Verizon Wireless has released a firmware update for its Research in Motion BlackBerry Storm device. The 4.7.0.75 update is now available via the phone's Desktop Software Manager -- accessible by connecting your phone to your PC and running BlackBerry Desktop -- and is expected to go out over-the-air by late Friday evening.

The upgrade comes amidst a storm of emotion as BlackBerry fans clash with the numerous reviewers delivering overwhelmingly negative impressions of the device. Perhaps the most attention-grabbing report has been writer David Pogue's piece in The New York Times , in which Pogue stated he hadn't "found a soul who tried this machine who wasn't appalled, baffled or both."

So can tweaked software turn the numerous naysayers around? It seems much of the critical lashing is geared more at the Storm's design and hardware, including its notably absent physical keyboard. Software issues have arisen as well, however, including Pogue's claim of constant "freezes, abrupt reboots, [and] nonresponsive controls."

The firmware update is supposed to correct some of those, including issues in switching between landscape and portrait modes as well as subpar multimedia application performance.

Some blog reports indicate Bell Canada is already one step ahead, distributing version 4.7.0.76 of the operating system.