BlackBerry Torch: RIMs Answer to Touch Screen Smartphones

2010 has provided consumers with a variety of excellent smartphones, such as the HTC EVO 4G, iPhone 4, Samsung Galaxy S, DROID X, DROID INCREDIBLE and many more. The popular BlackBerry devices have long been admired for businesspeople and the casual user. However, the small screen, no touch screen options besides the Storm and Storm2 and lack of competitive features left us wondering if RIM was here to stay in the smartphone niche. In this article, we will look at the upgraded features of the Torch, what new features are added to this phone over past models and if this phone provides any competition to Apple and Android.

What's new on the Torch over the Storm2?

The Torch boasts the all-new BlackBerry 6 OS, which as RIM describes, provides users with an integrated visual, fluid interface. The new OS appears more user friendly than the current BlackBerry 5 OS, by providing users fast access using the touch screen or track pad to surf the web, make a call, send a text, or access your custom designed menu. The new OS appears as easy to use as the Apple and Android competition, but of course, time will tell if the device works as described, or is buggy as the original Storm was. I was impressed by the new layout and option to customize your favorites menu, as well as the ease of use with connecting to various contacts.

Is the internet better?

Having been a long-time BlackBerry user (current model: Bold 9700), I was less than impressed by the usefulness of the internet browser. It is often slow, laggy and is clunky to use. However, RIM redesigned the internet browser on the Torch to flow better, utilizing the touch screen controls, much like the iPhone and Android OS devices, as well providing tabs for switching between webpage's.

QWERTY Keyboard

The integrated slide out physical QWERTY keyboard is an amazing feature that the iPhone and most touch screen phones lack. The keyboard is reminiscent of the Bold 9700 and provides users with accurate typing, without resorting to the physical keyboard. The slide out feature is also an attractive design feature because it can close into the phone when not in use.

Are there any upgraded features over previous BlackBerry devices?

The Torch comes fully equipped with integrated GPS, 3G, Wi-Fi, universal search, BBM, 5MP digital camera with video capture and the new social feeds feature. The features are universal to many of the newer BlackBerry devices, except for the higher resolution camera, social feeds and enhanced OS. The BlackBerry 6 operating system appears as a huge leap forward for RIM as it similar to that of the competition, rather than the clunky OS 5.

Concerns?

In my experience, no BlackBerry device has been free of flaws. Most recently, my 8900 repeatedly had software glitches that would cause functions to not work properly, and on the new Bold 9700, the software crashes the phone periodically, thus requiring a full reboot. For example, on the 8900, the camera would often not allow me to zoom-in, and required a full reboot before the feature would work again. Similarly, the BlackBerry OS 5 has been routinely buggy on my 9700, causing calls to not go through, even with full bars in the 3G network. We are hoping the new Torch does not have similar problems, but time will tell. The other major concern is not with the phone, but rather the network provider, AT&T. AT&T no longer provides an unlimited everything data package, which may deter potential customers that use the internet heavily on their phones.

Overall

Overall, the new Torch boasts cool new features, as well as some old ones, and provides an ample amount of built in memory (8GB expandable to 32GB). The design is modern and the new internet browser is a huge leap forward for RIM, but software glitches with previous models will deter some new buyers.

Sources: http://na.blackberry.com/eng/devices/blackberrytorch/