Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton will launch BlackBerry Storm

Vodafone is telling staff that it expects one in six of every sale to be a BlackBerry Storm between now and Christmas, Mobile understands.

The operator is expected to launch the handset in days but has struggled to get stock to all of its stores in time for a co-ordinated launch.

Vodafone is lining up newly-crowned Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton to launch the Storm in its flagship Oxford Street ‘experience’ store.

Delays on the handset have forced Vodafone to switch its advertising to ‘coming soon’, as it racked up 70,000 pre-registrations as Mobile went to press.

The phone will be available for free on 24-month contracts for £35 per month. A ‘talk’ option will offer 700 minutes, 250 texts and the choice of either unlimited calls to landlines or unlimited calls to other Vodafone numbers.

There is also an unlimited text version that comes with 600 minutes and a fair usage cap of 3,000 texts per month.

Customers will be able to sign up on 18-month contracts for £40 per month.