BlackBerry 8900 Curve Cracks Signal Similar Issues with 9630 Tour?

While the upcoming BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Tour sports a smaller version of the Bold’s keypad, its soft keys are identical to the Blackberry 8900 Curve’s. You might recall in our review of the new Curve that the soft keys weren’t exactly sturdy, and suffered from a hairline fracture early on in one handset. On that particular BlackBerry, the fracture recently made it all the way down after three months of regular use, and Rogers (NYSE: RCI) wouldn’t offer any service because it wasn’t an acknowledged issue with RIM. Well, taking a quick scan of the forums, we can see this isn’t an isolated incident, and reason leads us to worry just a bit about the upcoming BlackBerry 9630’s physical solidity, especially if carriers aren’t going to back us consumers up one bit. With such a small gap between the trackball and the screen/keyboard, it’s no wonder these problems are coming up. Of course, we’ll have to reserve judgment until next week at WES, when we’re expecting to get our hands on the BlackBerry Tour/Niagara. After all, they may have noticed the issue in the 8900 and made proper adjustments in the 9630’s key assembly. One way or the other, it certainly gives a new connotation to the term “CrackBerry”, eh?

Do you have a BlackBerry 8900? Been having any similar issues?