusty iPhone X)
Top side view with keyboard slid down and unlocked - should be all default except for the background which seems to be AT&T (but it's branded T-Mobile on the device.. shell swap maybe ?)
Rear of device showing that decent but not excellent camera.
Right side showing volume rocket and multi key thingie.
Front to back shot that shows that T-Mobile logo as well as the 4 buttons + centre joystick
Front and keyboard extended
Camera Test
Video Camera Test
Yes the car is dusty (i dusted it afterwards!) and YES that is cat hair, you try keep a cat out of a warm well lit box.
Software
The device is quick, snappy, fun to use and I could see a device like this making a comeback but perhaps with far less buttons (not including keyboard) The operating system installed appears to be Blackberry OS7 and it's fluid and you won't get lost using it as it works fairly similar to a modern phone with single push vs push n hold (quick/long press)
BUT despite it's ease of use and overall great condition, battery life and ok photo camera (a lot end modern smartphone would destroy it but.. it'll take a photo) it's browser is useless (Opera mini may be an option) it's entire online life (WiFI works great) is pointless as the entire software suite is now legacy and dated to the point of no longer being supported, this likely applies to most email servers also so sadly I have to say that if you are looking to use this as a daily device for all the internets stuff? NOPE.. but if you want a REALLY good dumb device .. it's a fantastic option and a good collectable.
