The RIM BlackBerry 8830 shares the same body style as its GSM-only cousin, the BlackBerry 8800, but trades in the all-black casing for an equally sleek silver. At 4.4 inches high by 2.6 inches wide by 0.5 inches deep and 4.7 ounces, the 8830 is certainly slim but it's also one of the larger BlackBerrys we've seen of late. The wider and taller body makes it a tad awkward to use the 8830 as a phone, but as we noted in our BlackBerry 8800 review, this is typical of full-QWERTY BlackBerrys as well as Pocket PC phones and Treos.
The ultimate business tool for Verizon subscribers, the BlackBerry 8830 lets you stay connected, any time, anywhere, in comfort and style. This ground-breaking smart phone not only boasts hi-speed access to Verizon's 3G wireless networks but also GSM circuitry for roaming internationally too. Combine this with legendary BlackBerry email prowess and you can easily see why the 8830 is worthy of our Editors' Choice award.
The 8830 looks very much like Cingular and T-Mobile's BlackBerry 8800, just in a dull gray instead of the 8800's more stylish black. That means it's a wide, flat (4.5 by 2.6 by 0.6 inches, 4.6 ounces) device, with sculpted keys that aren't quite as comfortable as the widely separated keys on older BlackBerrys, but still definitely good enough to use. Just like the 8800 and Verizon's 8703e, the 8830 has a beautiful, sharp 320 by 240 pixel screen that adapts admirably to ambient light, thanks to its built-in ambient light sensor.
The new BlackBerry 8830 is similar to the already available 8800, with the manufacturer's updated design and trackball feature. There really is no going past the dual-mode functionality when looking for a killer feature for the device though, as it will be one of the first generally available devices to have such a feature when it launches with both Sprint and Verizon Wireless. The BlackBerry 8830 will work on 800/1900MHz CDMA/EV-DO networks, and when coupled with a SIM card through your selected carrier's Global BlackBerry service or a third party carrier, will also roam on 900/1800MHz GSM/GPRS services. Unfortunately, it seems that you will not be able to use a SIM card from third party providers with the Verizon Wireless version of the handset, only the one provided with the Global BlackBerry service. The Sprint version does not appear to have this limitation.
The 8830 World Edition should look familiar to BlackBerry aficionados, with its 8800-styled trackball and QWERTY keyboard, but its executive-chic metallic-silver body more closely resembles the Curve. At just 4.6 ounces and 4.4 x 2.6 x 0.6 inches, it easily slips into a shirt or jacket pocket. Navigating menus was a cinch, thanks to the silky-smooth glide of the trackball.
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