I went ahead and picked up a Torch to retire my aging Bold 9000. That was a great phone, but I too had some memory issues with it. I'm loving the Torch! Interface is snappy, webkit browser is at least every bit as good as Safari, better in some areas. Email is fine, love the option of qwerty or touchscreen. Battery life is good too.

I have to have a phone with a physical keyboard. If that wasn't the case, I would have considered a Galaxy S (Captivate I think???). Every touch screen keyboard I have ever used has been garbage. And before the Apple fanboys jump all over me, I will say that I've had an iPod Touch that I've been using for years. I've done all the software updates (even the paid ones. Thank you Apple for making me pay for software updates to add things the damn thing should have done from the beginning) and the keyboard is still garbage. I've used the Android touchscreen keyboard and I honestly can't say its any better. The Blackberry one is comparable to the other offerings, its nothing different or special. I find myself using it for very short messages, but if its more than a few words, I slide out the keyboard.

 

^
So you bit the bullet. Please give another update after another week or two.

 

I will. It has actually exceeded expectations in most areas thus far. My biggest complaint has been with the sounds. Since man discovered fire Blackberrys have always had the Sonar Ping and several other sound effects that are unique to them. They're all gone now. Totally different sound scheme. And there's not nearly as many included sounds as there used to be! I looked in the 9800 section on CB and someone had the 9000 sounds posted on a web site in a zip file. Had to get it to get my familiar sounds back.

 

I see.

 

I guess you were the only one that they tricked into buying one cause after one week of being released RIM has already cut the price in half due to shitty sales! I'd take get your money back but I'm sure next week they'll cut the price to $50 and then after that they'll have to give it away in order to clear stock. Even at $99 the iPhone 3GS is still a much better phone.

RIM, like many companies before you your stubbornness and failure to keep up with the changing market was your demise....

http://gizmodo.com/5614455/blackberr...fter-bad-sales

 

Went to an AT&T store yesterday. Was playing with the Torch. I mean it's OK, but the thing that might bother me much is the keyboard, how much smaller it is compared to the Bold 9000. I got so used to the wide keys on the Bold, I'm not sure if I want to get the Torch. Still undecided...This sucks..

 

How comfortable is it to type with the keyboard compared to the Bold 9000? I got so good with the Bold that I can pretty much type without looking...

 

^ i think its just the matter of getting used to it. I have to phones, a bold and some samsung shit. both have full keyboards, but i use the blackberry more, so i have a few problems typing on the samsung.

I also went and looked at Torch the day before it was released and it seemed pretty good to me. I'm not an app person and definitely need a full keyboard phone. I think I'll be fine with the Torch.

Lets hope they drop the prices even more so i can get a great deal.

 

Did ATT lower its price? I saw that Amazon did but I think they have that ridiculous contract with more chances to hit an ETF to worry about.

 

Glad ur enjoying it so far... I look forward to hearing more about this phone... I really wish Palm had included a small touch keyboard for qwik msgs... I think its just plain dumb having to slide open my phone to text "ok"

 

Pass. My first BB was the Storm when all the hype surrounded it. Good phone, but it quickly became dated behind the competition.

 

You can't compare any phone to the Storm, that was probably their biggest disaster of a phone they ever made.

 

When I went into the AT&T store yesterday, they were advertising it for $149..

 

My wife has the 8900 Curve, it doesn't have the same kind of keys as the Bold, and every time I type on it, it's so uncomfortable. Then again I used to have the Curve and upgraded to the Bold 9000 almost 2 years ago..

 

If I was buying this phone I'd pay the $149 through ATT since I get contracts every year now. I believe Amazon makes you hold it 2 years and if you're late 30 days on your bill you pay a large fee.

 

Can't be any worse than what I'm hearing about the Torch.

Either way, point is, BB makes a good phone, but if I want a smart phone, everybody else seems to have a leg up on them in general.

 

Shoofin, the keyboard is pretty comfortable. I didn't have any problems going from my 9000 to this one. Its not quite as wide, but it doesn't seem to be an issue. I too could type on my 9000 without looking, and I should be able to on this one before too long. With the slide open, its balanced well enough that you can use it one handed, but for some reason with the Otterbox Commuter case on it it seems to be top heavy.

AT&T's selection of QWERTY phones honestly isn't that great. I've used them enough to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the iPhone is not for me, never will be. The Pre seems alright, my buddy liked his until it went for a swim. If they offered a full QWERTY Android phone, I'd consider it. But they don't.

 

So I have the choice of going from my current 9000 to the 9700 or Torch for my next phone...decisions, decisions.

 

Walked by the AT&T kiosk in the mall yesterday. The employee there even said that if it was up to him, he'd go with the 9700 over the Torch.

 

i was talkiing to this guy today who is in cellphone business and he said they only sold 15000 phones in first week. There were over a million iphones sold with three weeks.

so yeah, looks like its doing really bad. he also recommended the 9700.

 

RIM needs to come out with a newer/better phone.

 

I don't get why people buy blackberries. I understand if your are issued one by your company, but why buy one? There are even more boring than iphones.

