iPhone, go home. Traditionally, BlackBerries have been for corporate types—so no need for frivilous fun stuff like media players and cameras.

Until now. With the arrival of the Curve 8320,  BlackBerry is finally acknowledging that fashion is (sometimes) as important as function.

The 8320 has the same unbeatable easy-as-pie email, full QWERTY keyboard and BlackBerry’s quick and reliable OS of its predecessors. But it also sports a camera, WiFi, and a media (audio and video) player.

We were especially impressed with the camera, a 2MP snapper that takes sharper photos than other camera phones offering the same resolution.

The bad news? It’s still a bit too chunky for those of us with delicate hands. You can play video but can’t shoot it. And the browser is less advanced than the one in Windows Mobile, so you’re obliged to take the extra step of downloading Opera Mini (www.operamini.com) if you like your web pages to actually make sense.

Oh, and the application that everyone is raving about, BlackBerry Maps, which provides traffic updates and can direct you to the nearest coffee shop? Sorry, but it doesn’t work in Thailand (or our neighbors).

Here’s another thing to think about, early adopters: if you’re addicted to instant messaging, the built-in IM can only communicate with other BlackBerries—and there aren’t many here—which means live with limited chat or download the less advanced Google Talk or Yahoo! Messenger.

There are two official BlackBerry sellers/service-providsers in Thailand. At AIS Serenade (try 3/F, Siam Paragon, Rama 1 Rd., 02-610-9696. www.aisplus.ais.co.th), the price for a handset and service for a month is B25,850. A cheaper option (B22,900) is available from True Move (try 3/F, Siam Paragon, Rama 1 Rd., 02-610-8880. www.blackberrybytrue.com), but only if you sign up for a 6-month contract—and it won’t work with non-True SIM cards.