BlackBerry Torch – my office party on the go

I’m a closet organizing freak. Why? Because by nature I’m extremely disorganized and if left to my own devices I’d have piles of papers and “junk” all over the place. I’d never make it to appointments on time, would forget half of the items on my grocery list and never return phone calls. In order to combat my innate behavior I’ve trained myself to keep everything that I need close at hand.

Like most of the bloggers that I know, we rely on social media to keep in touch, and it’s important to be able access twitter, FB, whrrl, etc. whenever we’re struck with something to say.

If you saw me 6 months ago or more, you know that I was using a flip phone. Yes, one of those phones that I could make a traditional phone call on and painfully eke out a text message or two in an emergency. My previous phone had bitten the dust and I was taken back into the dark ages of mobile technology (or lack of).

I spent sleepless nights trying to decide whether I wanted a FUN touchscreen smartphone or something  much more practical like a BlackBerry. Each device offers something that I really want. The BlackBerry is much more business practical and android & iphones are well…fun and social. I want BOTH. So you could say, that I want the office AND the party.

Thanks to AT&T (who decided that I’d be a good brand ambassador) I NOW HAVE BOTH. The fun of an android phone and the organizational skills of a BlackBerry – all rolled in to one.

The BlackBerry Torch combines touchscreen fun with both useful and fun apps along with a slideout keyboard and business functions that I can use to keep in touch with reps and readers, keep my calendar straight, and access all of those great business applications that I need to organize both Champagne Living AND my other writing outlets.

Rather than drone on and on about ALL of the functions. In this post I’ll give you a quick overview of what I LOVE and what I don’t. I’ll update you with MORE BlackBerry treats as I use it over the next few months.

LOVE

The sound quality hits it out of the park. No muffled voices, no background noise – even on SPEAKERPHONE. Normally, I stay away from the speaker because Mr. S always has the TV on. Now I can put on lipstick & talk at the same time without all of the noise clutter.

Ability to switch between the keyboard & touchscreen. If I’m trying to text quickly, I actually prefer a traditional keyboard and the Torch provides one (although as with all BlackBerry’s the keys are tiny). The onscreen keyboard has larger keys. It all depends upon which you prefer. I love having both options.

Battery Life!!! When compared with an android phone the BlackBerry Torch ROCKS! The battery lasts 2 full days for me (the android phone never made it through a full day).


It comes with a 4gb memory card, so I can ROCK OUT to my favorite music, watch videos, store photos and keep my documents right where I need them.


The 5gb camera takes great photos (as long as my fingers don’t get it the way). It’s no DSLR, but for a camera phone it’s GREAT.

The option to use WiFi or the AT&T data plan allows you to use the browser anywhere you want. The WiFI ran VERY smoothly, without any glitches. I actually prefer using it over the AT&T plan.


Twitter/Facebook/Flickr etc. are right on the front of the phone. I get updates and can easily tweet what I’m doing to my 5,000+ followers. I love the convenience.

The slideout is SMOOOOOTH. It’s easy to grip the lightly rubberized back. Very James Bond.

The Messaging system is the COOLEST that I’ve ever used. It’s easy to attach photos, videos, and even maps.


Not so sure about

There are so many options that I get a little confused. That doesn’t make it BAD, it makes it so I need to learn how to use more of the phone. I guess that I’ll tackle those in a future post as I learn. At my age, it takes a little longer.


Fingerprints.…this is not my complaint – it’s my hubby’s. He grabbed my phone and said, isn’t there something you can put over this so it doesn’t look grimy? WHATEVER! It’s the same with every touchscreen phone. I told him to get his grubby fingers off of my phone & it would look great.


It’s a bit thicker than most phones. I like sleek and sexy, the Torch is thicker and more business-like. Still, it does fit into your pocket better than the larger phones (guess that means I won’t lose it).

The pro’s absolutely outweight the con’s on this great little hybrid of a phone. I’ve got everything that I needed all wrapped into one. Now I wonder if BlackBerry can re-design Mr. “S” … if so, I’d like a model that’s a little sleeker with a mute button.

OVERALL – I like the new BlackBerry Torch a lot. Still, I’ve got a lot to learn about it, and I’ll keep you all updated with some of the apps that I’ll be trying very soon.

If you’ve got a minute check out the AT&T SHARE program on Facebook. You can get points for spreading the word about their program and turn those points in for some FABULOUS rewards. Get free tickets to concerts, get deep discount coupons for phones, and LOTS more.

Thank you to AT&T for having the faith in me to make me a brand ambassador and sent me this great Blackberry Torch along with service. You should know that all opinions are my own.