SmartPhones

The company that has taken the smartphone market by storm, that being RIM (Research in Motion) with its deft and dexterous line of BlackBerry handsets is now about to take the touchscreen smartphone market by storm as well, with the official announcement of the upcoming launch of its latest device: the BlackBerry Storm.

To be offered to US customers exclusively on the Verizon Wireless EV-DO Rev. A network (and on Vodafone elsewhere), the BlackBerry Storm purports to be the first “clickable” touch screen smartphone, with menu items that appear as actual buttons, for a navigation style intended to be more familiar to everyday consumer electronics users more comfortable with a standard keyboard-style look and feel.

What’s more, this technology claims to provide the cutting edge of tactile feedback, not only giving users a clear indication of when an on-screen “button” has been successfully pressed, but which button was pressed as well (a common-sense service surprisingly lacking in touchscreen smartphones, until now).

But while innovative and convenient for many, this single-touch style of interactivity isn’t the only way to control the BlackBerry Storm’s touchscreen, as RIM has also incorporated multi-touch capabilities (just like the iPhone’s) and “gestures”. The touchscreen on the BlackBerry Storm is 3.25”, boasting 480 x 360 pixel resolution with 184 ppi (pixels per inch).

Also featured in the Storm’s touchscreen technology is a built-in accelerometer, which smoothly switches between landscape and portrait mode when the device is rotated.

As for keyboards, the BlackBerry Storm has 2, though both of them on the touchscreen (eschewing any standard physical keyboard in favor of a larger screen and a lighter weight device):
•    a full QWERTY keyboard – when the device is in landscape mode
•    BlackBerry’s trademarked SureType keyboard - (familiar to anyone familiar with other Blackberry devices, like the Curve or the Pearl) when the device is in portrait mode

In addition to all these touch screen controls, the Storm also sports an efficient and utilitarian selection of just 4 buttons at the bottom of the smartphone’s face:

•    Power
•    Call
•    Menu
•    Back

As with previous BlackBerry models, the Storm includes an ambient light sensor which automatically adjust the backlight on the device for optimal viewing.

The 1400 mAhr battery in the BlackBerry Storm is removable and it’s rechargeable delivers almost 6 hours of 3G network talk time and 15 days of standby.

Its built-in digital camera is 3.2 megapixels and includes auto-focus, zoom, and video recording and playback abilities. The BB Storm also features a built-in GPS with support for geotagging. It has a standard 3.5 mm stereo headset jack, a built-in media player that includes 11 preset filters, dedicated volume controls, and Bluetooth (A2DP/AVRCP) stereo audio profile compatibility. The BlackBerry Storm also has 1 GB of internal memory expandable via a MicroSD/SDHD memory card slot.

There is currently no indication of how much the BlackBerry Storm will sell for, undoubtedly a major determinant of its success.