TORONTO (Reuters) – Research In Motion is planning a next-generation version of its touchscreen BlackBerry Storm smartphone as part of a continuing push into the retail market, its co-CEO said on Monday.

“We see this very large and untapped consumer market,” Jim Balsillie said during a presentation to analysts and investors, adding that more than half of RIM’s 25 million subscribers now fall into the non-corporate category.

Asked about whether the Storm — which debuted to mixed media reviews last year — has been a hit, Balsillie said “that product was a huge success in terms of sales and adoption.”

The Storm was seen by many analysts as RIM’s direct answer to Apple’s popular iPhone, which is also a touch-screen device.

Balsillie said Storm sales remain strong and added “we have next-generation devices with that and the whole roadmap.”

Success of individual handsets is crucial to RIM, especially as it pushes deeper into the retail market, where consumer tastes can be fickle. The potential market is huge. After all, every mobile phone user can theoretically be turned into a smartphone user. Retail is also a good way for RIM to diversify its user base.

The latest data shows RIM is doing well: market research firm NPD Group reported on Monday that the company’s BlackBerry Curve moved past the iPhone to become the best-selling consumer smartphone in the U.S. in the first quarter.

“There are many ways to address the consumer market and RIM … needs to go after consumers,” said Duncan Stewart, an analyst at DSAM Consulting in Toronto.

The company has stacked its product line-up with consumer friendly handsets like the Storm and the BlackBerry Pearl and loaded them up with multimedia features like photo management software and music players.

Stewart added he would be “stunned” if RIM chose not to build on the sales momentum of the Storm and roll out another touchscreen device.

At the same time, the Waterloo, Ontario-based company has been careful to remain faithful and responsive to the executives, politicians, lawyers and other professional clients who have been its mainstay.

This “enterprise” market — made up mostly of large corporations and government departments — also continues to grow, Balsillie said in his presentation.

BlackBerry coverage now extends to 475 wireless carriers and distribution partners in about 160 countries. The company grew its revenue in its last quarter by 84 percent to $3.46 billion.

Last month, RIM offered a rosy outlook that signaled further growth, despite the global economic slowdown. Analysts had previously said companies could cut their telecom budgets and consumers could tighten their purse strings amid the recession, which could spell slower sales for RIM.

This has failed to materialize as the company’s results last month topped analyst expectations.

RIM’s shares were up 3.2 percent at $74.62 on Nasdaq on Monday and ahead 2.6 percent at C$88.00 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

($1=$1.18 Canadian)

(Reporting by Wojtek Dabrowski; editing by Frank McGurty)

Here is the original report referenced in the link above.  http://blog.changewave.com/2008/12/apple_iphone_rim_blackberry.html#more

Free BlackBerry Storm Apps: Seven Essential Downloads
by Al Sacco

December 22, 2008 —
 
The weeks following the release of the Research In Motion’s first touch screen BlackBerry, the Storm, on November 21, were unfortunately filled with complaints from users, reviewers and critics alike regarding the extremely poor quality operating system that shipped with the device. And rightly so; RIM and Verizon Wireless rushed out buggy OS code that was simply not ready for prime time, in order to meet previously stated release dates.
However, behind the scenes, a variety of mobile software developers were studiously working those weeks away on new applications for the much-anticipated device. Now, less than a month later, Verizon has updated and improved the Storm OS, and many of those apps are starting to pop up on the Web. Best of all: Many of them are free.

Not all of the following applications were developed specifically for the Storm, but each and every one functions well on the device–with the exception of a few minor bugs. I’ve mentioned most of the apps in previous free BlackBerry software stories, but that was before the Storm landed and before anyone knew whether or not they’d work on RIM’s first touch BlackBerry.

(Note: All of our recommended applications were downloaded and tested using a Verizon Wireless BlackBerry Storm 9530 running OS 4.7.0.75, the latest official Verizon release.)

WeatherBug for BlackBerry Storm: Makin’ it Rain

One of my personal favorite free BlackBerry applications, WeatherBug is a unique and valuable mobile weather app. The software creates a dynamic icon on your BlackBerry home screen that updates itself according to your local weather conditions–or the weather conditions in a pre-specified locale. For instance, when it’s partially cloudy, your WeatherBug icon displays an image of the sun with a cloud eclipsing it, as well as the current temperature and the day’s predicted high and low. And when the weather changes, the icon is automatically modified accordingly.

The software pulls its information from the company’s WeatherBug Network, which it claims is the largest, most technologically advanced weather system in the world, at more than five times the size of even the U.S. National Weather Service.

WeatherBug is available for a variety of BlackBerry devices, but the Storm specific-version is different in that you can employ touch-based gestures for navigation. And the app utilizes the Storm’s built-in accelerometer to determine the device’s orientation–portrait (vertical) or landscape (horizontal)–and customize the display accordingly.

