There is an 8520 (GSM) and an 8530 (CDMA). Hence the 8500 forum.
When the 8300s came out, they were called the Curve. For whatever reason, RIM started putting a 2 after some names. Curve 2 (8520) is not a Curve (8300) and Bold "2" (9700) is not a Bold (9000). The department of name obfuscation has grown.