BB Storm Review

I know some of you are looking for this, so if you haven't read it yet here it is.

Boy Genius Reviews the BB Storm

This is a great review.

Blackberry Update

Well its been a real learning experience using a Blackberry. All in all it hasn't been any worse than when I got my first Windows Mobile Device. I enjoy using the Pearl and I still love the form factor. I was at Circuit City this week and looked at a Curve and again realized I did not like a device that wide. While I do like having a keyboard, they seem to be even wider than a Treo, which is what I keep at home for a backup. With the new crop of devices coming out, the Treo will end up on sale very soon if not today.

I activated my Touch for a few hours last night to see if I missed it. I did miss the touch screen because it is easier to tap the "X" button versus hitting the BB button and scrolling down to "close". However the Touch (with the extended battery) seemed fat to handle compared to the Pearl. I did switch back to my Pearl which surprises me. I do like this device more than I thought I would.

The real issue for me with switching to a BB, and I think some of you are in the same boat is dealing with Exchange Server. You can complain about the state of the Windows Mobile operating system and some of the hardware out there, but MS Exchange Server just does an outstanding job. It has been very difficult making that adjustment the last week or so with the Pearl. I had to do a hard reset this week due to not receiving emails. Then the next day I have the same problem. I ended up getting a free trial of a hosted Blackberry Enterprise Server so I could sync Email, Calendar, Contacts and Tasks OTA because I thought Blackberry Internet Service wouldn't play nice with my hosted Exchange Server via OWA. Then this article shows up today...Blackberry BIS issues being reported globally. This explains why I have been having problems and probably didn't really need a hard reset. I have been using 4smartphone.net for close to a year with no problems at all and I have experienced a week full of issues with BIS.
The hosted BES is working fine so far except if you do make that switch, that make sure you export all your Outlook data to a file because when you switch servers then you lose all your data

I do think that the trackball on mine is a bit loose. I ordered a new one for six bucks and they install very easy. As I mentioned before, if it weren't for the trackball I wouldn't even bother trying it. Using a D-Pad exclusively is a dealbreaker for me.

Screen size hasn't bothered me at all. I think the ability to navigate the screen is more important to me than the screen size.

I still had issues requiring soft reset and some lagginess so it wasn't phenomenally better than Windows Mobile....just different, but with nicer hardware compared to what I have now.

So basically if you really like the look and feel of a BB device, you have to be willing to make a total 'gadget life change'. I don't think I am there yet.

BB Video

You can't see the screen very well but I think you'll get the idea.

Tethering with Blackberry

I got a call last night for Berlin Heights. I remembered this morning that I needed to be able to tether when I work over there. I quickly downloaded the VZAccess software (no ICS Boohoo, I love that prog). I was pleasantly surprised that VZAccess worked much smoother than the last time I used it. Connecting was a snap, I did not have to end the data connection or disable Active Sync or re-enable data and push when I disconnected.
Of course it doesn't have EVDO Rev. A which I do miss.
I am sure that Verizon has improved their software, but the ease in which worked was mostly due to the BB I think.

Hopping on the BBB (Blackberry Bandwagon)

This isn’t going to be a groundbreaking series of reviews. The Pearl has been out for awhile and Blackberry has some exciting new devices coming out soon. I am basically writing this from the point of view of someone who has been using Windows Mobile devices for three solid years now and not used anything else. I have already asked to be included in beta testing for Celio Corp again for the Redfly when the Touch Pro is released on Verizon so don’t expect me to convert to BB over this. However, I have found in the last 36 hours of using this device that I don’t think I will be bored waiting for the Touch Pro to come out.

As I mentioned before, I chose the Pearl over the Curve partly because of price (got it on eBay), but mainly due to form factor. I absolutely love the shape and feel of this device. To be honest I probably wouldn’t have gotten a BB at all if it weren’t for the Pearl. A salesman stopped by yesterday and had a Curve and they are way too wide for me. It would be like carrying a graham cracker in my pocket.

The other reason I never looked at BB besides being a non-win mo device is that Blackberries have been traditionally non-touchscreen. Now the Storm is changing the game in that area.

Well for the most part, the transition to Blackberry has been pretty good. I did not get an instruction manual for the phone (wouldn’t of used it anyways) so the first few hours were rough. Getting the email account setup was an ordeal since I use a hosted exchange server. I currently use 4smartphone.net for my email. They do offer their service for the Blackberry called (duh!) 4Blackberry.net. I did not want to shell out the dough or even bother with a trial period and risk messing up my MS Exchange Server with them.

So I got registered for Blackberry Internet Service which takes care of my email since I don’t have access to a Blackberry Enterprise Server. Instead of using your exchange server address you use the URL of your OWA (Outlook Web Access). Near as I can tell, I can only get email using BIS, so I signed up for a free trial of Astrasync which does Over-the-air syncing for calendar and contacts….but not Tasks. I had to download the Blackberry Desktop Manager to sync tasks by USB. You also need the Desktop Manager in order to do system upgrades (I will talk about those later). Hopefully I will figure out one solution for OTA syncing for email, contacts, calendar, and tasks.

Once I finally got all my PIM data going, I could start getting into the nuts and bolts of the device. The first thing I noticed was that the trackball made up for the lack of touchscreen. I got the trackball speed adjusted and it works great.

Coming from Windows Mobile I can say it has not taken me long to get very familiar with the BB OS. I am sure there are some shortcuts or little things I could be doing that would make things better, but so far I can’t complain.

There are a few things I have a serious problem with at the moment I need a solution for:

PDF rendering is HORRIBLE. When you view a pdf “Fit to screen” it is too small to read but when you zoom in it just becomes so fuzzy its unreadable. Totally unacceptable.

I can’t find a way to put it to sleep with only one key waking it up. I have the “Left Convenience Key” as they call it mapped to keyboard lock, but I carry it in my pocket and any keypress will keep the device awake. Amazingly battery life so far has not been affected by it. I know they make holsters that put it to sleep and wake it up when you take it out, but I like to pocket mine.

I probably won’t be getting a Storm (never say never), but for those of you thinking about making a jump from win mo to BB, I wouldn’t be so worried if I were you. I will keep updating you with my thoughts over the next week.