Item Details

BlackBerry Bold 9650 Phone (Verizon Wireless)

(7 Customer Reviews)

Price: $0.01
FREE Shipping*

Usually ships in 24 hours

 

Technical Details

• BlackBerry smartphone with QWERTY keyboard; dual-network capable for 3G-enabled GSM access when traveling abroad
• GPS-enabled for turn-by-turn directions; Visual Voice Mail; PC tethering via Mobile Broadband Connect and GlobalAccess Connect
• 3.2-megapixel camera/camcorder; Bluetooth stereo music; microSD memory expansion to 16 GB; access to personal and corporate email
• Up to 5 hours of talk time, up to 312 hours (13 days) of standby time
• What's in the Box: handset, rechargeable battery, charger (with international adapter clips), 2 GB microSD card, USB cable, 3.5mm stereo headset, BlackBerry documentation kit

 

Product Details

Product Weight: 1.51 pounds

Shipping Weight: 0.02 pounds

Model: Bold 9650

Manufacturer: BlackBerry

Sales Rank: 344

 

Customer Reviews

Awesome phone,
by techguru, 2010-08-11

I acquired the Blackberry Bold 9650 as part of my annual phone upgrade. I was able to get a 2 for 1 deal so my wife got one as well. This is the first smart phone for both of us. After having it for a little while I feel I can make an educated review.

My Service is Verizon Wireless. In my area I get excellent coverage with very few dead zones (haven't found any yet). The Verizon 3G is extremely fast and reliable and I have yet to use the wifi as the 3G is as fast or faster than wifi in my area.

The phone is a nice size. My friend has the Curve 8830 and they are almost identical in size. The Bold is slightly longer and slightly thinner than the Curve (were talking fractions here, almost undetectable). First thing one will notice is that this phone feels sturdy. I wouldn't toss it off a roof, but it definately feels very well made. There is also some weight to this phone. I don't know how it compares to other BlackBerry's weight wise, but you definately feel like your holding a phone. The phone is not heavy though and I can hold the phone all day long as it is a very comfortable fit.

For previous BlackBerry owners, the keypad has been redesigned. The keys are slightly larger than those on the Curve. The keys have also been pushed together whereas on the Curve there is some spacing between the keys. This helps to keep the phone narrower and also help keep food / liquid out of the gaps. The keys are easy to push and again feel solid. The keypad for me is easy to type on though you will make a few mistakes. It does take some getting used to the keyboard. The keyboard is the standard QWERTY type so should be familiar to most users. The keyboard is backlit for easy visibility and the phone adjusts the backlight depending on surronding light levels. The track pad is easy to use and is a vast improvement over the trackball on previous models. The trackpad works the same way as a touchpad on a laptop.

The screen is bright and easy to see. I would recommend a screen protector to anyone buying this phone. The screen is also smartly organized with the icon positions. Like the keypad, the screen will automatically adjust its intensity to the surrounding light levels. The screen is level with the case with no where for dirt or lint to get trapped.

The apps and programs for this phone are what make Blackberry number 1. I really enjoy blackberry messenger and app world. The programs are very simple to use and straight forward. I will caution anyone that the Verizon Apps (vcast, vz navigator, etc.) are an extra charge on top of the data plan fees. For those like me that don't want to pay the extra charge a quick search in BB AppWorld will find you as good or better apps to replace the VZW ones. My one complaint is VZW loaded some games onto the phone which are demos and require you to purchase them. If I want to buy a game, a quick search in BB AppWorld will let me pick from a large selection. BlackBerry is mostly for business use, but don't let that fool you. There are plenty of fun apps with more coming out all the time.

I have never had an issue with the battery life. One will find that the smartphones will go through a battery faster than a standard phone. However, if you turn wifi off and make sure you exit all of your apps then battery life isn't an issue. I suspect that people reporting poor battery life either don't know how to turn off their apps properly or are leaving the wifi on.

I have yet to use the wifi feature as VZW 3G is extremely fast in my area. I do my web browsing through the google app and find that a page will load in 10 seconds or less. The web browsers fuction the same as any web browser on your computer. Imputing webaddresses is slightly slower since you wont be able to type as fast but still easy.

The call quality is excellent. People often tell me they forget that I am on a phone. It is by far the clearest phone I have ever owned. Included with the phone are a belt case and earphones. There are also international adaptors for the plug so you can plug your charger into any outlet. The belt case is well made and good for casual wear. I am in public safety and the case is inadequate for my needs so I ordered an OtterBox. The case should hold up for your average person. There is a magnet located inside the case that will automatically put your phone into sleep mode when you insert it. This helps to conserve battery life, yet you can still hear incoming calls.

