Blackberry Storm2 Rolls In

BlackBerry Storm2 9520/9550: A Comprehensive Deep Dive into a Touchscreen Pioneer

The BlackBerry Storm2, codenamed “BlackBerry Niagara,” arrived in late 2009, marking a significant evolutionary step for Research In Motion (RIM) and its iconic device lineup. Building upon the foundational, albeit somewhat polarizing, experience of its predecessor, the Storm2 aimed to refine the touchscreen paradigm for the enterprise-focused and consumer-curious BlackBerry user. This article delves into the technical specifications, user experience, software capabilities, and market impact of the BlackBerry Storm2, providing a comprehensive overview for enthusiasts, collectors, and those seeking to understand a pivotal moment in mobile history.

Hardware: Refined Design and Enhanced Performance

The physical design of the Storm2 was a clear attempt to address criticisms leveled against the original Storm. While retaining the signature BlackBerry aesthetic of a sleek, rectangular device, it introduced subtle but impactful changes. The chassis was constructed from a combination of premium-feeling plastic and a metal bezel, offering a more robust and sophisticated feel. The dimensions were largely similar, measuring approximately 112.5 mm x 62.1 mm x 13.9 mm, with a weight of around 160 grams. The standout feature, of course, remained the 3.25-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen display. However, the Storm2’s screen was a considerable upgrade. It boasted a resolution of 480 x 360 pixels, offering sharper visuals and improved clarity for text and images. More importantly, RIM implemented a more responsive and accurate capacitive touch technology, a direct response to the often-criticized resistive touchscreen of the original Storm. This meant less pressure was required for input, and multi-touch gestures, though not as fluid as later iterations on other platforms, were present and functional for tasks like pinch-to-zoom. The display’s color depth of 65K colors, while modest by today’s standards, was competitive for its time and provided a decent visual experience.

Under the hood, the Storm2 packed a Qualcomm MSM8650 Snapdragon processor running at 528 MHz, a significant leap from the 360 MHz chip in the original Storm. This provided a noticeable boost in processing power, leading to smoother operation of applications, quicker web browsing, and a more responsive overall user interface. Memory was also enhanced, with 256 MB of ROM and 256 MB of RAM. This increased memory capacity was crucial for handling more demanding applications and multitasking, areas where the original Storm had struggled. Storage was provided by a microSD card slot, allowing users to expand beyond the internal storage, which was typically around 2 GB depending on the model. Connectivity was a strong suit for BlackBerry devices, and the Storm2 was no exception. It supported quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE networks and dual-band UMTS/HSDPA for international roaming and faster data speeds. The crucial differentiator between the two main Storm2 models, the 9520 (GSM) and the 9550 (CDMA), lay in their respective cellular radio technologies, catering to different carrier infrastructures in North America and globally. Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g was included, a welcome addition for high-speed internet access in compatible locations, reducing reliance on cellular data. Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP support facilitated wireless connections for headsets and other peripherals. The device also featured a built-in GPS receiver, essential for navigation and location-based services.

User Interface and Software Experience: BlackBerry OS 5 and the Touch Challenge

The BlackBerry Storm2 ran on BlackBerry OS 5.0, a significant upgrade from the OS 4.7 found on its predecessor. This iteration of BlackBerry’s proprietary operating system brought with it a host of improvements, including a more refined user interface, enhanced multitasking capabilities, and better integration with core BlackBerry services. The primary challenge for RIM, and thus for the Storm2, was adapting its deeply ingrained, keyboard-centric user experience to a touchscreen-only format. BlackBerry OS 5.0 on the Storm2 featured a customizable home screen that displayed icons for applications, notifications, and widgets. The "Today" screen provided a consolidated view of upcoming appointments, unread messages, and other important information. The virtual keyboard was a focal point of the Storm2’s user experience. RIM offered several layout options, including a full QWERTY keyboard and a SureType-style keypad. The keyboard’s responsiveness was improved, and it featured haptic feedback, providing a tactile vibration with each key press, simulating the feel of a physical button. While a considerable improvement over the original Storm, the virtual keyboard remained a point of contention for many long-time BlackBerry users accustomed to the precision and speed of a physical keyboard. Typing on a touchscreen, even with haptic feedback, lacked the tactile certainty and speed that many had come to expect.

Despite this, BlackBerry OS 5.0 on the Storm2 offered the robust email, messaging, and PIM (Personal Information Management) capabilities that were the hallmark of the BlackBerry brand. Push email was as seamless as ever, and the BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) service, a proprietary instant messaging platform, was a major draw for users. The Storm2 also provided access to the BlackBerry App World, RIM’s nascent app store, which was gradually expanding its catalog of third-party applications. While the selection was not as vast or as dynamic as competing app stores at the time, it offered a growing range of tools and entertainment options. Web browsing was handled by the BlackBerry Browser, which supported HTML, JavaScript, and CSS, offering a reasonably good experience for its time, especially over Wi-Fi. The inclusion of pinch-to-zoom for image and web page scaling was a key improvement. Multimedia capabilities included a 3.2-megapixel autofocus camera with a flash, capable of capturing photos and recording video at VGA resolution. While not a groundbreaking camera, it was sufficient for casual photography. The device also featured a media player for audio and video playback.

Camera and Multimedia: Capturing Moments and Consuming Content

The BlackBerry Storm2 9520/9550 featured a 3.2-megapixel rear-facing camera, equipped with autofocus and an LED flash. This camera was designed to capture still images and record video. The autofocus mechanism allowed the camera to adjust its focus for sharper images, and the LED flash provided illumination in low-light conditions, though its effectiveness was limited. The camera interface was relatively straightforward, offering basic settings for exposure compensation, color effects, and image size. Video recording was supported at VGA resolution (640×480 pixels) at 30 frames per second, providing acceptable quality for personal use and sharing. While not a dedicated camera device, the Storm2’s camera was a functional tool for capturing everyday moments, a common expectation for smartphones of that era.

