The RIM BlackBerry Curve (aka BlackBerry 8310) is the smallest and lightest full-QWERTY BlackBerry to date, and we're absolutely stoked on the design. Apart from coming in a metal grey rather than silver, you would be forgiven if at first glance if you didn't notice anything different about the 8310 over the 8300. The form factor is identical, the feature set the same, and the only new addition a GPS chip under the hood.


The overall size of the handset is 107mm in height, 60mm in width & 15.5mm in depth which fits easily in the users pocket or bag. The Curve uses the newer generation BlackBerry form factor: it's still a relatively thin yet broad device with a large screen, but (as with the Curve and the 8800) the Curve now uses a center-mounted trackball for menu navigation and selection rather than the traditional three-way jog dial common to earlier BlackBerry phones.The full 35 key QWERTY thumb keyboard is very easy to use, in the RIM tradition. Though the keyboard is a bit narrower than the 8800's, the keys are large, well-spaced and domed-- and thus require little if any adjustment if you've been using prior generation BlackBerry phones. there's a 2.5-inch diagonal, 65,000-color screen with a 320x240 pixel resolution. The display features a light-sensing technology that automatically adjusts the backlighting of the screen as well as the keyboard, based on your environment (indoors, outdoors, a dark room, and so forth). In addition, you can customize the screen with various themes and wallpaper, as well as adjust the font size, family, and style. Curve is a  Quad Band Technology (GSM 850, GSM 900, GSM 1800 & GSM 1900)mobile.


The biggest difference between the original Curve and the RIM BlackBerry Curve 8310 is the addition of GPS. With this feature, you can use Curve as a handheld navigation device with the addition of a location-based service (LBS) or navigation software, such as Google Maps for Mobile.


Email has always been at the core of the Blackberry functionality and with this phone it is no different with support for a large number of Web clients as well as application formats from the likes of ACT!, Novell and Microsoft Outlook. You will still need to be hooked up to either a BlackBerry service or BlackBerry Enterprise Server to use the popular “push” email function -- to instantly receive messages from services external to your phone. The Curve does allow for instant messaging, though, with applications from Yahoo, Google and BlackBerry already installed. It also has the standard BlackBerry organisational tools such as the task list and can synchronise easily with the desktop.