Additional WeatherBug features include the ability to view a weather summary for the current day, with metrics like dew point, wind chill/heat index and humidity levels; seven day forecasts; maps with numerous overlays including current temperature and precipitation; and local weather alerts.

WeatherBug for the BlackBerry Storm is available for free over-the-air (OTA) download via the BlackBerry browser.

[ FREE CIO BlackBerry Newsletter Get better use out of your BlackBerry and keep up-to-date on the latest developments. Sign-up » ]

Viigo for BlackBerry Storm: The Ultimate Lifestyle App

I’ve mentioned Viigo many times on my blog and in various mobile tips and tricks articles, for good reason: The application is by far my favorite mobile RSS reader.

I won’t get into too much detail about that software–there’s plenty of information on Viigo available in those other stories–but Viigo is much more than just a simple RSS reader. For example Viigo provides a variety of weather information; sports schedules, live scores and standings; stocks and finance data; flights and travel updates; and much more.

And the Storm-specific version of Viigo–though still in alpha testing stages and a bit buggy–takes advantage of a number of the device’s unique features to improve an already impressive user experience. Storm users can scroll through stories in an RSS feed by simply swiping a finger across the screen to the left for newer stories and to the right for older ones. And the app works with the Storm accelerometer, so you can switch back and forth between portrait and landscape modes.

The most notable bug that I spotted was fact that you consistently need to tap the BlackBerry Escape key twice to return to previous screens–after hitting it only once, the screen often freezes midway through the transition between pages.

Surf on over to GetViigo.com using your Storm’s BlackBerry browser for a free download.

Facebook for BlackBerry Storm: Mobile Social Networking Done Right

One of the few apps officially available through Verizon’s on-device BlackBerry Application Center, Facebook for BlackBerry is also one of the most popular.

That’s because it brings most of the social networking site’s basic functionality directly into the palm of your hand. Though not as robust as the real Facebook site–you can’t access groups, for example–the mobile application displays your home screen notifications, such as status updates, and you can “poke” or message friends and write on their “Walls.” Lists of friends and their status updates are also available with a single click from the mobile home screen. Photo uploading and sharing is as simple as snapping an image with your smartphone’s camera and uploading it to the site from the application’s home screen.

The Storm-specific version of Facebook for BlackBerry, though not exactly feature-rich, runs seamlessly on the device. It incorporates the Storm accelerometer to let users employ both portrait and landscape views. And uploading photos is significantly more interesting than with other BlackBerrys due to the Storm’s 3.2 megapixel digital camera–the highest quality camera of any RIM device.

Flickr for BlackBerry Storm: Strike a Pose

The Flickr Photo Uploader for BlackBerry is a free, yet truly valuable mobile photo uploading application that works in conjunction with Yahoo’s online photo storage and sharing service.

To upload images stored on your device or media card, just launch the app, locate the photos and tap an upload command. You can give photos custom names, choose privacy settings–Private, Friends, Family, etc.–and even select the size in which you want the image to appear. Within a minute or so, the photo will be available on your Flickr page.

The Storm-specific version of Flickr Photo Uploader for BlackBerry is exactly the same as the general BlackBerry app, except it utilizes the Storm’s accelerometer to let users pick between portrait and landscape orientations.

Flickr for BlackBerry is available for free on RIM’s website, as well as through Verizon’s on-device BlackBerry Application Center, and all you need is a Flickr account, which is also free.

TwitterBerry on the BlackBerry Storm: Reach Out and “Tweet” Somebody

At this point, if you’ve never heard of the social networking/microblogging service Twitter, you’d be wise to perform a quick Google search on the subject. Go ahead, I’ll wait.

TwitterBerry, a free, easy-to-use mobile application for BlackBerry, offers much of the same functionality as the standard, desktop Twitter. With a single click from the BlackBerry home screen, you can input Twitter updates.

Replies to status updates, as well as timelines of their latest posts and the last public posts, are available through the TwitterBerry menu, which is accessed via the BlackBerry menu key. You can even refresh timelines without ever leaving them and set your own custom TwitterBerry notifications.

While there’s no Storm-specific version of TwitterBerry quite yet, version 0.8–the latest official release–works well on RIM’s touch screen device. But since it’s not built for the Storm, the app does not work with the handset’s accelerometer, which means it’s only viewable in portrait mode.

Unfortunately, that means the default keyboard option is the dreaded SureType keyboard–though multitap format is also available. You also cannot hide the keypad, which takes up half of your total screen real estate.

You can download TwitterBerry OTA from Orangatame Software.