For multimedia consumption, the Storm2 offered a decent experience. The 3.25-inch capacitive touchscreen, with its 480 x 360 resolution, provided clear visuals for viewing photos and watching videos. The device supported various audio and video codecs, allowing playback of common media formats. The integrated stereo speakers, while not exceptionally loud or rich, delivered acceptable audio output. For a more immersive audio experience, the device included a 3.5mm headphone jack, a standard feature that was highly valued by users who preferred wired headphones. The inclusion of Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP profile also enabled wireless audio streaming to compatible headsets and speakers, offering greater flexibility. The device also supported Flash playback in its web browser, allowing users to view Flash-based content on websites, which was a significant feature at a time when Flash was prevalent on the web. The combination of a capable display, decent audio output, and expanding app support meant the Storm2 could serve as a personal media player for music, podcasts, and short videos.

Connectivity and Communication: The BlackBerry Ecosystem Advantage

At its core, the Storm2 remained a BlackBerry device, and its strength lay in its unparalleled communication capabilities, particularly within the BlackBerry ecosystem. The device offered robust support for various cellular networks, including quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and dual-band UMTS/HSDPA (for the 9520) or dual-band CDMA EV-DO Rev. A (for the 9550). This ensured broad compatibility with carriers worldwide. The inclusion of Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g was a significant enhancement, allowing users to connect to wireless networks for faster internet access, thereby saving on cellular data usage, a crucial consideration for many business users. Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR (Enhanced Data Rate) and A2DP (Advanced Audio Distribution Profile) provided reliable wireless connectivity for peripherals such as headsets, car kits, and external speakers. The GPS receiver, integrated into the device, enabled location-based services, including navigation through third-party applications and geotagging of photos.

The defining communication feature for BlackBerry devices, and by extension the Storm2, was its email and messaging prowess. The device excelled at push email, instantly delivering messages to the user’s inbox as they arrived. This was facilitated by the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) for corporate clients and BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) for individual users. The BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) service was a hugely popular instant messaging platform that allowed BlackBerry users to communicate with each other in real-time with end-to-end encryption, fostering a sense of secure and private communication. The Storm2 also supported SMS and MMS messaging, along with popular instant messaging services through third-party applications. The device’s ability to seamlessly integrate with these communication channels, coupled with its reputation for reliability and security, made it a compelling choice for business professionals who relied on constant connectivity. The virtual keyboard, while a point of adaptation, was still designed to facilitate quick typing of emails and messages.

Market Reception and Legacy: A Touchscreen Compromise

The BlackBerry Storm2 arrived in a rapidly evolving smartphone market, facing increasing competition from the burgeoning iPhone and the growing Android ecosystem. While it represented a significant improvement over its predecessor, it struggled to capture the same level of mainstream appeal as its rivals. The device was praised for its refined design, improved touchscreen responsiveness, and the continued strength of BlackBerry’s core communication services. However, the virtual keyboard remained a persistent hurdle for many users accustomed to physical BlackBerry keyboards. The lack of the tactile feedback and the sheer typing speed offered by a physical keyboard was a trade-off that not all users were willing to make, especially when compared to the intuitive and fast typing experience offered by the iPhone’s virtual keyboard.

Furthermore, BlackBerry OS 5.0, while functional, lacked the app ecosystem and developer support that was rapidly growing on iOS and Android. BlackBerry App World was still in its infancy, and the selection of compelling third-party applications, games, and media content lagged behind its competitors. This limited the Storm2’s appeal to users who valued a rich app experience. The Storm2’s market reception was therefore mixed. It found a dedicated following among existing BlackBerry users who were willing to transition to a touchscreen device and among those who prioritized BlackBerry’s enterprise-grade security and communication features. However, it failed to make significant inroads into the broader consumer market, which was increasingly drawn to the touch-first, app-centric experiences offered by Apple and Google.

The legacy of the BlackBerry Storm2 is that of a transitional device. It was RIM’s determined effort to embrace the touchscreen revolution, a necessary pivot in the face of changing mobile trends. While it didn’t achieve blockbuster success, it laid crucial groundwork for future BlackBerry touch devices and demonstrated RIM’s commitment to innovation. It serves as a fascinating case study in the challenges of adapting a well-established, specialized user interface to a new paradigm, and highlights the importance of a robust app ecosystem in the modern smartphone landscape. For collectors and mobile technology historians, the Storm2 remains a significant artifact, representing a pivotal moment in the intense competition that shaped the early smartphone era.

Technical Specifications Summary:

• Display: 3.25-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen, 480 x 360 pixels, 65K colors
• Processor: Qualcomm MSM8650 Snapdragon, 528 MHz
• RAM: 256 MB
• ROM: 256 MB
• Storage: microSD card slot (expandable)
• Camera: 3.2 MP rear-facing with autofocus and LED flash, VGA video recording
• Connectivity:
  • GSM/GPRS/EDGE (900/1800/1900/2100 MHz)
  • UMTS/HSDPA (900/1700/2100 MHz – 9520) or CDMA EV-DO Rev. A (800/1900 MHz – 9550)
  • Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
  • Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, A2DP
  • GPS
• Operating System: BlackBerry OS 5.0
• Battery: Removable Li-Ion (specific capacity varied by model and region)
• Dimensions: Approx. 112.5 mm x 62.1 mm x 13.9 mm
• Weight: Approx. 160 g
• Ports: MicroUSB, 3.5mm headphone jack