I had to go in there yesterday to get a SIM card for my daughter. I was NOT expecting to see a display model in the store. They do not have that many different phones in there in general, mostly just whatever is trending at the moment. I even saw a guy pick it up and play with it. But of course when I started chatting to the rep about BlackBerry, he had nothing but negative things to say. Oh well. I made it known that I was a BlackBerry fan and that I WILL be coming back soon to get the Classic when my upgrade is available. I didn't know if I really *needed* this as I have the Q10. But after playing with it, I fell in love!
Several Indy Verizon stores have them. The Castleton store and the one on East St have them on display. The one in Greenwood also have the display. Other stores have them in stock, but not on display. Their reason for not displaying was because they don't think anyone will buy.
I really think BlackBerry need to do more to have a physical demonstration model of the Classic in as many retail shops as they can. Whilst I knew that I was going to purchase the Classic well before my local Telco even received their first shipment, I will never forget the feeling of picking up the phone for the first time.
The Classic is different to other phones in this respect, the competition all feels and looks very similar - especially when most of the time display devices are either switched off, running demonstration videos or have been locked by some smart ***** in the shop.
The Classic has a certain feel to it, the weight and the textured back cover, the way it fits so perfectly in your hand and the soft but reassuring keyboard. The Classic is certainly a phone that people can pick up and feel confident using right away - every time somebody passes me their Samsung Galaxy I feel like it is going to slip right out of my hands and when I grip it I invariably press a misplaced button on the side which either turns it off or activates the camera. The newer versions of the iPhone feel so light and cheap. The only phones which I really enjoy holding apart from the Classic are the HTC range of devices, but even these look the same as all the other 'slabs of touch screen' lined up in a retail shop.
The Classic inspires confidence as soon as it is picked up, it's the only phone I have given to other people and they immediately comment on how nice the keyboard is and even my mother can use it to make a call or send a message without asking for assistance.
The key point of difference between the Classic and every single other smartphone being sold is the physical keyboard, BlackBerry need to make sure that a demo is available in-store so that people who are unaware that BlackBerry have even released a new range of devices can see the Classic and give it a go.