The sales of the BlackBerry Storm reported this week, point out that the device failed to step in and take the iPhone’s shine. Even though at first it was considered the first true release with the potential to bring a significant market change, the figures show that Apple’s product is still better.

Since its release on November 21, according to some anonymous sources cited by The Wall Street Journal, Verizon Wireless sold only close to 500,000 units of the touchscreen BlackBerry.

When Research In Motion (RIM) first announced the Storm’s release, the media was quick to name it the real iPhone killer, but the 500,000 sold units cannot be put in the same category with the iPhone 3G’s first quarter results which show sales of more than 2.4 million sold units. One of the possible explanations for these results is the release of the G1 smartphone, prepared by T-Mobile and HTC, which occurred at about the same time. The device was the first one to ever use Google’s Android operating system and the massive hype generated around the release might have attracted many of the users targeted by RIM.

Another issue related to the Storm is about its many software crashes, bugs and glitches. These problems could have been avoided through a careful final verification of the system, which was not possible because the company’s officials wanted the product out in time for the holiday season. Everything was moved up in order to open the sales before Black Friday, which is considered the biggest shopping day of the year.

The competition is extremely strong, as every company is looking to step into the segment and win over the customers. Apple’s iPhone, available exclusively through carrier AT&T, holds on strong to its position, with a 25 percent share of the overall North American smartphone market.

When asked about the release of Palm’s Pre, which is the company’s direct response to the iPhone, Apple’s acting CEO Tim Cook said that "We like competition, as long as they don't rip off our [intellectual property], and if they do, we're going to go after anybody that does. We will not stand for having our IP ripped off and we'll use whatever weapons we have at our disposal [to prevent that from happening]." Considering that Apple is the first to start this trend, it should expect other companies to take a peak at its device’s features and come up with similar solutions to attract customers. The media’s response to any new smartphone release is clear: each one must pass the comparison test with the iPhone. 

The smartphone market still provides a lot of room for new releases, and the present players will soon face more competition. Aside from Palm’s Pre, Nokia is also stepping in with its N97 device, and others will surely follow - this is exactly why RIM needs to address the matter and prepare an excellent release for 2009, taking all the time needed to make sure that everything will work as planned.