I have been using the Curve for about three or four weeks. So far so good. I feel like I have used it long enough to talk through what I like and what I don't.
Kaleidoscope, the company I work for, does not have a blackberry server, so I realize in advance that my experience is less than advertised. In fact let me start there. I am going to sound like a microsoft fan boy, but I miss the activesync. Yes, I do get my e-mails in a timely fashion, but I noticed that if I review an e-mail on my computer, the e-mail may or may not be delivered to the blackberry. I absolutely hate having to plug in the phone to my laptop and sync the updates to the calendar, contacts and tasks. It will be interesting to see how the new iphone software handles this... it does claim activesync compatibility. The other day, my battery died and I was not in a position to charge it, so I used a windows mobile device for the weekend. I have switched devices enough that I have the outlook settings memorized. Plugged them in and all my contacts, appointments and e-mails show up. Pure magic :)
Speaking of battery, the battery life on the curve is good. Maybe that is because it an EDGE device and doesn't support the 3G. But on eastern long island where I live, there is 3G is pretty rare unless you are deep in Nassau County or in the Hamptons. So based on that, it seems like RIM has done a good job of optimizing the battery life.
I like the form factor. It is a tad too thick, at least it seems to be so. I realize the Blackjack plays thickness games, with the top being thicker than most of the back. If the curve was 1.5 mm thinner it would be perfect. The slightly shorter length than a blackjack is nice.
I think I prefer the non-touch screen, but I will admit that first week, I kept trying to push the buttons on the screen. The overall UI seems dated. Maybe not quite as bad as my old SLVR, but there is a lot of text, icons, and overall graphic feel is a little too windows 3.11. I guess that keeps the GUI snappy and there is never delay because the processor can't keep up with the 'shiny GUI.' But for me, as a designer, I don't think I would choose this over other options.
I set the UI back to the blackberry default. The ATT version wasn't doing anything for me. I did like that I can move the home screen icons around, even remove them. This allowed me to delete all the silly ATT apps, music, radio, tv, etc.
There is some subtle rubber on the rear housing. It is a nice touch... it seems as if the whole housing is IMD parts... Looks nice from a distance, but seems almost cheap up close.
I really would like use the device with the blackberry server. Then I would have the missing 'activesync' connectivity.
The qwerty is good, same width as a blackjack. I think I like the keys of the blackjack better, but the curve definitely look better. I hate the fact that all the punctuation is on a shifted state. It is interesting to me that Samsung, Motorola, RIM spend lots of resources testing and validating keypads, but they all arrive at different solutions.
