RIM BlackBerry Curve 8310 - Performance (Page 4 of 4 )
Performance
The Curve 8310's performance excels in some aspects while falling short in others. I took a look at two of the top hands-on reviews to sort out the good and bad points associated with the 8310's performance. Here is what I found:
CNet Reviews
CNet thought that the performance of the 8310 was a mixed bag. They called the call quality of this phone just "OK," saying, "...we did notice a slight background hiss." On the contrary, they liked the quality of the speakerphone.
As far as processing speeds go, CNet found the Curve 8310 to be "fairly responsive" in most cases. They said that they had to wait a few moments for certain applications to load, but overall it was a speedy experience browsing through the menu system and various applications. As I mentioned earlier, they disliked the performance of the Web browser and the speed of the EDGE network.
CNet tested the GPS capabilities of the 8310 using the TeleNav service ($9.99/month). They found that it took about 10 minutes for the device to find a fix, which is a very long time. Once it locked onto the locations though, they said, "the Curve did a good job of tracking our location and providing us with directions." They were also impressed with the text-to-speech functionality of this device.
CNet's Overall rating: 8.3 out of 10. Excellent rating.
PC Mag
PC Mag disagreed with CNet's take on call quality, saying that the Curve is capable of "delivering strong reception and dependable voice quality in both directions on my tests." They thought that the speakerphone was loud, but it had a kind of "hollow" sound to it.
PC Mag did some extensive testing on the GPS capabilities of the 8310; they also put it to the test against the very popular Garmin Nuvi 350. They said, "The 8310 held its own, with detailed voice prompts and reasonably fast navigation." They also added that the 8310 was a step or two behind the prompts of the Garmin unit, but that's to be expected considering the Garmin is a dedicated GPS device and the 8310 is not.
Although PC Mag liked the navigation capabilities of this Curve, they disliked the traffic reporting feature, which is supposed to warn you of heavy traffic or accidents up ahead. They said, "Five separate times, the system told me to exit a highway due to congestion on Staten Island, on the Garden State Parkway, and on the expressway back in New York. The device was wrong in every instance—each time, I took a risk and kept going, only to find no traffic jam ahead." They recommend not using the traffic reporting feature at all.
Beyond the GPS feature, PC Mag loved the email capabilities of the 8310, calling it "sublime," and they also liked the multimedia and camera features as well. Overall, they said that the Curve 8310 "is an excellent value at $199."
PC Mag rating: 4 out of 5
Sources: CNet, PC Mag, InventorSpot, BlackBerry
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