BlackBerry Torch

blackberry torch review

Release Date:  Q4 2010
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Previously rumoured as BlackBerry Slider 9800, the new mobile phone from Research In Motion is now available as BlackBerry Torch 9800. Frankly speaking, the look of the phone is quite inspiring and very non-BlackBerry kind. That’s why we were eager to review this gadget that appears as some kind of Palm-Pre kind of RIM slider. It comes loaded with a new operating system called BlackBerry OS 6, and its Webkit powered browser is quite interesting. A new form factor and a new OS made this Torch quite exciting for us and it seems as the company is targeting the average consumer with this phone. The market is quite competitive with the high-end smart phones such as Samsung Galaxy S or Apple iPhone 4. The buyers are queuing up for these handsets, and only time will tell how this latest BlackBerry device performs. The earlier models of the company like the Bold and the Curve are quite successful, but this time it seems too late as technology is advancing at a rapid speed.

BlackBerry Torch 9800 – The Hardware

The looks of the phone is definitely the first thing that you will notice. It appears fresh and attractive in comparison to the other BlackBerry devices. However, there is not much of a difference apart from the fact that the phone slide-opens. The industrial design of the company’s handsets is evident in Torch 9800 as well. In fact, the look has a lot of similarities with Bold 9700, particularly the shape and size. There is a mild difference of the dimensions with 2,4 inches down when not opened and 4.4 inches up. The thickness of the Torch is 0.57 inches, which is again marginally different from Bold 9700. The new devise maintains familiarity with the phone’s metal-like bezel corners that loops back. Only this time it is split into two pieces because of the slider factor that differentiates the screen and the keyboard portions.

QWERTY Keyboard- To access the traditional QWERTY keyboard of this BlackBerry device, you have to slide up the display screen. The sliding action is solid and the keyboard width is almost similar to Bold 9700. You can the same confidence and speed while typing the keys, just like the other phones by BlackBerry.

Display Screen- The entire frontal panel of the phone is dedicated to the 3.2 inches capacitive touch screen display. The resolution is 480 x 360, which is exactly similar to Storm and Storm 2. Apart from the dominance of the touch screen display, you can also notice the regular functional keys such as menu, call and end at the bottom of the display. Some of the major highlights of the display include optical trackpad, proximity sensor for auto turn off and multi touch input method. The left side of the phone features the Micro USB jack, while the right side includes user-assignable convenience key, volume rockers, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

BlackBerry Torch 9800 – Network and Connectivity

The network and connectivity features of the BlackBerry phones have always been good, rather it is one of the best features of its success. BlackBerry Torch 9800 supports both 2G and 3G network. The users of the 2G network can access quad band GSM 850/ 950/ 1800/ 1900; while those who have 3G access they can get the support of HSDPA 850/ 1900/ 2100/ 800. In terms of connectivity options, the basic support is provided by Class 10 GPRS and EDGE, where the speed of GPRS connection is 32- 48 kbps and the Edge’s speed is 236.8 kbps. For high speed Internet browsing, you can depend on Wi-Fi® 802.11 b/g/n, UMA (dependent of carrier) and HSDPA. The HTML browser of Torch 9800 provides faster internet access with these connectivity options. For transferring data from other compatible handsets, you can use microUSB v2.0’s with-wire and Bluetooth® v2.1's wireless connectivity.

BlackBerry Torch 9800 – Memory

9800 Torch is a smart phone that includes a wide range of features and applications. To run all these applications and features smoothly, you need the support of a good storage capacity. BlackBerry 9800 boasts a powerful storage capacity with 4GB internal memory storage along with 512 RAM. In addition to that the company is providing a 4GB microSD™ card for expanding the memory. However, the maximum capacity of memory expansion is 32 GB. With such a whopping memory feature, you can enjoy smooth performance and functionality of the phone.

BlackBerry Torch 9800 - Multimedia features

Multimedia features play a vital role to increase the usability of the mobile phones. The users like to listen to music, watch videos and click images while being on the move. Find out what BlackBerry Torch 9800 offers in terms of the multimedia features.

Camera- The camera of BlackBerry Torch is quite fascinating as it boasts a 5 mega pixel snapper with auto focus and LED flash. The resolution of the clicked images is 2592 x 1944 pixels, and the other vital features include continuous auto focus, geo tagging and image stabilization. The camera lens is positioned towards the back portion of the mobile phone and it can also shoot videos at VGA @24 fps.

Music Player- The media player for music can play diverse types of music files such as MP3/ WMA/ eAAC+/ and FlAC/OGG files.

Video Player- Those who love to watch videos on their mobile phone, they can stream different video files such as DivX/ XviD/ MP4/ WMV/ H.263/ H.264.

Overall, BlackBerry Torch 9800 is definitely quite a good phone for the average users. It may not feature loads of sophisticated features like the high-end smart phones, but still it comes with a lot of promise.