The new Blackberry Pearl is a smartphone device that looks more like an average mobile than an email device. It's in a slick candy bar form factor, and the metallic edgings give it a touch of class. It's got a firm weight in the hand that makes it feel solid, rather than heavy, and the piano black glossy finish means that you won't feel like a dork whipping it out, which is more than can be said for most smartphones.

The front fascia lacks the usual QWERTY keyboard found on most Blackberries, with a 20-key hybrid keyboard standing in. This works via the SureType system, which I'll talk about in a bit. However, regardless of its functionality, it's clear that this is compromise made to fit a half decent keyboard into the form factor. Just above the keyboard sits the Pearl that gives this model its name. The Pearl is a rollerball/trackball, which you can use to scroll up-down-left-right with the lightest of touch. This replaces the side-mounted scroll wheel synonymous with old-style Blackberry devices, and is designed to allow you to move quicker through the menus, rather than having to scroll sequentially through each item.

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