iBummed

iPhone 3G vs Blackberry

Since both of these phones, that is iPhone 3G and Blackberry have constantly been compared with each other and considered as an ultimate rivalry, I will provide my view about both the phones.
When it comes down to buying a phone, let me list down a few points which are important to everyone. Battery Life, screen size and resolution, internet speed and browser interface, phone interface, user-friendliness, email configuration and interface, network reception, third party applications and last but not the least, is it trendy or good enough to be seen with it.
I will be comparing all those points with both the phones.

Battery Life

The battery life of Blackberry is comparatively better than the iPhone 3G. This could be because of the less advanced graphics of the Blackberry, or the high end graphics of iPhone 3G which makes it drain out its battery power quicker than quite a lot of phones.
On an average, if you spend 2.5 hours on the phone, and 3 hours on the internet, Blackberry can survive up to 2 days continuous without a recharge whereas an iPhone 3G will require an immediate recharge in the night. Also, according to the sources in apple, iPhone 3G will last up to 400 full cycled charges, which is estimated up to 2 years of usage. After that, the iPhone 3G will lose approximately 20% of its battery charge. And to make it worse, it is not user-changeable.

Screen Size and Resolution

Without any doubt, the screen size of iPhone 3G is way larger than Blackberry and is way more appealing. The screen size for the iPhone 3G is a 3.5 inch (diagonal) wide-screen Multi-Touch display with 480-by-320-pixel resolution at 163 ppi. Whereas taking an example of Blackberry Curve, the screen size is 2.4-inch screen with a resolution of 320-by-240 pixel. The colors on iPhone 3G are very attractive and pleasant to the eye, and clear to see. Whereas I feel, the Blackberry is quite dull and very boring.

Internet Speed and Browser Interface

Since, it would be logical to compare both of them at the same speed, it was important to surf the internet on the iPhone 3G on the EDGE network. And it shows that the Blackberry is comparatively faster in terms of loading the page. But when the browser interface is compared, iPhone 3G is way better to use and surf the internet. Due to its, Multi-Touch screen, it is easy to scroll through the web page. Whereas the Blackberry uses the trackball, and to scroll through, it sometimes becomes a headache. Also, there is a positive point for iPhone 3G that we can surf the internet while talking on the phone, whereas in Blackberry it will give an error message saying that I need to wait till the call is over. This is a major disadvantage when you have to multitask.

User-Friendliness

The Blackberry is the least user-friendly phone i have used till now. This also includes list of brands like Nokia, Motorola, Sony-Ericsson, and Samsung. Its been 3 months I have been using the Blackberry, and till now I don’t know how to change settings in many of its applications. Whereas the iPhone 3G is very user-friendly, and also, it is very easy to know the settings of the applications easily. But there is a difference, in the user type of settings. iPhone 3G doesn’t allow any user defined settings, it has its built in settings, and the user has to use that only. Whereas the Blackberry has several possible settings, which can be manipulated according to the use. In short, if you are tech-savvy and can find all the possible settings of the Blackberry, then it is good. Whereas iPhone 3G is easy to use and very user-friendly for any age group.

Emain Configuration and Interface

The email configuration on both the phones are equally good and easy. iPhone 3G has an easy setup for email accounts in Yahoo!, Gmail, AOL and .Mac mail. But since, these phones are commonly used by people involving in business, they would be setting up their own email accounts which is equal in both the phones. Regarding the interface, as mentioned above, iPhone 3G has a better interface when compared, but the on-screen keyboard has both the positive and the negative issues. The positive being, it looks cool, and doesn’t occupy space on the body of the phone, which can be utilized for the screen. The negative is, if the screen is dirty or your hands are wet, it is very hard to type in the letters, and the worst being, we cannot use the stylus. Therefore, the screen needs to be cleaned quite often. Whereas, most of the Blackberry phones (excluding pearl) have a QWERTY keyboard. It is difficult to use in the starting as the keys are really small, and the extra options like the ‘@’ symbol etc are hard to find, but you will get a hang of it sooner or later.

Network Reception

The network reception of the Blackberry is comparatively way better than many of the phones I have used. My house is a little weird when it is related to network reception. At areas where most of the phones give up, Blackberry still is connected with my network provider, that is Etisalat. Whereas, the iPhone 3G rarely has network in the whole house. Also, sometimes, when I’m standing under the sky, it is hard to find reception. But that could be because I have a cracked version.

Third Party Applications

There are many 3rd party applications available for the iPhone 3G, which makes it very interesting and helps in many day to day activities. Whereas, even though the Blackberry has ample number of application, they are worth $30 each, which is quite a stupid price to pay.

My verdict is, if my life is about pure business and the use of the phone is only for business purpose, I would use the Blackberry, as it will improve productivity. But if you need a phone for general purpose, then iPhone 3G is a good phone.

The original price of the iPhone 3G is $199 for the 8 GB, whereas the Blackberry is for approximately $500.
I will be posting many pictures related to this post and also provide the size difference and the camera quality.

Posted in: review

This entry was posted on Saturday, September 13th, 2008 at 5:12 pm and is filed under review. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.