And Verizon said, "Let there be Storm." And there was Storm.

This is the sentiment I've been getting from Verizon's promotions for the new BlackBerry Storm.

A joint press release from Verizon, Vodafone (a European cellular service provider) and Research In Motion (the company behind BlackBerry) declared the phone is taking "the world by Storm" and it is "revolutionary."

Dictionary.reference.com defines "revolutionary" as "radically new or innovative."

So to paraphrase another biblical passage, Why is this BlackBerry different from all other BlackBerries?

The Storm is the first BlackBerry not to have a physical keyboard.

Instead, it has a "clickable" touch screen. Basically, the entire screen is one big button that clicks when you press it. In theory, this is supposed to simulate the feeling of a physical keyboard, while allowing for a much larger screen.

In practice, however, typing on the Storm is not as satisfying as typing on a phone with a physical QWERTY keyboard.

Typing on a phone with a physical keyboard (I'm used to the LG Voyager) allows you to feel the key that you're pressing before you actually press it. This allows for accurate typing. With the Storm, on the other hand, you never know exactly which letter you're pressing until you've already pressed it.

Another problem with typing on the Storm stems from the fact the entire screen acts as a button.

The screen must be "un-clicked" in between letters. In other words, when you press down on a letter, you must release your finger from that letter before you can type the next one. This slows down typing significantly.

In terms of sheer typing speed and accuracy, the Storm loses to nearly any phone with a physical keyboard. However, what is lost in typing ability is easily made up for by the Storm's 3.25 inch screen. It is sharp and makes using the phone a positive experience. There is a lot less scrolling around to do with this. And the screen can tell the difference between a light touch and a click.

Lightly touching the screen is akin to moving a mouse cursor without actually clicking. This allows for a useful feature called "cursor mode" in which you glide your finger over the screen and an arrow cursor follows your finger. The innovation here is that the cursor is not directly under your finger -- it is about a centimeter off to the side. This means that when browsing the Web on the Storm, you can actually see which tiny link you're clicking. The Storm is essentially Verizon's latest answer to Apple's iPhone.

The iPhone, like the Storm, has an on-screen keyboard. However, it is not clickable. In my opinion, the Storm easily holds its own against the iPhone. Both take advantage of their respective carriers' fast networks. Both have a rich Web browsing experience. Both have visual voicemail.

Both have the same price with a new contract ($200).

For those who want a larger screen but must have a BlackBerry, the Storm is for you.

For Verizon customers with no intention of defecting to AT&T for the iPhone, but can't live without checking Gmail or Twitter every other minute, the Storm is for you. If you're heavily invested in iTunes, then the iPhone is for you. If you're not in any of these categories, but still considering the Storm, be sure to actually try out the phone before buying it. Sure it's a great phone with many useful and innovative features, but the hype has been way overblown. For example, in a TV spot, shot in first person, the faceless narrator (played by The Office's John Krasinski) sees a Storm, screen-down, on a table.

As he is about to pick it up, he says to his inner monologue "What's this? The new BlackBerry? You've seen BlackBerries before, no big deal. Maybe one quick peak just to see what all the fuss is about --Whoah!" You get the shortest of glimpses of the Storm and the ad is over.

I never knew cell phones could have teaser trailers. Verizon even had a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal with the words "Coming Soon."

In a second TV spot with Krasinksi, the narrator is using the Storm for the first time.

"Is it supposed to feel so right?" he asks, later adding, "What kind of mad genius is behind this?"

The Storm is not going to change your life. But, then again, neither will the iPhone.

Alan deLevie is a sophomore majoring in political science, and is a Daily Collegian tech/trends reporter. His e-mail address is add5087@psu.edu.