A major drawback of the Pearl's tiny package is that it lacks a full qwerty keyboard. With the exception of two buttons, there are two characters on each of the phone's letter keys. Its built-in software does help. The SureType system helps users identify which letter is intended, and attempts to save time by identifying or guessing at words being spelled out before the user is finished. It also builds an ongoing custom list of words it doesn't recognize, to quickly find the word next time a user attempts to enter it.

In Roche's estimation, the Pearl's keyboard is its worst feature, and would keep him from deploying the device across his enterprise. Though Network Services doesn't have official criteria to determine which smartphones can be used throughout the organization, a full qwerty is a necessity, he said.

Roche didn't find the SureType system particularly effective in selecting the words he wanted. Forget messages that require in-depth responses or those that consist of more than a few sentences. "Even typing an e-mail address is extremely painful," he said. It also doesn't seem to have any sort of "smart recognition" system to select frequently typed entries over other less-used words or addresses. In defense of SureType, we did find that it becomes easier to use as one gets accustomed to it, and it can be quite accurate in recognizing words being typed if the user ignores all of the potential suggestions and types in the appropriate letters.

Roche placed calls from various locales in the Chicago area, and found the Pearl's call quality "somewhat spotty," even when his device showed the maximum number of reception bars. We placed calls from central Boston and New York City, and consistently heard small bursts of static, in some cases every few minutes. Roche noted that the device's volume doesn't go quite as high as he'd prefer; a problem that he also experiences with his Treo. Even with the hands-free headset that's included, which is meant to partially increase sound quality and volume, the Pearl's volume level still seemed a bit low.

Another drawback of the Pearl's tiny size and light weight is how these specifications affect its durability. Older BlackBerrys were known for their strength, largely because many were bigger, bulky devices. This BlackBerry is made of thin, silver and gray plastic; it instantly feels very delicate, at least in comparison to older models. And weighing in at just 3.16 ounces with the battery, the Pearl is somewhat fragile to users' perceptions. We didn't test how many times we could drop the device without it breaking into pieces (the company does want the device back, after all, and it'd be a bit rude to return it in a baggie), but it's fairly obvious that Pearl users would be wise to minimize such occurrences.

The Cingular BlackBerry Pearl uses Cingular's GSM/EDGE network, which offers average download speeds of 100Kbps to 160Kbps; however, it cannot currently access Cingular's 3G/UMTS network or its faster HSDPA network. In other words, it is not a true 3G phone. Cingular's 3G HSDPA network offers average download speeds of 400Kbps to 700Kbps, according to the company. Though Roche said the 2.5G Pearl's download speeds are fast enough for his needs, users who frequently download large files, such as media files or PDFs, may want to think twice about selecting a phone without 3G support. Also, because the Pearl runs on Cingular's GSM/EDGE network, it can't transfer both voice and data simultaneously; users cannot access the Web while on a phone call or vice versa.

Though the Pearl lets users view Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF documents, the BlackBerry does not allow you to edit documents. If that functionality is important to you, you may want to eliminate the Pearl from your consideration.

If your organization doesn't already have a BES, you may need to include the cost of adding one in the budget spreadsheet. All BlackBerrys are designed to function best with a BES. Unless you want to use a BlackBerry Desktop Redirector—which means you must keep corporate PCs connected to the Internet at all times so you can consistently receive messages—you may want to steer clear of the Pearl or any other RIM handheld. Or, of course, spring for the cost of RIM's BES.

To take advantage of the Pearl's camera disablement and remote memory control IT policies, you need to upgrade BES to v4.0.6 or v4.1.2. Figure that into the budget as well. The Pearl can still link to corporate networks via older versions of the BES, but the new IT policies aren't available to administrators.

GSM phones commonly cause interference with nearby speakers, or any devices with embedded speakers; this can happen when a message or phone call is sent or received or when the user accesses the Internet. Some GSM phones also cause speakers to buzz without apparent cause, because the network is verifying that the phone is still in range. There are technical reasons behind this, but the end result is that, according to Roche, the speaker interference caused by the Pearl was nearly unbearable. He had to keep the phone away from his workstation or it'd cause his desktop speakers to howl. "From a CIO perspective, if I deploy phones and no one can keep them on their desks, well, that's a problem," Roche said.

All of the devices we reviewed are GSM phones, and each caused some degree of buzzing when in close proximity to speakers, but the Pearl was by far the worst in this respect. Our review copies buzzed nearly constantly at times when anywhere near speakers; even when they weren't in use, the smartphones buzzed briefly every hour or so, sometimes more often.

The Pearl features a 1.3-megapixel digital camera with 5X zoom; that's great. But to snap a photo is difficult, due to the size of the device and the fact that you must depress the trackball—which is sensitive and rolls easily.

Though Roche indicated that it's not particularly important to have Wi-Fi support on the smartphones used throughout his enterprise, business users who travel outside of Cingular coverage areas or who wish to save on data charges will miss the functionality.

The Pearl can be equipped with a microSD card to expand its available memory (card is sold separately); however, the slot is located inside the device, and users need to remove the battery to access it. That means the device must be powered down to insert or remove the microSD card, and then powered up again before use.

How does the BlackBerry Pearl stack up with other smartphones for enterprise use? Take a look at the other devices we reviewed.

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