BlackBerry Bold 9900 Dakota v BlackBerry Torch 9810

Oct. 31, 2011 - PRLog -- There's just £20 difference in price between the BlackBerry Bold 9900 Dakota and the BlackBerry Torch 9810 – so if you are looking to purchase a new BlackBerry, how do these two popular smartphones shape up?

The BlackBerry Bold 9900 Dakota comes with the standard BlackBerry Bold design, enjoying the front-facing qwerty keyboard that so endears the model to so many users, both home and business alike. But there's more – it also comes with a 2.8-inch TFT capactive touch screen, the first in the BlackBerry Bold range to come with touch screen technology.

A follow-up to last year's release the BlackBerry Torch 9800, the BlackBerry Torch 9810 has a 3.2inch touch screen and also benefits from the inclusion of a slide-out qwerty keyboard. This means that you can enter text any way you choose, whichever your preference.

In terms of width, the BB Bold 9900 Dakota is just 10.5mm thick, but it packs a great deal of features into this skinny space.

Because of the slide-out qwerty keyboard, the BlackBerry Torch 9810 is a little thicker, at 13.5mm. As you would expect, it is also packed with power beneath the surface, although its design hasn't changed much since the previous model – except for the addition of a stylish silver trim.

Both sets run the latest BlackBerry 7 operating system, which supports HTML5 video for an improved internet experience and supports pinch and zoom browsing. This combines perfectly with the capacitive touchscreen of both devices.

In terms of processor, both have a powerful 1.2GHz under the hood – double the power of the BlackBerry Bold's predecessor, the BB Bold 9780, and it also comes with Near Field Communication (NFC) – which is a first for a BlackBerry smartphone.

As BlackBerry officianadoes would expect, as well as all the improvements, both models retaub the features that have made the RIM range so popular in the first place. Strong connectivity options include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support, as well as internet browsing on the go with 3G connectivity. Both have GPS included too.

The handsets have 5 megapixel cameras, widely recognised as one of the areas that previously needed improvement in the BlackBerry range – both these models produce great photographic results.

In terms of storage, there is 8GB internal storage on both devices and this can be upgraded to 32GB with the use of a microSD card.

So, when choosing between the two smartphones, the major deciding factor will be which model you prefer – if you like the Bold's handy hands-on qwerty keyboard, this is the phone for you, while if you prefer the sleek slide-out keyboard and touch screen of the Torch, that's the BlackBerry to go for.

Clove Technology stocks the BlackBerry Bold 9900 Dakota for £498 including VAT.

The BlackBerry Torch 9810 is on pre-order and is priced at £478 including VAT. http://www.clove.co.uk/blackberry-torch-9810