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BlackBerry Bold and Storm: Head to head
I've been having a try out with the BlackBerry Storm, Research in Motion's (RIM's) first touch-screen device. My colleague Daniel Robinson has carried out a full review or you can get a look at the Storm in action by watching our video review.
I was keen to get my hands on the device for two reasons. Firstly, I've long coveted an Apple iPhone, mainly for its lovely looks, and screen size and quality and so was interested to have a try out on RIM's touch-screen version; and also because I've just switched over from using my old 8700 BlackBerry and a separate Nokia mobile handset to having just one device, the BlackBerry Bold and so wanted to see how the Storm would compare.
Previously in my old unconverged world of separate mobile/emailer I never used the BlackBerry for anything but checking my email and replying to the odd one here and there; I made the occasional phone call and sent the odd text but much preferred my mobile for those things. 
So moving to the Bold was quite an experience and I'd advise anyone considering a switch away from two devices to a combined phone/emailer to thoroughly try out the keyboards of any potential handsets before making a purchase.
I found the BlackBerry SMS and phone capabilities difficult to get used to, mainly due to what seem like minor changes from a normal mobile handset but they caused a lot of frustration for me.
For example, the Bold and Storm save all messages in one folder, while I'm used to separate folders for received/sent/draft texts; while trying to change the phone settings, including selecting a ring tone and choosing between the vibrate/ring/vibrate+ring options, proved a real chore, requiring navigating through several different pages and dozens of options before finding the correct Profiles/Advanced/Normal/Phone sequence and arriving at the right place. I also found the requirement of repeating the same choice of Volume/Number of Vibrations and so on for the phone when it is out of holster or in holster an unnecessary duplication of effort; the same process was then required for setting up my preferred SMS profile.
Having said all that, I still rate the BlackBerry as an emailer device, and RIM has made huge improvements since I first began using one a few years ago, especially in terms of the speed of mobile browsing and the ability to view spreadsheets and other business documents.
From my fairly brief look at the Storm, I couldn't spot many different features from the Bold apart from the obvious touch-screen upgrade. Both devices have the same icons, browser, and phone capabilities.
One key upgrade with the Storm was the inclusion of a Chat icon in the menu, offering direct links to download pages for popular instant messaging tools. However, I didn't have much joy with this feature. I managed to download Google Chat, but was unable to log in to my account to try it out.
The music and video players are the same on both devices; the video quality was particularly impressive on both, with high quality picture and sound.
One strange difference was in the charger. I didn't take the charger for the borrowed Storm home with me overnight and when the battery died that evening I automatically went to plug in my Bold charger, only to find they have different connectors. It would be great to see RIM, and in fact all mobile handset makers, standardise on chargers across their different models and it would certainly earn them some green brownie points.
So now onto the Storm's headline-grabber - the touch-screen capability. The general consensus around the vnunet.com office was underwhelming - most people found the virtual keys very difficult to get used to, even with the addition of a "click" when pressing down on the screen - and this was my initial reaction too.
However, having used the Storm as my main emailer/phone for a few days I got used to the way the keyboard worked - I found it helped to aim to put my finger slightly to the left of keys rather than direct centre of them. I also really liked the ability to go back to using a SureType keypad and predictive text, especially for sending SMS messages, something I really miss with the Bold.
A final point: the way the screen switches view to reflect whether you're holding the phone sideways or upright is a neat feature, but it is slow in switching between the views. In the end I found myself favouring a sideways full keyboard view for emailing; and upright SureType for texting.
Overall my first touch-screen BlackBerry experience was good enough to make me consider a full-time move to a similar device in the future - but preferably one with a more satisfying mobile phone experience.
Is there away I can upgrade my os form my black berry bold
Posted by :pierre | April 14, 2009 8:29 PM
I agree. You will go through some frustrations with this phone, but if you make yourself use it for a month, you will get accustomed to it, and the possiblity of future upgrades to the slowness of certain program switching, etc, makes it a promising fun phone.
Posted by :delacombo | January 29, 2009 6:28 PM
should i get a bold or a storm? help!
