Sputter or sparkle?

I haven’t held the BlackBerry Torch 9800 yet. Neither have very many others. Even fewer outsiders have tested the device, just launched yesterday, for anything like the week necessary to comment.

But that doesn’t seem to stop analysts, bloggers and mere passers-by from pronouncing on the latest offering from Research In Motion. It’s a double but not a home run, said the Toronto Star. “RIM failed to deliver the kind of quantum leap it needed to fend off the competitive threats from Apple and Android,” said a note from Goldman Sachs.

Such commentary sounds like the Woody Allen line about how he cheated on his metaphysics exam: “I looked into the soul of the boy sitting next to me.”

Do you pick your favorite ice cream by just reading names from a list? Do you review a book without reading it? In the world of high-tech reportage and commentary, research is apparently not necessary. An opinion can be formed and framed by looking at a video or reading someone else’s tweet and joining the flock.

Me, I like thoughtful contemplation and comparison, not instant consensus and condemnation. Whether it’s smears or smartphones.