Curve 8520

Overview

The 2009 Curve 8520 combines a physical QWERTY keyboard, optical trackpad and top media keys with a 2.46-inch QVGA screen, 2 MP camera, Wi-Fi and EDGE. Its 512 MHz processor, 256 MB Flash and removable 1150 mAh pack follow the original announcement and contemporary tests.

Period and variants

The 2009 Curve 8520 is an entry-level physical-QWERTY BlackBerry. Its optical trackpad replaces the trackball of earlier Curve models, with previous, play/pause/mute and next keys on top. The joint RIM/T-Mobile release body is dated 27 July, while its current page heading says 26 July. The announced 5 August availability is a T-Mobile US plan rather than a worldwide first retail day. CDMA Curve 8530 and the trackball-equipped 8320 remain separate.

Its 109 × 60 × 13.9 mm, 106 g plastic body has rubberized sides and a 2.46-inch QVGA TFT with 65K colours. The maker specifies a 512 MHz processor and 256 MB Flash; one review finds about 125 MB free. Neither capacity establishes RAM or a specific chipset. MicroSD/SDHC sits under the rear cover and can be changed without removing the battery in the reviewed handset. The announcement confirms up to 16 GB then, with 32 GB expressed as a future expectation.

The left side carries the 3.5 mm jack, Micro-USB and convenience key; the right has volume and camera convenience controls. Its fixed-focus 2 MP rear camera has no flash. The firsthand table records 320 × 240 video without an independently established frame rate. Conditional autofocus/flash passages in the family-style user guide do not establish those features. The 1150 mAh lithium-ion battery is removable, with the SIM underneath.

Quad-band GSM/EDGE, Wi-Fi b/g and Bluetooth 2.0 EDR/A2DP accompany the absence of 3G and GPS. Contemporary T-Mobile UMA calling, BIS/BES email and App World are documented historically rather than promised currently usable or universally available on every carrier.

Sources

• RIM and T-Mobile — original Curve 8520 announcement, body dated 27 July 2009
• RIM — original Curve 8520 Start Here guide, MAT-24844-001
• RIM — original Curve 8520 smartphone user guide, BlackBerry 4.6.1
• MobileTechReview — Lisa Gade’s own Curve 8520 review, 8 August 2009
• GSMArena — own Curve 8520 hardware review, 22 December 2009
• GSMArena — own Curve 8520 controls and battery observations

Image credits

BlackBerry Curve 8520 black handset front and optical trackpad on original red table — IEPP298, Public domain; source file unchanged by this archive.

BlackBerry Curve 8520 source author’s multiple-view photograph composition, original six-view layout retained — A7N8X, CC BY-SA 3.0; source file unchanged by this archive.

Optimized display images on this page have been proportionally resized (maximum dimension 1600 px) and compressed to WebP, without cropping or retouching. Statements above about unchanged files refer to the preserved collected originals; attribution, sources and original licenses still apply. Originals: 1, 2.

Images collected from the Internet.