Posted by :han | December 13, 2008 12:05 PM
Let me say that I love RIM and Blackberry, but I do have an issue. I purchased the Storm when it was released about three weeks ago, but I'm now on my fourth device. Having thought to myself many times over these past few weeks about how RIM makes a good product, and how I don't understand why I'm having such bad luck, I began to scrutinize why I was having issues with three different devices. When I purchased my phone, I immediately downloaded my saved backup from my previous Blackberry, the 8830. Now that I look back, I believe it was then that all my issues began. Without going in to all the details of the myriad issues I was having on three different handsets, let me just say to all previous users of Blackberrys who are upgrading to the Storm...DO NOT UPLOAD A BACKUP FROM A PREVIOUS DEVICE, IT WILL CORRUPT YOUR PHONE!!!
Posted by :Christopher | December 10, 2008 7:47 PM
Folks,
Help needed guys. How do I navigate to the point where the additional updates like the OS can be downloaded from?
Posted by :Vin | December 10, 2008 2:36 PM
I now have both the iphone (using for over 15 months now) and the blackberry storm. Between the 2 phones I have every feature that I could want except flash which is not yet on either phone. Both have some advantages over the other and neither is perfect, but don't let the poor reviews of the storm sway you. It's a solid device with much potential.
Posted by :Jack | December 10, 2008 3:07 AM
Ive got a Bold, but im tempted to swith to the Storm. Anyone make a reccomdentation to me please? Only 4 days to choose.
Posted by :James | December 9, 2008 8:16 PM
this blackberry phone blows the iphone away, I had the iphone and it got old and useless, then switched to the curve and now the STORM. this i the best phone that i have used thus far.
Posted by :Coach Felder | December 9, 2008 7:40 PM
I purchased my Blackberry Storm the same day it came out directly from Verizon, was guaranteed overnight shipping, and it showed up 8 days late. That sort of sucked the enthusiasm out of me.
I definately agree when using the keyboard, aiming to left helps a bit. But I seem to be locked in Mortal Combat with my Blackberry, I can't get the simpler stuff to work.
For instance, the speed dial isn't reliable. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I don't know if I'm doing something wrong that won't allow me to hit my speed dial on a consistent basis.
The screen changes are slow as well. I'm all for software that can fix that glitch.
Also, how long should it take to give my Storm a full battery charge? I didn't use it at all one day, turned off the Data feature, dimmed the backlight, and it lost a full bar.
This is my first Blackberry and I do like the email feature, but the touch screen really takes some getting used too.
Posted by :Mateo | December 9, 2008 6:17 PM
After feeling a little disappointment initially with the Storm I think it has much improved after the first s/w update. There are still issues, but hopefully these will get resolved with further releases.
You really need to spend a week or more with it to get to grips with its features and user input methods.
Posted by :Russ | December 9, 2008 4:44 PM
How do you get the downloads if you have a Mac?
Posted by :Sandra Lotstein | December 9, 2008 2:25 PM
I got the blackberry storm a while ago. 2 days after it came out. Overall the phone is amazing. A little slow at first but nothing a software update can't fix. The phone has so many cool things. New technology for touchscreens is one. I got used to it so fast. The camera is amazing! The internet is speedy and the e-mail experience is the best. If your thinking about getting it then do so. You will not be dispointed. I want the iphone but can't switch so this will do. Its almost the same thing anyway, it even has an app store. I hate to say it but this is a little better than the iphone. A couple of errors here and there but software updates will correct these. I know one day its going to be perfect.
Posted by :Saul | December 9, 2008 1:05 AM
Thanks for the review. I just ordered 2 of them. I will make sure I get all the latest updates in them before we start using them. Good review thanks.
Posted by :Bob D | December 8, 2008 11:41 PM
Yes, upgrade the OS to .75 Definitely makes the Storm a better phone to use. I'm learning some pretty neat tricks which most are not printed out in the user's manual. There are several hidden features and going to sites like crackberry will get show you what it can do. I'm updating my MicroSD card to 16 GB!!! It's nice knowing I don't have to delete what I've saved.
Posted by :yeomanrycavalry | December 8, 2008 7:30 PM
Update to the new software version, what a difference, and they are working on more.
Call Verizon if you have any problems, they will walk you through it.
Posted by :Norm | December 8, 2008 5:47 PM
There's a global move away from the "mini USB" to the "micro USB" connector like many cameras use. It has to happen at some point in a handset maker's lineup of products. At least it's an open standard instead of a proprietary connector. USB chargers are available everywhere, as are universal USB kits.
Posted by :Ken | December 8, 2008 5:07 PM
you should download the new updates for the storm that were just released. they make it MUCH faster and more responsive while fixing a of of the bugs. its a much better phone now
Posted by :rob | December 8, 2008 4:12 PM