Here’s a quick tip for you BlackBerry Storm users. If you’re experiencing screen lag or the selection on the main menu doesn’t follow your finger when you attempt to touch/select an icon - try reducing the number of icons on the screen to one (or less) full screen. In the illustration above, Howardforum user CanAm created a folder called “seldom used” to hold the icons that could be removed from the home screen. Judging from the happy replies of other forum users, this is one cool speed tip you should try on your Storm.

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My college roommate upgraded to a BlackBerry Storm on Monday. In light of the stinging review in today’s New York Times, I just had to pay him a visit for some hands on time with the new BlackBerry to see what all the fuss was about. As you know, the BlackBerry Storm is Research in Motion’s first try at a touch screen device. I didn’t work with it long enough to tell if there are stability issues. Speed seemed adequate, if a little laggy in places, but I still think there’s one big missing feature that hardly anyone has talked about.

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Have you read this BlackBerry Storm review that’s just out from the New York Times? If you’re thinking of getting a BlackBerry Storm, you may want to head over and take a look. I’m still trying to find one nice thing they say about it. Very seldom do you read a review this negative about a device. Here’s a brief excerpt that captures the tone of the entire article:

Honestly, though, you’ll probably never get that far. When you look at your typing, slow and typo-ridden, and you consider the dents you’ve made banging your head against the wall, you’ll be grateful that Verizon offers a 30-day return period.

How did this thing ever reach the market? Didn’t anyone at RIM actually try it? Or was everyone involved just too terrified to pull the emergency brake on this train?

Maybe RIM is just overextended. After all, it has just introduced three major new phones — Flip, Bold, Storm — in two months, each with a different software edition. Some quality-control problems are bound to result; the iPhone 3G went through something similar.

The company says that it’s hard at work on a bug-fix software update. Until then, maybe Storm isn’t such a bad name for this phone. After all—it’s dark, sodden and unpredictable.

NYTIMES - BlackBerry Storm Downgraded to a Depression

If you didn’t get a BlackBerry Storm yesterday, here’s your second chance. Amazon has this device for $149 without any need to file a rebate. If you’re looking to buy a new line of service on Verizon - and you have your heart set on a touch screen BlackBerry - Amazon is the easiest (and one of the cheapest) to buy from. Head on over quickly before they sell out (But I still recommend you read up on this device at HowardForums where people who paid for the device are hard at work giving some candid feedback).

BlackBerry Storm - $149 via BlackBerry News

Did you just buy a BlackBerry Storm today? Check out this drop in charger which retails for $49 on the official BlackBerry site. It will charge and sync your BlackBerry Storm while it’s inserted sideways so you can watch Videos! The sync pod does not include the charging cable (use the one that came with your Storm). While you’re at it, you’ll have to provide your own Storm too. MSG Digital has the Pod at $20 off retail via the link below.

BlackBerry Storm Sync Pod - $29.99

The BlackBerry Storm’s due out tomorrow (11/21) and multiple web sites weigh in with their reviews of the new touch screen device from BlackBerry. Tough to say how well this device will sell. If you’re an email only user - I still think the Bold is your best bet (full keyboard). If you’re looking to use applications on your Smartphone - do yourself a favor and find someone with a BlackBerry and someone with an iPhone - then compare the applications available. Specifically if you’re on FaceBook you really should look at their application for iPhone (awesome) and compare it to what’s available on BlackBerry (the 1980’s called - they want their program back). Use Twitter?, compare what’s available on BlackBerry (one program to the best of my knowledge - Twitterberry) vs iPhone. Here’s a rundown of reviews that I spotted this morning. PS - There’s no Wi-Fi on this at (according to reviews) Verizon’s insistence.

BoyGenius Report - Verizon BlackBerry Storm review
Wired - RIM’s First Touchscreen Device Almost Eclipses the iPhone
ZDNET - Hands On: The BlackBerry Storm
JkOnTheRun - BlackBerry Storm, yes it can cut and paste (includes video)
CrunchGear - Review: BlackBerry Storm for Verizon Wireless
Phonescoop: BlackBerry Storm

Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal is out with his feature shootout review of the BlackBerry Storm. He makes sure we know (the first 11 paragraphs focus on or mention the keyboard) that this BlackBerry is different because it has a touch screen. Oddities that I spot in the review. Well for one I didn’t know you had to use the awful SureType in portrait mode and the full keyboard only comes on during landscape use (yuk!). Second Walt points out the device has 9 GB of RAM - (I believe he means 1 GB on the device and an 8GB MicroSD included). Walt finds the lack of Wi-Fi a glaring omission and claims his tests showed that the Storm was faster than iPhone by about 180k (800k for iPhone vs 621k download speed for Storm). Actually Walt’s review reads more like a feature shootout between the Verizon Storm and the iPhone. No comparison of applications and one sentence on the Storm’s multimedia capabilities.

WSJ - BlackBerry Storm Review

The BlackBerry Storm has just made a cameo appearance on the official Verizon web site. If the site is accurate (and it may not yet be as much of the product description relates to the 8830 - so it’s possible this is going to be further updated - including the price) expect to pay:

$ 219 - 2 Year contract
$ 289 - 1 Year contract
$ 519 - No contract

No word on the formal release date for this device, though a few folks are actively meeting with Verizon representative who are showing off the first keyboardless BlackBerry and claiming a September 23 release date. Given the history with RIM and release dates it’s anyones guess when this actually appears.

Verizon via BGR

The Blackberry Storm, due any day now at a TBD price, gets a little more official with this PDF manual. Speculation about both pricing and release date is reaching a fevered pitch. The device is known to be launching on Verizon. The exact timing and price are up in the air, with an expected release of around Thanksgiving and after rebate pricing guesses ranging from free (unlikely) to $399 (my guess). You can download all 249 pages and have a peek yourself at the functionality inside Research in Motion’s first touch screen phone.

Blackberry Storm User Guide via Crackberry

I read with some interest this article from Gigaom about the unreleased Blackberry Storm. As you may know the Blackberry Storm is Research in Motion’s first ever touch screen Blackberry. It has been gathering some attention due to its lack of physical keypad and the use of haptic touch (meaning the screen moves when you push it). This phone however has not been released, has no price and no Wi-Fi. According to the article below, this phone is going to be both an iPhone and G-1 killer due to the willingness of Enterprise customers to embrace the phone (at whatever price Verizon decides to slap on it) and the fact that an app store (and some apps) will be coming real soon now. (insert eye roll here). Will this kill the iPhone and G-1? (The G-1 by the way is open source and backed by Google which probably has enough money to buy RIM several times over). Interesting article.

Why Blackberry Storm is An iPhone (and G-1) Killer