Buy Blackberry Storm 9500 Unlocked Phone with 3.15 Mega pixel Camera (Black) Low Price Now
Blackberry Storm 9500 Unlocked Phone Reviews
Blackberry storm 9500; Quad band; 3.15 Mega pixel Camera; Bluetooth; Full Touch screen; SurePress Screen; 528mhz processor; 1 gig internal storage; 3.5mm stard audio jack; Document editor; Mp4 Player; MP3 player; GPS; Voice Dial; No US Warranty; Hot Swap; 3.25" 65k color displayFeatures : Blackberry Storm 9500 Unlocked Phone
- Camera (3.2 MP)
- Video recording
- BlackBerry Maps
- Built-in GPS
- 3.5mm Stereo headset capable
Customer Reviews
update: much better since 5.0 operating system released in Oct 2009
An update to the updates below.
#4 Desktop Manager 5.0.1.28 works well with Outlook 2007 on Windows 7.
In January 2010, I bought a new computer with Windows 7. I got a great deal on Microsoft Office 2007, so I installed the new Office. Well, that combination didn't work so well with my ol' reliable BlackBerry Desktop Manager 4.2.2.14. I decided to upgrade to the latest version of BlackBerry Desktop Manager (something I said I would never do). It all works very well together. I was previously running Windows XP and Office 2000.
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This is a Dec 2009 update to my April 2009 review of the Storm 1 (this is not a review of the Storm 2). The numbers refer to my April 2009 criticisms (below the dotted line).
#1 The Storm 1 was greatly improved when BlackBerry released the 5.0 operating system. Now I'd have to give the Storm 4 out of 5 stars.
#1B Those sub-second connections to internet pages that they show in the commercials... are still a big fat lie! To call the connection "broadband" is a complete deception perpetrated by Verizon. This is approximately dialup speed minus the wheezing and hissing of a modem. That said, I absolutely love that I can connect to the internet almost anytime/anyplace.
#2 To mitigate the fat-fingering problems I was having with the full QWERTY keyboard in landscape mode, I have been using the SureType keyboard in portrait mode. It's a QWERTY keyboard in 3 rows x 5 columns. What makes it quick and effective is that the Storm starts suggesting words to select after typing in a few letters of the word. I can single-thumb or double-thumb most everything now. To change the keyboard default to SureType, in the options (the wrench icon), choose Screen/Keyboard, then change the Portrait View Keyboard to SureType.
#3 hasn't changed. In April, I forgot to mention that in order to get turn by turn spoken directions, you have to pay Verizon a $10 ransom per month or buy software from Garmin for $100. You can use BlackBerry Maps or Google Maps for free, but it doesn't talk to you.
#4 Synchronization works well with Desktop Manager 4.2.2.14 (released April 26, 2007). It doesn't have the niceties that the current release has, but it actually works, unlike more recent releases. On several occasions, I spent an entire DAY upgrading to "the latest and greatest" only to have to uninstall it and then install 4.2 again. This happened more than once on the advice of Verizon technicians who don't know nearly as much as the RIM techs. I will be using Desktop Manager 4.2 until the day this phone dies. Fool me once, shame on Verizon. Fool me twice (and then a third time), shame on me. There will be no fourth time.
#5 phrase selection has been vastly improved, but still isn't great. It would be really helpful if double-clicking would highlight a word. And apparently BlackBerry is completely unfamiliar with the concept of "undo". If you delete some text, well that's just too bad. You can "discard" all the changes you've made since last saving or you can retype what you just blasted, if you can remember what it was.
#6 I hope BlackBerry changed the location of the micro-SD card for the Storm 2, because its placement on the Storm 1 was just plain stupid. You remember that board game "Operation" by Milton Bradley? It's like that. "Take out memory card." Bzzzzz!
#7 still a problem but they've made a half-hearted attempt of making the number pad easier to get to. If they made the number pad smaller and put the function buttons all in one smaller row, that way everything is available on one screen, it would be truly appreciated.
