Want a RIM Torch but not AT&T? You have choices

Pause to peruse reader feedback to articles about the new BlackBerry Torch and you might sense some subtle resistance to the fact that the anticipated device only runs on AT&T’s wireless service. You’ll see comments such as “They lost me at AT&T,” “AT&T blows and they’re going there. Must think that’s why people have iPhones,” and “Only on AT&T? Well, @#$% you BlackBerry. I’m moving to Android-based phone and dropping my Storm.”

Indeed, AT&T has attained a Rodney Dangerfield-esque reputation (“No respect! No respect at all!”) in some smartphone circles, thanks to loud grousing of some iPhone users over poor service quality. Thus, some would-be Torch bearers refuse to adopt the device out of loathing for AT&T. Fortunately, though, they do have options other than giving up on the device entirely.

First, though, let’s address the question of why RIM would choose to go exclusively with AT&T with its much-anticipated “iPhone killer” rather than, say, rolling out options for different carriers all at once. Independent telecom and wireless analyst Jeff Kagan surmises that RIM is hoping some of that Apple iPhone juice rubs off on the Torch. “iPhone has had an incredible start in the U.S. market with one carrier. It provides a sense of scarcity and exclusivity … which makes it more desirable,” he told me via e-mail. “AT&T and Apple have a pretty good relationship and a very successful device they both manage. I think RIM wants lightning to strike twice with AT&T.”

Option 1: Give AT&T a chance with a non-Apple phone. The carrier has suffered many slings and arrows over the service-quality issues iPhone users have suffered — but AT&T may not be entirely to blame, according to Kagan. “The problems AT&T has are because of the demand from the Apple iPhone. Apple handles wireless differently than every other handset maker. It is very difficult for AT&T or any carrier to keep up with Apple. RIM has always worked very well on AT&T, and I don’t see that changing with this,” he said.

Also, not all AT&T customers or iPhone users are fed up with their provider. In fact, a recent study by Yankee Group found that the vast majority of iPhone users are quite pleased with AT&T, and that the satisfaction rate of AT&T subscribers as a whole is 68 percent. That’s not too bad if you consider that only 69 percent of all smartphone users said they are satisfied with their mobile provider.

Option 2: If you’re still not sold on AT&T, you can wait until the Torch or something very much like it comes out for a different carrier, likely to happen by the end of this year. Remember that RIM — like every other phone maker that’s not called Apple — cranks out nearly identical versions of the same device for different carriers. RIM’s exclusivity deal with AT&T ends in December, so it’s possible you’ll be ringing in the new year with something Torch-like on your non-AT&T carrier of choice.

By the way, if waiting that long feels painful, think about how people who want the iPhone but not AT&T feel: They haven’t had a choice since the device first came out. There’ve been rumors of forthcoming deals with alternative carriers, but who knows if they will ever bear fruit?

Also, the silver lining to the wait is that AT&T and RIM will hopefully fix any bugs that appear in the new hardware or new BlackBerry OS 6 software.

Option 3: Retrofit your existing BlackBerry with OS 6. Per RIM, the platform is designed to run on select BlackBerry smartphones already in the market. RIM specifies the Bold 9700, Bold 9650, and Pearl 3G — pending carrier approval in the months ahead.

Loading OS 6 onto an older phone isn’t an overly appealing alternative, though, if you’re looking for the Torch experience. For starters, RIM has only one touchscreen device out there beside the Torch, and that’s the less-than-stellar Storm. (It’s not entirely clear if the Storm can ever run OS 6.) Also, who knows whether they’ll have the resolution to deliver a good browser experience via the new WebKit-based browser?

Option 4: Hack a Torch to run on a carrier’s service other than AT&T — which users had tried with the iPhone. Technically that may be a possibility, but don’t bother. Per InfoWorld mobile maven Galen Gruman, “In the U.S., carriers pretty much use their own frequencies, so there’s usually no place to go with an unlocked device. You can maybe switch between Sprint and Verizon — or if you don’t want 3G, between T-Mobile and AT&T.”

Besides, Gruman adds: “In six months your current carrier will offer it anyhow, so why worry?”

This article, “Want a RIM Torch but not AT&T? You have choices” was originally published at InfoWorld.com. Get the first word on what the important tech news really means with the InfoWorld Tech Watch blog.