Observed on a technical level, the iPhone has seen little to no direct competition since its June launch last year. Many somewhat similarly-styled phones have been released, most notably by Samsung, Sony, and two different ones from LG. Even HTC and Google got into the mix more recently. While many of these products may have been solid phones in their own right, it’s almost as if people think the mere act of inviting a comparison to the iPhone is enough to doom a potential competitor’s device.
RIM and Verizon are hoping to change all that with the launch of the latest BlackBerry phone, known as the Storm. Preliminary impressions – such as this first look on CNET – have been less than ideal. What’s more, both RIM’s and Verizon’s marketing campaigns for the device have thusfar failed to acknowledge a certain elephant in the room, namely Apple’s recent revision to its already well-received product in the form of the 3G.
The Storm, with its identical price tag and strikingly familiar design, is clearly intended to take a bite out of Apple’s market share, but its progenitors seem to be a little uneasy with drawing direct comparisons. Combine that with the damage done to RIM’s reputation by its massive outage and explanation after the fact earlier this year, and the Storm’s course may have been prescribed before it’s left the gate.
A more hopeful outlook for RIM might include frequent releases of new software garnering favor with the consumer, although Apple seems to have embraced its reputation for highly-anticipated updates as yet another facet of its formidable publicity machine. Either way, it should be interesting to watch this latest battle unfold in the ongoing war of the fancy phones.
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