#8 there's only one pre-set choice for a "snooze". Honestly RIM, this is inexcusable. Do something about this!
#9 Actually voice recognition for contacts is quite easy to use. The button on the left of the phone is set up to do this as a default. Speak the name and choose from a few possibilities.
#10 The "can you hear me now?" geek from Verizon still has not been to my house to improve coverage at my place of residence. I am moving soon and if the coverage sucks at that house too, I will be shelling over another $250 to Verizon to fill in the gap in their network. Hey Verizon, can you hear this? [I'm making a gesture.] But in Verizon's (or "VZ" to be cool because apparently teenagers can't spell anything these days, nor be bothered to call something by its given name if it is greater than 3 letters long)... [Where was I? Oh, yeah.] In Verizon's defense, their network beats AT&T's coverage hands down; people who have the i-Phone constantly complain that they can't make calls and calls are dropped.
One more thing, I've discovered that the Storm makes a very handy flashlight. No, I'm not joking. If you open the Video Camera application, the LED light (the flash) on the back of the phone comes on and stays on. It is bright!
In summary, if the devil is in the details, this device is now a little mischievous. Theoretically, this is still the best phone available, except perhaps for the Storm 2 (which I assume is better than Storm 1). I no longer wish I still had that old, big, clunky, reliable and easy-to-use, brick-sized HP IPAQ.
-------- original review from April 2009 -----------------------------
If this phone worked the way it was supposed to, there would be no reason to even consider any other phone. It has everything: phone, PDA, 3G web browser, multi-media player, sleek look, a 16GB expansion card (comes with an 8GB card), 3.2 mega-pixel camera WITH A FLASH, voice dialing, a big hi-res screen, email that gets pushed to your Storm, so you don't have to log on to check your mail!!
Then why am I already wishing I had returned it during the grace period? I had an HP IPAQ H6315 for 4 years which was way better than this, but it didn't have all the bells and whistles, so I got the Storm.
#1 it's painfully slow. Those sub-second connections to internet pages that they show in the commercials... in your dreams!! Even opening and closing applications makes me want to slap it upside the head to get its attention.
#2 the on-screen QWERTY keypad is difficult to use for anyone with adult-size thumbs. I am constantly fat-fingering letters.
#3 Although it does have a GPS antenna built into it, it relies on the data network to show you the map and give you directions. No reception, no map. Again, it's painfully slow.
#4 Synchronization has been a problem since I got the phone 8 weeks ago. I wrote many, many notes to myself over the weekend while at a conference. This morning when I synchronized with my pc, they all disappeared.
#5 Editing on the Storm is nearly impossible. I still haven't figured out how to highlight words (double-click doesn't work, nor does click and drag)
#6 In all their wisdom, Blackberry made the micro-SD nearly inaccessible. Most devices that use cards have them on the side, so you can swap them in and out without a big fuss. Oh no, not Blackberry, they put it deep inside this device. Brilliant.
#7 When you talk on the phone, your cheak will press buttons. RIM also thought it would be a good idea to hide the number pad after the call connects. Who wants to use the number pad during a call anyway??
#8 When you get a reminder, there's only one pre-set choice for a "snooze". If you want it to remind you an hour from now, sorry, you'll have to open the calendar item or task. It will take you about 40 seconds to do so because of #1 and #2.
#9 Forget about scrolling through your contacts or tasks. That would take you forever. You have to know what you're looking for and type in a few letters. Now see #2. Although in its defense, it does have voice recognition for contacts. Of course I haven't had time to set this up yet (see #4).
#10 And that "can you hear me now?" geek from Verizon has apparently never been to my house. Although Verizon does have a device that essentially creates a mini cell tower in your house and then connects to Verizon through your hi-speed modem... for $250!!
In summary, if the devil is in the details, this device must be evil. From a detailed analysis of everything out there, this was the best phone available, because HP still had not put out a similar product. I wish I had that old, big, clunky, reliable and easy-to-use, brick-sized IPAQ back. When HP does put out an IPAQ with these features, I will absolutely buy it.
