RIM BlackBerry 7510

Nextel customers and BlackBerry users are two staunchly dedicated groups of people, which is why it came as no shock to us that the , offered by Nextel, met with a good amount of enthusiasm. Finally, Nextel users who loved the company's business-oriented Direct Connect walkie-talkie service could join the BlackBerry craze. Of course, like early prototypes, the 7510 had some limitations--namely, a paltry 16MB of memory and no Bluetooth. Fortunately, the RIM BlackBerry 7520 answers these criticisms with 32MB of memory and Bluetooth capabilities for wireless headsets, earpieces, and car kits.

Upside: Hard-core road warriors will appreciate the addition of Bluetooth, which will free them from either having to use the handset like a standard cell phone (which BlackBerry phones don't do well in the first place) or a wired earpiece. An all-in-one device, the 7520 offers users Web-browsing capabilities; remote e-mail access; and wireless PIM-data synchronization of calendar, contacts, and tasks. And like its predecessor, the 7520 has a speakerphone, access to Nextel's Direct Connect service, a full QWERTY keyboard, a large, 65,000-color display, a thumb-operated trackwheel, and support for Java and real-time e-mail with attachments.

Downside: The 7520 lacks a memory-expansion slot and operates on Nextel's 800MHz network, which won't work in many countries beyond North America. Also, it lacks an infrared port.

Outlook: The 7520 should please business-oriented users, who already make up a huge part of Nextel's customer roster. At around $200 with a service agreement, it's a fairly priced smart phone that, thanks to the addition of Bluetooth