New offering for the faithful
Nothing like a bit of religious fervor, even if the religion centers around software instead of salvation.
That's why we can expect an exciting day tomorrow, as Research In Motion Ltd. unveils its latest smartphone, the BlackBerry Storm. Will people line up outside stores, as they did for Apple Inc.'s beloved iPhone? It could happen. BlackBerry devotees are just as ardent as iPhone lovers, even if they're less flamboyant about it. Fans call their phones "CrackBerries" for a reason. One addict is Barack Obama, but he'll soon go cold turkey; presidents aren't allowed to send BlackBerry messages, for reasons of national security.
That's one BlackBerry user down, but there are 19 million more to go, according to RIM's latest data. By contrast, Apple's sold only 13 million iPhones. But it sold nearly 7 million of those in the third quarter, giving it higher quarterly sales than BlackBerry for the first time.
One reason is the iPhone's renowned touchscreen, an attractive and efficient user interface that lets anybody use a smartphone without feeling stupid. Even formerly faithful BlackBerry buffs are being tempted to enter Apple's orbit. Confronted by this heresy, RIM tomorrow launches the counter-reformation. The Storm will be offered by Verizon Wireless, for $199 with a two-year contract - the same price AT&T charges for the iPhone.
But the Storm is no would-be "iPhone killer." It's a bid to retain the loyalty of BlackBerry's customers. And the Storm doesn't merely ape the iPhone. Its innovative "clickscreen" technology tries to combine the elegant look of a touchscreen with the feel of the mechanical keyboards on other BlackBerries.
Typing on the iPhone is like tapping on a sheet of marble. There's none of the tactile feed back of a traditional keyboard. The Storm solves this by seating its bright, clear screen on flexible mountings. Press it, and your finger feels a downward motion, followed by a satisfying click. On the Storm, typing feels like typing, which is exactly what BlackBerry fans will desire.
They will also like being able to use either a standard QWERTY keyboard, or the SureType design found on many BlackBerry phones. Like the iPhone, the Storm has an accelerometer chip that adjusts the display as you rotate the phone. Hold the Storm sideways, and the keyboard spans the screen. Tip it upright, and the narrower SureType keyboard appears. Take your pick; I'm a QWERTY man myself.
But typing on the BlackBerry has its challenges. It's actually a two-stage process. First move your finger over the key, which glows a gentle blue. Then press it. Unlike other touchscreen gadgets, it's not enough to light up a button with a finger. You must remember to push it. It takes getting used to. But I suspect that BlackBerry buffs will catch on fast.
Underneath the clickscreen, the Storm offers plenty of appealing features, including some you won't find on an iPhone. For instance, the camera shoots video and still photos. Also, the back pops open so you can replace the battery when it dies. The Storm comes with eight gigabytes of flash memory, and unlike the iPhone, you can upgrade to 16 gigs by plugging in a new chip.
But the Storm can't match the iPhone's stylish simplicity. Despite the touchscreen, the BlackBerry still has plenty of push-buttons. Yet none is as simply helpful as the big button on front of the iPhone that takes you back to the home screen, no matter what program you're using. With the Storm, finding a way home often requires a tiresome series of clicks and finger swipes.
The on-screen menu serves up lots of needless duplication. There's a button for playing music, but another button marked "Media," which can also be used to play music. There's a button for composing instant messages, but you can also do so using the e-mail button. It made me lonely for the iPhone, where every basic function is represented by a single, self-explanatory icon.
And where's Wi-Fi wireless networking? It's a standard feature on the iPhone, and on another new BlackBerry model, the Bold. Wi-Fi usually delivers data much faster than the cellphone companies' 3G networks. That's why many iPhone users switch to Wi-Fi when Web surfing at home or the office. No such luck for Storm users.
To be sure, the Storm is good enough to satisfy BlackBerry's true believers, but its scatterbrained user interface makes it a poor tool for winning new converts. As holy wars go, this one's a mismatch.
Hiawatha Bray can be reached at bray@globe.com. 