The RIM Blackberry Pearl 8100c is the AT&T version. Bluetooth, an MP3 player, and a 1.3 megapixel camera are included. The phone is offered in slate grey and red colors.
| User Reviews Send this to a friend | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BlackBerry Pearl 8100c Phone, Slate Grey (AT&T) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Product Description
| This major update to the popular 7105 brings the BlackBerry experience to a whole new level. The BlackBerry 8100c Pearl is not only thinner and lighter, it also sports a memory card slot, a music player, and voice dialing. Other features, such as Bluetooth 2.0, EDGE high-speed data, and the popular SureType keypad make this a complete mobile office solution. And of course, legendary BlackBerry push email is fully supported on the BlackBerry 8100c Pearl.
Like the BlackBerry 7105, the BlackBerry 8100c Pearl is a departure from the form factor of previous BlackBerry devices. This BlackBerry handset is far more phone-like, and RIM's engineers have managed to fit a QWERTY keyboard onto the handset's slim frame. Each button on the keyboard shares two letters and the unit automatically determines which letter is the intended one based on what it predicts you are trying to spell. This unique predictive text technology, known as SureType, makes the BlackBerry 8100c Pearl's handset's diminutive size possible. SureType also learns the words you use most often, further enhancing your typing speed. The BlackBerry 8100c Pearl sports a large 240 x 260 screen that supports over 65,000 colors--plenty of real estate to view your e-mails, Web browser content, messaging sessions, and attachments. The venerable BlackBerry trackwheel has been replaced on this model with an innovative four-way trackball placed below the screen. On the rear of the handheld, you'll find a 1.3-megapixel camera and a self portrait mirror. The handheld's microSD memory card slot is located inside the device, behind the battery. There's also a standard 2.5mm headset jack that can be used with the included headset, as well as a mini-USB port for data connectivity. Calling Features
Messaging, Internet, and Tools If your company has a BlackBerry Enterprise Server installed, you can take advantage of the power of wireless calendar synchronization. Your calendar events are exchanged wirelessly and automatically so that your desktop calendar and BlackBerry handheld calendar are synchronized. All your Outlook meeting requests, changes, and updates are instantaneously synchronized instantaneously with your desktop. Make meeting requests, invite new attendees, and more, all on your BlackBerry 8100c Pearl. Users without BlackBerry Enterprise Server support can manually sync with their desktop calendars and contacts via Bluetooth or USB using the included BlackBerry Desktop Software. Use the BlackBerry 8100c handset's Web browser to access the Internet from the palm of your hand. Browse Web sites, get up-to-date stock quotes, read the latest news, check weather reports, and more--all at fast speeds, thanks to support for Cingular's EDGE high speed data network. Instant messaging and wireless messaging are also built into the BlackBerry 8100c Pearl. MMS messages can be received and forwarded (Cingular messaging charges apply). The BlackBerry 8100c Pearl ships with a number of tools, including a calculator, a calendar, an alarm, and a to-do list. Imaging and Entertainment Vital Statistics |
Product Details
- 1.3 mega pixel camera to capture those special moments
- MP3 player lets you listen to your favorite music on the go
- Menu and escape keys on the front of the device for easier access
- Bluetooth technology lets you experience hands free and wire free features
- Includes: Li-Ion Battery, AC Adapter, USB Cable, Hands-free Headset, BlackBerry Desktop Software and Getting Started Guide
Video Reviews
No video reviews found for this product.
Customer Reviews
 Almost Perfect but (All interested buys must read). |
| Review Date: December 10, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Randee E. Day, Connecticut |
| Okay, this phone does everything.
