Blackberry 8130: My New Best Friend

I posted briefly a few weeks ago about my new toy, the Blackberry.
I promised a full review- so here we go.
I chose the Blackberry 8130- The Pearl. In stunning red.
It is small but powerful.
This will not be a really technical review, just a listing of all the cool features and playthings I have access to!

Email and Internet:

I get my email from any account I want- and it was the easiest thing to set up that I have ever done. The Blackberry server handles all the technicalities and all you have to do is put in your email address and password- no servers, no outgoing mail issues- nothing!
(Unlike the Moto Q that my husband got- we worked for 3 days, literally three days....to get his mail to send from his cell from our home email account.....and after I finally made it work, he took the thing back!!!!! But hey, I do know how to do it now! And BTW, he purchased the Blackberry World Edition instead and could not be happier.....again, such easy setup.)

I get all my blog comments and other emails wherever I am. I do have my settings such that if I am home and on my laptop, the mail does not push to my Blackberry.
--If you get mail on your Blackberry while you are out that you wish to delete, you may delete it on your handheld only and then it will go to your inbox in outlook- or delete it from the server and not see it again.
I can access Myspace, Facebook and weather and news- any website I want. Some are specially designed for smart phone access and there is a list from the Sprint homepage that comes up on my phone, including CNN, ESPN and other major sites.
Blog feeds are easy to read- one post at a time. Blogs are generally large and picture intensive- so pulling them up form the homepage is slow and can wait until I am home!



Other Cool Features:

• Use the built in GPS- with mapping and route features and local searches.
• Has a good camera (2 Mega pixels) that takes decent pictures and can store them to the device or to the memory card....or email/SMS message them right then. I have always been a photo snob and refused to use cell phone cameras, but this one, in a pinch, has served me well.(The MUD pic of baby girl came from my phone...as well as the big hair Bonjovi pic of Jess , baby girl and lovely me posted with the mlb concert.....)
• Add pictures from your computer to your phone or take pictures from your phone.
• Take video-good quality and fairly long clips. You can post pictures or video directly to your Facebook account or other online services or email them.
• Hook up the Blackberry to your computer with the software included- and add music from your CDs, Itunes or computer files.
• Make ANY SONG YOU LOAD your ring tone!!!!(Let's all guess what I have chosen.)
• Choose customized profiles as to the ring tones and alerts when OUT OF THE HOLSTER and when IN THE HOLSTER. The case that is comes with is magnetized and when you put the phone in, it changes to vibrate or tone- or whatever you set it for. Pretty handy.

I have yet to sync my Outlook calendar and address book to my Blackberry, but it is do-able and easy. My address book in Outlook is huge so I am cleaning and organizing it. My contacts were imported from my old cell phone and where as my phone Contact says "MOM" my Outlook contact says her name ....so I have a feeling I would have a mess. Me, the obsessive person I am, can't have that so I am working to make the meshing of the two seamless!
My calendar has bills due, all appointments and such, so I will be syncing soon.

Man.....have I missed anything???

The only thing some may not like is the keyboard- it is a QWERTY keyboard with 2 letters per key. But it has smart technology that knows what you are trying to type.
Most of the time it is correct, but can be a nuisance until you get in the groove.
Women or men with small hands may fare better with this Blackberry. My husbands full size has only one letter per key and is admittedly easier to use for texting and emails. More keys....But more money....as well.

WHAT did I do without it?????