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doe4040 · 06-26-2009, 10:02 AM

I'm thinking of going over to Vodafone UK (Currently on TMO UK) and etting the Storm (9500). Contract price is very reasonable, but what I really want to know is IS THE HANDSET ACTUALLY ANY GOOD.

I've spent the last few days trawling through threads in the Storm section of the forums, and decided the best way to get a general concensus would be, instead of posting a regular thread and getting LOADS of mixed opinions in replies, i'd post a poll.

MERK350Z · 06-26-2009, 10:23 AM

Wirelessly posted

I have to be honest with you lot of the reviews that you see are for the 9530 . The verizon storm has some issues from what I remember the os was not as smooth as the one for the vodafone 9500 which I am using because I sold my verizon storm. And have to say I love the 9500 . You really have to ask yourself do you want. Touch screen phone . The storm is not the best when it comes to touch screen but it does the job well once master the suretype. Media playback is good. I also have a bold but use the storm 98% of the time . If you want a blackberry and want to do a touch screen then do it the reviews out there are more for the 9530 and I don't think it paints a fair picture of the storm .hope this has helped a little .

dave1812dave · 06-26-2009, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doe4040

I'm thinking of going over to Vodafone UK (Currently on TMO UK) and etting the Storm (9500). Contract price is very reasonable, but what I really want to know is IS THE HANDSET ACTUALLY ANY GOOD.

I've spent the last few days trawling through threads in the Storm section of the forums, and decided the best way to get a general concensus would be, instead of posting a regular thread and getting LOADS of mixed opinions in replies, i'd post a poll.

Your poll is far too simplistic! I had a Storm and would say there is plenty GOOD and plenty BAD about it. Asking for good/bad comments is a waste of time, IMO. Better to just have people mention all their pros and cons, rather than asking them if the entire phone is either "good" or "bad".

Anyone claiming it is all good is being disingenuous, and anyone claiming it's all bad is painting the phone with too broad of a brush and their irritation with the phone is clouding their opinion. The phone is a mixed bag. period.

rileyrg · 06-26-2009, 01:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave1812dave

Your poll is far too simplistic! I had a Storm and would say there is plenty GOOD and plenty BAD about it. Asking for good/bad comments is a waste of time, IMO. Better to just have people mention all their pros and cons, rather than asking them if the entire phone is either "good" or "bad".

Anyone claiming it is all good is being disingenuous, and anyone claiming it's all bad is painting the phone with too broad of a brush and their irritation with the phone is clouding their opinion. The phone is a mixed bag. period.

Well said.

I could not recommend the Storm to anyone who does not have a lot of patience. I also could not recommend it to anyone on the move unless they are happy to lug chargers/usb cables around too as the battery life is ludicrously short.

The device itself is great - I love the build and "feel" of it. The OS is getting better but someone up high needs to fall on their sword for releasing it far too early. The lack of what is known in the rest of the world as T9 with the multitap would have been enough for me not to have got it had I known. As it is I turn off suretype now as with my fat fingers I like the smaller keyboards in portrait mode.

The built in browser is slow as molasses (just try the opera one to compare when moving the screen around) and doesn't cope properly with some sites.

I have been totally unable to get any streaming radio working. Some apps automatically reset the vpn. In my case something set it to web.vodafone.de and I ended up with additional bills on my monthly statement - but thats more a pricing/contract thing than BB specific I guess.

I love using it as a bedside audio device - I have it playing audio books to get me off to sleep (obviously on the charge) combined with auto off and on which works well.

There is a lot of talk of battery pulls, but that has not been my experience. Maybe one lock up in two months. I did have an issue with my menu/blackberry key stopping working. I am 100% convinced it was a SW issue as it occured when installing a certain app. It started working again 3 days later. No, there was no water contact.

Bottom line for me is it feels good, has a good display and is not an iPhone (it seems everyone has one!) .... I am used to it now and like it a lot for what it is. I just think it could have been so much more with a bit more common sense in design and QA - it appears that everything about it is designed to chew up battery life.

doe4040 · 06-26-2009, 01:28 PM

Im not asking you to highlight the good or bad points of the device, which is exactly why I posted this poll. I just want a no b.s answer... is it good or bad?

rileyrg · 06-26-2009, 01:34 PM

What a silly question. That's like asking "is curry a nice meal?". It's totally up to the individual and without a description of the reasonings totally meaningless to someone else who might be motivated by different stimuli. So to precis : there is no "yes" or "no" unless you choose to define what criteria define "good" and "bad" in your world.

JSanders · 06-26-2009, 01:38 PM

In YOUR opinion, good or bad device.

That is what the OP is asking.

doe4040 · 06-26-2009, 01:41 PM

Great well i can tell im not going to get a straight answer out of anyone here. Cheers guys.

rileyrg · 06-26-2009, 01:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSanders

In YOUR opinion, good or bad device.

That is what the OP is asking.

