BlackBerry Device for testing

I develop and test applications for BlackBerry 4.5, 4.6, 4.7 and 5.0, but have done testing only with开发者_StackOverflow社区 the respective simulators. Now I am about to buy a new BlackBerry device to test my applications better in a real scenario.

Can anyone suggest which device suits my needs?

Hi I'm not sure about this model but i do know that in other cellphones you need to change the software version every time. Because you mentioned that you want to build apps for different OS versions.
You should try to locate a device that is the easiest one to change OS version and be able to downgrade and upgrade without any errors. thanks

The current BB devices on the market are generally 5.x and up. You have to define a minimum version you'll support. As long as your app doesn't do too much hackery JDE versions are upwardly compatible.

Simulators generally model real devices well except for the networking. You see some differences especially GSM vs. CDMA devices. Ex. if you ask for the device's phone number (in the NAMP) it may or may not start with a 1.

If you're on a budget or decide to buy multiple devices you might want to try Curve 8520 - it's one of the cheaper new models, comes with BlackBerry OS 4.6 upgradable to 5.0, but still has most of the functionality you might need, except for the GPS.

Additionally it has one of the lower resolutions RIM has to offer (320x240), so if your apps are UI intensive you can see if they work well with entry level models.

Hope it's of any help.