Blackberry Storm

In late November, I upgraded my "Zak Morris"-esque Blackberry 7130e to the new Blackberry Storm. Personally, I think the only thing not to like about this phone is the touchscreen keyboard (which is far superior to the iPhone keyboard if you ask me). At this point, I have learned how to use it pretty well and love everything else about the phone. The upgraded Blackberry OS is amazing!

Here are some key features that make this phone pretty amazing.

Application Store
Well, there is nothing great about it now, but Apple led the way, so if RIM can make their store 1/10th of what Apple's is, it will be a huge hit.

GPS
I do not pay for the Verizon VZNavigator stuff, but Verizon has unlocked the GPS for use with other applications on the phone. As of right now, it works with the included Blackberry Maps and also with the camera (geotagging photos is pretty hot stuff if you ask me). It does not yet work with Google Maps, but I am sure it will in the future. Google is too good to let that pass.

Camera
3.2MP, motion stabilization, intelligent flash, auto-focus and did I mention geotagging? I am in no way a photographer, but for snapping a couple of photos to commemorate a stop at the "Howling Cactus" during a random road trip through rural New Mexico... it is a masterpiece. You can also upload the photos to Flickr or Facebook with just a few clicks.

VyMail
I'd be happy to pay the $3/month to Verizon for Visual Voicemail if there was not already a much better, free alternative. I already used YouMail for all of my voicemail because it sent MP3s to my email that I could archive, forward, etc... It was just somewhat inconvenient to listen to it on the phone. Well, thanks to Joe Krill for putting together this amazing app.

WeatherBug
Not only is this a great app to give you weather information right on your phone... it also gives you the current temperature and weather as a part of the icon on the home screen. On top of that, it uses the built in GPS and changes the city accordingly if you are traveling. Pretty amazing, especially for free software!

Or course this phone is not without its problems.
The accelerometer is just too slow, period. Verizon has already released one firmware update that has helped, but it is still a problem. Also, there is an unofficial firmware available that is supposed to help even more, but I have no given it a shot just yet. I have faith that Verizon will fix this.

The image associated with a contact is just too small when shown on incoming calls.

And finally, answering a call can be just a little flakey.

I am very hopeful that all of this will get fixed, in short order too, but at this point I definitely think the pros far outweigh the cons for me.