BlackBerry 8110 Pearl

The basics

BlackBerry 8110 Pearl is smartphone that which has a built-in GPS mapping system. Its dimensions are 106.68 mm x 60.96 mm x 12.70 mm, and it weighs approximately 90 grammes. This smartphone also has a 2 megapixel camera and SureType QWERTY keyboard system. On top of that, it is integrated with the usual BlackBerry messaging and email capabilities.

The good

While the 8110 Pearl looks identical to the 8100 Pearl, there is one big difference. GPS. Oh, and BlackBerry Maps. OK, that's two differences. Even better, we found it took just 10-15 seconds to nab a satellite fix. Satnav aside, this also smacks its older brother in the fascia with a 3.5mm headphone socket enabling it to play nice with independent cans. We were also hooked on the built-in Facebook app, which let us poke all our ex-flames in under a minute (the shame of it). All of that’s icing to the email cake though - with up to 10 email accounts running at once, it’s what BlackBerry does best.

The bad

The handset's display isn't ideal for use as a satnav on your car's dashboard - it's too titchy to clearly show the 2D maps, you see (well, probably not). We also weren't that taken with the paltry 2-megapixel camera.

The bottom line

The satnav is a nice touch, but the 8110’s main selling point is still its style and email skills. Come on, it's been the main selling point for BlackBerry since its inception!