BlackBerry Bold 9780: Not So Bold
by Mithun Chandrasekhar on March 25, 2011 2:20 AM EST- Posted in
- IT Computing
- Smartphones
- 9780
- BlackBerry
- Bold
- Mobile
BlackBerry Bold 9780: Minor Updates to the 9700
Honestly, there isn’t much to talk about the Bold 9780 except for the fact that it is the first non-touchscreen BlackBerry device to come with version 6.0 of the BlackBerry OS. With Brian having done in-depth coverage of the BlackBerry Torch 9800 and OS 6.0 already, and with very few physical or software changes between the Bold 9780 and the previous Bold 9700 (since the 9700 can in fact be updated to version 6 of the BlackBerry OS), the 9780 is in essence an iterative design with more RAM (512MB) and a better camera (5MP Autofocus) from BlackBerry’s increasingly difficult to distinguish range of devices. However, there are a few interesting updates since our last look at BlackBerry OS in the Torch, so that's where we'll focus our efforts in this article.
As mentioned above, the Bold 9780 is nearly identical to the earlier Bold 9700. Even the most trained eye will find it next to impossible to identify one from the other. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing since the 9780 does look handsome in the typical BlackBerry-esque understated manner, but with there being almost a year’s gap between the release of the two and with Nokia showing that there is potential room for improvement with QWERTY-design templates in its transition from the E6x/E7x to the E5, it doesn’t really look like RIM even bothered trying. That's somewhat sad, as the Torch is a pretty handsome and well put-together device that manages to look different while still retaining the BlackBerry design DNA.
| Physical Comparison | ||||||
| Apple iPhone 4 | BlackBerry Bold 9780 | BlackBerry Torch 9800 | Nokia E5 | |||
| Height | 115.2mm (4.5") | 109mm (4.3”) | 111mm (4.4") closed, 148 (5.8") open | 115mm (4.5”) | ||
| Width | 58.6mm (2.31") | 60mm (2.36”) | 62mm (2.4") | 58.9mm (2.3”) | ||
| Depth | 9.3mm ( 0.37") | 14.2mm (0.56”) | 14.6mm (0.57") | 12.8mm (0.50”) | ||
| Weight | 137g (4.8 oz) | 122g (4.3 oz) | 162g (5.7 oz) | 126g (4.4 oz) | ||
| CPU | Apple A4 @ ~800MHz | Marvell Tavor PXA930 @ 624MHz | Marvell Tavor PXA930 @ 624MHz | ARM 11 based SoC @ 600MHz | ||
| GPU | PowerVR SGX 535 | (?) | (?) | (?) | ||
| RAM | 512MB LPDDR1 (?) | 512MB LPDDR1 | 512MB LPDDR1 | 256MB | ||
| NAND | 16GB or 32GB integrated | 2GB microSD preinstalled | 4GB integrated, 4GB microSD preinstalled | 256MB integrated, 2GB microSD preinstalled | ||
| Camera | 5MP with LED Flash + Front Facing Camera | 5MP with LED Flash and autofocus | 5MP with LED Flash and autofocus | 5MP with LED Flash | ||
| Screen | 3.5" 640x960 LED backlit LCD | 2.4” 480x360 | 3.2" 360x480 | 2.36” 320x240 | ||
| Battery | Integrated 5.254Whr | Removable 5.4Whr | Removable 4.7Whr | Removable 4.4Whr | ||
At a hardware level, the Bold 9780 and Torch 9800 use the same CPU and GPU, with the same 512MB LPDDR1 memory. The Torch also comes with 4GB integrated NAND, a 4GB microSD card, and a larger 3.2" display, giving it a slight edge in a couple areas. The Bold counters with a slightly higher capacity battery and a smaller form factor. With a few updates to OS 6 since our last look, performance differences are largely going to come from the software side rather than the hardware.
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Galcobar - Friday, March 25, 2011 - link
"BlackBerry's" standing in for a plural form is also present in the Display and Camera page, first paragraph; and Design and Ergonomics, third paragraphJarredWalton - Friday, March 25, 2011 - link
Thanks... I tried searching for "Blackberry's" and couldn't find any hits; turns out that the text was "BlackBerry’s" (notice that's a right-single-quote instead of a regular apostrophe). Any more comments from the grammar fiends, or have we finally reached the point where you can merely grumble about our style rather than full-blown errors? :-)Holler - Saturday, March 26, 2011 - link
technically, Curve 9330 3G for sprint I beleive was the first "non touch: blackberry with OS6. has same processor and memory, but lesser screen and camera. I think it came out a month sooner.
tammlam - Sunday, March 27, 2011 - link
I'm on my second BB and the reason I went with them again is that these phones can take a licking and keep on ticking. I was tempted to go Android or WP7 but decided against it because I have seen some of my friends' Android phones have hardware failures from just regular use. My original BB was abused by my then 1-year-old son on a daily basis and it still works. It's been dropped, used as a chew toy, and thrown. I don't even hesitate to hand over the new BB to my now 2-year-old for him to play with. Furthermore, I do not use a protective case.johnnydfred - Wednesday, March 30, 2011 - link
I just "graded" to the new Bold. This company's offering is becoming a joke. Had to take a meeting with conference calling, and finally switched over to my iPhone to get 'er done. Just can't believe my corp. is still working with RIM.I could close my eyes, spin and launch this cruddy piece of silicon and plastic into the night, and have a pretty good chance of striking a better smartphone.
CellPig - Thursday, June 30, 2011 - link
As long as Blackberry continues to keep their focus on things other than the internet browsing and apps they will continue to lose market share. Younger generations are snatching up smart phones left and right and they're not going to Blackberry. Does RIM not do any research on their target market??