Verizon: Would You Call 1 Million BlackBerry Storms Sold A 'Flop?'

Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal said the BlackBerry Storm was off to a "bumpy start," selling a mere 500,000 handsets in its first month, not a total bust, but a failure compared with the 2.4 million Apple iPhone 3Gs Steve Jobs and Co. and AT&T were able to unload in that device's first quarter of existence.

It also didn't help that in Verizon's quarterly earnings call, Verizon glossed over the Storm, saying sales were strong, but not offering any concrete figures to illustrate just how strong they were.

In response to the Journal, Verizon battled back, telling Computer World that 1 million BlackBerry Storms have been sold in just the first two months. That's still not Apple-size sales, but certainly strong numbers.

The Storm generated a great deal of hype leading up to its Nov. 21 release but was unable to capture many of the BlackBerry faithful because of its lack of a built-in QWERTY keyboard, something many BlackBerry users see as a staple. At the same time, the device was rife with glitches, from software issues to operating system hangups, forcing RIM to issue a system software update roughly a month after the device made its way into users' hands.

Then there was that pesky Apple iPhone 3G, which has managed to infiltrate consumer and corporate circles since its launch in the summer of 2008. The iPhone has been raining on the Storm's parade since the Storm hit the streets.

There's no doubt that the Storm vs. iPhone battle will rage on throughout the year, as the battle of the touch-screen titans continues, but as it stands Apple and the iPhone have the clear advantage and BlackBerry better have some tricks up its sleeve to woo away more of the iPhone's fan base.