BlackBerry Thunder first-ever live pics unearthed

If you're a BlackBerry fan feeling the need for relief from the throngs of iPhone lovers, the cats at CrackBerry may have uncovered a solution to your problem. The RIM aficionados have gotten their hands on the first ever live pictures of the phone-maker's touchscreen device -- the Thunder -- and it's looking pretty darn sweet. Feast your eyes on the above photo (featuring the much-discussed "tactile" keyboard), and hit the read link for another look.

[Fozzy Bear Posted Jul 13th 2008 10:24PM]

so...

i was forced to use a curve at work... once i became an iphone enterprise beta tester... i had telecom reassign my BB to someone else... now i just use my iphone instead for everything... now i'll use my iphone 3g for everything instead...

the UI is just horrible on the BBs... and that's something i care about because it directly translates into a desirable user experience.

settling for BB to me is like settling for WinMo.

but i mean... people love RIM... i just don't get the hype because it doesn't add anything to my user experience as a business user over what i have in the iphone already.

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 7:47AM]

i like the idea of a "tactile response" but wonder if you spend a lot of time emailing/txt'g what that's going to do to the battery life. also, been reading a couple of posts, most likely from biased iPhone posters that this product is being "plagued" with a lot of problems.

the good news is for devices like these (iPhone + Thunder), buttons won't break, software can be easily upgraded, so even if you have "old" (these days a relative term) hardware, you can still have a "new" phone every year. I'm a 1st gen iPhone user who's jailbroken MiPhone and had much pleasure and delight in wowing people around me with taking you iPhone to the limit.

I don't think RIM will move away from a physical keyboard altogether, I think they're just flirting with idea to see how the market reacts. I'm sure RIM would be happy to chip away at Apple's ownership of "the computer in the palm of your hand". Unfortunately, they still have a lot of work ahead of them.

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 1:01AM]

Only keyboards that really work for me are the ones like the Tilt has. I hate virtual keyboards... my fingers press the wrong buttons enough on the blackberry's keyboard... using the iphone's is just ridiculously slow for me... and I'm big on texting (10,000+ texts a month... yes I am a teen) so i don't like it... the Bold on the other hand looks awesome... also has anyone noticed how long it takes for an iphone to recieve a text someone sent then for the recipient to get the reply... it makes me not like texting people with iphones

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 9:41AM]

10,000 texts a month? Holy crap. That's roughly 330 texts per day, or assuming that you're awake 16 hours a day, 21 texts per hour. That's one text every 3 minutes, all day, every day. Do you have time to do anything else?

[essplode Posted Jul 14th 2008 1:19AM]

I'm not really feeling the aspect ratio either. But it isn't too big of a deal.

Also, I really doubt that is the final UI. It is probably just something simple they slapped on there to test out the virtual keyboard.

And if it is the final UI...then maybe I will just get the Touch Pro

[Mkurasz Posted Jul 14th 2008 1:24AM]

if u cant type on the iphone ur a n00b and a failure, simple as that... all u poor haters can suck my dick cause the iphones keyboard is just fine... Use it for a week and u get used to it... Im tired of ignorant jerkoffs badmouthing the keyboard when they haven't spent enough time with it...

Its simple, if u cant type on the iphone, ur coordination is weak... And u have weak genes and should die.. Comform to progress or die... Simple evolution.. Anyone who cant type on the thing is weak and stupid seriously.

Virtual keyboard is way more efficient than a physical keyboard taking up space on the phone...

Progress LOSERS!!!.

[roach Posted Jul 14th 2008 2:42AM]

I had an itouch and it made me want to go back to real keyboard gadget. This might get back screen type keyboard

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 3:20AM]

tactile screen — cool!

[chyansie Posted Jul 14th 2008 3:38AM]

err.. its easier to just FEEL the "tactileness" when its launched..No point arguing bout it.

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 4:19AM]

lame...

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 8:10AM]

Yes, your '1337 typing skeelz' sure give a positive argument for virtual keyboards.

I also note you posted this twice. That's probably more to do with your stupidity than any input device though.

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 9:20AM]

WHEN IS THE THUNDER OR STORM BE AVAILIABLE....I LIKE
PROVEN TECHNOLOGY SOFT WEAR

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 11:02AM]

i think it's funny that the advertising paying for this article is paid for by the iPhone 3G. Ha ha - the banner at the top is for the phone this one's trying to beat.

[darngooddesign Posted Jul 14th 2008 12:25PM]

Real men use bevel emboss.

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 14th 2008 4:30PM]

HTC TOUCH DIAMOND FTW

[MegaWatts Posted Jul 14th 2008 2:22PM]

I think it is really funny to see these potential failures of life cry about how awesome the iPhone is and how this 'crackberry', 'dingleberry' or whatever they are calling it, is terrible. The product isn't out yet. Give it a chance. Yes the apple has a cool interface and is easy to use, but RIM is known for its professional users and security. That is their audience. It isn't these teen trendsetters that beat the snot out of someone because they don't have the almighty white buds hanging in their ears. Its a professional phone for a professional user.

Considering it is July and the potential date of release is September, that is more than likely not the final UI for the board. Again, give it a chance.

Oh and one last thing. Stop criticizing something based on a camera phone shot in a closet/ dark room. Lets wait for the facts to come out before the slander flies.

[(Unverified) Posted Jul 15th 2008 10:40AM]

Looks nice n all, but srsly, comic sans? Cmon, can we drop that font already?