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Don’t get stuck with a dunce. Our reviews of 12 popular
handsets will help you choose a phone that fits your needsVERIZON XV6700
One of the first phones we received for this
story, the XV6700 initially won our hearts,
but as more fully featured devices came
our way, our love proved a bit fickle. For
a phone this size, we’d prefer a camera
that’s better than 1.3MP. And frankly, the
external antenna makes toting the phone
in your pocket uncomfortable. And while
the XV6700 has a large, bright screen and a
responsive keyboard, it suffers from a lay-
out that makes it easy to engage the caps
lock (like Cingular’s 8525). There’s nothingwrong, however, with the phone’s option
of switching from portrait to landscape
view, which makes reading web pages
and documents much easier.
If you’re often on the road and
tend to forget your charger, this is
the phone for you; this handset is a
workhorse, easily surpassing its advertised
standby time of eight days. At $200 less
than Cingular’s 8525, it’s a good option for
those who don’t want to break the bank on
a phone.BLACKBERRY PEARL
This tiny phone does what BlackBerrys typically
do well—messaging and email—but it also kicks
in some new multimedia features. Messaging
is available via BlackBerry’s proprietary system
or third-party services, and the device supports
BlackBerry email services as well as POP3 and
IMAP accounts.
Audio and video playback are now available
(though on the tiny screen, video isn’t much of a
feature), and while you won’t be getting rid of your
digital camera, the addition of a 1.3MP camera—a
first for a BlackBerry device—is a nice touch. Weeven like the condensed keyboard, which places two letters
on each key and utilizes the SureType predictive text system,
instead of the more common T9 setup. Still, without a key-
board, the Pearl is suited for quick text messages rather than
extensive emails, and while the 2.5-inch screen is bright, at
that size, it’s really best just for browsing headlines. What’s
more, the Pearl’s unique glowing trackball, which replaces the
typical click-wheel, was a bit too jittery for our liking.BLACKBERRY 8700g
Like the 8703e reviewed on the next page,
the BlackBerry 8700g lacks many of the
features people have come to expect from
a smartphone—multimedia playback and a
camera, to name a few. But this device focuses
on the BlackBerry’s core strength—email—and
in that area it shines. This handset offers a few
bonuses that place it a notch above its Sprint-
branded brother. Being designed for T-Mobile’s
network means international roaming is a pos-
sibility. Additionally, the 8700g sports just a bit
more battery life—about a half hour more talktime—not a huge amount, but when you’re down
to the dregs of your battery, every minute counts.
This device serves a particular niche; while
you can link up to 10 POP3 email accounts
to the device, unless your company utilizes
BlackBerry Enterprise Server as a means of
synching your work-based email to the device,
there are better options for you. As a device to
keep you connected to work, it’s a solid choice,
if not particularly exciting.The Pearl is
BlackBerry’s
first attempt to
include multi-
media functions
in its handsets.$400, http://www.verizonwireless.com 8
The phone for folks who can’t
be trusted with a camera.40 MAXIMUMPC JULY 2007
The object of our first, albeit
fleeting, love.smart
pho NE
STATE OFTHE UNION
$400, http://www.blackberrypearl.com^7
$400, http://www.blackberry.com 7
5.2"2.3
"2 "4.2"4.3"2.7"PROVIDERS: T-MOBILE, CINGULARPROVIDER: VERIZONPROVIDER: T-MOBILEVERDICTVERDICTVERDICT