INBOX:The eagerly awaited BlackBerry Storm is disappointingly slow to respond to commands compared with other mobile phones

EVER SINCE the iPhone went on sale in June 2007, mobile phone makers have been looking to replicate not only its hype but its clever approach to the mobile phone: big screen, touch interface, lots of clever applications. But try as they might, few have come close.

Google tried and failed (so far) with the T-Mobile G1. Samsung's Omnia has come close. But neither have reached the iPhone's sheer ease of use.

But it's in the business market that the iPhone has made most waves, causing collars to get hot over at Research In Motion (RIM), makers of the quintessential business mobile of the 21st century: the BlackBerry. So when the BlackBerry Storm came out in December, pulses were racing. Could it face up to the iPhone?

This was RIM's first BlackBerry to feature one big touchscreen, just like the iPhone. But unlike its nemesis, this screen clicks properly, just like a laptop mouse button. In fact the whole SurePress touchscreen moves because it floats a fraction of a millimetre above the phone's sensor pad.

This is odd at first and might give some the impression that the phone is broken, but there is an advantage. You have to click a button definitely, rather than hope that you haven't brushed accidentally against the wrong button, as you do on other touch-screen phones.

Like the iPhone, the Storm has an accelerometer which will work out that it needs to flip the screen to portrait or landscape as you move it.

But when you come to type an e-mail, pressing the whole screen down is not a natural thing do on every key click. This is something of a drawback for a device which is supposed to be aimed at people who e-mail a lot. The iPhone's screen doesn't move in the same way so is almost easier to type on, especially with third-party software such as TouchType.

And the @ symbol is not on the Storm's main keyboard - it's in the symbols sub-menu.

What it can do that the iPhone cannot, however, is cut and paste text.

As far as web browsing goes, the Storm is easy and intuitive and is helped by its fast HSDPA 3G. The iPhone has 3G only, no HSDPA. But the iPhone wins again because it has WiFi, which is fastest of all, and seriously useful for accessing the web from home or work wireless points.

Aside from this, the Storm comes with Google Maps, and a reasonable 3.2-megapixel camera with flash which is a little on the slow side, but at least it does video recording - again an iPhone failing.

A decent music player does a good job, but the 1GB of on-board memory would do well to be expanded and goes up to 16GB with a Micro SD card, which is sadly not provided as standard.

Overall, the Storm is smart and capable, but unfortunately it is slow to respond to menu commands compared with other mobiles. Battery life is also disappointing by comparison. And the application centre where you can buy more applications is still somewhat bare compared to the app stores launched for the iPhone and the Android-driven T-Mobile G1.

Vodafone has the exclusive on the Storm at the moment and it's offering the Blackberry Storm 9500 handset for €109.99 if you get a €49.99 monthly tariff (new connections).

Was the Storm rushed out without enough attention paid to the detail? We'll probably never know.

For now, it's core market of business users will probably stick to their old trusted Blackberrys which have at least stood the test of time so far.