HYPE CHECK: Peek
What it is: The
Peek is designed for those looking for the simplest way to check their e-mail on the go. Unlike
BlackBerrys and
iPhones, the Peek is an e-mail-only device: No Web-surfing, Google-mapping, or anything else. Essentially, it's the layman's e-mail device -- bring it with you when you're gonna need to check your mail, and when you don't, just bring your cell phone and leave the Peek at home.
Why it's different: Smart phones are all-in-one devices with loads of features and a fairly steep learning curve. The Peek, on the other hand, has the dead simplest interface you could possibly imagine, and is meant for those who can't be bothered to learn the intricacies of the Widows Mobile or
RIM operating systems.
What it costs: $99.95 for the device, and $19.95 per month for Peek service. There are no contracts, which is nice; unfortunately, the monthly rate is the same as
T-Mobile's data plan (and only $10 less than other networks' data plans), meaning it's really not that much of a steal. It's available in Target stores nationwide, and
online.
What we like: First impressions of the Peek are good. The device is thin, sleek, and feels good in your hands -- it's significantly thinner than an iPhone, and feels much less breakable. The device uses the tried-and-true BlackBerry input method: a clickable scroll wheel to get through your messages, along with a back button (we do wish the scroll wheel was a bit thicker and easier to use). We loved the rubberized keyboard -- the keys have a nice "bounce" to them, and the full QWERTY keyboard (complete with numbers!) is easy to get comfortable with. Setting up our e-mail account was super easy -- Gmail was our choice, but the device supports IMAP and POP accounts and most Web accounts, including Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail, and Gmail -- and the LED backlit keyboard is easy on the eyes.
What we don't like: It's slooooooower than molaaaaaassssses -- everything about it. The Peek couldn't keep up with our typing; as our fingers pecked away on the keyboard, the letters trickled onto the screen, one by one -- and worst of all, rather than "catching up" with our typing, it would simply leave out letters, sometimes entire words, meaning our e-mails came out as utter gibberish unless we slowed ourselves down to a crawl. Likewise, downloading messages was interminably slow, and scrolling up and down through our inbox took ages (there's no way to Page Up or Page Down). It supposedly supports images, though none of the images in our e-mails showed up, and we couldn't figure out how to make them do so. It doesn't support Office docs or other attachments, of course.
Does it live up to the hype? Not really, unfortunately. The Peek has potential -- namely as the portable e-mail device for the rest of us -- but the software is so slow as to make it a chore to use, and the price isn't quite low enough to justify the deal it provides. We wanted to love it, but just couldn't: while it's better than not having e-mail on the go, it's only
slightly better.
