BlackBerry Storm 9500 Candy Bar Touchscreen 3G mobile phone handset reviews and tariffs

How we collect reviews »

Show more reviews »

« See only first 15 reviews

This device is a real rival to the dominance of the iphone. The “clickable” touch screen is a new and exciting development, but arguably this feature will be the one that decides it success. The applications and browsing are very good, as one would expect from a Blackberry, but the Storm does not have Wi-Fi, which could seriously dent its credibility in the Smartphone market. It seems that RIM is targeting consumers and business users with this application packed, slick mobile.

Also known as: BlackBerry Storm, BlackBerry® Storm™

Mobile Phone Buyers Guide  

BlackBerry® Storm™ smartphone in detail

You’d expect the BlackBerry® Storm™ smartphone to be able to send and receive emails, from various accounts. It’s a BlackBerry smartphone after all. But it has so much more to give. Take its soft-touch screen, which responds to your fingertip commands, its 3.25" high-resolution display that brings pictures to life and its 3G connection that will have you browsing the internet at super-fast speeds. With a BlackBerry Storm smartphone you get:

High-resolution soft-touch screen

• The first thing you’ll notice with the BlackBerry Storm smartphone is its huge 3.25" high-resolution screen (480 X 360 pixels). Turn it on and it bursts into colour – 65,000 colours to be precise. The wide-screen display gives you crystal clarity even when you’re outdoors.
• When you touch the screen you’ll notice it’s soft under your fingertips. Just swipe over it and press down to make things happen.

Multiple keyboard options

• When it comes to messaging, everyone’s different. So you can choose from one of three styles of keyboard. Choose from SureType® (predictive) and Multi-tap (multiple keypress) in portrait if you’re dashing off a quick message or turn the phone to landscape and use the on-screen QWERTY keyboard for longer messages.

Size & weight

• Length: 112.5mm
• Depth: 13.95mm
• Width: 62.2mm
• Lightweight: Only 155g (battery included)

Expandable memory

• You can carry your documents or your favourite tunes around with you. Its 1GB built-in memory can hold around 250 songs. If you want even more music with you just expand the memory by 16GB (using a plug in MicroSD™ memory card – not included) giving you enough space for another 4000 or so tracks.

Battery and adapter

• To recharge, or simply run your mobile phone on mains power, use its +5V DC/500 mA AC power adapter which comes with interchangeable, location-specific plugs.

Built-in GPS and BlackBerry Maps

• With built-in GPS you can pinpoint your location and track your routes faster than ever. And when you team GPS with BlackBerry® Maps you can save time and cut stress with step-by-step directions. Just type in an address and see it brought to life on maps, quickly and conveniently on your mobile phone.

Mobile internet

• Thanks to its HSPDA technology (think super-fast 3G) you can browse the web at warp speed and multitask to your heart’s content. Take calls while sending and responding to emails, or when browsing the internet, and access your favourite websites – from Google to the BBC, YouTube to eBay – when you’re out and about. Keep in touch with your friends and spread a bit of fun with social networking applications like Facebook® for BlackBerry smartphones and Flickr™ Photo Uploader for BlackBerry smartphones.

Email and messaging

• As you’d expect from BlackBerry®, email is at its heart. Stay on top of your email accounts including: web-based email (such as Windows Live™, Gmail®, Yahoo!® Mail and AOL® Mail), Microsoft® Outlook® Web Access, Microsoft® Exchange, IBM® Lotus® Domino®, Novell® GroupWise®.
• As well as reading your messages you can open and download attachments (JPEG, Adobe® PDF, Microsoft® Word, Microsoft® Excel and Microsoft® PowerPoint files) on the go.
• Email’s not the only way to keep in touch. With BlackBerry Storm smartphone you can chat online and even send pictures with Windows Live™ Messenger, Yahoo® Messenger, AOL® Instant Messenger® and ICQ®.

Camera and video recorder

• BlackBerry Storm smartphone’s camera is a quality 3.2MP digital camera with auto flash, auto focus and 2x digital zoom.
• And you can capture all your moving action on its built-in video camera. Replay your masterpieces in full high definition quality through the built-in BlackBerry® Media Sync media player.
• Why not share your pictures and videos? Send them via email or picture message or upload them to photo storage websites like Flickr™.

Synchronisation

• The desktop software (supplied with your smartphone) synchronises your calendar, address book, tasks and memos between your BlackBerry Storm smartphone and your desktop. It also loads new applications and upgrades from your PC to your BlackBerry Storm smartphone.
• When used with BlackBerry® Enterprise Solution, the BlackBerry Storm smartphone supports wireless synchronisation with: IBM Lotus Notes®, Microsoft Outlook, Novell GroupWise.
• When used with BlackBerry® Desktop Manager, the BlackBerry Storm smartphone supports desktop synchronisation with: Novell GroupWise 5.5/6.0; Lotus Notes 4.5/4.6/5.0/6.0/6.5; Microsoft Outlook 2002/2003 (XP); Microsoft Outlook Express; Microsoft® Schedule +7.5; Microsoft Schedule + Default; Netscape®.

Multimedia formats

• The BlackBerry Storm smartphone can handle a number of formats, whether you’re watching videos or listening to your tunes.
  – video formats: MPEG4 H.263, MPEG4 Part 2 Simple Profile, H.264 (encoding and decoding 30fps), WMV
  – audio formats: MP3, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, WMA, WMA ProPlus.
• BlackBerry® Media Sync is BlackBerry Storm smartphone’s built-in media player. You can listen to your tunes or watch your videos and use it to sync your desktop iTunes® music files with your BlackBerry Storm smartphone.

Business use
The BlackBerry Storm smartphone is ideal for businesses of all sizes.

• Download attachments on the go. Open and edit Microsoft® Word and Microsoft Excel® documents, and view Microsoft® PowerPoint® documents. Copy and paste, change font size, colour bullets, numbering and more.
• For small to medium-sized business, Hosted BlackBerry® Enterprise Server and BlackBerry® Professional Software offer you affordable, easy-to-set up solution options.
• For larger organisations, BlackBerry® Enterprise Solution provides advanced security features, enterprise-grade functionality and hands-on control to implement a comprehensive wireless solution.
• To protect your BlackBerry Storm smartphone from prying eyes, each phone can be set with its own unique password.

Connectivity

• You can get more done by keeping your hands free while you talk or listen without getting tangled up in a mess of wires. The BlackBerry Storm smartphone works with the Bluetooth® Stereo Audio profile for high-quality, wireless stereo sound.
• Using Bluetooth headphones or speakers, use wireless technology to enjoy your music on the move.
• Bluetooth v2.0; Mono/Stereo Headset, Handsfree, Phone Book Access Profile (PBAP), and Serial Port Profile Supported.
• 3.5mm stereo headset capable.
• Connect to your computer, for charging and data synchronisation, using a high-speed USB cable (provided).

Network Support
Stay in touch with the people who matter as you travel across town or to almost any corner of the world.

• Quad-Band: 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900MHz GSM/GPRS/EDGE networks.
• Single-Band: 2100 MHz UMTS/HSPA networks.

Voice Input/Output and ringtones

• Integrated speaker and microphone, hands-free headset capable, Bluetooth® headset capable, integrated hands-free speakerphone.
• 32 polyphonic – MIDI, MP3.

• More info at Blackberry's website
• User manual