Best Blackberry ever December 17, 2011

Reviewer:  Veloz 

This is a really good phone, the touch screen is very responsive, the keyboard the best in the market, Motorola or Samsung can try to copy but they never are going to get to the blackberry's keyboard level. the speed of the phone is excellent, pages load really fast.

If you re looking for a good communication device buy this phone, but if you want a phone to play games instead of actually talking to people go with IOS or Android. I have an iPod touch when i want to play games like angry birds.

I am in family plan of 4 people and the 4 phones are blackberry bold 9900, one of the person in the plan had an iphone4 before, he love the iphone4 but he could not communicate in the way that blackberry is letting him communicate now.

Everybody should own one December 25, 2011

Reviewer:  mks55555 "mks55555"  (CA United States) -

This phone is really impressive.

To be put simply this phone has all of the strengths of a BlackBerry with virtually none of the past weaknesses.

These strengths are: the keyboard, the indicator light, call quality, call clarity, battery life, emails syncing faster, using less data (for those who don't know BlackBerries using RIMs proprietary network consume about 1/2 the data to do the same tasks as everything else), industrial design (this phone just feels higher quality than everything, even the iphone 4s and HTC phones, which are themselves very well made), and bbm (apple did it all wrong by integrating imessage with sms, bbm is great because its an entirely separate messaging client with true extra features, with imessage you may as well text)

The past weaknesses which have been fixed:

1. Speed--especially in navigating/launching apps this phone is hands down the fastest I've seen, and although the browser on something like the Nexus Prime is probably slightly faster this one is up there with the best and much better than BlackBerries of the past

2. Touch--the touchscreen/keyboard combo makes doing everything unbelievably easy and fast

The only reason I could see against getting this phone is if you really want a big screen. The difference in screen size between this and the iphone isn't worth thinking about but when compared to some of the big offerings with android it becomes a debate

Love it!! January 16, 2012

Reviewer:  Deneb56 

I Really enjoy using the blackberry bold 9900 especially the great keyboard thats attached to it. The design is simple yet eligent enough to bring a smile to my face every time I pick it up and use this device. I previously owned an iPhone4. I am glad I made the switch. I am happy to say that I am no longer part of the Cult of IPhone and all of the annoying freemium/micro-purchasing BS that has taken over THAT market. One issue that others people are complaining about is the short battery life that comes with the bold 9900 (same issue with the iPhone 4S). The problem persisted until a new update was made that remedied the negative battery life issue. I have updated my Bold 9900 to 7.0 bundle 2392 (v 7.0.0.576, platform 5.0.0.733). This update seems to have fixed the issue as I am still on an 80% charge at 2:44 pm today (without the update, the phones energy would drain itself overnight). I charged the phone last at 7:00 pm yesternight. My network is currently set to 4G & WiFi, and I am still retaining positive charge at a slower energy depletion rate. So the update appears to have fixed the problem. Obviously, the more I use the device (playing games or surfing the web), the more the battery is drained. As with any other device, there are methods that one can take to help preserve battery life. On top of the update, I have taken extra measures (like decreasing screen brightness) to extend the phones energy life.

Before I had the iPhone 4, I was using the blackberry bold 8900 and loved it then. Boy am I glad to be back with the new and improved Bold smart phone. I Have missed it.... excuse me while I go make out with my 9900...

Excellent Business Phone February 14, 2012

Reviewer:  trd09 

Had my AT&T Bold 9900 for about 3 months now. Upgrading from a Torch (slider).

Pros- My build quality is perfect. Keyboard is best in the industry BY FAR. I have an obsession with keyboards in general (typing on a Thinkpad now) and this keyboard is phenomenal. I love the aluminum frame ring and the thinness. Looks/feels very premium. OS7 has been working great for me. Smooth and fluid. Screen quality is excellent (285ppi). Device is fast. Excellent call quality and a speakerphone that works! I've been getting 35-40 hrs of battery life with the latest OS.

