There’s no denying that if you want to see your email when you’re on the move, you can’t beat BlackBerry with its efficient, fast, easy-to-use system. And if you’re suffering a little Apple iPhone envy, BlackBerry has its own touchscreen handset, the Storm, released a year ago.
Although popular with end users, it had a mixed critical reception. Nobody liked the lack of wi-fi, requiring you to find a decent 3G phone signal before you could surf the net at speed.
Its unique touchscreen was a Marmite affair: the screen was sprung so you’d rest your finger on a menu item to highlight it but push through to make the screen click in order to activate it. I loved this – it was a reassuring confirmation that you were doing what you were trying to and worked better than the vibrating response offered with some other smartphones. And many felt that texting was a dog and the motion sensor was erratic – turn the phone sideways and the screen took an age to reformat, for instance.
So how does the Storm2 fare? Well, it’s a whacking great improvement in every single way. The springy screen is more accurate, though you’ll still like it or loathe it. The new software makes the accelerometer responsive and effective and texting is a little better – though the fact that when you touch a key with your thumb renders it invisible still hasn’t been addressed. Other smart phones display the key above your finger, so you know you’ve got the right one. Best of all, though, the BlackBerry boffins have found space for a wi-fi chip.
The new model is sleeker and sexier than the first, and in the last six months the BlackBerry AppWorld application store has built up its catalog. Not huge, but with lots of business-oriented add-ons, though many are pricey.
Original Storm users are promised a software update which will, it’s claimed address many of the usability issues. But, of course, it can’t add wi-fi. Still, it may tide you over until it’s time to upgrade.
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