BlackBerry Storm2 9520 Review

BlackBerry Storm2 9520 is the second generation BlackBerry with a touch-sensitive screen, successor of the highly-anticipated Storm. The keys on the front are now touch-sensitive as well, and the screen no longer uses the SurePress technology, which made the display of the first Storm uncomfortable to use. The Storm2 also adds Wi-Fi, but the other features are similar and include a 3.2-megapixel camera, GPS and a full HTML browser.

The Storm2 fits in the high end segment of the market, there are some phones with better specifications, like the Motorola Droid, and there are other -still high end- devices below the Storm2 like the Nokia 5800 Navigation Ed or the myTouch3G. So why is that the Storm2, being a high end and interesting device, has not received much attention? The Blackberry Storm2 wasn’t hyped like the Moto Droid, for example, because Verizon and RIM wanted to replace the original Storm without making too much noise. Instead of captivating a whole new market for it, they aimed at frustrated owners from the previous model. So now that we see that RIM and Verizon were just launching a replacement for the Storm that fixed issues with the original model, we can see why the Storm2 wasn’t hyped as much as the original Storm.
Design:

The Blackberry Storm2 is a beautiful phone. I can say that RIM really knows how to make their phones sturdy, solid and well built. I have tried many other devices, like the Nokia N97, a premium high-end phone, and compared to the Storm2, it just feels like a plastic toy. The HTC Touch Pro2 also feels cheap. Other devices like the Nokia 5800, HTC Hero, Samsung Omnia, MyTouch3G and G1 just can’t stand next to a Storm2 in terms built quality. Perhaps the only phone that is comparable to the Blackberry Storm2, is the Nokia E72.

However, the Storm2 is not perfect. The only serious problem that I find on the design of the Storm is the camera cover. After just two weeks with the device, the Flash was covered with dust! The interesting part is that the camera remained intact. Other than that, the battery cover of the Storm2 might be a little bit uncomfortable to open. This proves to be irrelevant because no one removes the battery cover from the device every day, and the battery cover stays firm when holding the device.

The Storm2 doesn’t have major problems with its design, every part is made out of excellent quality materials; the Blackberry Storm2 feels great in hand: thin, sexy, well built and excellently designed.

Software:

The software running in the original Storm was to blame for the failure of the device: it crashed, was unstable and everything but reliable. Fortunately, RIM fixed the problems that the OS from the original Storm had in the Storm2. The Storm2 runs a brand new version of BB OS. This new version running on the Storm2 is the major improvement over the Blackberry Storm. It is fast, stable and reliable. It is not perfect as most Operative Systems but does a great job. I had to do a couple of battery pull outs in the two months I have used the device. It often happened after installing new applications, the device went crazy and became unresponsive; removing the battery solved the problem and I was able to keep using the Storm2 normally. The new OS running on the Storm2 is a mature version of touch BB OS: it is intuitive, fast and responsive.

The most useful feature I find on the BB OS is how everything is connected and the apps work together with the phone as a whole. For example, the PayPal app works together with the Contacts app to send money, the Facebook client works together with the Calendar app and Contacts app, the Maps app also works with the calendar: everything is connected. For example, when you have new replies on Twitter, an icon appears on the homescreen, same with Facebook updates and other apps. This is very valuable because you are informed immediately of important events. On other OS you have to check the app to check if anything important happened.

The Storm2 has other cool features. The kinetic scrolling (means that scrolling continues when you lift your finger) is fast and cool to use. The ability to select multiple elements by using two fingers is also very convenient, for example, deleting multiple emails is as easy as selecting at the same time the first and last email you want to select. And, the multitouch technology on the web browser to: select, copy and paste text is really useful.

The Storm2 also offers the AppWorld where a significant amount of paid and free apps are available for download. I find the AppWorld very useful, I have downloaded a lot of fun games and useful applications without using a computer, very cool and convenient.

Connectivity:

The Blackberry Storm is a device that has an amazing capability to maintain the user constantly connected to the internet, together with plenty of social networks, email, SMS and calls of course. The Storm2 also exceeds in another factor of connectivity that is sometimes forgotten: battery life. Afterall, what is a phone useful for without battery ? The Storm2 can survive a full day of heavy duty, about 2 days of regular use and +3 days if the use is minimal. The battery really impressed me since it has the same capacity than the battery of the original Storm, but it lasts much longer. The Storm2 packs all the latest connectivity features, fast 3G EV-DO Rev.A, and WI-FI, the long awaited WI-FI.

Now, lets go back to that ”amazing capability to maintain the user constantly connected.” The Storm2 really does this well. It keeps the user updated in real time to social networks, for example, Facebook and Twitter updates are reflected immediately in the homescreen, a thing that most OS’s are not capable of. The Storm2 is really a connectivity monster, seeing that red notification light is a joy, it lets you know what is happening, right now.

Multimedia:

The Storm2, although a device aimed at business, is a media powerhouse as well. It has a standard audio jack, a very important feature and maybe essential to call a device ”media capable.” It has 16GB of memory, more than enough to store movies, music and pictures. And has a really fast processor that makes everything media related lightning fast. The Storm2 has all the media features neatly arranged under the ”Media” folder where the user can access music, pics, videos, ringtones etc… The device also has a really powerful speaker, a welcome feature in any phone.

Screen:

The touchscreen of the Storm2 is one of its kind. It actually clicks every time you touch it. The way it works is a bit hard to understand at first but then you get the concept pretty easily: tap to highlight, click to confirm. The screen is the best part of the Blackberry Storm2, it is a unique experience to use this device with the amazing clickable touchscreen. The way it works is brilliant too. When the phone is locked, the screen doesn’t click, when the device is unlocked, the screen is alive again. Even better, when you touch the screen with for example, a pen, the screen doesn’t click even if unlocked, it just responds to the finger. The technology used in the screen has improved a lot since the Storm, it is now really easy to press even on the farthest point from the center. You can even click twice at the same time. I will give the screen a 9/10 because sometimes the four buttons on the bottom don’t respond at the first attempt to click them.

Camera:

The Blackberry Storm2 is not an imaging device, but 3.2 Megapixel, Auto-Focus and Flash do a great job. The Storm2 takes good shots in the day, almost no defect at all. In the dark, it struggles a bit more to take a clear shot but does generally a good job. The Storm2 is an excellent imaging device to be a phone not oriented towards imaging.

Conclusion:

The Blackberry Storm2 is an excellent device. In my opinion, it is probably the most balanced smartphone I have ever used. It has all the advanced features from a smartphone, in one sexy body. The Storm2 can complete the tasks of an advanced user, as well as a beginner: that, makes it the most balanced smartphone in the market. Easy to use, yet powerful.