subject: A Look Around The Brilliant Blackberry Torch 9800 [print this page] It would be easy to be dismissive of RIM's latest touchscreen device, the Blackberry Torch 9800. The companies previous attempts at this format of handset, the Storm and the Storm 2, left a lot to be desired. It seems however that the manufacturers have been hard at work on this latest model, and have come up with a phone that will actually surprise a few people.
Blackberry handsets have always been renowned for their superb e mail facilities and excellent Qwerty keypads, therefore it is no surprise that both are present in this latest model. Instead of being located on the front of the phone, the keypad is now a slider design that is tucked away behind the handsets screen. This really does offer the user the best of both worlds. The screen itself can be used for general use and the keyboard deployed when you need that extra precision in compiling e mails or texts. The screen even offers 3 virtual keypads, so some people may never need to use the physical one. It seems that this design should please hardened Blackberry fans as well as winning new followers who have always fancied a Blackberry, but were concerned with the lack of a touchscreen. A consequence of both formats being included is that the phone is a touch chunkier than some of its counterparts. The weight of 161g is by no means lightweight and the overall measurements of 111 x 62 x 14.6mm won't win it any prizes for most compact phone, however thanks to the excellent build quality the phone does feel very well constructed, and the extra bulk makes it feel like an expensive piece of kit. The email facilities are aided by the phones superb connectivity options. Not only does it support quad band GSM/GPRS/EDGE it is also 3G, assuring you of the fastest online experience asides from using WiFi, which the phones also supports.
The Blackberry Torch continues the brands great tradition for excellent battery life. The 1300mAh battery offers users up to 5.8 hours of talktime and an incredible 18 days in standby. The phone boasts 512MB of RAM memory in addition to 4GB of storage. Although most users will find this ample for everyday use, there is the option of utilising the micro SD card slot which offers the potential for memory expansion up to 32GB. Anybody wanting to utilise the phone excellent multimedia features will appreciate this. In addition to the audio player the handset sports a 5 mega pixel camera and can shoot video footage. The revamped gallery is an easy to use interface where you can view your shots, and even offers pinch and zoom for easier close up views of your photographs.
It seems RIM have finally got the touchscreen principle right on this new model, and not at the expense of any of their core principles. The Torch looks set to be one of the most popular handsets of 2010 when it is finally released.
