BlackBerry's biggest touchscreen handset is one of its best, and it's working hard to catch up with the competition. The BlackBerry faithful will appreciate the effort here, but whether it's enough to win over fans of Android or Apple is another matter.

Mit dem Torch 9860 veröffentlicht RIM wohl das bislang Massenmarkt-tauglichste BlackBerry der Firmengeschichte. Sieht man vom BlackBerry OS mit der facettenreichen E-Mail-Integration ab, handelt es sich hierbei um ein ganz normales Smartphone. Und genau hier liegt das Problem: Highlights sucht man vergebens – wer das Gerät nicht gerade wegen seines E-Mail-Clients kauft, findet gegenüber einem soliden Android-Smartphone keinerlei Mehrwert.

BlackBerry mit guter Leistung, aber auch Multimedia-Schwächen.

The Blackberry Torch 9860 is a powerful full touchscreen phone running OS 7 from RIM's stable.

RIM has at last proved it can produce a workable toucscreen-only smartphone, finally laying the ghost of the Storm handsets to rest. But in doing so it raises another spectre. We're so used to a widget-based screen system that, on a handset with a 3.7in. display we were surprised to be faced with a blank home screen that requires you to draw up application menus. At the very least we'd like calendar reminders and/or a much larger time and date display in the blank space. ...

With a large, responsive touchscreen and a powerful processor, the BlackBerry Torch 9860 looks like a great bit of hardware. We do have reservations about the software, though.

Strong screen, camera and video performance are paired with attractive design, but let down by frequent crashes and a lack of general app support

Strong screen, camera and video performance are paired with attractive design, but let down by frequent crashes and a lack of general app support

Der Torch zeigt, dass ein Blackberry auch ohne Tastatur funktoniert - und überzeugt mit hervorragenden Funk- mund Telefonieeigenschaften.

In der Welt der E-Mail sind Blackberrys zu Hause, doch wieviel Spaß macht ein Torch 9860 im mobilen Internet?

The BlackBerry Torch 9860 turned out to be a great surprise and is excellent value for money. It has a gorgeous screen, decent battery life and plenty of multimedia features that are surprisingly fast. It also features a whole host of extra services, including BBM. All that's left to improve is the OS, which isn't quite yet 100% right for a touchscreen interface.

The BlackBerry Torch 9860 is, like most touchscreen smartphones these days, almost entirely screen.

BlackBerrys have long been the device of choice for business users, and even while Rim is regaling us with its new ‘multimedia’ device, it seems to be clinging on to its core users by doggedly hanging on to the things that keep its business users happy. Its touchscreen has a smooth, speedy performance, despite the lag on its keyboard – and yet Rim has felt the need to be squeezed on its traditional OK and menu buttons. The phone’s top feature is messaging, but that has been affected by the less-than-perfect keyboard. This is definitely a phone that doesn’t quite know where it wants to go – not quite a BlackBerry Bold, certainly not an iPhone.

If you used either BlackBerry Storm, we suggest that you wipe your memory before clapping eyes on the Torch 9860, as it is a completely different beast. RIM mixes a number of successful concepts into this handset to give its CrackBerry fanbase a touchscreen worthy of a table in a bar or a boardroom. Its screen is sharp, colour is responsive and user experience is zippy and a pleasure to use. RIM still has an enormous battle with wrestling touchscreen aficionados away from iPhones, purely on the back of the vastness of Apple's App Store marketplace, but we imagine that anyone who picks up a Torch 9860 should enjoy the experience of using it nonetheless.

If you can live without Angry Birds, then you'll likely love the new BlackBerry touchscreen, a phone with sharp design and an excellent user experience.

Mit dem BlackBerry Torch 9800 bringt BlackBerry ein Mobiltelefon für die ultimative Touch-Erfahrung auf den Markt. Es ist nicht mit der BlackBerry Stom-Serie zu vergleichen, die allgemein etwas enttäuscht hat. Das Menü wurde in positiver Weise verändert, sowohl in Bezug auf die Funktionalität als auch das Design. Die Suchfunktion ist eine schöne Erweiterung. ...