First touchscreen BlackBerry unveiled

The BlackBerry Storm will run the latest BlackBerry OS (version 4.7), so you get an updated interface while still getting support for multiple email accounts with wireless synchronisation. In addition to an attachment viewer, you can also do some light editing on Microsoft Word and PowerPoint files.

There's 128MB of flash memory and 1GB of onboard memory, all of which is supplemented by the microSD/SDHC expansion slot.

Although the BlackBerry is historically known as a business device, RIM and its carrier partners hope to attract more consumers with the BlackBerry Storm, and the device comes with a number of multimedia capabilities. The media player can handle various music and video formats, and the included Media Sync software will help you synchronise your iTunes files with your BlackBerry. The Storm is equipped with a 3.2-megapixel camera with video recording, auto focus and flash.

Finally, it will come preloaded with instant-messaging clients (Yahoo, Windows Live, AOL and ICQ) and a number of social-networking apps, including Facebook, MySpace and Flickr. You'll also be able to download more programs over the air through the new BlackBerry App Center.