Blackberry Torch Enters Into The Smartphone War

In the continuing war for smart phone supremacy, Research in Motion (RIM) has unveiled its newest iPhone and Android rival, the Blackberry Torch. A hybrid of their Storm and Bold models, this is the first BlackBerry that features both a touch screen and their signature QWERTY keyboard. As the first Blackberry model to be powered by the new OS 6.0, the phone is expected to be a strong offering in the fiercely competitive smart phone market.

So what are the key features offered by the new RIM release?

Slider Design

The Torch has a slide-out keyboard which looks identical to the keyboards found on previous BlackBerry models. For those who take interest in specific measurements the Torch comes in at 4.4 by 2.4 by 0.6-inches thick. The touch screen display measures 3.2-inch 360-by-480 and comes equipped with multi-touch for zooming in and out.

Camera

RIM has also provided a much needed upgrade to the camera which is now 5-megapixels and features a flash as well as autofocus, face detection, image stabilization and geo-tagging.

Upgrade to BlackBerry 6 OS

By incorporating the new OS6 the Torch’s user interface gets a much needed facelift and offers crisper icons and visuals as well as a new home screen that offers a fully integrated universal search feature.

But perhaps the most exciting offering from the BlackBerry 6 OS is the WebKit browser. Webkit is the same technology behind Apple's browser on the iPhone's OS Safari and provides huge relief for existing Blackberry users who have had to navigate searches through the clunky and non-user friendly browser seen on previous Bold and Storm models.

Through the new OS, the BlackBerry Torch also offers a social networking feeds app that will deliver a combined status update from Facebook and Twitter as well as enabling you to chat with your friends via a selection of different messaging services like Google Talk and BlackBerry Messenger.

Is it any Good?

In a market that is dominated by Apples iOS4 and Google’s Android platform, RIM have produced a device that has helped close the gap between its main rivals but won’t propel them into market dominance, largely because it contains nothing that we haven’t seen before. While the new upgrades in the Torch may encourage existing Blackberry owners to upgrade, it has a long way to go before it can convince iPhone and Android fans to jump ship.