Possibly I'm strange, but things like phones are not "good" or "bad" to me. They have strengths and weaknesses. And my concept of good or bad based on what I use/need from it is totally meaningless to anyone unless they know HOW or on what criteria I based my decision.

If a stranger saying "that is good" is enough for you to make a decision then fair play.

It would not be enough for me. Especially when polling in a forum dedicated to a certain device where the majority are users of it and would rarely criticise the device they use daily (if they didnt like it they would not use it generally).

Oh well, I shouldn't have put the time into explaining why I think various features of the BB Storm are good or bad.

doe4040 · 06-26-2009, 01:57 PM

The idea is that youre all blackberry users! Some of you with Storms! I would have hope that more people like Merk350z would actually give straight answers, like i'd requested.

Im closing this thread. Its kind of obvious that people would rather question than advise/help.

rileyrg · 06-26-2009, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doe4040

The idea is that youre all blackberry users! Some of you with Storms! I would have hope that more people like Merk350z would actually give straight answers, like i'd requested.

Im closing this thread. Its kind of obvious that people would rather question than advise/help.

You don't think listing the reasons one finds aspects of it good or bad as "advice" or "help"? Strange. That would be my very definition of it. Best of luck in your research.

JSanders · 06-26-2009, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doe4040

Im closing this thread. Its kind of obvious that people would rather question than advise/help.

You are?

Quote:

Originally Posted by doe4040

Great well i can tell im not going to get a straight answer out of anyone here. Cheers guys.

Sorta got a bad attitude there don't ya think? People are answering your poll, and if you don't want to read the replies and discussion, don't scroll down.

I for one made my choice in the poll, and that is not a straight answer?

jacobsaa · 06-26-2009, 03:56 PM

Personally this poll isn't narrowly tailored enough. I answered your poll, but I wasn't happy with the two options presented (kinda like our last election). I think overall the Storm is more good than bad. Compared to the Bold, I'd have to choose bad. It's a middle of the roader for me, but for the first of its kind in the blackberry family, more good than bad.

mazzer · 06-28-2009, 04:45 PM

IMO the Storm is a typical RIM device and god knows they do it their way-really great in all areas of communication ( obviously) excellent user interface and good quality A/V. my only items on a 'wishlist' would be support for blackberry maps ( although google is great you really need a digital compass with it) and BBC iplayer support...who knows maybe on next software release?

Carmel Valley Homes Agent · 07-08-2009, 12:55 AM

I have a love hate relationship with the Storm, but overall I'd call it good. The new OS has helped a lot. I had been experiencing lag times, but I think it was due to a failed attempt to upload the new OS. Ever since the Verizon support people walked me through the solution everything has worked great. My issues with the phone at this point are pretty minor.

aapierre · 07-09-2009, 06:33 PM

this was just the thread i was looking for

until i read it

i am due an upgrade from my curve in september and am considering the storm.

i love my curve for email, sms, the occasional sat nav and things like facebook and the internet, can anyone with some experience of how good the curve is at these things advise me as to how the storm does in these areas.

jbairdjr · 07-09-2009, 06:51 PM

I switched from the Curve to the Storm and I am really glad I did.
I am a heavy user of email, web, and other apps.
Once you get used to typing on the screen, the rest is icing on the cake (IMO).
I love the touch interface and really am happy with the purchase.
I did purchase an extended battery which added to battery life.

dave1812dave · 07-09-2009, 10:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doe4040

The idea is that youre all blackberry users! Some of you with Storms! I would have hope that more people like Merk350z would actually give straight answers, like i'd requested.

Im closing this thread. Its kind of obvious that people would rather question than advise/help.

LOL! Promoted yourself to mod, eh? "closing this thread" Right...

You post a poll that wants a yes/no answer and there IS NO way a thoughtful person would answer "yes" or "no" (at least not without reservations) , so you get grumpy on us? My response--oh well!

aapierre · 07-10-2009, 05:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jbairdjr

I switched from the Curve to the Storm and I am really glad I did.
I am a heavy user of email, web, and other apps.
Once you get used to typing on the screen, the rest is icing on the cake (IMO).
I love the touch interface and really am happy with the purchase.
I did purchase an extended battery which added to battery life.

thanks for that response

what is the media player like on the storm

i have a 120gb ipod for music and video but sometimes it would make sense to just carry my phone.

i would love this to have an app for picking up radio also but i know that is going too far.

rileyrg · 07-10-2009, 06:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aapierre

thanks for that response

what is the media player like on the storm

i have a 120gb ipod for music and video but sometimes it would make sense to just carry my phone.

i would love this to have an app for picking up radio also but i know that is going too far.

There are apps to play radio from the net. I never got one working here in Germany though.

What is battery life when using the BS to play music? Its bad enough when in standby, I can only imagine would not get more than a few hours of play from a full charge.

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The Blackberry Storm - Good Or Bad?