[massgolfer]

Just came back from the Vodafone store - returned my 5 day old Blackberry Storm and cancelled my contract. Thanks to Vodafone for having the 14-day cancellation policy. (I just hope they won't charge me arm and a leg for the 20+ minutes and 15+ texts I sent in last 5 days.)

Right after, I walked into Carphone Warehouse I got an iPod with O2.

For me the deal breakers were:
- RIM OS seems to be behind Apple OS. The Storm's OS lagged often, the keyboard appeared when I didnxxx8217;t want it, web-browsing wasn't as good, it wasn't as user-friendly. I did like the Blackberry button and its options though.
- third-party software, particularly NY Times, Bloomberg, TubeStatus (for London tube) and few others donxxx8217;t exist for Blackberry yet (if they do, then for older versions).
- iPod comes with 8Gb of storage for my music whereas Storm has only 1Gb. I know you can add via MicroSD but that's extra expense, plus downloading my current iTunes music onto iPhone will be a breeze.
- Storm's battery life was poor. I charged the phone to full (~2.5 hrs), then made a 10minute call, the battery lost almost a quarter of its power. Generally battery lasted less than 24 hours.

I really liked about Storm:
- the hardware. The device felt solid, the proportions were great, it had all the necessary buttons without overdoing it, the touchscreen worked as promised.
- the US, European and UK plug converters were a plus

EDIT: financially they were equivalent. The Storm would cost me £720 over 18 months whereas the iPod will cost me £729 over 18 months on an equivalent plan. Vodafone is rumored to have a better network but somehow I get better coverage with O2 both at work and at home.

[psi2244]

I'm still undecided on whether I'm gonna keep mine or not, had it since Saturday. I made a list of my niggles and since I bought online I assume I'm gonna have to phone them to get authorisation to send it back.

here's my list anyway

Sceen gap
screen wobbles too much
lock button is too sensitive and unlocks too often
screen rotation takes too long sometimes and often locks up
battery life is appalling, less than 2 hrs before needing a charge
keeps giving an error message when trying to back up
Screen dimmer seems to have a life of its own, it comes on and off at the strangest times and sometimes even pulses when the phone is left laying down
many applications or times when the touchscreen fails to work and u have to use the menu button instead
buttons sometimes dont work or lag a lot

[BigA]

Originally Posted by massgolfer

Just came back from the Vodafone store - returned my 5 day old Blackberry Storm and cancelled my contract. Thanks to Vodafone for having the 14-day cancellation policy. (I just hope they won't charge me arm and a leg for the 20+ minutes and 15+ texts I sent in last 5 days.)

Right after, I walked into Carphone Warehouse I got an iPod with O2.

For me the deal breakers were:
- RIM OS seems to be behind Apple OS. The Storm's OS lagged often, the keyboard appeared when I didn’t want it, web-browsing wasn't as good, it wasn't as user-friendly. I did like the Blackberry button and its options though.
- third-party software, particularly NY Times, Bloomberg, TubeStatus (for London tube) and few others don’t exist for Blackberry yet (if they do, then for older versions).
- iPod comes with 8Gb of storage for my music whereas Storm has only 1Gb. I know you can add via MicroSD but that's extra expense, plus downloading my current iTunes music onto iPhone will be a breeze.

I really liked about Storm:
- the hardware. The device felt solid, the proportions were great, it had all the necessary buttons without overdoing it, the touchscreen worked as promised.
- the US, European and UK plug converters were a plus

So you traded your Storm for an iPod, eh.. LOL!

I hope you do realize that the Storm has only been out for 2 weeks and the SDK was just released at the same time right. So how can software developers make current applications to work with the storm when its only been out for 2 weeks.

[akosnitzky]

Wirelessly posted (Verizon 8830)

Thank you for the feedback. I haven't read about anyone doing catwheels over this device.

[massgolfer]

Originally Posted by BigA

So you traded your Storm for an iPod, eh.. LOL!

I hope you do realize that the Storm has only been out for 2 weeks and the SDK was just released at the same time right. So how can software developers make current applications to work with the storm when its only been out for 2 weeks.

Precisely. That's a negative, because you have to wait 3-9 months for the developers write software for the Storm.

[BigA]

Originally Posted by massgolfer

Precisely. That's a negative, because you have to wait 3-9 months for the developers write software for the Storm.

So, how was your "iPod" any different when it was released.

Can you honestly say that you are NOT being too critical..

[dankarlinski]

Wirelessly posted (BOLD)

Yes. But think of what things will be. I can place a bet that in about 2 weeks, all the cool applications will pour out, and you'll be contracted in with your iphone..... And we'll get the cool apps. I would suggest waiting it out.

[celios]

The problem is, when the iPhone arrived there was little to compare it with - it you wanted a full screen multi touch device, it was the only option.

