Online Survey: The New BlackBerry Tour Is a Hit With the Matlock Set

BlackBerry’s new Tour has garnered fairly positive reviews from the geek press. But Research in Motion’s  (RIMM) latest handset has been a really big hit with the oldsters.

At least that’s the suggestion from consumer research service YouGov, which measures “brand perception” via an online panel. YouGov’s BrandIndex survey, which interviews 5,000 people a day and rates brand scores on a scale from 100 to minus-100, shows a big spike over the last couple months for BlackBerry. Adults 35-49 gave the brand a value score of 7.5 on July 21, but by August 4, that number increased to 18.

The BrandIndex people figure that jump stems from the introduction of the Tour, and particularly from the push that Verizon (VZ) has given it–Sprint (S) is also selling the handset, but is keeping that news to itself for the most part. Go to a Sprint store and try to find a Tour. It’s not easy!

But! Even while the oldsters thought more favorably about the BlackBerry, young folks seem to have turned on it: Adults 18-34 gave the brand a value score of 21.5 on July 7, but that number tumbled to 7.9 by August 4. Here’s the chart (click to enlarge):

What gives? One suggestion: Verizon’s decision to drop the prices for almost all of its smartphones (but not the Tour) to $99, which presumably makes the BlackBerry product look…I don’t know…more expensive? I’m not buying it.

Anyway, I’ve been in the old fogey demo for several years now, and I will say, the Tour appeals to me. But then again, that’s mostly because the noisy complaints I hear about the iPhone–primarily AT&T’s (T) lousy coverage and the machine’s puny battery–have kept me from making the leap to Apple (AAPL).

Still, for now I’m hemming and hawing, Hamlet style, on my big purchase. Perhaps I’ll write a post when I make a decision!