New BB-OS 6.0 aside, the phone itself leaves me woefully unimpressed. Blackberries are the leader in the corporate world, but RIM is fast losing market share to iPhone and Android phones.

RIM’s devices have been the standard with which every other smartphone has been judge. It’s no joke to say these guys practically invented the smartphone market.

Messaging and all the aspect of corporate communication (e-mails, etc) is handled superbly on a Blackberry. Security, ease of use, all of it’s there, and IT departments love ‘em. (Mostly, anyway)

RIM’s been lacking multiple functions though. A true web browser like those on Android and iPhone, multiple home pages, and a big screen among other things.

Sure, Storm 1 and 2 had big screens, but they never really lived up to the hype. Now RIM’s trying to bring some hype back with a the Palm Pre like device in a sliding, bigger screen, physical keyboard phone in BlackBerry Torch.

There’s a just one thing that I do like. The inclusion of RIM’s signature touch-trackpad is sweet, but beyond that it’s got a woeful look and feel of a previous-gen phone.

I’m sure corporate users will appreciate the keyboard and various other improvements in BB-OS 6.0, but beyond those guys who are forced to use this device, I can’t see people turning their attention away from Android phones (or iPhones) long enough to really notice this one.

Initial reviews mirror our overall impressions of the device, as their mostly neutral. Neither “gotta have it” or “hate it”.

Besides that, it’s exclusive to ATT network with their throttled data-plan. Add it all together and it’s something we just aren’t really excited about.

As far as smartphones go, we’re still eyeing the post September-30th (last day to get a free bumper) iPhone 4 to see if there are any hardware “improvements” and the soon to be leaked Moto Droid 2.

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