Smartphone smarts

Like a true Apple fanboy, I managed to get my grubby fingers on a working iPhone barely a couple of months after its splashy rollout in the US last June 29, and I’ve been using it since — with the occasional resort to my other backup phone, a Nokia E61i. That makes a total of nine months’ experience with the iPhone — time enough, among gadget freaks, to develop an itch for the next great thing. (I had a long-running affair with the Treo 650 and its predecessor, the Treo 600 — “long” in cellphone years being 18 months.)

But I’ve always been intrigued by that other star of smart telephony, the BlackBerry, which over the years has acquired a fan base almost as fanatic as Steve Jobs’ minions. These “crackberries” include Barack Obama, John Mayer, and Jessica Biel (and speaking of terminology, “smart” in phonespeak means a cellular phone that not only makes calls and plays music and movies but also takes pictures, organizes your life, has gobs of memory to spare and/or room to expand, and all kinds of ways of connecting wirelessly to Timbuktu: wi-fi, EDGE, GPRS, GSM/CDMA, etc.)

The BB’s killer application is “push” email, which means that you get your email on the road — anywhere, anytime — without having to go online, a few minutes after it’s sent. (Like most nice things, that translates to “you’ll pay more,” as it requires a special plan that you can get from both Globe and Smart.) If you’re one of those people with three or four e-mail accounts, coupled with an urge to check them every 30 minutes, then the BlackBerry will get you drooling.

Blackberry phones have been around since 2002, but they used to be clunky one-trick ponies, looking like large pagers with monochrome screens (which the original BB was, in 1997). Now, with the Curve, the Pearl, and the even sexier (and, hmm, iPhone-like) Bold, the BlackBerry’s exterior has become as smart as its innards, and people too long accustomed to Nokias, SEs, Motorolas, and even iPhones are giving it a second look. I’d actually tried the BB experience on the E61i, and liked it (some non-BB phones can make use of the software), but I wanted to see it working on a BlackBerry itself.

So when I found myself with some loose change (make that a lot of loose change, from an analog alcancia the size of a 55-gallon drum), I scored a new T-Mobile BB 8320 Curve off eBay, unlocked it, and put it to work.

The iPhone and the BB share nearly all the bells and whistles a top-tier smartphone should have: wi-fi, the Internet, email, SMS/MMS, camera, media player, etc. Price-wise, they’re both in the P20-25K range. But going head-to-head, which one would you rather bring with you to your desert island?

(Ah, decisions, decisions! And just to complicate things further, let’s not forget that the 3G-enabled Nokia E61i is no slouch, either, and has its own pluses over the other two. Sadly, I never developed fuzzy feelings for Sony Ericsson smartphones; I used an M600i and its unique “rocker” keypad for a few months then handed it down to my youngest brother, whose phone had been stolen. Moving to that from the trusty Treo was one of the stupidest things I ever did. The Treo 680 would be on this list if it had wi-fi.)

As a Web browser and mp3 player, the iPhone is “light years ahead” of the BlackBerry, as even local BB guru Ric Pacana acknowledges. The iPhone’s Safari browser is the only real usable phone browser out there that comes close to the desktop experience, and the iPhone’s ability to automatically reorient images (horizontal or vertical) and to resize them with a two-finger “curtain” effect is matchless. However, Ric prefers his BB for its strengths: push email, long battery life, better security, and multitasking.

Me? Take a peek into my bag — I’ve got the iPhone in there, and the BB Curve in my pocket. Call it a reverse-Solomon: instead of having just one, why not two? Or three? (I keep the E61i on my table.) When they get Truphone or Skype (the real thing, not clumsy workarounds), push email, and cut-and-paste into the iPhone, then maybe I’ll consider ditching the other two for good.

Here’s a quick overview of my own findings and conclusions:

Best camera: the BB (it’s got digital zoom, and flash to boot)

Best sound: the iPhone (but get third-party earphones)

Best screen: the iPhone, hands down

Best keypad: the Nokia E61i—good size, great feel, easy layout (still nothing like a real, physical keypad for your fingers to walk on)

Best for SMS: the Nokia E61i—one button press and you’re ready to text

Best for email: the BB, of course

Best calendar: a draw, although you need third-party software for a “Today” list on your iPhone’s home screen

Best looks: the iPhone, all around

Killer programs: Truphone on the Nokia, Safari on the iPhone, push email on the BB

Sturdiest: the iPhone (pretty but also tough as nails; I use mine without any sleeves or protectors); the steel-backed Nokia comes close

Easiest to hold: the BB (just the right size and weight; the iPhone’s too thin, the Nokia’s too wide)

*  *  *

Email me at penmanila@yahoo.com, and visit my blog at www.penmanila.net.