(I bought this phone from Verizon, not from Amazon.)
Almost Perfect...
I've now come to the conclusion that everybody who wrote reviews on the phone spent about five minutes with the device. Part of me doesn't blame them. If I reviewed electronics for a living, I wouldn't want to spend several days really testing the phone. However, with a cell phone as radically different as the Storm, it is unfair to make these judgments on the keyboard, etc. in haste.
Simply put, the phone is very good. It isn't as breathtaking as I wanted it to be, however it is not nearly as disappointing as many critics want you to think (**cough** New York Times, excuse me). The keyboard is getting easier and easier to use as time goes by. If RIM put a tracker ball at the bottom of the phone where it is on all the other units, then this would in fact be, an iPhone killer. When I look at the phone, there is definitely room for that magical RIM trackball...(can you say Storm2?)
Starting from the top. The phone feels solidly built. It has a good weight to it and feels durable. My only fear is that my propensity for dropping phones will be disastrous for the glass click screen. I'm having bad thoughts about not being able to do anything with the phone because the click activator ceases to work or I'll scratch up that beautiful screen. Three times in the last seven years or so I've had the misfortune of waking up from a night of drinking only to find giant cracks on the LCDs of my phones (can you say insurance? iPhone people can't, and that alone will FOREVER stop me from getting one). Seriously though, I really hope this thing is bomb proof. I have a silicon condom on it, which better keep it safe at night.
I was perplexed when I powered it on for the first time. The phone takes several minutes to reboot. This is a laptop, not a phone, right? Thankfully I only have to reset the phone every so often... Pretty is a good word to describe the design and graphics overall.
The click screen is a trip. It is definitely takes adjustment, but I really dig it. It definitely limits the speed of your typing because you must remain in line with the speed of "The Cadence of the Clicker" (this is the name of my next album). I say that because when you are really going at it, it can create a steady beat like a metronome. This just feels like one of the drawbacks to writing novels on any mobile device. All keyboards have a handicap, but I sincerely miss being able to press to multiple buttons at the almost exact time (as we are accustomed to on a computer keyboard). This system causes you to be a little more accurate because you can't barrel through your letters, so it may be a bonus after all. I also like the SureType keyboard in portrait mode. It uses the predictive text heavily, and it is a great fast type option with one thumb. This mode suffers most from the click limiter because the surface area is far too tight for dual finger typing as tempting as it is.
One of my friends voiced his displeasure with the auto correct function on the text. I find it useful. Just remember if it auto corrects something and you don't like it, immediately hit the DELETE button, and it will revert to your perverted word or innocent typo. His changed the word "f*&^ing" into "ducking." The best way around this is to add these words that you use when frustrated or talking dirty to your lover into the Dictionary. To do so, go to the HOME screen, then choose: OPTIONS-CUSTOM DICTIONARY. Now hit the BlackBerry button and select NEW.
I've also heard that the VZNavigator and Visual Voicemail programs should be removed to speed up the performance of the phone. After all, who is going to pay $10 and $3/month for such frivolous features? What I was jazzed to see is that Google Maps' triangulation feature was not disabled here as it was on my i760 and Treo. This means that it will show your approximate location on the map for free. It is a nice feature to get you partially orientated at no cost (just keep in mind it is using cell towers to locate you, so you must have service for it to work, which is not the case with true GPS/VZNav).
The media player is good. It is not an iPod, but it has a great search feature, and is intuitively laid out. The resolution on the screen is better than the iPhone and video looks GREAT. The included headphones sound great and the speakerphone gets extremely loud, however it is very tinny sounding and has an over modulated feel when at high volumes.
The icing on the cake is that I am not utilizing the BlackBerry Corporate server, therefore, I do not have to pay for BlackBerry data access. I am now paying only $29.99 for data where I was paying $44.99 on my Samsung for the exact same unlimited data/email service. With this savings, my Storm will pay for itself in 14 months of service!
