[TLD1]

I have had poor experiences with slider phones in the past (Nokia N95, Moto RIZR...) as they have either been too hard to open with one hand/thumb...or have been easy to open, but have been wobbly and felt cheap.

How is the sliding mechanism on the 9800 Torch? Please give details.

Thanks!

[csiguy1]

Feels smooth and solid.

[Aceroller]

Just finished playing with one. I know there has been talk about lag, but there was absolutely NO lag when switching through media, messages, calendar and other apps. The browser did seem a little slow to load pages on 3G, but once loaded navagation was great, and gestures were very smooth. I was totally impressed at how responsive the OS was. Plus the screen is of course not on par with the iPhone 4, but it is very bright and crisp. Very good impression so far.....will get one on Thursday for sure!! The slider and all around build quality felt excellent!!

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[kthorsen]

handset feels well built runs the same as my blackberry 9000 basically a 3 year old phone with an updated os and a new form factor

[bang]

great. jsut got done playing with it, very solid, and the there were no problems with the touchscreen.

[Calotag]

I love it. Its a really nice phone.
I love the physical keybaord.
The phone actually has no lag when using the keypad. It is very responsive and very FAST!
I don't want to go to work on thursday. I want to go to att first thing and get it and then come home and play with it all day!!!!

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Melven]

I played with one at the AT&T store today and was pleasantly surprised. The slider was smooth and did not rattle when it was open or closed. No lag when using it and changing apps either. I am sold, my 9000 will be replaced this week with a 9800.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Robotaz]

Slider is solid.

[mrro82]

Played with one yesterday and the mechanism is very smooth and solid. No waggle that I could detect.

[ocanyc]

But...the slider is all but impossible to flick upward into the open position with a thumb due to there being no real ledge or solid point to push up on with the side of the thumb.(

I have no idea what youre takling about. Maybe that device you tried was faulty, I had no problem sliding the screen up with one thumb. Maybe you got tiny hands?

But anyway, it felt solid and smooth. It feels quaility as most of my rim products have. I will definitely get one.

[JasW]

While the sliding mechanism felt solid, I had a difficult time completely gauging the ease with which the slider could open because the in-store device was tethered by both an anti-theft cable and charging cord.

[mrro82]

I have no idea what youre takling about. Maybe that device you tried was faulty, I had no problem sliding the screen up with one thumb. Maybe you got tiny hands?

But anyway, it felt solid and smooth. It feels quaility as most of my rim products have. I will definitely get one.

Ditto. I had no issues sliding it up with one thumb. I put my thumb on the corner and slid. No biggie for me.

[schlemer]

Tried a 9800 at AT&T as well as the IP4 (meh). The Torch has a solid build quality with only one minor gripe. The buttons on the bottom while responsive, felt as though the strip might come off in time. When I depressed the back key, I could see a gap between the button and glass display. Aside for that, fit and finish was on par with the 9700 next to it.

The OS while nice and intuitive, was a bit suggish. I tried to shut down some af the apps running in the backround, but was met with some hangtime. Being a Storm 2 owner, I found my self immediately going for the suretype/condensed keyboard layout. At first I had to control my impulse to push/click. Typing onscreen is a joy and I could easily find myself owning a Torch once I'm convinced that the OS is not as sluggish at it seems to appear. The physical keyboard is nice, but not for me. Others who have made a career using one will feel right at home.

I know this is short, but others have posted far more and have been pretty spot on. This is IMO a step in the right direction for RIM. I do agree that they need a bit more room in terms of memory in order to handle their OS smoother. Blackberries should have a better life cycle. Look how many are still using the older Curves (one of the best BBs IMO).

As for Droid and Apple. My wife has and iphone 3gs and she loves it. While nice, it's not for me. Droid, too many models coming out too fast. OS is smooth and fast and it is poised to be a champion of the telecommunications world for a long time. But for me, it's too much for my needs. I don't even like cable anymore. Companies push a myriad of chanels and out of all I whatch about 5-10. So, while nice to have the biggest and baddest on the planet. I'm content with wat RIM is offering. Suits me fine.

