Going back to a Bold from a BlackBerry Torch

by Volker Weber

ZZ78A0F7E0

Yesterday I upgraded my "old" Bold 9700 to BlackBerry 6, a software I have been using on the newer Torch 9800 for two months. Switching back to the Bold serves as a good reminder what's better on the Bold than the Torch, which is the superior device overall.

First of all, the Bold feels outright small when compared to the Torch. Much lighter, with a screen almost half the size. At the same time it feels more solid than the slider. And you realize what's odd about the Torch: it's top heavy. When you type on it, it's not as balanced as the Bold. You constantly have to hold it down so it does not top over. The keyboard seems to be pushing against your fingers.

But there are things that I really like about the Torch. Locking and unlocking the device with the slider for instance. And the touchscreen of course. Now I keep on tapping the Bold screen wondering why nothing happens. It used to be the other way around when I switched to the Torch.

Upgrading to BlackBerry 6 gives you a much better browser than older version of the device software. The media apps got nicer. There is a pretty much useless social software. The dedicated Twitter and Facebook apps work better.

BlackBerry 6 has its advantages, but I also find it more confusing. Having multiple home screens with all icons, favorites, downloads, media and such slows me down. I don't want stuff to move around. I guess it takes a while to get used to the changes.

Comments

I did the same last week, upgraded my 9700 to Release 6 and the torch is out. Fortunately my new 9780 is shipped..

Marco Koch, 2011-01-07

Same here. Liked the Torch initially but too big and heavy - and delay on touch screen makes it frustrating. Back to bold.

Funny?

Christophe Dehon, 2011-01-07

Still trying to upgrade the OS on the Bold. The Mac BlackBerry desktop refused to acknowledge any available update. On Windows 7 the BlackBerry desktop gave me a Visual C++ 2008 error. Now booting up XP...

Darren Adams, 2011-01-07

Volker, which build of Release 6 are you using?

Peter Daum, 2011-01-07

.380

Volker Weber, 2011-01-07

Fixed the Visual C++ 2008 problem, but now the BlackBerry desktop won't prompt that there's an upgrade available. Should it be this difficult?

Darren Adams, 2011-01-07

Darren, has your carrier released OS 6.0? On the home screen of your BlackBerry hold down the ALT-key and press the following keys: E, S, C and R. What is displayed under "vendor ID"?

Abdelkader Boui, 2011-01-07

Vendor ID = 120

It was prompting me with an available upgrade using Windows 7, but then I'd get the Visual C++ error at the start of the upgrade. Having fixed that, it won't prompt me with an available upgrade.

I've downloaded the upgrade several times (all 105 mb of it), it's somewhere on my hard disk in the depths of a temporary directory, but I haven't been able to find it.

Darren Adams, 2011-01-07

I'm using 418 at the moment.

Can you open www.engadget.com, the normal not mobile Site?

I can't open this and other websides because of the lack of RAM I think. And that's really bad about OS6, I hope they will fix it. Today there's another leaked firmware out, I will try this 424.

Karl Heindel, 2011-01-07

Darren, 120 is Vodafone UK. But Vodafone UK hasn't released OS 6.0 for their devices yet. You will need to download the firmware from Vodafone Essar Ltd, install it on your Windows computer. After the installation is completed, navigate to C:/Program Files/Common Files/Research In Motion/AppLoader and delete the file vendor.xml. From the same directory start loader.exe and update your device. The steps on the screen should be self explaining (I hope) ;-)

Abdelkader Boui, 2011-01-08

My Bold feels snappier now, scrolling through the Appworld seems faster. The browser is not only significantly faster, but also much more capable. Only bummer is the small display. One of the features I really appreciate is that the browser can now stream MP3 radio stations, such as dlf.de ...Overall, this upgrade extended the lifespan of my Bold. I tried four other smartphones this year and returned to the Bold each time. If you are a heavy email user and use this as an actual phone, this is the one and only. For me at least.

Sascha Siekmann, 2011-01-09

Old vowe.net archive pages

I explain difficult concepts in simple ways. For free, and for money. Clue procurement and bullshit detection.

vowe

Paypal vowe