The keyboard is no excuse, learn to type on a touchscreen and you will not go back to a blackberry.

 

BIG WERD.

I'm issued one by my company and let's just say the thing is severely lacking. What's worse is we switched our corporate email system to google mail, however not all parts intergrate properly with google's system. I.E. the calendar you can not accept meeting invites on your handheld. We should have switched to android based phones at the same time, or transition them in as peoples blackberries fail.

 

The same reason why people hate touch keyboard on an iPhone even though they don't have one. Or why people hate iPhones because they're so popular. Or hate Android because it's not Apple. It's hard to get a good try out on a phone at the 3 minutes you play with it in the store also.

 

Phone return policies are usually 30 days.

 

the problem is that they need new hardware and sofware at the same time and they are badly behind on both counts.

i like blackberries better than iphones because it works really well as a phone (imagine that), text, google maps, msn chat (whereas the iphone only has an msn chat simulator) and if i want to surf the web or watch youtube i have 3 computers.

 

It's wicked easy to type on the keyboard.

For proof I present

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Supposedly that's 10 seconds faster than the previous record set by the samsung galaxy with swype!

http://www.tomsguide.com/us/Texting-...news-7859.html

 

why do people buy blackberry? because their email/messaging is better than anything else out there imo

 

 

Okay, its been a bit longer than 2 weeks, but here's my promised review.

First off, I'd like to say that I have installed a leaked OS onto the phone. It originally came with version 6.0.0.141, I upgraded to the leaked 6.0.0.225. This is a leaked OS, not officially endorsed or supported by RIM or any carrier.

That said, I'm really enjoying it. Of course its a Blackberry so email, messaging, and all other PIM functions are great. Push email is instantaneous. I can have the gmail page up and I'll get mail on the phone before it hits the web client. Many of you have probably heard about the WebKit browser included with OS6. Well, email is rendered using the WebKit engine as well. Basically that means that all your html emails render just as they would on your PC. I'm on the Newegg mailing list and on my old Bold 9000 their mailers didn't always render correctly. Spacing would be off, images wouldn't line up correctly. Well, all that's been fixed with WebKit.

For those of you already familiar with BlackBerry there's nothing really groundbreaking here. The apps look more or less the same as they always have. SMS texting is threaded like it was in OS5. Many other operating systems have been doing this for years though. BBM is the same as it was before. The email client is still the same.

Probably the biggest difference you'll see on a day to day basis is the new web browser. It finally supports tabbed browsing. I haven't tested to see how many tabs you can have open at once, but its certainly more than I'll ever need. With the WebKit engine full web sites render with ease. Its very snappy for a mobile browser too. The only thing missing is Flash. You use the same flick scrolling and pinch zooming that you do with Apple and Andriod products. Animations (non flash of course) play fine. The smileys AZ all animate the way they're stupposed to. It truly is like browsing on the PC, just on a smaller screen. The new browser also supports large file downloads. I've seen video reviews where the phone downloads files in excess of 100mb. Wouldn't want to do that over 3g, but over WiFi it probably wouldn't be too bad.

Following the trend of social networking, RIM has introduced the Social Feeds app. Basically its an RSS reader with a small twist. It also displays your Facebook news feed, MySpace, Twitter, and various IM status updates. It does have an RSS reader too.

Currently, the theme builder doesn't support OS6 so you're stuck with the default theme. By default there are 5 sections for program icons. There's All, Favorites, Media, Downloads and Frequent. All, as the tab name suggests, is where you can find all of your programs. You can mark anything you want as a favorite. Web pages, programs, contacts, whatever. You can have whatever you want here. Media is where you'll find icons for your pictures, video, You Tube, Slacker Radio, etc. The downloads tab is an easy way for you to get to apps you've downloaded off the web or through Appworld. And frequent is where the phone puts your 12 most frequently used programs.

Where they have made some major changes is the phone setup and options areas. All of these screens have been changed and are now MUCH more user friendly. Options are grouped much more intelligently and are much easier to find than they used to be. The communication manager is has been changed as well. It has a new look and feel, but the functionality is still the same.

The Torch supports WiFi and GPS. You get wireless 802.11 b/g/n. I have a Linksys wireless G router and it works flawlessly. The Torch does support UMA, but AT&T doesn't so I can't comment on that. GPS is accurant and locks on quickly. It is carrier assisted so you get the inital approximate location as soon as you open BB Maps or Google Maps. Once it locks on though Google Maps will show whether on my front or back porch though.

As a phone, the Torch works just as well as any other. Reception is good, calls are clear. There was an issue initially with a tinny sound while on some calls. The OS upgrade fixes that problem. Speaker volume is good. The speaker phone could stand to be a little bit louder, but honestly I've found this of all phones except Nextel.

