Pros: Small, easy to use, doubles as my desktop & mp3 player
Cons: keyboard is small, but it's a decent tradeoff
The bottom line: Thanks to upgradeable memory there's nothing it can't do. The blackberry pearl does it all despite the teeny size.
I love my blackberry pearl. I even kiss it goodnight.

A broker’s like is running around like a headless chicken, you're never in one spot long, miss a message and it could potentially cost you a commission. If you’re working all the time (like me) and can’t miss a beat, this little shackle-berry is just the ticket. Mind you, it is best if your company runs bberry enterprise server so you can synch to outlook, otherwise you wouldn’t be using the pearl to its full potential. Since I’ve gotten this device I’ve abandoned my “low tech” paper daytimer for good.

I started out with the clunky old behemoth blackberry- I don’t remember the model name off the top of my head. It was clumsy, huge and heavy enough to pull my pants down whenever clipped to my belt. It was old enough where I wasn’t getting optimal cell phone signal, and I didn’t end up using the keypad for emails as much as I anticipated. So I ditched for the blackberry pearl, now we’re inseparable! While the keyboard is tiny, the pearl is fine if your primary use is to CHECK your email and not necessarily have to REPLY to it. Though there’s word guessing software that eases the pain of typing, it still takes some getting used to. But for me I love the smaller size, and I’d never go back to the bigger bberry models.

In blackberry tradition emails are made easy and the filters work well to keep the junk out. I use outlook all the time for my appointments, and I love the wireless updates between bbery and desktop thanks to enterprise server (I'm glad my company has it). Notes, calendar, to do lists, everything works smoothly with no crashes or freezing. I also love the level of customization with the menus and display. It’s easy to hide the functions you don’t use, and just as easy to pull them up on the rare occasions that you need them.

Since my zen micro bit the dust many months ago I’ve needed a new mp3 player. Of course, I didn’t feel like burning my cash for an ipod just yet. I did a little homework and found out that I could upgrade the pearl’s memory with a microSD chip and use it as an mp3 player. Blackberry came out with an operating system patch recently; if memory serves it can use a 4gig memory card. I bought an el-cheapo 1 gig card to test the theory. My only complaint with the media player is that it lacks some of the functions & navigational ease of a true mp3 player. The battery life is pretty good but not the same. However, considering I’ve saved myself at least $200 by using the pearl for my music, I can’t really complain. I’m going to cross my fingers and hope that with the next BBerry software update that these functions will be improved.