RIM BlackBerry Torch 9860 (preview)

Full Review

It's no secret that RIM's previous full-touchscreen smartphones were a failure. The original Storm 9500 had a horrible "clickable touchscreen" and buggy software, and its successor, the Storm 2 9520, was an improvement, but remained well behind the competition. RIM will be hoping the Torch 9860 represents a third time lucky.

On first glance, the BlackBerry Torch 9860 has decent specifications. Its 3.7 inch touchscreen is the largest ever seen on a BlackBerry, and a single-core 1.2GHz processor and 768MB of RAM should certainly give the phone plenty of grunt. Its 5-megapixel camera with single LED flash can record 720p HD video, and there's a reasonable 4GB of internal memory available, in addition to a microSD card slot, too.

Sure, the 3.7 in touchscreen is large, but it can't boast Apple's "retina" resolution on the iPhone 4.

There is no doubt that these specifications are an improvement over previous BlackBerry models, but there simply doesn't seem to be a standout feature of the Torch 9860 that sounds compelling enough to consider it over popular iPhone or Android alternatives. Sure, the 3.7 in touchscreen is large, but it can't boast Apple's "retina" resolution on the iPhone 4, nor does it come close to the sheer size or vibrancy of the Samsung Galaxy S II's super AMOLED Plus screen, either. The all-plastic design of the Torch 9860 also can't match the steel frame of the iPhone 4, and at 11.5mm thick, it doesn't come close to the svelte 8.5mm frame of the Galaxy S II. Apps? BlackBerry App World is certainly no match for both the App Store, or Google's Android Market.

We also think RIM will have a hard time selling the Torch 9860 to regular BlackBerry users, not just all smartphone users in general. Traditional BlackBerry smartphones are synonymous with physical keyboards, so the Torch 9860's on-screen keyboard will have to be near-perfect to gain any sort of traction with heavy e-mailers.

The on-screen keyboard will form part of the BlackBerry 7 operating system that ships with the Torch 9860. Key features touted by RIM include an improved, faster Web browser, voice-activated searches, the ability to manage personal content separately from corporate content with BlackBerry Balance, as well as a number of additional personal and productivity applications.

The BlackBerry Torch 9860 also includes an integrated Near Field Communications (NFC) chip. NFC is a short-range wireless communication technology; the same used in many new credit cards, whereby the card can be simply swiped across a smart chip to make a purchase.

The BlackBerry Torch 9860 will be available from early September. Pricing has yet to be announced.

Bottom Line

The BlackBerry Torch 9860 certainly appears a much better phone on paper than its ill-fated predecessors, but the lack of a physical keyboard makes it unlikely to appeal to current BlackBerry owners. RIM has an enormous job on its hands convincing smartphone users they should buy this over popular iPhone and Android alternatives.