Cons- Like everybody else, I wish the camera had autofocus. That's it.

It's too bad more people don't check these devices out before buying Iphones or Androids....I've been showing friends my new phone and the response is always "wow this is nice". When I was checking devices out, salespeople would always look at my funny when I asked to see the 9900 first ("You don't want a Galaxy?")

PRO TIP- First thing to do when you get the device: plug it into the computer and upgrade to the latest OS. It will solve most freezing and battery issues.

good April 12, 2012

Reviewer:  Jose 

It's too bad more people don't check these devices out before buying Iphones or Androids....I've been showing friends my new phone and the response is always "wow this is nice". When I was checking devices out, salespeople would always look at my funny when I asked to see the 9900 first ("You don't want a Galaxy?")

great update of Bold October 18, 2012

Reviewer:  bcaulf  (NY, NY) -

I upgraded from a 9700 running OS 6. This will be Blackberry number 6 for me, going from the 6200 to 7200 to 8700 to 8130 to 9700 to this one. The 8700 had a toughness and battery life that they have not yet equaled although of course the price was processor, memory and screen.

This unit has a great screen, keyboard, web browser, overall speed, ease of backup/restore/OS update, touch screen, phone reception and function, ruggedness, standards conformance such as micro USB charge/tether and standard headphone jack, global network compatibility. Weaker points are battery life relative to earlier Blackberries although still quite usable and competitive; requirement for special high amp charger unlike 8700 and earlier; app availability which is good from major players but nowhere near as broad as Apple or Android; knowing that the much touted OS 10 will not run on this when it comes out; and the possibility of the company going under or otherwise abandoning old devices. Some people will be displeased that they have gone from mini USB to micro USB but it is the new global standard for devices and it's positive as it reduces size.

I wanted to upgrade from the 9700 for the improved 4G, browser and Google Maps performance and I haven't been disappointed. The 256M RAM on the 9700 really limited the browser and the 768M on the 9900 has eliminated browser failures due to memory. Except for the missing Flash and Adblock there is very little that the native browser doesn't do well and I haven't felt the need to replace it with Opera. The battery cover is tougher on the 9900 than the 9700 and the keyboard is larger and better. Size wise it is thinner, wider, taller and heavier than the 9700, but not very different in any of these. The use of actual aluminum like the original Bold versus silver painted plastic on the 9700 is good. The combo of touch screen plus a good touchpad and keyboard works very well for all tasks; the screen is best for most scrolling or for choosing from the icon grid, while the touchpad enables fine control and the keyboard is fast and accurate. It helps battery life to not have a screen that covers the whole phone. And the fact that you can carry a second battery if need be, or replace a tired battery easily and cheaply, is the way to go versus Apple's approach.

Compared to an iPhone 4, browser and map scrolling is a bit choppier, more like a lower spec Android phone. It's disappointing because the phone has the hardware to be as smooth or smoother but the optimization time hasn't been put in. Boot time and app launch time is fast, similar to iPhone. You only get 8 GB of builtin flash but a 32 GB microSD card is $20-30. They didn't get down to the iPhone's thickness largely due to the removable battery.

Early buyers of this phone reported crashes, power drain and phone connectivity problems. The OS updates seem to have corrected this because I haven't had issues.

There are some free apps in the App Store Starter Kit that really should ship with the thing. Blackberry Protect allows remote location and remote wipe and is a must have. And it should come with a weather app, movie app, twitter client instead of making you visit the app world.

Just can't put it down June 14, 2012

Reviewer:  Randall Versey "Nupetroop"  (Atl) -

If this were the Matrix and I were looking for the one... Neo(9900)! I must say I really love this phone and I own a Galaxy Nexus, SGS2, and an Iphones 4S! This just has what those others don't a wonderful and terrific rub my fingers over the letters feeling good physical qwerty keyboard! My goodness it just fills the void and my fingers celebrate with thumbing the keyboard joyously!!!!! I love the speed of the processor. Oh oh my battery life is just jaw dropping, I let it die the first day and now I get awesome results and I use this phone heavily...and it charges super duper fast! I mean, I can go on and on, and I have been using it for about a month now.

