Early Reviews of Blackberry Torch and New OS: “Old, Clunky, Uninspired”

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BlackBerry_Torch

Apple’s iPhone 4 is a smash hit and the latest Android handsets are getting rave reviews. Apple and Google are snapping at RIM’s heels, still the smartphone market leader. To counter the attacks, RIM has just released a new OS, Blackberry 6, and a new handset, the Blackberry Torch.

But early reviews of aren’t looking so good. The Torch touchscreen slider has a ridiculously low-res screen (360 × 480) and the software is described as “uninspired, old, clunky sometimes, and cluttered.” Ouch.

Boy Genius Report: “This is a stop gap device for current BlackBerry users… and that’s an issue. iPhone 4 or recent Android owners won’t be lusting after the 9800, and that’s never a good thing.”

Analyst Michael Gartenberg: “In [a] world where every vendor is working to up their game, raise the bar and drive new innovation in hardware and software, it felt RIM barely stepped up.”

Engadget: “… the OS overwhelms the hardware a little when it’s really cranking — for example, the phone basically locked up while it loaded Engadget in the new Webkit browser.”

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