If Research in Motion had rolled out the Blackberry Torch a year ago when RIM first began serious work on the device, it would have been a showstopper.
As it was when Mike Lazaridis, RIM’s co-chief executive, unveiled the device at a New York event on Tuesday, there were few if any surprises though some eyebrows were raised by the news that AT&T which already boasts the iPhone in its smarphone portfolio, would be the exclusive network partner in the US. (AT&T’s Ralph de la Vega was on stage at the launch event to say nice things about RIM and the new device.)
What no one was talking about were AT&T’s network capacity issues, though hopefully these are now over, or RIM’s recent run-in with the authorities in the UAE who want access to BlackBerry users’ encrypted email and are threatening to ban the devices if they do not get it.
Perhaps the best news of all for BlackBerry enthusiasts is that it also marks the debut of RIM’s new operating system, BlackBery 6 and a WebKit-based browser that finally puts BlackBerry on an equal footing with the browsers built into the iPhone’s OS4 and the latest version of Google’s Android.
The new browser is indeed a pleasure to use compared with the clunky, slow one included with current BlackBerrys, as is the new home screen interface which includes quick access to recent messages and a universal search icon that searches across all the applications on the device as well as the web.
Make no mistake, the BlackBerry Torch (aka Blackberry 9800) ticks all the right boxes in terms of advanced smartphones and matches rivals like the iPhone 4, Motorola Droid X and Samsung’s Galaxy family of handsets feature-by-feature.
But it does not really take the state of the art any further although there are a number of ‘firsts’ for BlackBerry including the first true capacitive touch screen built into a BlackBerry device. (The BlackBerry Storm had a hybrid haptic touchscreen.)
The Torch’s relatively modest-sized 3.2-inch touch screen seemed to work well enough in my brief hands-on test. It slides upwards rather like the Palm Pre to reveal the familiar BlackBerry thumb-operated mini Qwerty keyboard though the usually sculptured keys have been somewhat flattened to accommodate the siding mechanism.
Other now standard smartphone hardware features include an integrated 5 megapixel camera, built-in GPS and Wi-Fi capabilities and microSD memory card expansion slot. Notably missing is a front-facing camera like that found on the iPhone 4
In terms of look and feel, the Blackberry Torch is unmistakably a BlackBerry despite its slider design. While it lacks the design flair of the steel-banded iPhone 4 – it has a utilitarian appeal to it – it hopefully avoids the antenna issues associated with the new iPhone.
Overall, the Blackberry Touch is a solid handset that will answer the concerns of some users who feared RIM was slipping behind in the smartphone arms race. In particular, the new operating system provides RIM with a versatile platform that it can use to roll out its next generation of smartphones.