There are a few negatives to this phone. First is where Research In Motion (RIM) decided to put the mini usb port used for charging. They located it on the right side of the phone about mid way up. This makes it a pain in the butt to type while charging your phone. Charging ports should be on top or bottom of the phone. Also, the convience keys on the side of the phone are a pain in the butt when pulling your phone out of its case. I have disabled them to make it easier for me. The earphones that come with the phone are horrible. They are clear sounding and do have a built in mic so you can use them as a handsfree device. They are also stereo which is good. However, that is the end of their good points. The earphones are extremely uncomfortable to wear. I wore them for about 40 mins and was left with ear pain for about an hour afterwards. The earphones do not allow you to hear in comming calls so if your phone is not on your hip you will miss a call. They are good for occasional use but I would recommend a bluetooth.

Accessories I would recommend for this phone are a car charger, Bluetooth, and an aftermarket case and screen protectors.

 

I wanted to love this, but came away disappointed,
by Fredrik Nyman, 2010-07-30

I have had a Blackberry 8830 (Verizon) for a couple years, and was recently given the 9650 as part of a periodic refresh at work. While I've been mostly happy with the 8830, it is showing its age; compared to the iPhone and various Androids, it feels slow and dated, Verizon's disabling the built-in GPS in the 8830 is aggravating, and the 8830's scroll wheel is mechanical and notoriously trouble-prone.

When I was offered the 9650 as a replacement for the 8830, I was excited. No more crippled GPS (and in fact, the GPS on the 9650 is great -- with A-GPS enabled, it acquires position in seconds). The new optical trackpad is a huge improvement over the 8830's scroll wheel. And it has WiFi, much more memory, a much faster processor (624 MHz vs 223 MHz).

After I got the 9650 on Tuesday, I charged it, and took it home. Wednesday morning I turn it on, except it won't turn on. Turns out the battery is drained. Thinking I hadn't charged the battery long enough, I charged it again. Wednesday afternoon when I left work, it was at 100%. Yesterday morning I once more woke up to find the 9650 completely drained. Actual standby time appears to be much closer to 15 hours than 300 with WiFi enabled, which is pretty awful. Yes, I can disable WiFi, but shouldn't the phone's own power management functions do a much better job? My friends with Droids and iPhones don't seem to be having these issues.

Also disappointing: even though it has a much faster processor, it still feels as slow as the 8830. Booting can take several minutes(!!!) after installing apps. And for some reason, SMS and MMS messages now have a separate inbox you have to navigate to to read; on the 8830 they came in the same inbox as your regular email. This is hopefully configurable, but I haven't figured out how.

Mild annoyance: RIM switched from mini-USB to micro-USB between the 8830 and the 9650 *and* moved the jack position, so you need to put the phone in the holster upside down if you want to charge it while holstered.

Sorry RIM, but no sale. This one is going back.

 

Better than new curve,
by Craig Barker, 2010-07-07

My old curve gave out, so Verizon swapped it for the new Curve 8530. Wow what a piece of junk that phone is. Fells cheap like a toy, and I had all kinds of problems with bluetooth and battery life and freezing, keys sticking. Do not buy that phone. So I went back before my 30 days and swapped for the Bold 9650.

I really like this phone. It is a bit larger form factor than the new curve, much like the old curve. It feels robust in your hand not cheap like a toy. The keys are bigger, but I still do miss the old curve as the keys were more spread out which is better with my fat fingers. I love the Wi-Fi feature. I keep it off until I need it and then it is easy to fire up when I am ready to use it. Fairly fast connection with it and a great feature to have. I have been getting about 2 days out of the battery which is a bit less than the old curve.

The coverage with Verizon is the same with brown spots here and there, but generally good. This phone is much much faster than my old curve. Start up is quicker and switching between applications is much faster. Basic functionality is also improved. I use the phone for business and so far it is working great. It would be nice if they would make a phone with a slide out keyboard like my daughters LG. When that comes out I will be ready.

 

Was expecting better,
by Warren C. Jones, 2010-07-05

This is my first BlackBerry, so maybe I was expecting too much. The battery life stinks, the red numbers are very hard to see. The browser is extremely slow- its not worth the wait to get online.
I would dump the browser function if I could keep just the email. It has locked up a couple of times in the GSM mode even though I was not roaming- FYI don't allow phone to set GSM or CDMA automatically to avoid this.

 

So far, the best BB ever,
by Rski, 2010-06-30

I think I have had every BB so far between work and personal and this one is by far the best. What is the best, feels the best (quality wise) best speaker, cell phone battery life. Nothing to complain about, it works well. What wy I like to see improved, well the Internet but I know accessing the Internet on a BB sucks so I cannot complain much but boy would it be sweet with a better easier to read browser.