The BlackBerry Storm released just over a week ago here in the US on Verizon Wireless and represents a major departure from what we’ve come to expect from a BlackBerry. Gone is the QWERTY keyboard, replaced with a super large 480x360 pixel display  and a new clickable screen or what BlackBerry likes to call SurePress. Is it enough to leave your current BlackBerry or perhaps prevent those who were considering a jump to the iPhone? Read on for our comprehensive review of the BlackBerry Storm.

What’s In The Box?

• BlackBerry Storm 9530
• Lithium Ion Battery
• 3.5mm Stereo Headset
• BlackBerry Travel Charger with International Adapters
• USB Cable
• 8GB SanDisk microSD card
• SIM Card pre-installed for international use
• Documentation Kit
• VZAccess Manager

Hardware and Design

If you happened to miss the massive ad campaign, lines at your local Verizon Wireless store or even the onslaught of onboxing videos that took over the technology blogs, then you might have mistaken the new BlackBerry Storm as well a BlackBerry. BlackBerry has become synonymous with a QWERTY keyboard smartphone that excels at email. The Storm brings RIM’s legendary email service but this is a different brand of smartphone.

The BlackBerry Storm is not as wide or tall as the Bold. The Storm weighs 5.5oz vs the Bold at 4.8oz and not surprisingly feels a bit more dense then the Bold. When compared to the iPhone, the Storm is thicker and a bit shorter.

Like previous BlackBerry smartphones, the Storm has programmable buttons on the both the left and right side of the Storm. You can easily program either buttons to launch your favorite applications. The default buttons are set to “Voice Command” and “Camera”. The top and bottom of the Storm are curved. At the top of the Storm, there are two buttons, but they are sort of hidden. There is one physical piece at the top, but the right and left are clickable. The left button allows for easy access to lock and unlocking the Storm. The right button acts as a mute key for calls or multimedia. Small icons denote the buttons and it’s very well integrated into the design of the phone.

If you have a used a BlackBerry before, then you’ll find comfort with the familiar four hard buttons for call/end, menu options and the BlackBerry button. All of which act similarly to previous smartphones from RIM.

The biggest change with the Storm is the clickable touch keyboard known as SurePress. The entire screen is clickable. Unlike the iPhone or any touch screen device for that matter, input is not done through touching the screen, but rather clicking the screen. With the Storm, you can select items on the screen, but you need to press down to initiate a task or action. If you look closely there is a gap between the screen and the phone itself. 

Operating System and User Interface

The BlackBerry Storm runs OS 4.7.065 and it is a derivative of the same OS that shipped on the BlackBerry Bold (4.6.164). The operating system is a major upgrade from the OS that shipped on the BlackBerry 8800 series and the Curve. It looks fantastic with sleek icons and functions much like the previous BlackBerry OS. While the main user interface on the Storm is the same as the Bold, the OS includes the inner workings necessary for the unique input entry of the Storm along with the accelerometer.

Having just completed my BlackBerry Bold review, I was surprised at how slow the user interface was on the Storm. You can either press the screen or the BlackBerry button to access your applications. This same action on the Bold is ultra-fast, while the Storm “transitions” to the applications. Think of it as a slideshow transition. When you are trying to quickly access an app, I found myself wishing it would reach speeds found on the Bold.

It is more difficult to access menu options on the Storm than on a standard BlackBerry. For example, if you are looking to close an application, there is no keyboard shortcut. You have to swipe twice and then press the close option. On the BlackBerry Bold, you simply press “C” until you reach the “close” option and then depress the trackball button.

Probably the most critical of any smartphone is the input method and as noted the Storm features a new clickable touch screen keyboard. The thinking here is that a typical BlackBerry user is looking for tactile response found on a QWERTY keyboard, but might lust after the large display found on an iPhone. In portrait mode, the Storm offers a choice between multi-tap and SureType. Personally, I had a tough time getting used to SureType. Multitouch was more reliable, but I would prefer typing on the Storm in landscape mode versus the other choices.

If you are considering the Storm, probably the biggest concern is the SurePress keyboard and how it compares to a traditional QWERTY keyboard. The action of pressing the screen is similar to the trackpad button on a MacBook or MacBook Pro. It’s a very distinct feeling when you press the screen. The action is very physical and does not feel natural at the onset. It’s the opposite of the iPhone where the screen is very responsive. I found my typing to be error free, but felt a bit constrained given the physical process of pressing the entire screen for each letter. After using the Storm for well over a week, I wasn’t getting much faster as opposed to the Bold, where I just get faster over time. The more physical you are with the SurePress, the better you’ll be at typing on the Storm. That being said, it does take it’s toll on your thumbs. If you use your mobile device to pen lengthy emails, then I don’t think the Storm is for you. I could feel my thumbs getting tired after a few emails on the Storm.

 

Like the iPhone, you swipe to move icons on the screen, your inbox or even menu options. With the iPhone, you can adjust the speed at which you swipe and see immediate results. With the BlackBerry Storm, there is one speed and it makes navigating feel sluggish compared to the Bold and the iPhone. The operating system might be similar, but the Storm is incredibly slow when compared to the Bold.