Programs-The reason I included this first is because all Cingular Users need to be aware of this. This phone is capable of AIM, Yahoo messanger, ect... but you must download an additional program. On Tmobile AIM is availible from the start, but Cingular does not provide any Apps for this. This link will provide you with programs to use instant chat services for this phone. I use Rambal, a free program for AIM and it works flawlessly. Second note-Instant messanging with programs such as this counts as general Data, not messanging. So, all owners must have (I have the $40 unlimited DATA plan, but plans start in the $20s) data plans, not SMS messaging plans to use this. Use this link to find aftermarket messaging programs that you require. [...] Screen-Outstanding, very sharp, great color saturation, great shape. The colors stand out more than on the screen of a 5.5G Ipod, its fantastic. Sound Quality/ Call Quality-Decent, not outstanding, far better than your average Razr or of the like, but this phone is $499 without contract and there are phones with better Sound/ Call Quality. Note: You must by an adaptor to use headphones if you intend to listen to music as this uses a very small mic. jack. You can purchase one for about $15 on everything [...] Suretype-This is better than Qwartry, my friend has one for her business and this is far superior. It takes about 2 hours to really master, but its outstanding. I can type much faster than she can, even though the Pearl does not have a regular Qwartry keyboard. Memory-The phone has enough memory on board if you only plan on using it as a phone. But, if you want to use that camera or recieve emails you need to buy MicroSD, Scandisk makes up to 2 gig capacity. I highly recomend at LEAST 1 gig because of all the features of this phone, if you buy this phone with Data, GET 2 Gigs ($70 on amazon about). It is not a hassle to access the memory behind the battery, given the size of SDMicro (about the size of a thumdnail) I am glad to know it is safely enclosed behind the battery panel. Email-When you get this phone, you can easily send all your email to this phone. Currently I am sending my Gmail, .Mac, and Aol email to my Blackberry. All three have their own message boxes on my blackberry interface, but all emails are also shown in my blackberrys general mailbox which is convienent and works similiarly to Enterage. Microsoft Office programs-Opens powerpoint, word, excel, PDF...ect flawlessly, just like you would expect with images and all sharply displayed. Music/ Camera- This phone can play everything, MP3s, MPG4s, AACs, ect. Just note to all Itunes users-IT CANNOT PLAY MUSIC BOUGHT FROM ITUNES. Remember that Itunes music is encryped with protected AAC so you must convert your music to MP3s for it to work. The Camera is decent, images are grainy, I would compare picture quality to Isight. Only drawback is that it cannot record Video, a feature I am sure the next iteration will entail. Syncing-Has problems with Bluetooth syncing with Apple computers. I have found though that using Pocketmac (google it, RIM bought Pocketmac so while it is free you cannot download it from Pocketmac anymore, and instead must go to a RIM webpage). Pocketmac lets you sync countless programs, including almost all OSX programs, office mail programs, and even Lotus notes. Remember for Pocketmac though, you have to OPEN THE PROGRAM FIRST THEN ATTACH YOUR BLACKBERRY USING USB, OTHERWISE THE PROGRAM WILL HAVE A SYNCING ERROR. No Wifi is a drawback, but for Data, Cingulars network is actually very fast, it does take about 10 minutes for all my emails to appear on my blackberry. Overall-Best phone I have ever owned. If it synced better with my mac, had video capture, had Wifi, and played all my tunes along with a regular headphone port, I would be VERY happy. Also, it is too bad Cingualr doesnt provide IM support out of the box, but reseaarch and 3rd party developers firxed that. |
| Sweet! |
| Review Date: January 12, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Ashwini Aragam, Worcester, PA |
| I have waited long enough. Being a techie and carrying a $20 (free) phone for over 3 years just didn't seem right. So my change of job prompted me to look for a phone which also has web/email capabilities. I considered strongly the Samsung Blackjack and the Blackberries. The blackjack's look, while cool from a distance, had keys that looked like left-over chicken-pox blisters. The much raved about Blackberry email push technology finally won me over. I had to decide between the pearl and the bigger versions. I read the 8700g and other blackberries are a bit too big for the pocket. So I chose the Pearl. Here's my take:
