NY Time’s Pogue Bitchslaps “the BlackBerry Dud”

Ouch! David gives the Storm a major spanking. Here’s the buzz and reactions from the Interwebs:

Research in Motion (R.I.M.), the company that brought us the BlackBerry, has been on a roll lately. For a couple of years now, it’s delivered a series of gorgeous, functional, supremely reliable smartphones that, to this day, outsell even the much-adored iPhone.

Here’s a great example of the intelligence that drives R.I.M.: The phones all have simple, memorable, logical names instead of incomprehensible model numbers. There’s the BlackBerry Pearl (with a translucent trackball). The BlackBerry Flip (with a folding design). The BlackBerry Bold (with a stunning design and faux-leather back).

Well, there’s a new one, just out ($200 after rebate, with two-year Verizon contract), officially called the BlackBerry Storm.

But I’ve got a better name for it: the BlackBerry Dud.

The first sign of trouble was the concept: a touch-screen BlackBerry. That’s right — in its zeal to cash in on some of that iPhone touch-screen mania, R.I.M. has created a BlackBerry without a physical keyboard.

Hello? Isn’t the thumb keyboard the defining feature of a BlackBerry? A BlackBerry without a keyboard is like an iPod without a scroll wheel. A Prius with terrible mileage. Cracker Jack without a prize inside.

- from NYtimes

An analysis of Pogue’s work shows him writing 90% wonderful things about the Apple iPhone and also getting hold of the 3G Jesus phone before it hit the shops.
The New York Times was penning loads of pro-Apple iphone stories before the launch and rushed to cover the queues that were forming to buy the thing.
However, getting gear early in return for writing gushing pieces is one thing, making the move to attack Apple’s rivals on its behalf is another.
Looking at Pogues’ review he has nothing good to see in the BlackBerry Storm which he compares to the “much adored iphone”. We should point out, in case you have not noticed, that I do not adore the iphone which even Pogue admitted was flawed in his only negative comment about the toy. – from Inquirer

It is not that often that I agree whole heartedly with David Pogue’s reviews since he is a little too pro-Apple for me, but this time I can honestly say his review of the BlackBerry Storm is right on. The power of a BlackBerry is their QWERTY keyboard and RIM needs to forget about future Storm devices and stick with their niche of the market.

The screen technology on the Storm is unique and cool for a few minutes, but I couldn’t have said it better myself when Pogue stated,”It’s too much work, like using a manual typewriter.” That is exactly how I felt using the device this past week. I get tired very quickly entering text on the Storm and find it requires more work and effort than on other devices. It is also a frustrating experience and that should not be the case on a BlackBerry device where people are trying to be productive. If you think you are going to be productive and efficient on the Storm, think again. – from ZDnet