BlackBerry Storm2: Conclusion

CONCLUSION

The BlackBerry Storm has come a long way in its second-generation form, though ultimately it might be too little too late.

There are other touchscreen devices that make compelling cases, such as the Palm Pre, iPhone 3GS, HTC offerings, and the upcoming Droid. Often these have development focused on utilizing all of the features the physical device has to offer. Likewise, there are other messaging phones that offer better more reliable text input -- the Tour and pretty much any other full QWERTY phone. The Storm2 sits in an odd place -- it has some of the best of the touchscreen world, some of the best of the BlackBerry world, but ultimately comes up short, failing to deliver on either.

The original Storm seemed like a logical choice for those stuck on Verizon who wanted something to take on the iPhone. Just a year later, however, it's not apparent that it's the obvious choice.

Verizon and RIM needed to really shake things up with the Storm2. Sadly, fixing the shortcomings of the first generation while failing to deliver any other true value-add isn't going to be enough for most users.

Pros:

• Sharp, large screen
• Sleek form factor
• 3.2 megapixel camera with auto-focus, flash, video

Cons:

• Performance still lacks in some places
• Difficult to type quickly and accurately
• Poorer sound quality at loudest speakerphone levels