[ For more information on additional mobile Twitter applications, read "The Best (Free) Mobile Twitter Apps for BlackBerry, iPhone, Windows Mobile."
FREE CIO BlackBerry Newsletter Get better use out of your BlackBerry and keep up-to-date on the latest developments. Sign-up » ]

WorldMate Live: A Travel Maestro

The WorldMate Live service aims to simplify the lives of frequent travelers by automatically delivering a variety of valuable content and services to mobile devices. Free features include the My Itineraries function, which stores information on flights, hotels, meetings, public transportation and car rentals on BlackBerrys. The application also lets you export travel information from booking confirmation e-mails, corporate calendars and more, directly into WorldMate Live, and it automatically assembles your itineraries. You can even read hotel reviews from other WorldMate Live users and then book a residence directly from the application.

The “Clocks” feature provides the current time and weather for one set location, as well as the time differences in four additional cities of the your choice. The Weather function offers a five day forecast for any major city, and the currency converter quickly translates U.S. dollars into Euros or Japanese yen and back again.

Finally, a full color, searchable map of the world provides locations of cities as well as the date and time of day in each selected location.

The Storm-specific version of WorldMate Live is exactly like the general BlackBerry version, and it doesn’t use the Storm accelerometer so you can only view the application in landscape mode, for now.

Download WorldMate Live OTA for the BlackBerry Storm by visiting the company’s site via BlackBerry Browser.

You Can Never Have Too Many Browsers

The BlackBerry browser that ships along with BlackBerry OS 4.7 on the Storm works significantly better than previous versions of RIM’s Web surfing app. However, some of those earlier versions were so weak that I became accustomed to–and even fond of–Opera Software’s free Opera Mini browser.

So naturally, Opera Mini was one of the first BlackBerry apps I installed on the Storm. Unfortunately, though the latest version of the software, v4.2, works on the device, it’s not Storm-specific: therefore, some of the browser’s most basic functions don’t work as well as they should–or at all. For example, zooming in on pages using Opera Mini on a BlackBerry typically calls for a few clicks of the trackball. But the Storm is trackball-less and clicking the screen doesn’t zoom like you might expect.

The app does, however, work with the Storm’s accelerometer, so you can view pages in both portrait and landscape modes. But beware of switching orientation while a page is loading, as it could keep the page from rendering correctly. In fact, if you do change your screen orientation from portrait to landscape while loading a page, or vice versa, an on-screen dialogue box warns you that you may want to reload the page in the current orientation.

Like newer versions of the BlackBerry browser, Opera Mini gives you a tiny cursor that you can move around to any spot or link on a page, instead of having to scroll up and down to get to the links you want. Alternatively, you can also use a number of keypad shortcuts for navigation–however, this is a bit awkward since the Storm’s keyboard takes up valuable screen space.

Though not perfect for the Storm, Opera Mini’s a valid alternative to the default BlackBerry browser.

Download Opera Mini OTA via BlackBerry browser from Opera Software’s website.

CIO.com

One important item to point out is that the STORM is only available on the Verizon network.  It runs on the Verizon 3G network.

I bought the STORM (which comes with 1GB of on board memory, a battery, a SIM card, an 8GB microSD mem/media card, an AC power charger w/ international adapters, 3.5mm stereo headset, and a USB power/data cable), a car power adapter, a swivel belt clip, and a package of display protectors.  I had a $100 upgrade coming from V and they were offering a $50 rebate (in the form of a debit card) with the purchase, so I ultimately ended up paying $99 for the STORM.  I also purchased a couple of extra batteries (you will need two to get through a long day) on Amazon for approx. $11 each.

It took me a few hours during the weekend to get up to speed on the phone.  I loaded the BB software on my computer and easily transfered data from my MS Outlook (which I had also routinely synched with my old Samsung Pocket PC (Windows Mobile)) to the STORM.  I subscribed to and set up Visual Voice Mail, which has come in really handy and works well.  I set up the multiple Internet email accounts that I have with various providers — the setup was quick and easy, and the accounts have all worked great.  I subscribed to and set up VCAST Music / Rhapsody and VZ Navigator (more on this in another blog post soon) quickly and easily.  I also set up my various IM accounts.  One thing I wish I would have known was to start with the “Setup” button to set up basic settings, my Bluetooth headpiece, and my email accounts.  Everyone should definitely start with the “Setup” button.

Here are some of my initial findings.

1.  Widely criticized in reviews is the lack of Wi-Fi.  That is not a big deal to me though.  People typically have to pay for Wi-Fi (at least if you want something trustworthy), and the V 3G network is more widely available than WF hotspots.

2.  Also criticized in many reviews is the screen.  The two complaints are that the screen ”glass” has some play in it and that the tactile feedback is not well liked.  First, the play in the screen is very very slight and is unnoticeable if you are not looking for something to pick on.  I have not had any problems with the screen.  Second, I think the tactile feedback screen (SurePress) is awesome!  I love the “click screen”.  Men typically have problems on small touch screens on any device because men do not know whether or not their big fingers are selecting the correct key or other object on the screen.  Due to the tactile feedback, I have become quite fast on the STORM screen/keyboard with very few errors.

