Research In Motion’s new BlackBerry Torch 9800 smartphone, unveiled on 3 August, sports both a touchscreen and keypad to give users the best of both worlds. But the question is, can this phone pinch people away from the iPhone and Android products?
No, said analysts in a Reuters report. Despite the several new features, the Torch isn’t “leap forward”, according to an NPD analyst.
“RIM is playing catch-up. This is clearly the upgrade for BlackBerry users, but otherwise not a lot here is super exciting,” Altimeter analyst Michael Gartenberg told Reuters.
To underscore RIM’s intent on competing with Apple’s offering, the Torch will be launched on 12 August with AT&T, sole carrier of the iPhone. Even the prices of both phones are almost the same—about US$199 with a two-year contract.
The BlackBerry Torch will also ship with a new operating system, BlackBerry 6. Features of the new OS include expanded messaging capabilities and an enhanced multimedia experience. The BlackBerry 6 browser has also been upgraded to render HTML quicker and easier.
Perhaps more exciting is the new app downloading process in the new OS. The BlackBerry Torch is the first BlackBerry to include the App World pre-installed, with carrier support through AT&T to make it easier for customers to purchase and install apps.
And if RIM is serious about stopping Apple’s and Google’s rise to the top of the smartphone heap, the Canadian company has got to enlist the support of third-party developers.
“Developers want to go where the consumers are and consumers want to go where the developers are. RIM is going to have to tell a very compelling story to attract the first batch of developers,” Nick Agostino at Mackie Research Capital was cited as saying in the Reuters report.
So whether or not the Torch is bright enough to attract enough users to it depends less on its features and hardware but more on its ability to get developers cracking. Good news is, RIM has still majority of the US smartphone market share. They just need to crank it up a bit to get rid of those pesky Androids and iPhones.
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