Now the Storm has to compete with an established (and well thought of) alternative. Rushing it to market when there was a relatively mature competitor was a big risk. RIM have about 10 days to get the European firmware problems sorted before they run the risk of the Storm getting a bad reputation that can never be repaired.

I understand both Vodafone and RIM's eagerness to get this phone out before Xmas, but right now it looks like they could have dropped the ball in a huge way that will impact the reputation and bottom line of both companies for years to come. It looks like they were aware of this risk and have tried to mitigate it a little by severely restricting availability for business customers.

If they could have delayed announcing it until November and then released, with less bugs in early December, they maybe could have avoided a lot of this strife.

[massgolfer]

Originally Posted by BigA

So, how was your "iPod" any different when it was released.

Can you honestly say that you are NOT being too critical..

I understand your point. My point is that as we stand today, I can do more with the iPhone. It may change in 6 months, but I didn't want to wait.

[sleeper55]

hows that copy and paste function work on the ifadphone?

i hear the browser crashes all the time and your ok with that considering the phone has been released for well over a year and it still does it?

when your battery dies make sure you are near a plug because you wont be able to change that battery!

i will stop there but i think you get the point, no device is perfect for everyone. thay all have an issue or two........or three or four or, ahhh nevermind!

At least with the storm the issues will get fixed overtime as far as that phone from crapple Steve Jobs knows it will sell no matter and he is happy enough.

[VRaptor]

Originally Posted by celios

The problem is, when the iPhone arrived there was little to compare it with - it you wanted a full screen multi touch device, it was the only option.

Now the Storm has to compete with an established (and well thought of) alternative. Rushing it to market when there was a relatively mature competitor was a big risk. RIM have about 10 days to get the European firmware problems sorted before they run the risk of the Storm getting a bad reputation that can never be repaired.

I understand both Vodafone and RIM's eagerness to get this phone out before Xmas, but right now it looks like they could have dropped the ball in a huge way that will impact the reputation and bottom line of both companies for years to come. It looks like they were aware of this risk and have tried to mitigate it a little by severely restricting availability for business customers.

If they could have delayed announcing it until November and then released, with less bugs in early December, they maybe could have avoided a lot of this strife.

Established...yes, well thought of...depends on who you ask

[BigA]

Originally Posted by celios

The problem is, when the iPhone arrived there was little to compare it with - it you wanted a full screen multi touch device, it was the only option.

Now the Storm has to compete with an established (and well thought of) alternative. Rushing it to market when there was a relatively mature competitor was a big risk. RIM have about 10 days to get the European firmware problems sorted before they run the risk of the Storm getting a bad reputation that can never be repaired.

I understand both Vodafone and RIM's eagerness to get this phone out before Xmas, but right now it looks like they could have dropped the ball in a huge way that will impact the reputation and bottom line of both companies for years to come. It looks like they were aware of this risk and have tried to mitigate it a little by severely restricting availability for business customers.

If they could have delayed announcing it until November and then released, with less bugs in early December, they maybe could have avoided a lot of this strife.

Again how is this any different than what the iPhone went through.. The iPhone has had a lot of issues upon it's release. If you look around you have Apple fanboys here claiming how superior the iphone is compared to the storm. With all of the problems the iphone has had including a major security flaw, Apple has corrected those issues and now has a solid product.

RIM will correct these issues with the storm in due time just like apple did with the iphone.

However as sad as it is all companies including apple and rim both release products that have flaws, issues and problems that are not ready for market. This is simple corporate greed to get the product to market to make money.

But you are right I hate it when companies use there customers as beta testers.

[celios]

Originally Posted by BigA

Again how is this any different than what the iPhone went through.. The iPhone has had a lot of issues upon it's release. If you look around you have Apple fanboys here claiming how superior the iphone is compared to the storm. With all of the problems the iphone has had including a major security flaw, Apple has corrected those issues and now has a solid product.

It is different. I think Apple had the physical side of things pretty solid when they released the iPhone 3G. I have yet to see the firmware upgrade that can reattach buttons that have fallen off after 2 days use!

The problems being reported by a slew of UK Vodafone users are things like; terrible signal strength which leads to calls being dropped (the same SIM works just fine in another 3G phone on the same network), battery life that means you would be lucky to get one day with light use and huge issues with provisioning and email setup. These aren't niggles - a phone that can't make calls is an internet tablet, not a phone. These problems are show stopping issues for users who need to make calls and send texts in order to carry out their day to day routine.

Of course the iPhone had it's problems - I for one still wouldn't touch one - but most of these have now been addressed and the device is relatively solid. Of course the design flaws (no cut and paste, etc.) are still there, but hey, try any move the cursor to an accurate position on the Storm when editing text and see how easy THAT is!