3.  Also criticized in some reviews was the speed at which the screen switches orientation from portrait view to landscape view and vice versa.  This is nit picky and presented by iPhone fans.  I believe that RIM intentionally slowed down the response time so that the screen would not bounce back and forth quickly while handling the phone like the iPhone does.  I have friends with iPhones who routinely complain about the screen switching orientation on them too quickly/often.  I think RIM should be able to give the user control of the sensitivity of the response to the accelerometer.

4.  The camera (3.2 megapixel) is good, but it is EXTREMELY slow.  If there is one thing I criticize about the STORM, it is the speed of the camera.  However, the camera and video recorder (which has two resolutions) work well.  Besides, I did not buy the STORM for the camera — I have a nice Canon for that.

5.  The STORM came with the following apps and utilities installed: Contacts, Calendar, Browser (full HTML and mobile versions), Media (for playing videos, music and voice notes and managing ring tones), Clock, Camera, Application Center, Instant Messaging, Applications (with Maps, Memo Pad, Tasks, Calculator, MS Word (To Go), MS Excel (To Go), MS PowerPoint (To Go), Video Camera, Voice Notes Recorder, Voice Dialing, Password Keeper, Saved Messages, Compose Messages, and Call Log), Games (BrickBreaker and Word Mole), Downloads, Setup, Help, Search, Music, Sounds, Manage Connections, Options, Lock, and Power Off.  I installed the Flickr and Facebook apps.  There are not nearly as many apps available for the STORM as for the iPhone, but Apple had a huge head start in this area.

6.  There were a few problems that I noticed the first two weeks I had the STORM before V released an upgrade (to version 4.7.0.75), but I only experienced each of them once or twice if at all.  Here are the ones I have experienced or heard about. 1. When selecting the “n” on the keypad, the camera turned on — even when trying to log on to the phone.  This bypassed the security.  I could only get this to happen twice out of a few hundred times using the STORM, but once was too much.  2. The STORM locked up on me once.  3. The STORM processed slowly many times.  However, when I upgraded the phone, the problems were all fixed.  I had a problem with the upgrade though.  The download went fine, but when I tried to upgrade, I received a message stating that I needed 1.5MB free to upgrade.  I checked and found that I only had 1.4MB free.  I was a bit shocked.  I proceeded to uninstall the Flickr and Facebook apps to free up memory and ended up with approx. 20MB free.  I then upgraded, and it went fine.  I re-installed Flickr and Facebook, and I was left with 19.3MB free (compared to the 1.4MB free prior to the upgrade — hmmm…).  I also currently have approx 879.2MB total device memory of which 872.9MB is free, and I have an 8GB mem/media card with 7.3GB free space.  The phone is capable of a 16GB mem/media card, but they are not available yet.

7.  Here are some other issues/items resulting from the upgrade.  1.  The keyboard options changed.  Prior to the upgrade, on some screens the keyboard could not be toggled between Multitap and SureType.  This was really frustrating on some screens because SureType was the only keyboard you could use, but it was not the best keyboard option.  Also, the SureType keyboard layout changed to make it easier to use.  2.  The STORM processed faster.  3.  The switching speed between screen orientations was faster but not to the point where it bounces back and forth like the iPhone.

Some things to note about the phone that are not advertised but are helpful to know if thinking about buying.

1.  Volume — The volume is adjustable whether the phone is locked or not.  The high volume level for normal listening and for the speakerphone is louder than on many phones.

2.  Emergency Calls — Emergency calls can be made even if the STORM is locked.

3.  Security Options — The STORM has extensive security features and settings.

4.  Keyboard Layouts — The STORM has three keyboard layouts.  In portrait view, depending on the screen the keyboard can be switched between SureType and Multitap.  In landscape view, depending on the screen/app the keyboard can be switched between a one letter per key kayboard, SureType, and Multitap. 

5.  CDMA and GSM – The STORM is capable of CDMA and GSM, making the STORM a truly global phone.  The GSM SIM card is located under the back cover of the phone.

6.  Rechargeable and Removable Battery — The STORM uses a rechargeable and easily removable battery — the iPhone does not.

7.  Auto On/Off — The STORM can be set up to turn on and off at specific times during the week and weekend.

8.  Voice Dialing — The STORM is capable of voice dialing.

9.  Stereo Sound — The STORM plays music and other sounds in stereo — the iPhone does not.  Bluetooth is in stereo also.

10.  GPS — The STORM has a built in GPS unit which works very well.

11.  Multi-tasking — The STORM is capable of running more than one app at a time — the iPhone is not.

12.  3G Modem — The STORM can be used as a tethered modem via USB or untethered via Bluetooth (DUN) — the iPhone cannot.