It fits my needs most importantly, and really that should be the main reason when purchasing any smartphone!

Seemless syncing with email, comes with DocsToGo and what I look for notification led. If you CrackBerry head go get your fix and pray it won't be your last!

Some one Save Blackberry!!!!!!!!!!!!

Switched back to a Blackberry & happy February 10, 2012

Reviewer:  purplegurl "purplegurl"  (bremerton, wa United States) -

I am a long time user of Blackberry phones. I've had 3 previously & when my last one died I decided to jump to Android. That was a miserable fail. Although there are some things I miss about my Android phone, I had multiple issues with it staying connected to my car's bluetooth & when on the road for travel it had horrible GPS connection & I could never get on any alternate network. That being said, I needed a phone that I could stay connected with & the Bold is it. I can text/type so much faster with the Bold's keyboard then I ever could with my Android. Less mistakes too. I had my Android 5 months & tried all the types of texting. I know there's a learning curve, but typing/texting on it was a challenge! As for connection, this phone always stays connected to my bluetooth & the call quality is much better then my Android phone ever was. GPS, WIFI always work. I always have a connection to other networks now...even in the areas where my Android couldn't find one! I do like the touch screen & yes the screen is smaller then Android's or iPhone's but it is a bigger screen then previous Blackberries. I have not experienced any of the freezing reported by other reviewers. The battery life is not great, this is true, but it is no worse then what my Android phone was. With the bigger, higher resolution screens out on most phones all battery life sucks. I just keep a charger in my car & a charger with me at work. Not a problem. The two things I am a bit disappointed in are the camera & the app world. Truth be told, the camera is not nearly as good as the camera was in my Android. However, if I want good pictures of something I'm going to use a real camera so not a huge issue. As for the app world, I do wish Blackberry would step up & make more apps. Again, although not a huge issue for me, I would like the option of being able to customize my phone a little bit more for my needs. The 4G on this phone is fast & so is it's processor. I don't use the browser that much but I have not had any of the reported issues with it either. Over all, this is a good, solid phone & probably one of Blackberry's best. I'm quite happy I got rid of my Android & came back to a Blackberry. The only reason I gave this phone 4 stars instead of 5 is because of their app. world. When compared to the offerings of Android & iPhone, it is lacking.

Beautiful but useless due to poor battery life March 28, 2012

Reviewer:  M. Sewtz "Marc"  (BROOKLYN, NY United States) -

Received my Blackberry Bold 9900 three weeks ago. It's a beautiful device, much improved screen over my old Blackberry Bold 9700, love the touch screen, much better browser. Unfortunately, they battery life makes it completely useless. My old Blackberry Bold would easily last through an entire day with frequent calls, texting and some Internet browsing. This new Blackberry Bold 9900 last a few hours at best, with the same type of usage. And that's unacceptable. AT&T suggested turning off Wifi and Bluetooth, which makes no sense, why would I disable features that attracted me to the device in the first place? Looks like Blackberry put a lot of new features into the device, but clearly at the expense of battery life. And that makes the older Blackberry actually look much more useful for actual everyday use then this new model. So I will be returning my Blackberry Bold 990 and go back to my Blackberry Bold 9700.

not for me March 21, 2013

Reviewer:  Mr. Alexander C. G. Kitchin  (Hampshire) -

The bold replaced my curve which I wasnt too keen on. At first I was enthusiastic, liking the touch screen and the larger keyboard. After a while though, the novelty wore off and I found it more trouble than its worth. My fingers are not particularly fat, but I find typing or keying in a telephone number awkward, the keys are too small for me and the predictive isnt as easy as an iphone (I have an iphone too). It crashes every now and then which means having to take the battery out to get it going. It is very easy to change settings inadvertently which was frustrating. For example, when making a call, it would change to speaker because my face had touched part of the screen; holding the phone at a funny angle could stop this I suppose. When charging, the screen goes mental, scrolling between different modes and on too many occasions, the alarm would set.

