BlackBerry Bold vs Palm Pre
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BlackBerry Bold vs Palm Pre

The BlackBerry Bold is a popular handset device from RIM. Simplicity and attractiveness are the keys to its success. On the other hand, the Palm Pre is an equally wonderful device that has all the modern features. Let’s take a closer look at the BlackBerry Bold vs Palm Pre battle and decide which one is better.

Design

backberry bold9700

The BlackBerry Bold is a candy bar style phone with a TFT LCD (480 x 320 pixels) on top and a QWERTY keypad below. The evolved design of the BlackBerry Bold makes it look as alluring as other smartphones. The BlackBerry Bold’s keyboard is excellent and there is no need to slide it out to get things done. It is noticeably wider than other phones. However, the extra width provides space for the keyboard and allows easy typing. The BlackBerry Bold’s touch pad feature gives it the feel of a touchscreen device, especially while swiping photos.

Palm Pre

The Palm Pre, on the other hand, is an attractive, well-designed slider phone. The display (320 x 480 pixels) slides up to reveal the QWERTY keypad, which is small, making it hard to use, especially when looking for a symbol. Furthermore, with the keypad extended, the Palm Pre becomes taller and hard to work with just one hand.

Operating System & Performance

Blackberry OS via maximumpc.com

The BlackBerry Bold OS 5.0 has a fast browser as compared to its older cousin. It runs JavaScript, has an RSS reader and offers tab browsing. The user interface of OS 5.0 is vibrant offering sharp icons, bright colors and easy navigation. The operating system’s zoom feature allows the user to read smaller text easily. BlackBerry phones are messaging marvels. It can handle up to 10 email accounts. It’s 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity lets you access messages and edit attachments. The Documents Go To suite allows the user to edit these emails. The BlackBerry messenger feature allows you to stay online 24/7 and connect with your family and friends.

webOS via maximumpc.com

The Palm Pre’s webOS is fast, sleek and fun to use. Surfing the web on the Palm Pre is an amazing experience. Unlike many smartphones, it offers multitasking. But, it’s still incomplete. Palm Pre’s multitasking feature lacks simplicity. It suffers from occasional slowdowns, when the user opens multiple apps simultaneously. Switching between applications overloads the OS and the phone starts giving warning signs. Moreover, the webOS lacks third party apps since few are available.

Making Calls

The BlackBerry Bold is a world phone that supports four Quad GSM bands (850, 900, 1800 and1900) commonly used around the world. And, the Palm Pre is primarily a CDMA device with limited GSM handsets.

The BlackBerry Bold is light device that can be comfortably held near the ear. It offers clear and loud call quality. The Palm Pre does not lag behind in providing users clear and loud call quality.

Memory Storage

The Palm Pre has 8GB of internal storage with no card slot to expand the memory. Whereas, the BlackBerry Bold has 1 GB internal memory and 128 MB RAM capacity, but it supports up to 32 GB of memory expansion with an external Micro SD card.

Security and Management

When it comes to security and management, BlackBerry offers the best support and services. The BlackBerry Enterprise Server software tracks and enforces security policies on the device. As opposed to this, Palm Pre offers limited security facilities and zero management tools.

BESx

Camera

The BlackBerry Bold’s upgraded 3.2 megapixel camera has flash, zoom, auto focus and video recording functions. The image quality is amazing with sharp and accurate details. While Palm Pre’s 3-megapixel camera with flash, offers average picture quality. The Palm Pre lacks zoom and video recording capabilities.

Multimedia

The BlackBerry Bold’s multimedia features really show off on its glamorous screen. Video service offers live clips from channels like ESPN. You can also choose music services from Napster, XM Satellite Radio and eMusic. Whereas, users can access and download songs from Amazon Music Store on their Palm Pre. The Palm Pre also lacks video services like the BlackBerry Bold.

Conclusion

chart via blackberrycool.com

The Bold is the best BlackBerry phone ever made – always on, push email, multitasking, stunning display and ergonomic keyboard. With software like BlackBerry Enterprise Server and BlackBerry Enterprise Server Express, it is an unquestionable choice for business users. The Bold’s build quality is excellent. The device does not have a touch screen, but no one misses it. Email, Facebook, Twitter and the browser work fine with each other. Additionally, the BlackBerry Bold is known for usability.

On the other hand, the Palm Pre has good and intuitive features. There is nothing outstanding about the Palm Pre, but there is no major flaw in it either. The Palm Pre is a good phone despite the minor gripes.

At the end of the day, both phones are tough competitors. After considering all the details and features, it boils down to this - the BlackBerry Bold wins the BlackBerry Bold vs Palm Pre battle.