Now get off your butts and try out the Torch for yourselves and make up your own damn minds

[Aceroller]

I finally got to get some hands-on time with the Torch today at my local AT&T store...and I'm pretty bummed.

Yes...the WebKit browser is impressive. It's close to iPhone-speed, and is far better than any BB to date.

Yes...the 9700-esque keypad is still great. No problems typing at all.

Yes...the construction seems solid.

But...the slider is all but impossible to flick upward into the open position with a thumb due to there being no real ledge or solid point to push up on with the side of the thumb. It really takes two hands to flick up the slider...and although the slider is smooth and solid, it's certainly not convenient at all.

I left the store disappointed. I have never liked sliders, but was hoping that this one would be different, but it isn't. RIM has clearly chosen fashion over function...something I thought they would never do.

So, I'm closer than ever to going back to the iPhone or trying out my first Android phone with the Captivate. I may still go with the Torch, but I'm not as excited as I was previously.

BlackBerry could have done it...they really could have.

I too had trouble at first, but then I found out that you have to put your thumb on the screen and push up, not the bottom where the send key is. Hope this helps.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Cherman]

I found the sliding mechanism to be solid. I'd read a report that it was a bit wiggly but I didn't notice any such play until I twisted it really hard when no one was looking. Then it wiggled a lot! When I stuck my pocket knife under the keyboard those keys went flying! Cheap. Also, I'm used to a 50" plasma display so the screen size and resolution weren't up to snuff in that regard. Also, the internet just wasn't as fast as my 25 up 25 down that I have at home so that was a bit disappointing too. I kept looking for the cigarette lighter but there wasn't one. RIM really missed the boat on that. What were they thinking? Oh, no plans yet to add the MacGuffin XZ90 burbulation quadrant either (ht: JasW). I was floored. Funny thing, they also had iPhones and Android phones there too but I spent all of my lunch hour trying to find fault with the Torch. I guess I need to go back tomorrow and find some stuff I don't like so I can make my definitive, end all discussion report about what the **** is wrong with RIM. I'm sure if I look hard enough I'll find everything wrong that can go wrong with a phone and I'll sway everyone on Crackberry to NOT buy a Torch. In the meantime, I'll have to mope along with my puny 9700 that to this day has yet to give me any problems. I think I haven't dropped it enough.

I think I vaguely recall asking if I was eligible for an early upgrade. I'm glad you asked: Yes, for $75. Cheap sales tactic.

[theycallmekevin]

definitely slid up and down pretty easy i had no issues with that. however, I don't think they left enough room for the keyboard. I thought the top of the keyboard was a little tight with the bottom of the slider, not enough room left.

[fecurtis]

I haven't used one personally but have read nothing but great things about the slider itself.

[Average Joe]

I dig it. As everyone else has said, its solid and fluid.

[phonejunky]

My biggest concern is the Lag after a few apps are loaded

[TLD1]

After my little rant earlier (deleted post)...I went back to the AT&T store and spent some quality time with the Torch. After some practice, I was able to open the slider much easier with my right hand than my left...so it's just a matter of practice with my left hand I suppose.

And, unless I totally go south before Thursday the 12th...I'll be a Torch owner.

[espresso1967]

I just got back from a store that did not have the torch on display. I asked and the phone was brought to me and put in my hands to test without any of the security cables that hang off the phones. I have to say it is nice, I was not like WOW but good enough. I did notice that when the phone was exposing the keyboard to have a very light jiggle and not sure because this was a test phone or if all the phones are not as solid as I enticipated. My wife was with me and compared to her iphone touch, the touch on the torch was not as smooth. But I am a blackberry diehard and I am happy with it and since I come from the old blackberry pagers many, many years ago I'll be happy when Thursday comes around.

Overall
8 out of 10

[drice01]

I have had poor experiences with slider phones in the past (Nokia N95, Moto RIZR...) as they have either been too hard to open with one hand/thumb...or have been easy to open, but have been wobbly and felt cheap.

How is the sliding mechanism on the 9800 Torch? Please give details.

Thanks!

Slider is smooth and sturdy but would love to see BB go with a horizontal slider for those of us with hands larger than a childs ; )

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com