I found the signal weak (again compared to my iphone in the same vicinity). The battery life was poor. Sometimes it would last a little over a day, other times it would go flat over night from fully charged and without being used.

Trying to use the internet was a waste of time, it could be done, but if you have used a Galaxy or iphone its like going back in time, slow and clunky - not worth the bother.

On the plus side, it looks well made, seems robust and has a clear screen.

There are lots of people who think these phones are great, its a subjective thing. We have these phones given to us for work and no one I have spoken to likes it, moaning about the same issues. I managed to break my Bold over the weekend and have just recieved a Samsung Galaxy when I insisted I didnt want a new Bold. The Galaxy is much easier to use in my opinion. I found myself not using the Blackberry because it is a fiddle. It has gone now and I wont miss it

Works very well for me but.... March 8, 2013

Reviewer:  Joseph Somsel  (Silicon Valley, California) -

Now that I've had my current phone in hand for over 6 months, I can say that it does everything I need it to do. I find texting a prime function for a phone and chose the 9900 for its excellent keyboard. The voice reception and clarity is much above what I've had before - I can understand callers and they can hear me. A friend with a Blackberry Curve complained continually about her Curve in that regard.

The screen is usefully large for reading emails too. The camera is decent and better than the Samsung Galaxy SIII. Overall a good balance of functionality for my business and personal purposes. I've other avenues for web browsing. I've added a 32 GB expansion card and have easily uploaded music FLACs which playback over audiophile headphones very nicely.

Overall it is so good my teenage daughter wants one for her 17th birthday too - can there be a higher recommendation?

The downside is that the first phone I was sent had a manufacturing defect and had to be returned. The chrome edging, which gives it such a classy look and feel, was mismatched and gave a very sharp edge right where one's fingers would clasp it - very irritating literally. Amazon required that I either send them the unit before they sent another unit or that I buy a second unit, at unlocked retail, and they would credit the return once they got the defective unit back. The first option meant being without a cell phone for over a week. This was a BIG problem!

So check your unit for physical defects and return if necessary BEFORE you discard your prior phone.

Right on keys May 18, 2012

Reviewer:  travelgo "travelgo"  (New York, NY) -

I tried an Android (Samsung Skyrocket) but as a heavy e-mail user, couldn't stand the touch screen and that the quickest e-mails could come in automatically was every 15 minutes (maybe there's an app to push it but I didn't get that far). I went back to Blackberry, upgrading to the 9900 from the 8900. Glad to be back with a keyboard. Having touch capacity on the screen is a plus. This is a worker phone, not a fun-and-games phone, though the phone comes with games on it that I can't seem to get rid of, ditto some bookmarked websites.
Yes, battery goes more quickly than the 8900 but that's the nature of the beast. Overnight charging will become routine, which wasn't the case with the 8900.
The two negatives I've encountered (besides the junk games/bookmarks) are the sound quality - calls sound somewhat tinny - not fatal but could be noticeably improved; and the case has some rough edges which I sometimes feel on my ear when talking. Again, not fatal but could be smoothed. Altogether, I am content with the phone.
I first got the phone on an ATT plan through AmazonWireless. AmazonWireless was great to deal with; ATT was not. I returned the phone and went back to T-Mobile which gave me, a customer of 10+ years, a good retention deal.

network November 19, 2012

Reviewer:  Fayon 

IS THE ATT BB BOLD 9900 WHICH YOU HAVE ON SALE INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZE(ANY GSM NETWORK AROUND THE WORLD)OR JUST IN THE USA ?

