Staying in Touch
Two touch screen phones for a sensitive market
- Published: 16/05/2010 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Brunch
Politics aside, the Thai smartphone market is still seeing red. RIM will desperately be trying to hold off Apple's resurgence in the next few months as its main competitor rolls out the much-anticipated new operating system for its iPhone, iPod touch and iPad - OS 4. The new BlackBerry Storm 2 is RIM's second attempt at an iPhone killer, after the widely acknowledged failure of the original Storm that attempted to cash in on the winning aspect of iPhones - their sensitive touchable screen. But is it up to the task?
And Nokia is still trying to edge its way in to the smartphone market, with limited success so far. It is pushing the multimedia capabilities and the social networking aspects of its phones in a wave of new models, in an attempt to grab market share from the major players who all still remain ahead. The new X6 sports the company's best screen yet, but what about the rest of its features?
BLACKBERRY STORM 2
STRENGTHS:
A welcome addition to any BlackBerry is a decent-sized screen, and the Storm 2 sports a big and bright 3.2-inch display, the best RIM screen yet.
The sturdy housing is also an improvement on the original Storm and the unit offers the best web browsing experience of any BlackBerry.
It can multitask without a glitch, but the new iPhone OS 4 promises to include this feature now lacking in Apple products. The 3.2-megapixel camera is decent, and Wi-Fi has been included after going missing on the original Storm.
The SurePress technology of the screen becomes manageable after a couple of days.
WEAKNESSES:
Although sturdy, the phone is still bulky at 160g.
It takes an age to boot up and the battery life is short, at less than a day with moderate use.
Typing is slower on the virtual keyboard than it is on BlackBerry qwerty keyboards, although the intuitive correct functions counteract this somewhat.
More annoyingly, the screen can be slow to respond, although it is an improvement on the original model.
The web browser isn't great on any of the BlackBerry operating system versions, and this continues here, which is a shame with the enhanced browsing experience made possible by the touch screen. The operating system is screaming for an overhaul rather than just a patch up, and the inclusion of touch capability here would have been a good opportunity for this.
CONCLUSION:
Although the Storm 2 brings multimedia potential to the BlackBerry, the original strengths are lost - the ease of typing on the qwerty keyboard has vanished, as has decent battery life.
The SurePress technology just doesn't compete with the touchability of Apple HTC and now Nokia products.
Hence, the BlackBerry remains for email-orientated phone users with social networking leanings, and the Storm 2 emerges as another weak attempt at an iPhone killer from a company capable of much better.
The BlackBerry Storm 2 is available for 22,900 baht from official distributors such as the AIS Shop, 3rd floor, Central Rama III, call 1175.
NOKIA X6
STRENGTHS:
Although the majority of RIM models somehow defy it, the main feature of any smartphone is the screen, and Nokia has invested its resources well here and come up with its best touchable display yet - a 3.5-inch capacitive (so no stylus, finally). It is ultra sensitive, enables easy item selection and enhances web browsing through smooth scrolling and page navigation.
The X6 sports multimedia-heavy specs - the five-megapixel camera offers impressive results, backed up by a massive 16GB of internal memory capacity (32GB also available).
Another strength is the text input capability via the sensitive screen's virtual keyboard.
WEAKNESSES:
The S60 operating system is still poor, and again lets down Nokia here. And the Nokia Ovi Store still lacks a good array of apps, lagging a little behind the BB App World and way behind the Apple App Store.
CONCLUSION:
The X6 is more of a baiting of existing Nokia users to draw them into the smart-phone market than a direct assault on the iPhone, the role that the upcoming N8 model might fill.
Multimedia-based phone users and Nokia lovers will be most tempted.
The X6 is available in black or pink for 22,900 baht from the Nokia Shop, 3rd floor, Emporium shopping complex, call 02-664-8565.
About the author
- Writer: Richard Mcleish
- Position: Reporter
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