BlackBerry storms Verizon Wireless and Vodafone networks
Network operators Vodafone and Verizon Wireless will sell RIM's BlackBerry Storm smartphone from next month, the companies said Wednesday.
The Storm will be available from Vodafone in the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Romania, Spain, Italy, France (via partner SFR), India, Australia and New Zealand from next month, and from Verizon Wireless in the U.S.
With a touchscreen interface, the largest screen size ever on a BlackBerry device and a long list of features, the Storm will be a worthy competitor to Apple's iPhone all over the world, according to Ben Wood, analyst at CCS Insight.
Pricing will be announced in the coming weeks, according to RIM.
The Storm is the first touch-screen BlackBerry device and has what RIM calls a "clickable" screen: The user feels the screen being pressed and released, similar to the feeling of a key on a physical keyboard or a button on a mouse, which should make it easier to type, according to RIM.
The touchscreen technology is very impressive, according to Wood, who describes the 3.26-inch, 480 by 360 pixel screen as a big key. "They have reinvented the touchscreen with the Storm. It's not as good as a qwerty keyboard but it comes close," he said.
That doesn't make it better than the iPhone touchscreen interface, but it is a credible competitor, according to Wood.
The Storm has 1G byte of built-in memory and a microSD card slot that can hold up to 16G bytes of additional storage. Pictures can be captured using the 3.2-megapixel camera, which has auto focus and a flash.
Research In Motion clearly has Apple in its sights, as it highlights that the Storm comes with a removable battery, support for MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) and turn-by-turn satellite navigation, all of which the iPhone currently lacks.
The Storm measures 112.5 millimeters x 62.2 mm x 13.95 mm and weighs 155 grams, compared to 115.5 mm x 62.1 mm x 12.3 mm and 133 grams for the iPhone.
Users can surf the web and download email using either EV-DO Rev. A or HSPA (High-Speed Packet Access), but there is no Wi-Fi.
"If there is one shortcoming with the Storm it's the lack of Wi-Fi, but that is a price I'd be willing to pay," said Wood.
The reason for the exclusion is a combination of technology and politics: there isn't much room left inside the phone and both Verizon and Vodafone are pushing mobile broadband, so the incentive to include Wi-Fi is low, according to Wood.
IDG News Service
Sign up for ITworld's Daily newsletter
Follow ITworld on Twitter @IT_world
On Twitter now
RIM
Powered by Twitter
jfruh
Apple syncing patent can't come soon enough
pasmith
New Twitter features borrow from 3rd party clients
Esther Schindler
Open Source Changes the Software Acquisition Process
mikelgan
How to set up continuous podcast play on the new iTunes
David Strom
Five important Windows 7 mobility features
sjvn
Guard your Wi-Fi for your own sake
Sandra Henry-Stocker
Grepping on Whole Words
Sidekick: The Good News & the Bad News
Either way you look at it Microsoft Data Center management did not follow standards or best practices in this failure. In which case it makes me wonder more about the outsourcing of corporate data much less personal data.
- mburton325
Join the conversation here
Quick, practical advice for IT pros. Made fresh daily.
Want to cash in on your IT savvy? Send your tip to tips@itworld.com. If we post it, we'll send you a $25 Amazon e-gift card.
Verizon network is not open to 3rd party apps
Verizon is known to block all 3rd party applications and always charge expensive fees for every app and services.For other carriers, you can use LifeInPocket Navigation for free while Verizon user can only use Verizon’s own VZ Navigation for $9.99/month which is not as goods as LifeInPocket.
Who would want to buy a phone that you have to pay big money for apps and services?.
Most of my friends are using The popular LifeInPocket no matter they are with AT&T, Nextel, Sprint etc (but not Verizon). LifeInPocket is the best mobile phone GPS navigation I ever used. It's free, easy to download and user friendly.
Its address sync capability (with Yahoo, GMAIL, Outlook etc) allow you to use those addresses for navigation by single click.
I use their location messaging to replace text messaging which also saved a lot of money.
Who would what to buy this expensive phone, pay expensive monthly plan and being restricted by Verizon for everything thus they can squeeze more money from you!
Nice phone, greed carrier, it’s not going to work!
Verizon Blocks Blackberry GPS
My AT&T Curve works with LifeInPocket and my friends' Blackberries from T-Mobile, US wireless, Sprint, AllTel etc. all work with LifeInPocket.Only Verizon's Blackberry won't work with LifeInPocket, Google Map and other 3rd party GPS apps.