Bleh... September 13, 2012

Reviewer:  JRS 

Really an awful product. I've been shackled to my (company-issued) BlackBerry products for the last five years. Finally, they have seen the light, and are transitioning us over to iPhones. Over the last 5 years, I've had no fewer than 8 BlackBerry products. They simply don't last. They break, they develop weird problems, I've had two where just a specific key would stop working, and two others that randomly re-boot (and this is a SLOW process - like sometimes up to 10 minutes). Battery life is no good, the menu interfaces seem clunky and outdated. They are just SO far behind what their competitors like Samsung, Apple, and some of the Android-based products are doing. Their browser is no good, even though it has been improved considerably.

The only reason I gave two starts instead of one is that there are a few things I think BlackBerry does really well - e-mail, BB Messenger, and the keyboard is pretty nice and snappy. I think it's safe to assume that RIM's days are numbered...they just can't keep up.

Blackberry Bold 9900 Inspired Lament March 11, 2012

Reviewer:  W. Jackson "bookmaven" 

While Blackberry markets itself as a BUSINESS phone, and the Blackberry BOLD 9900 as an INTERNATIONAL business phone, the reliability of this phone is so poor that it completely undermines any feature or function BlackBerry boasts.

I've had this phone since September 2011 and starting a month ago, on a DAILY basis, but especially when I need to communicate with people between appointments, it:

- blacks out
- hibernates and won't wake up
- sticks
- won't wake up/ come back on when turned off or battery is taken out!
- takes 15 to 20 minutes to 'reset', wake-up/comeback to life.
- if a device is inoperable, what does coverage, HD, keypads, etc. matter?

I heavily rely on email and texts as I work in an industry where time is of the essence, time is money, and first-come-first-served. If you, for whatever reason, live or work in an environment where you require a measure of reliability in a smartphone THIS BLACK BERRY IS NOT FOR YOU!!!! The honey moon period is extremely short, and for the price, there's not so much that sweet.

DO NOT GET THIS PHONE January 18, 2012

Reviewer:  Carlos Fla 

This Phone I dont recommended as the battery wont last same day. I Agree with Rfmartinez user that this phone has frozen many times puting myself to reset the phone many times. I requested a replacement from AT & T thinking was a device problem. I got the phone yesterday and same issue. (Too BAD) im resending the phone and changing it to another one. I love the keyboard and rest of the phone but my business need a phone active, not a cell phone that at 3:00 p.m. is already discharged.
DO NOT BUY THIS PHONE.

Thanks carlos

Do NOT Get This Phone! December 16, 2011

Reviewer:  rfmartinez 

Coming from an iPhone 3GS, I knew it would take some time getting used to this one. I was very open minded to trying something else.

The features of this phone are great. Many of the programs are integrated better than the iPhone. I like that there is a real keyboard. The camera is awesome. The screen resolution is soft on the eyes yet very clear.

BUT... THE PHONE HAS FROZEN AT LEAST 9 TIMES IN 1 WEEK.

The phone fails to wake up from standby. Either it took 3 seconds to wake up or it wouldn't respond at all. You might think it's just that it's a memory issue, wrong. I would only have about 3 programs running and still slow or freeze. Phones all together can have great features but if their software is horrible, then what's the point? After each freeze you have to pry off the back plate with your finger nail to pull out the battery to reset.

Now to the battery this phone does not last even a full day. I don't even game on this phone. Just read news articles, text and make calls. The battery, just to charge requires a BlackBerry brand charger and adapter. Most phone charger cables now a days have one end specific to the phone and the other that is USB. You will have to replace every USB adapter because this phone requires a BlackBerry brand adapter. This also applies to your car charger.

The phones software also has so many flaws that the signal is unreliable. Many times, I wondered why I had not received e-mails or phone calls or texts. I'd have 5 bars and the 4G logo, but I'd call time and temperature only to find out the phone was somehow offline. So again, back plate, battery, reset. Also, you cannot use WiFi and make phone calls. It's one or the other. If you try to use WiFi, you'll notice your 4G/5bars disappear and turn into "SOS" meaning, 911 only.

This phone is getting shipped back just 1 weeks of use.

DO NOT GET THIS PHONE. I IMPLORE YOU. TRY ANY OTHER PHONE THAN THIS ONE.