BlackBerry Storm 9500
BLACKBERRY STROM 9500 REVIEW
The
latest BlackBerry is a slim but weighty touch-screen phone. It differs from
other touch-screen handsets in that the entire screen is a big button - you can
select items using touch alone, but they are activated only by clicking the
screen. This is hard to get used to at first, and the fact that the screen
wobbles from side to side when you slide your thumb across it is disconcerting.
With no seal around the screen's edge, we're concerned that even a splash of
liquid could have serious consequences. It is the touchscreen which will be the
key to the 9500 Storm’s success or failure. The 9500 Storm is, as is the modern
trend, is almost all front screen. The screen measures 3.25-inches across
diagonal corners and delivers a 480x360 pixel resolution. It is sharp, bright
and clear. Underneath the display are Call and End keys and the familiar
BlackBerry menu and escape keys. Above it, built into the top bevel of the
casing are touch sensitive mute and lock keys. The screen responds to finger
touches and you can sweep and swipe around in various applications. But in most
cases to actually select something you need to press. When you do this the
entire screen is pressed in. The feel under our fingers was unusual but not
unpleasant. It was very responsive once we got the hang of it. We certainly
always knew when we had pressed something. But it is slow in comparison to
other systems. The speed isn’t any kind of an issue when you are making a
single menu selection, but if you want to do a lot of stabs in quick
succession, by which we basically mean if you want to type, it is a pain. There
is an accelerometer and when you twist the 9500 Storm into wide format in your
hand you get a full Qwerty keyboard for writing emails, SMS and suchlike. In
tall format you get a SureType-style keyboard. The trouble is, every keypress
on either keyboard type you have to wait for the screen to go down and come up
again. Speedsters are going to get increasingly impatient. There's a gap
between the screen edge and the casing. In fact we could jiggle the screen
around a bit if we pushed a fingernail into the gap. We aren’t sure it will
take the knocks, though presumably RIM has carried out quality testing on that
point. This is a 3G device which is just as it should be. But there is no Wi-Fi
which is a crying shame. We just don’t get that. Did Vodafone veto the idea of
including Wi-Fi? If they did they may well have turned a fair few people off
the 9500 Storm completely. GPS is built in and BlackBerry Maps, Google Maps and
Vodafone’s Find&Go are all pre installed. And on the topic of software
there is a lot for the funsters here; Facebook, Flickr and YouTube for example.
RIM has done a great job bringing its user interface up to date. The styling we
first saw in the Bold is back and this means big application icons and a clear,
funky design. On the main screen there are two rows of four icons, on the menu
screen this grows to four rows of four, and you can sweep with a finger to see
more icons. Tap one to open an application folder of apps. The 3.2-megapixel
camera shoots video as well as stills. You can assign one of the two
side-mounted ‘convenience keys’ to launching it if you like, though to actually
take photos you press an on screen icon. We found the camera was a little slow
to shoot after we’d pressed. The GPS can also be used to geotag your photos.
There is no front camera for video calling, although that's no drag. Music fans
will be pleasantly surprised with a 3.5mm headset jack which means they can use
their own preferred headphones, but won’t be so happy about the fact that it is
on the right edge rather than the top. This simply makes for awkward pocket
ergonomics. The 1GB of built in memory and a microSD card slot for adding more
are also welcome. The BlackBerry 9500 Storm looks great both in terms of
hardware design and user interface. It has plenty of software on board and
it’ll collect corporate and POP email with the usual RIM ease. The absence of
Wi-Fi is a real disappointment, though, and we reckon that you should try the
device out before buying just to make sure you can live with the depressing
screen.
SPECIFICATION & FEATURES
BLACKBERRY STROM 9500 PRICE
Price in USA $183
Price in UK £85
Price in EURO €138
Price in PAK Rs.12,000
Price in INDIA Rs.9,500
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