BlackBerry has unveiled its latest touchscreen phone the Storm2.
It has “SurePress” technology – it is touch screen but users have to press, rather than tap, the screen to select an option. This is done with an electronic ‘pulse’ instead of the mechanical action critics disliked about the first design.
The new model has wi-fi, more memory and a longer battery life.
BlackBerry maker Research In Motion has announced the official release date for their latest BlackBerry smartphone, the BlackBerry Storm 2 reports zdnet and posts several photos of the Storm 2.
The BlackBerry Storm 2 will see release as of the 26th of October with Vodafone UK and will be an exclusive handset for a few weeks. Vodafone will offer the BlackBerry Storm 2 as a free unit with taking a £35.00 monthly tariff on a 2 year contract.
Blackberry Storm2
BlackBerry Storm 2
Free on £35/month, two-year contract; vodafone.co.uk
Screen: 3.25in
Memory: 2GB
Camera: 3.2 megapixel
Research in Motion, the Canadian company behind the wildly popular BlackBerry range of mobile email devices, made a rare misstep with the first BlackBerry Storm. User’s just couldn’t get to grips with the SurePress touch-screen interface, which forced users to “click” the entire screen to confirm a touch input. Compared to the instantly intuitive Apple iPhone, the Storm fell at the first hurdle.
Things are looking up though with the Storm 2; it sports Wi-Fi (goodness knows why RIM left that off the first Storm…), improved battery life, and a more sophisticated, easy-to-use interface. The “popple dome” of old has made way for an electronic pulse – it still feels as though you’re clicking the screen, but actually it’s an electromagnetic pulse giving the sensation of a tiny click.
As you would expect from a BlackBerry, it offers the sort of seamless push-email experience that all mobile workers crave. Although it relies on a virtual keyboard, the electromagnetic pulsing sensation does provide a more tactile and satisfying typing experience than other touch-screen devices.
The selection of BlackBerry apps remains limited, and the device is unlikely to appeal to consumers in quite the same way as the Curve and the Pearl, but for CrackBerry addicts who want the touch-screen experience, this could do the trick.
Why should you buy it?: The BlackBerry remains the best mobile email device on the market, and the Storm 2 looks to have satisfactorily married a touch-screen interface with that all-important productivity. It might be worth waiting a while before you buy this phone, though – let other people test out the new and improved SurePress technology before you lock yourself in to a lengthy phone contract.
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If one thing is true about Research In Motion (RIM), it’s that they never give up. In the ancient days of the Blackberry Storm, RIM wanted to upset the consumer smartphone market and release a phone of their own that could seriously compete with the likes of Apple’s iPhone. After the Storm failed to impress, as did the Storm 2, and the Torch, the Blackberry brand may be rising from the ashes once again to try and take the market by storm (get it?). Pictures have surfaced, according to BerryReview, of a Blackberry Storm 3 prototype sporting a 3.7” screen, Wi-Fi, and 8GB of internal memory.
RIM has announced a substantial upgrade to the operating system powering BlackBerry devices. BlackBerry OS 6.0 is intended to bolster BlackBerry’s appeal to consumers, with web browsing in particular a focus. The new OS will be released in the third quarter of this year.
Consumers now make up a large proportion of RIM’s sales. Though the BlackBerry platform offers a very strong e-mail experience, the web browsing experience—so important in the consumer market—is much weaker. In February, the company announced that its next web browser would use WebKit, the same browser engine as is found on both Android handsets and Apple’s iPhone.
The new browser includes support for tabs, new-look favorites, and pinch-to-zoom. Indeed, multitouch support will be available through out the OS on suitable hardware.
The browser is not the only part of the OS seeing attention. The handling of multimedia is improved, with a new music player and photo viewer. Both are designed to support touch, with the photo application taking many design cues from the iPhone’s photo browser.
BlackBerry OS’s homescreen has undergone big changes in 6.0. The new homescreen is customizable to allow applications and favorites to be organized however you want.
The US International Trade Commission (ITC) has said it will investigate the makers of the iPhone and Blackberry, over technology used in their handsets.
The case was prompted by a complaint by camera firm Kodak against Apple and Research In Motion (RIM), the makers of the smartphones.
Kodak alleges the iPhone and Blackberry use technology for previewing pictures that infringe Kodak patents.
Kodak has asked the ITC to bar both firms from shipping the phones.