Ever since rumors of the Bold and Storm handsets from RIM were afloat, the phones have been much awaited.

While the Bold grabs the coveted Best Business Handset of the year with Nokia's E71 right behind, the Storm doesn't seem to have had such a great run internationally. The phone has reached Indian shores through operators Vodafone and we have managed to get our hands on one. Here's our first impression of the Storm.

The Storm feels really bulky, both in size and weight. Even though slightly smaller than the Bold, the Storm feels too big in the palm and could be much worse for people with small hands. With metal borders just like the Bold, the Storm looks smart and gives that extra feel of toughness. The large 3.25-inch screen of the phone looks great with its resolution of 360x480 pixels. The phone has four buttons on its face, of which two are calling, a Blackberry button and a back button. Above the screen at the top are two disguised buttons, one on either side; Keypad/Screen Lock and Mute/Silent mode.

The most talked about feature of the Storm is its full touch. It is supposedly an iPhone killer. Just like the iPhone, the Storm also does not come with a stylus. Blackberry has taken a slightly different approach in adopting the touch input in the Storm. They have integrated the screen as an entire button - Touch and press. While touch brings focus on what you wish to select, pressing the screen executes the focus. However, it is not very comfortable I must say. In the short span of time I used the phone, I must admit that I couldn't really get a hang of it. I guess I'll have to use it over a few days and then say if it's actually user-friendly or not. As of now I'm not impressed.