The phone itself I find a good size. Its not super super thin, but its not bulky either. I've got an Otterbox Commuter case on it, and that does make it bulky, but that's no fault of the phone itself. Button placement is good. Its got volume and a single convenience key on the side. On top you get screen lock and silence keys. You still get your same 4 buttons on the face that you get with all BlackBerrys. The Call, end, menu and back buttons. The trackpad took some getting used to coming from a trackball, but now that I've had it for a while its not an issue. I really don't use it too much as I primarily use the touch screen. Speaking of, the touch screen is quick and reactive. Its a capacitive touch screen like Apple and Andriod products. Thankfully they didn't go SurePress on this phone. I've use a Storm and couldn't stand it! The keyboard is similar the one on the Bold 9000, just a hair smaller. I suspect its the same as the one on the Bold 9700, but I can't confirm that. The screen slides very smoothly and feels very solid both opened and closed. It doesn't interfere with the top or bottom row of keys either. I found that once I got used to holding the phone I was every bit as quick with it as I was the keyboard on my old Bold 9000. The on screen keyboards are good as well. Like other products you get a portrait and landscape keyboard depending on how you're holding the phone. I found it to be more accurate with its substitutions than the keyboard on my iPod touch with v3 software. It does have predictive text with speech pattern recognition. It learns your commonly used words and puts them to the top of the autocorrect list. You can turn that feature off as well.

The camera is a 5mp autofocus with LED flash. It takes sharp, crisp pictures. They seem to have fixed some of the shutter lag issues from previous models by giving this one continuous auto focus. I've found the flash to be adequate in most situations you'd use a camera phone for. By default the camera is mapped to the convenience key on the side of the phone. The button works much like the shutter button on a conventional camera. You push it half way to focus and all the way down to take the picture. I thought this was a nice touch. It does support face detection. When I was at the Lego store last week taking pictures of a few friends by some life size Lego tourists it focused on the Lego faces rather than the human faces though . There are other scene modes for various situations, including a "Party" mode for low light, no flash shooting.

Overall, I think this is a great phone. I think some of the initial bad reviews were as a result of the OS that it shipped with. The one is much snappier and a few things have been updated for the sake of user friendliness. I have found one bug thus far. I set the physical keyboard to predictive text and now I can't turn it off. Its very annoying, but that's what I get for using a Beta OS.

If anyone has any comments or questions, feel free!

 

Great review!

BTW...I understand your whole sig.

 

Thanks! And you obviously spend too much time here . I need to update it, I've done LED interior lights and HID fogs too.

 

Oh, and I forgot to mention battery life. For a 3g phone, its great. I charged it about 4 hours or so the night before last and I've still got almost half a battery. I've been averaging about 2 days on a charge with moderate use. If I'm doing a lot of youtube or Pandora it takes its toll. And for the record, I have good 3g reception everywhere I go, except one spot on the way home it drops to Edge for a minute or two. Bluetooth is always turned on, and I generally only turn on WiFi when I'm using it.

 

great review man. one thing i might have missed when reading the review, not sure if u mentioned it, how is the speed of the phone? does it slow down a lot when swtiching between programs or apps? like average bbs?

 

I don't think I mentioned it. Once you pull the app switcher up, its pretty quick. I tend to point it to a web page, switch to the home screen, go into email or text or bbm and message, go back to the browser and the page is done. You'd never know it was doing anything in the background. It has the same processor as the old Bold 9000, but it seems to make much better use of it. From my old Blackberrys I'm pretty good about closing apps rather than just exiting from them though so I'm sure that makes a bit of a difference. It does lag when installing apps and on a few web sites, but other than that, its very snappy. When I initially load up the OS and go into app world to redownload stuff I'll have 9 downloads going simultaneously along with installs and the phone is just about unusable, but after they're all installed its fine.

 

Thanks! I think i'm gonna get one

 

I'm up for renewal on 9/29. It's like my phone knows that it's on its way out. It's been even more glitchy in the last 2 weeks, it's making me crazy (9000 with a leaked OS installed, I forgot which and am not in the mood to get it, but it's something like 5.0.0.688 or something). Still haven't seen anything else I like from BB, so I'll more than likely be picking up a Torch.

litesout, where did you find the leaked OS from? Crackberry?

 

^Why not pick one on the side w/o signing contract. With all the rates coming down these days, I'm just waiting for att to drop their prices, then I will sign a new contract. My contract expired last year i think. but i'm just going month to month on the same plan.

 

Shoofin - yeah, I found the leak on CB. There's actually a newer one out that supposedly fixes the keyboard selection bug. Brought my laptop to work with me tonight so I'm going to give it a shot. I think its 6.0.0.246. The switch over was pretty painless for me. I used the Device Switch Wizard in the DM and everything moved over. My advice is to reinstall your third party apps. I had a few that didn't work when I did the switch. Had to redownload and reinstall. I think the different screen resolution and the touchscreen itself had something to do with that though.

nspec - These things are still ungodly expensive to get off contract. Like $499 if I remember right. An ETF is only $175 so even if you buy it and bail, you're still saving $124. And you don't have to make any plan changes. They even let me keep my $30 BIS unlimited plan instead of going to one of their new limited ones.

 

Installed the new leaked OS tonight. 6.0.0.246 fixed my keyboard issue!