Research In Motion's new BlackBerry Tour smartphone has abnormally high return rates at Sprint because of trackball problems, according to analyst Gerard Hallaren, director of research at Town Hall Investment Research.

According to Hallaren's investment note, Tour users need to clean the device's trackball frequently, "preferably with compressed air," and said that "not surprisingly, most customers prefer not to." Several online forums feature Tour users complaining about the problem, especially the fact that the trackball has trouble scrolling left and right.

The problems in turn have caused the Tour's return rate to climb near 50 percent at Sprint, Hallaren said. In a statement, Sprint indicated the return rate involved a small percentage of early production Tour smartphones with trackball problems. "As soon as the issue was identified, we worked closely with our partners at RIM to resolve the problem quickly," Sprint said in a statement. "This was an isolated incident that affected a small number of devices. RIM's products remain among the highest quality devices in Sprint's product portfolio. We recommend customers experiencing issues with the trackball on their BlackBerry Tour smartphone visit a Sprint Service & Repair Center."

Verizon also is experiencing serious problems with the Tour, Hallaren wrote, a vexing issue in light of Verizon's deep and widespread support for BlackBerry.

Both Sprint and Verizon launched the Tour July 12 for $199.99 with a two-year contract.

For more:
- see this Barron's blog post

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