What I love: ============ - Form factor: It is beautiful, it is cute and catchy! It turns heads. Enough said. - Size: Size is one of the strongest points considering all it does. It neatly slips into a shirt pocket or sits well on the belt. - Keys: Could be a bit small but I could use it pretty easily though my fingers are bordering on 'butterfingers'. - Trackball: Awesome! Just don't press it too hard while using it. Just 'roll-it'!. It is great while you have to move around the screen from control to control - Voice-dialing: Has worked for me very well the 10 or so times I have tried in my van on the road and off. You have to first choose the voice dialing option from the list of icons on the main menu. I read you can assign a menu item to a key; this would eliminate some of the fumbling while driving. - Screen: Not too big and not too small! This will be a key factor in you choosing between a bigger blackberry and this one. I found the size good enough for me. The fonts display the content sharply enough to read easily. It is bright while viewing; goes off after a few seconds of inactivity to save power. - Videos: I found the video that comes along very good! The graphics very sharp and quite well paced. Need to try more of this later. But I don't watch videos on my cell phone and hence it isn't that much of a selling-point for me. - Camera: Now, who needs a sophisticated camera on a cell phone? These are frills if you use the device as a phone and an email device. But, it took great pictures. I could easily email the photo to my wife with a few click (I had her email in my contacts already). - Applications: Google maps is cool - much cooler on the samll screen with turn by turn directions easy to read. The default cingular media-net browser is so-so. Download the Opera-mini. Love browsing on the phone. - Audio: Call quality has been outstanding so far. The music files, though, when played left more to be desired. Not your iPod substitution this device. - Outlook sync: Worked like a charm. Now, I love to have all my contact information in this small hand-held. - The push-to-talk feature hasn't worked for me so far. Maybe it is a area-specific availability issue; need to follow up. - By far the best feature, is the RIM email push feature. I easily hooked up all my personal email accounts and feel thrilled when the berry flashes a red light whenever I have an email. This eliminates the need and a lot of time for me to login to my email accounts on the computer. Replying to an email may not be so easy given the size; but viewing - works great. - Battery: Has been great so far. With my constant use of the device for email and trying the web, the battery lasted me more than 2 days w/o re-charging. - Miscellaneous: I haven't had the berry hang-up as I read of other windows based phones. It did freeze a couple of times, but given that I have the phone for over a week, it isn't much of a bother. This freezing was mostly while on the web, so it could have been connectivity also. What better? ============ - Size: If you usage is email heavy and you need to reply quite often, I suggest you get the bigger berries. - Audio: If you rely on your cell phone to listen to music as well, I find the audio quality a bit lacking. Overall, I am very happy with the phone. If you are on the line, I suggest you go for it! |
| Brilliantly designed smartphone! |
| Review Date: December 27, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Prasad Chalasani, New York |
| Overall best smartphone I've seen on the market. The others are either too bulky (e.g. Treo) or too wide (other Blackberries, BlackJack, or Motorola Q), or lack the solid Blackberry email service. This one is sure to be a hit. The Pearl's brilliant sure-type keyboard-entry system (with QWERTY layout but 2 letters per key) and "pearl" trackball allows the phone to be small and still enable very fast text entry.
Incidentally Mac owners should look into PocketMac to sync with their Mac's iCal/AddressBook, etc. Gmail can be read using the Gmail mobile app that can be downloaded straight to the Blackberry. Caution: if you already have Cingular, and want to keep your existing Cingular number, you CANNOT get the super-low Amazon discounted price -- you only get the Amazon discounted price if you start a brand new 2-year contract (with new number) with Cingular. So I got my phone at a Cingular store, because I was eligible for a phone upgrade. [...]. Plus points: 1. super-sharp screen, great colors, great resolution. 2. very context-sensitive menus, well thought-out. 3. Sure-type is very easy to learn and surprisingly accurate, and lets you type very fast. 4. Nice-size keys, beat the hell out of Treo's keys. 5. Treos are ugly bricks, this phone is super-stylish and highly pocketable, even in jeans. 6. Rock-solid Blackberry push email service can't be beat. 7. Pearl trackball is amazingly well designed and useful. 8. Cingular/Blackberry unlimited data backage is very good and pretty fast. Minus points: 1. No wifi , but that's ok because the data service is pretty fast. 2. No video camera, but again I don't really miss that. 3. No touch screen; I don't really miss it because the trackball and context-sensitive menus are so well designed. |
| Instant convert from dumb phone to smart phone! |
| Review Date: January 5, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Amy Tiemann, North Carolina, USA |
| The Pearl is my first Blackberry. I comparison-shopped for a smart phone for over a year, considering the Treo and other Blackberry models, but I stuck with my old "dumb phone" until the Blackberry Pearl won me over.