[massgolfer]

Originally Posted by sleeper55

hows that copy and paste function work on the ifadphone?

i hear the browser crashes all the time and your ok with that considering the phone has been released for well over a year and it still does it?

when your battery dies make sure you are near a plug because you wont be able to change that battery!

i will stop there but i think you get the point, no device is perfect for everyone. thay all have an issue or two........or three or four or, ahhh nevermind!

At least with the storm the issues will get fixed overtime as far as that phone from crapple Steve Jobs knows it will sell no matter and he is happy enough.

Point well taken. iPhone is not perfect either, but then no device is. I am aware that battery can't be swapped - that's currently the biggest downside for me. I don't care so much for lack of cut&paste. The Storm did but selecting text on it was not easy!

[jnyost]

I'm Tech Support Specialist for CTs. I have several field guys with iPhones. The voice quality sucks, it is fragile, has horrible email capability, and is still just an iPod first. It is FAR from being an established device.

iPhone is still just a novelty.

[papageno19]

I can't help but compare this discussion to a World of Warcraft vs. any other online game discussion. You can't really compare a brand new item to an item thats been tweaked and polished for a few years. Who knows, in a few years when the Storm is perfected the iPhone might not be around anymore. I also think that the 9530 will get a better reception in the US cause they have more time to tweak and sometimes a day or two is all you need to fix software issues. Also the 9530 ships with an 8 gig microSD card installed.

For those saying it has a low battery life, do you have your screen brightness turned all the way up? For instance the Nintendo DS goes from 5 hours battery life to 15 hours battery life by turning the brightness of the backlight down two notches from the top setting which is default. The difference is not very noticeable visually but anything with an lcd screen more than half its power is consumed by the backlight.

[theblackberryboy]

the 8 gb SD card comes pre installed. thats roughly 70 bucks saved

[chiefvelo]

Dude(s) great if you want a sweet ipod that does phone calls, go get and iphone. They rock. Here with a Blackberry Storm (network that works here very well) I can finally have a gret Phone device with the best internet i have used the ability to manage documents and other files, Changeable battery and other great features.

Maybe there should be a new site called "people with to much time on there hands comparing phones" haha

Peach Out

[srobb76]

Everyone has their opinion; message boards wouldn't be much fun if everyone agreed right? As a owner of Blackberry's since the 950, my share of WinMo phones and yes, both teh 2G and 3G iFails I can say the Storm is the device that is just right for me. The mail experience on any device just does not stack up to that of the Blackberry in the corp world, that point cannot be tested. With the Blackberry you also have a company in RIM doing a single purpose - making phones. With Apple we get these awful updates trickling in that aren't addressing the larger issues as they have other things to worry about with their product line. With RIM releasing so many new phones in the past 6months (you have to respect what they have pulled off with the Flip, the updated Curves, 9000 and 9500 all dropping within the past 6 months) and the complaints about each device are in the minority. In the past 6 months Apple has released Google Street View...no other ground breaking software enhancements have come out of Cupertino in that time with the 3 or 4 firmware pieces. Heck the DevTeam has ported Linux to the iFail which is a bigger accomplishment then the various firmware updates since 2.0 from Apple.

I'm glad you gave a product that has had a shelf life of about 2 weeks now a fair shake and went to the iFail, have fun in a year when the battery catches a memory and you didn't by Applecare. To make a device without a user replaceable battery (when I mean user replaceable I don't mean disassemble the device to get to it for the peanut gallery that may comment) is inexcusable in this world with heavy portable device usage. Why make a 3G phone when you have to turn off the 3G signal just to make the phone last a day on a charge?

I guess I just wanted to chime in after reading all the hate on the Storm with some praise for a device that I find fantastic. There are flaws with it and I know they will be addressed, nothing I can't live with. I had just bought the Bold not 3 weeks ago, unlocked it for T-Mobile and have already sold it and ported my number to VZ as I am that happy with the Storm. To each their own but as a owner of both iFails I can without a doubt say the Storm > iFail.

[lindros2]

Here are my comments (after using both for an extended period of time):

1. iPhone has better hardware/software tied together. I don't buy into the "it's been out for a while" - it was closer to production-ready when it was released.

2. iPhone will never (and I mean never) be allowed on my corporate network. Not my choice - IT's choice. End of discussion.

3. Both feel solid. iPhone feels a hair more professional (see: light leakage on BB Storm, click screen knocks quality down a notch, glass screen on iPhone better, etc.).

4. Must be nice to choose between iPhone and Storm on one carrier. We Yanks don't have that flexibility.

5. iPhone is extortion. $199 (8GB) or $299 (16GB) + 2 year plan (non-discounted with both my wife and myself). Storm on the other hand was $49 + extra $22/mo for data.

6. Documents to Go is nice. Word/Excel/PPT viewer is handy too.

Would anyone blame me for willing to deal with Storm challenges over switching to the iPhone?