The BlackBerry Storm includes an accelerometer (shown in video above). If you tilt the Storm horizontally, the accelerometer should kick into gear and present the screen in a landscape format. Tilt vertically and it should switch back to portrait. In theory, this sounds great, but the Storm fails to deliver consistent performance in this area and this can lead to frustration. When it does function properly, it still underwhelms because again it’s very sluggish. Note: At the time of this review, I have been using OS 4.7.0.65, the OS that shipped with the BlackBerry Storm. BlackBerry Storm OS Update 4.7.076 reportedly fixes issues with accelerometer, but was not available at the time of this review.

With the Storm, you expect all of the icons are clickable and they are not. For example, you cannot access the Bluetooth settings from the home screen. This is once again an indication that you are using a rework of the BlackBerry Bold OS, rather than a ground up OS meant specifically for the Storm.


Email, Messaging and Internet

The Storm again proves how incredible it is to use a BlackBerry for email. I can reply to a post in our BlackBerry forums and the notification comes almost instantaneously. Icons for inboxes appear on the homescreen, allowing for quick access. Scrolling through messages is not as fast as with the Bold. There are arrow icons on the bottom of the screen. Holding the arrows that allow you to scroll quickly to the top or bottom of the inbox. I found myself wanting the Storm to adjust the speed of the scroll to that of my swipe, but instead there is only one speed.

The Storm supports HTML emails. By default, the Storm will not show you images. You have to press Options > Get Images > Continue. There are entirely too many steps for something this basic.

Not all is bad with the interface on the Storm when it comes to email. If you select an email (without a full press), there is a dedicated delete button at the bottom of my inbox, making it very easy to delete emails.

The web browser on the Storm renders pages quite well and it’s a tad quicker than the Bold. As with the Bold, the Storm’s browser is a vast improvement on previous generation browsers. I found password entry to be tricky. On the iPhone, you simply touch an entry box and the iPhone will present you with a box to enter your text. The Storm doesn’t immediately recognize that you are attempting to use a login box and will instead zoom into that particular area. During my testing the Storm would leave the default text requiring me to delete the text before my entry. The Bold was the opposite deleting the default text prior to entry. The pop-up keyboard sometimes monopolizes the display also adding to the tough time I had entering information in login boxes.

The Storm browser features a column view option. This neatly stacks the navigation regardless of whether you are in landscape or portrait mode. There are arrow keys on the right side and bottom of the browser window. At times, I wanted to use these, but they are not functional. Their use is nothing more than to show the end user where they are on the page.


Multimedia

RIM has made it increasingly easier to get your multimedia to your BlackBerry. The Storm comes with an 8GB microSD card that can be used strictly for music, pictures and movies. There is no easy way to rent movies on the Storm, but you can easily make copies of your DVD’s that will play on the Storm. The display is large and vivid, but you have to wonder why RIM didn’t deliver a true widescreen display.

The Storm includes a 3.2 megapixel camera, complete with a flash and autofocus feature. The zoom is nicely implemented allowing you to zoom in or out by swiping up or down.

Auto-focus works nicely if you have a still subject. During my testing, I had less than willing participants in my cats and I could see the delay causing you to miss many shots. The Storm offers video recording via the camera, a feature not available in the iPhone. Photos and even video clips can also be sent via MMS. Two for two on features found on the Storm and not on the iPhone 3G.

Pros:

• 3.2 megapixel camera with auto-focus, flash and 2x zoom
• Video camera
• Support for MMS
• Includes 8GB microSD allowing for plenty of music and movies
• Value at $199
• Verizon network
• BlackBerry email is rock solid
• Ready for business with the ability to read Word, Excel and Powerpoint document
• Built-in GPS
  

Cons:

• No WiFi
• Sluggish performance when compared to Bold
• Accelerometer inconsistent
• Display not a true widescreen
• Web browsing still falls short compared to webkit based G1 and iPhone browsers
• Application center nothing more than browser links to download apps

 
Conclusion

With the BlackBerry Storm, RIM has attempted to find a happy medium between a tactile friendly BlackBerry and the multimedia touchscreen iPhone. To accomplish this feat, the Storm relies heavily on their SurePress technology and a modified version of the BlackBerry OS found on the Bold. The result is a product that feels incomplete. The unique SurePress technology is suitable for short messages, but will not appeal to those who rely on their BlackBerry to compose long messages. The Storm lacks the speed and finesse of its sibling, the BlackBerry Bold. The hardware deserves an OS unto it’s self, but is forced to share the Bold OS. Outside of the camera features, the Storm doesn’t stand out when compared to either the Bold or the iPhone.  I expect the Storm will see significant improvements over the coming months and RIM has already started to push out software updates. At the time of writing, RIM is rumored to push out OS 4.0.76 to correct accelerometer issues and lag problems.

The SurePress technology has promise, but the BlackBerry Storm misses the mark with the lack of a true widescreen display, a sluggish, awkward UI and an operating system that doesn’t feel like it’s own.  Those considering the Storm should test drive the SurePress keyboard,  but not be overly concerned with lag issues or accelerometer inconsistencies as those will most likely be resolved by mid-December.