The device lock is good. You can either hit the button on the top left of the phone, or you can use the "Lock" button in your home menu. I'm peeved at how the Mute/un-Mute button still functions while the device is locked. I've had the phone suddenly start playing "Rise Against" over the speakerphone (which can get pretty damn loud) at times that I wished it hadn't. I understand that it is to let you control your music without unlocking the device, however I always saw locking as the way to prevent your phone from doing strange things in the privacy of your pocket/holster without your permission. FIX: just lower your media playback volume all the way to silent.
The ringer alerts are one of the best features on the phone. I can't be happier in this department. This puts every phone I've ever seen to shame (I don't know if all BBs do this, this is my first). You can select from a plethora of options including: Normal, Loud, Medium, Vibrate Only, Silent, All Alerts Off, and my personal favorite Phone Calls Only (all with the touch of a button). I'm used to an all or nothing world, or having to go into individual menus and make these decisions (time consuming/annoying? Yes). Furthermore, the alarm will sound in any mode other than All Alerts Off.
Where the Storm crushes the iPhone is in the folder organization possibilities on the home page. Where the iPhone only allows you to move your applications around, the Storm lets you create folders to keep everything organized as if it were a computer desktop. I absolutely love this ability because I'm very big at keeping things `tidy.'
I'm also a fan of how the screen fades down instead of cutting out when it is time to turn off. This is great because it reminds you that you have to do something to the device if you don't want the image to go away completely.
Some tips:
To get IMAP to work with GMAIL, follow the instructions here: http://forums.crackberry.com/f86/storm-gmail-imap-99071/
Don't waste your time like I did, just go directly to this website as per the forums instructions: https://bis.na.blackberry.com/html?brand=vzw
I was concerned that there was a charge to using this service (because I'm not utilizing Verizon's BlackBerry email service), but there isn't.
To copy and paste, you simply hold down one finger where you want to start, and then drag along with another to where you want it to end.
When entering text, if you spell something so terribly wrong that its suggestions aren't helpful, then the best thing to do is just delete the entire word. This is frustrating. It doesn't allow you to fix your mistake because when you click on a part of the word it makes you chose from the suggested list. I wish there were a way around this. Nevertheless, if you just give up, then you can move on without losing any more hair.
I can't properly sync my phone with my Mac given the software they include and the USB cable. However, thanks to Google's amazing Sync application, I do all of my syncing wirelessly as often as I wish. YOU MUST DOWNLOAD THIS PROGRAM!
5-Stars...but be careful when buying to check a few things!
All in all I am VERY satisfied with this phone! I have not found it to be slow at all. In fact in a side by side test, it loads web pages and apps much faster than my daughters iPhone. Also, I have not had any of the syncing issues described in other reviews (although I'm using a PC, not an Apple).
Some have said they don't care for the clickable screen. I REALLY like it! Although my fingers aren't huge they arn't tiny either and the QWERTY keyboard works for me just fine (although I'd definitly recommend landscape mode when typing). I have noticed that the more you use the typing feature the more you get a "feel" for typing on the virtual keyboard.
My only issue with this phone was getting a well built unit. The first phone I bought had some kind of contaminant under the glass of the screen. Phone#2 had a bad mic, Phone#3 had a problem "clicking" on one edge of the screen. I'm on phone#4 currently and I think this one is a winner (knock wood). I will say that Verizon switched out the phone each time, no questions asked and sincerely wanted me to be happy with my purchase.
Minor complaints (not strong enough to deduct a Star):
1. Music data (album name, artist, etc...) should be editable on the device, instead of just on windows before you transfer the song over.
2. The data displayed while a song is playing does not appear to be configurable.
3. Hoping for a 32gb SD card option although 16mb is probably fine.
4. Agree with the previous review re:placement of the sd card. It would have made more sense to put it on the outside somewhere to make it easier to swap out.
Overall, I would highly recommend this phone and would advise that one just be picky to make sure your phone doesn't have any functional issues.
Buy Blackberry Storm 9500 Unlocked Phone with 3.15 Mega pixel Camera (Black) Low Price Now
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