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I have to start by admitting that I’m biased toward BlackBerry devices.  They call my name in the middle of the night, I’m sure it has something to do with the bright blinking light.  No, but seriously, I like BlackBerry for business purposes and I also like that all my Google uses come with apps for the BlackBerry so I don’t have to load the weak web browser.

Before I get on about how I can’t wait for the next Verizon BlackBerry, let me first say that the Storm is everything anyone could want in a latest and greatest gadgetry device.  It feels solid in the hand, it has a large screen without feeling terribly bulky in the pocket, it sports a semi-super fast network connection, and it’s loaded with a bunch of apps for you to tinker with when it’s new or you’re bored.

Which brings me to what I really want to write about, and that’s the shortcomings of the Storm.  BlackBerry, and who knows why, insists on under powering their handhelds with slower than needed processors.  I consistently feel as though I’m waiting for the phone to catch up to whatever it is I’m trying to do.  (Perhaps we’re just too spoiled with desktops that do more by 6AM than the rest of us do all day.)  I wouldn’t expect it to be quick like a computer if it wasn’t trying so hard to act like my computer, what with its email, web browsing, and video games.  Really, must it do everything?

Lag time is my biggest gripe, but I’m also disappointed with how heavy it is.  Feels like I’ve got a pocket full of flat rocks that I’m walking around town with.  (My Curve 8310 is light as a feather by comparison.)

It’s not that I’m unhappy with the SureType so much as I’m not that interested in touch screens.  While I like that it makes for a larger viewable area, I’m usually bothered with the typing inaccuracies.  Practice has lowered my error count, but still is more time needed to send a message than when using a tactile keyboard like the Curve or the Bold.

Long story short, if you need a new BlackBerry with a 3G connection and are stuck with Verizon then go for the Storm, else, if you can handle the torture of waiting for the next, hold out for the Niagra from BlackBerry which should be out by the 3rd quarter this year.  And if you really have it in you to calm your wants, wait till the 4G networks are unloaded on the market and get your new phone next year.

In the meanwhile, this is Justin saying, “write to me if you must, but please don’t call me.”

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It was right around the end of October in 2008 when I started telling anyone who would listen that we were roughly a year away from having enough mobile bandwidth and hardware to sustain mobile-to-mobile video calls.  (Actually being able to see the person you’re talking to while you’re walking through town on opposite ends of the US.)  Now rumors are traveling the Internet that Apple could possibly be the first to offer such a thing.  who knows what the other big players have in the works.  It definitely creates a new demand for a full screen mobile phone, like the iPhone or Storm.

It’s not anything I could see myself using, at least not initially, but I definitely want to see this feature/service go mainstream.  Too cool for school, that’s what I say.

This morning, AT&T announced that it will buy Waypoint, Inc . to the tune of $275 million (all cash, baby) thereby expanding AT&T’s network of free WiFi hot spots across the US.  A response to the increased number of WiFi enabled smart phones hitting the market and the continued cost burden to the 3G network, which is losing AT&T money

AT&T’s 3G network has been hit hard with loads of people using iPhones, Blackberries, and other smart phones for data and voice, as opposed to just voice.  This inundation of data use (to browse Facebook, check email, Twitter, or upload photos and stream video) has forced AT&T to realize the value of opening a free WiFi networked infrastructure.  AT&T customers carrying a WiFi enabled hand held can jump onto one of AT&T’s hot spots, which they just expanded by 10,000 locations by agreeing to purchase Waypoint, Inc., and surf the web at WiFi speeds which are much faster than 3G speeds.  Hopefully, this will reduce the burden to the 3G network and save AT&T some money.

The major hindrance being that WiFi has a relatively limited range, so unless you’re sitting in the coffee house, at the McDonald’s, or near enough to any of the other now 20,000 US locations, you’re probably not going to offload too much of the 3G burden.  Although, maybe a little less burden is just enough to keep 3G working for now.  At least until 4G comes along.

The added Waypoint locations also benefit AT&T’s DSL subscribers, who can use their WiFi enabled laptops at any of these hot spots.