The Blackberry Pearl wins in the realms of form and function. I wasn't willing to carry a huge phone. Any phone I carry has to fit in my back pocket and the Pearl is actually smaller than my old phone. From a new user's perspective, the Pearl's design is very well-done. The trackball navigation is totally intuitive, and the software is easy to navigate. I could figure out how to do email, IM, and browsing the internet without reading the manual. The pearl trackball is multifunctional depending on what you are doing, and pressing the trackball most likely does what you need to do next! I was skeptical about the SureType technology, which puts 2 letters on each key (in QWERTY layout) and guesses what you mean as you type, but it has blown me away. I love it. The best advice I received from the salesman who set up my account was to not look at the words as they are coming out, but just to check the spelling in the end. Halfway through typing a word it may look like a jumble, but then it almost always works itself out. This strategy has worked for me, and 95% of the time the SureType guesses right. (You can press and hold the * key while you are typing to toggle back and forth between SureType and the more traditional "MultiTap" mode. This is useful when entering names or other words not in an English dictionary.) Camera review: I am not too impressed with the quality of the photos but it's somewhat useful. It won't replace a digital camera but it's better than no camera. Including a flash was a nice idea, but it doesn't add much to the picture quality. As for Cingular service, I have had no problems. I switched from Verizon to Cingular in order to get the Pearl, and the service has been fine in North Carolina and South Carolina. If you are addicted to the old-style Blackberry keyboard, or need to compose a lot of emails or do extensive web browsing, the Pearl may not be for you. I encourage you to give it a look, though. Before buying any smartphone, make sure you try out the keyboard in person before buying. Some designs that look good on paper may not work with your hands. For someone coming in new to the smartphone world, the Blackberry Pearl is a standout choice. I am so glad I waited for this gem! |
| Excellent Device |
| Review Date: June 18, 2007 |
| Reviewer: Michael Spooner, CT |
| So I decided a few weeks ago that it was time to get a new gadget (the weather, maybe..?). I love my Palm z22, but I've always wished I could just carry a single device. In addition, the display left quite a bit to be desired, and there was no bluetooth or way of attaching an external keyboard (yes, that's right-- I seriously want to be able to type up essays and such on my PDA... I'm not going to spend $700 on a laptop just so I can type in a reclined position) My initial plan was to upgrade my PDA to a Palm Tungsten E2 and my phone to the microscopic Pantech C3 flip phone with bluetooth. I still had some reservations, however. PDA's are practically dead in the market, and the E2 was quite a bit larger than the z22 (Why doesn't Palm just go ahead and make a smaller, super-slim Palm OS PDA with everything except for a phone built-in already? The technology is certainly there, and it could have the potential to bring back the PDA market for those who prefer not having their PDA tethered to a cell phone carrier).
