The Storm 2 may hit Verizon Wireless store shelves in June, according to the latest unconfirmed reports floating in the blogosphere.
Verizon has been training staff on the so-called Storm 2 for the past week in preparation for release of the new smarpthone before the end of June, according to [BlackberryOS.com’s post](http://www.blackberryos.com/forums/blackberry-rim-news/2014-storm-2-will-have-wifi-released-sooner-then-you-may-think.html) citing an anonymous Verizon source.
The original Storm was Research In Motion’s answer to the iPhone, and it appears the BlackBerry maker doesn’t want to be shown up at the smartphone release party set for June. Apple is expected to introduce new iPhone models next month — and it is not the only A-list celeb invited to the smartphone-fest.
Palm’s Pre goes on sale June 6, two days before the Apple developer conference — widely anticipated to be the venue for showing off new iPhones — and a host of other
releases from Samsung, HTC and Motorola are on tap.
The [next version of the Storm ](/mobility/article.php/3818871/BlackBerry+Storm+2+Brewing+Curve+Coming.htm)was confirmed by RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie during a shareholder conference in early May, though he declined to provide any specifics on features, pricing or release dates. Still, industry watchers say it may include Wi-Fi, which was missing from the first model.
Balsillie also said that RIM is moving forward with an aggressive strategy of courting the consumer market. Given that, a lot is riding on the Storm 2 — the first Storm received tepid reviews — and RIM will only get so many chances to impress given the competition.