Ewano

08 February 2011

This phone is atrocious. I had it for 6 months, in which i had the screen replaced twice, and in the end i was so exasperated with it i gave it away and swapped my contract sim card into a cheaper Nokia model. I will break down why i feel the storm is is terrible. 1st. Screen. I know this is a major selling point for the storm, but the click-able screen seems needless and slow. Whilst trying to find a selling point to differentiate itself from the i-phone by building a responsive, real time click-able screen, RIM have shot themselves in the foot. The click is too slow to respond, and previous blackberry users will be used to the fast qwerty keyboard responsiveness of previous models, (not to mention those migrating from an i-phone) and on the storm you will be forever deleting unwanted characters and sending a lot of un-intelligible messages. Even on pictures, the options are terrible and with the lack of response from the screen gives you a horrible user experience. 2. Battery. We are all aware of the marketing minefield that smart phone providers lead us over when discussing battery life vs high usage. However this isn't a problem with the storm, as its battery is so terrible that high usage is nearly impossible. You cannot leave the house without your charger, as it will need topped up after a 20 minute phone call. And don't think its a safe option to leave it alone either, as even in sleep mode it churns through battery life like a fat kid at the snack stand. The phone also gets hot during use, which although not dangerous, is rather unsettling! 3. Ease of use and features. I feel in an attempt to bring the brand into the new atmosphere of multi purpose smart phones, RIM have tried too hard and rushed this model out. The features are not easy to navigate, which in turn isnt helped at all by the slow responsiveness of the screen. The feedback from the click makes the phone feel flimsy and vulnerable, and heaven forbid that your ear gets warm from the battery and you sweat, as the phone isnt well built and this will lead to moisture seeping in between the phones case and screen. Access to the application store is confusing, and the phone is horrible to navigate and use. The Storm is a botched attempt to hang onto the success built by apple and their i-phone. Unresponsive, low battery life and a shoddy user experience lead this to be a terrible phone. I am a fan of blackberry... i have owned the pearl and bold and loved the ease of use, navigation and ability to have quick access to multiple email accounts with great ease. The same level of simplicity has been lost on the storm, in a failed attempt to take on apple. If your wanting a smart phone, or even a phone at all, avoid the blackberry storm at all costs!!