I was talking to an friend that has had the original BlackBerry Storm 9530 since the day that it came out. They are one of the many BlackBerry Storm users that stuck it out through all of the issues that the Storm had and has actually become quite fond of the device. As fond of the BlackBerry Storm as my friend is, the 9530 is over 2-years old and they are ready for an upgrade.
The problem for them, acutally, the problem for RIM, is that there isn’t a new BlackBerry Storm for folks with original BlackBerry Storm to upgrade to. The BlackBerry Storm2 is over a year old and it doesn’t support BlackBerry 6. Original BlackBerry Storm users that want a new BlackBerry, but, want to stay with the touch screen form factor are forced to either switch carriers and get the BlackBerry Torch, or upgrade to the BlackBerry Storm2 which really isn’t that much of an upgrade at all.
My friend said that they would absolutely get another BlackBerry Storm if one comes out, but, their Storm 9530 is only its last leg from wear and tear and that they can’t hold out waiting any longer without knowing that new Storm is coming. Their plan is to get either a Droid Incredible or a Droid X now, and possibly switch back to the BlackBerry if a new Storm comes out…
There are a lot of BlackBerry Storm users, myself included, in the same boat as my friend… We would get a BlackBerry Storm3 if it were offered, but, aren’t willing to wait too long after our 2-year plans are up to get a new device. A lot of people say that they will get a new phone until the Storm3 comes out and then switch back, however, that rarely happens once that 30-day return policy has passed.
If there is actually a BlackBerry Storm 9570 coming out, RIM needs to go ahead an announce it. There are millions of BlackBerry Storm 9530 users coming up on their 2-year plans and are ready to upgrade. If there isn’t going to be another touch screen BlackBerry for them to upgrade to, it could be a long winter as far as brand churn goes…