So one day I headed over to the local mall and happened to walk into a Cingular store. I had never considered a Blackberry because they didn't have touch screens and always seemed bulky and ugly. What I stumbled upon in there was the Blackberry 8800. Playing around with the device, I was very impressed. Where the Windows Mobile Smartphones like the Samsung Blackjack and Motorola Q failed (mostly in the Personal Information Manager (PIM) functions... and absolutely miserably, at that), the Blackberry excelled. It wasn't quite as easy to navigate and enter information as my Palm because of the lack of a touch screen, but the device was fitted with a cool little trackball that allowed for multi-directional navigation, making getting used to the lack of a touch screen seem bearable, and maybe even a positive attribute (as it allows for one-handed operation.) The 8800 screen was hi-res and absolutely beautiful, the whole unit was very thin and sleek, and it didn't run that god-awful, useless-for-anything-but-consumer-multimedia Windows Mobile Smartphone Edition! Still, it was a bit large for my taste and too expensive at $300. Looking around a bit more, I met my future device: the Blackberry Pearl. As it turns out, the Pearl was the first Blackberry to feature the new trackball, brilliant (self-adjusting for brightness) hi-res screen, sleek casing, and a camera and multimedia functions-- all in a bar-style unit just as thin and only moderately taller than a closed Motorola RAZR. Essentially, this was the 8800 packed into a smaller case with a camera for only a $150 upgrade. You name it, this phone can do it (and most of it quite well). The form factor couldn't be more perfect. Everything about the phone is very customizable. There are 20 keys on the keypad, and the alpha characters are arranged in a QWERTY fashion with at most 2 letters on a key. Even with this, there is still a dedicated delete key, enter key, alt key, symbol key, space key, and caps key, all arranged similarly to a standard keyboard and easily accessible. If you want, you can even sync up a full sized bluetooth keyboard (and buy yourself a mini version of MS Word!). The center 12 keys are highlighted and arranged like a normal cell phone. This makes the unit excellent for use as a regular phone (I'm very pleased with the call quality), but a huge step up from trying to type on one. The "SureType" system does a brilliant job of figuring out what you're typing, and it learns the words that you use most often over time. If you want, you can shut off the SureType and use multi-tap, which is still pretty decent since you never have to tap a key more than once. I almost think that SureType is faster in many uses than a full QWERTY keyboard, since it requires less finger movement and allows for larger buttons. After a short while, it becomes very intuitive. A few of the small details that I love about the Pearl include the ability to put it on standby, mute the ringer in a hurry, and shut off the network if you don't want to receive any calls (and don't want it blipping and feeding back through a pair of nearby speakers) but still want to use the device as a PDA. On top of all this, the Blackberry software allowed me to transfer all of the data from my Palm z22 (all 300 tasks and tons of calendar and contacts) directly to the Blackberry-- categories, priority levels, and all! To top it all off, the battery life is excellent. Of course, there are a few downsides to the Pearl. For one, the 1.3 MP digital camera doesn't record video, and while the pictures are better than many camera phones, they're not exactly jaw-dropping (It's still nice to have a camera with you at all times, however), and let's just say the music and video player functions are no iPod replacement. Still, all in all, this is the coolest little portable computer or gadget... ever. If you're looking for a small phone and PDA combo (especially for the PIM functions), the Pearl is the best thing out there. I don't have a data plan, but I tried out the web, maps, and e-mail at the store, all of which worked great. I'd love to be able to use them, but I don't really have the need and the data plans are astronomically priced. As soon as the Pearl (newly AT&T branded) arrived on my doorstep I wrapped it in a ShieldZone InvisibleSHIELD, which I had ordered online a few days earlier. If you haven't heard of ShieldZone and BestSkinsEver.com, basically they make nearly indestructible, clear screen and full-body skins to protect most portable devices on the market. They're a bit of a chore to put on, but they last the life of the product and prevent any and all scratching for pathetically OCD people like me. I will never buy another portable without buying one of these skins first. |
| Body Glove Earglove Sport - 2.5mm Ear bud |
 |
Overall Rating: |
| List Price: $34.99 |
| Amazon Price: $14.99 |
| BlackBerry International Travel Charger (Black) |
 |
Overall Rating: |
| List Price: $39.99 |
| Amazon Price: $5.90 |
| BlackBerry 6200/7200 Series Headset |
 |
Overall Rating: |
| List Price: $24.99 |
| Amazon Price: $1.86 |
| Plantronics MX505 Windsmart Boom Headset (Tan) |
 |
Overall Rating: |
| List Price: $49.95 |
| Amazon Price: $17.73 |
NOTICE: This is a paid affiliate website. Clicking on links could result in compensation for the site owner.