The BlackBerry Thread

[Acey]

I think the 9800 is a good enough phone to keep the 42% in the BB column from crashing to 0 within a year, but not good enough to reverse the trend.

[sclitheroe]

Originally Posted by Rathji

Not sure what this means, but it is interesting.

Could it mean one of two things?

RIM is in big trouble, there is very little brand loyalty being shown towards them from their core audience.

-or-

RIM is doing OK, with the deserters split almost 50/50 between Android and iPhone, the market will stabilize with RIM, Android, and iOS as the big-3. There is an exodus occuring, but its largely the market expanding outwards to occupy all three product lines, meaning RIM will remain a going concern.

I dunno.

[Barnes]

Originally Posted by sclitheroe

Could it mean one of two things?

RIM is in big trouble, there is very little brand loyalty being shown towards them from their core audience.

-or-

RIM is doing OK, with the deserters split almost 50/50 between Android and iPhone, the market will stabilize with RIM, Android, and iOS as the big-3. There is an exodus occuring, but its largely the market expanding outwards to occupy all three product lines, meaning RIM will remain a going concern.

I dunno.

But don't forget that there is a little operating system known as Symbian that has a 44% worldwide market share pushing RIM down to 4 place within a year.

It will be a battle between Symbian and Android for #1, iOS #3
I think there will be a battle between BB OS and WP7 for #4,5 in a years time as WP7 is more attractive as a consumer OS.

[OilKiller]

With how heavily entrenched in the business word RIM is, not a chance they'll be in 4th or 5th as you claim Barnes. Not a chance.

[sclitheroe]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

With how heavily entrenched in the business word RIM is, not a chance they'll be in 4th or 5th as you claim Barnes. Not a chance.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but the business world is a drop in the bucket compared to the consumer world in total handsets. Were this not the case, you would not see RIM trying to appease the consumer market with social media features in OS 6.

RIM themselves claims that the consumer market is 10x the size of their business market:

In an interview with Dow Jones Newswires, RIM's Chief Operating Officer Don Morrison said the company is looking to grow its customer base and target professionals who are short of time but want to send e-mails via mobile phones, alongside using MP3 music players, digital cameras and mobile internet.

"It is an addressable market that could be 10 times the size of our traditional market and it has extremely low penetration right now," said Morrison.

I do not think RIM will fall out of the top-3 in the business market though, I will agree with you on the front.

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by sclitheroe

Sorry to burst your bubble, but the business world is a drop in the bucket compared to the consumer world in total handsets. Were this not the case, you would not see RIM trying to appease the consumer market with social media features in OS 6.

Oh I know...I'm saying that the business world will definitely help RIM retain it's status as far as I'm concerned. I don't see them slipping to 4 or 5. No way. I see too many young kids still hitting the cell phone places and getting BB's because of BBM because all their friends talk that way. RIM knows this too and that is why they are currently advertising the hell out of BBM.

I was out at the bar the other night with some friends and some family and some of the family are in their 20's. They had some friends there too. Even the DJ came over to talk for a few minutes and everyone but ONE PERSON had a BB. And that one person is a friend of mine and is getting a Bold 9700 this month.

[sclitheroe]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

Oh I know...I'm saying that the business world will definitely help RIM retain it's status as far as I'm concerned. I don't see them slipping to 4 or 5. No way. I see too many young kids still hitting the cell phone places and getting BB's because of BBM because all their friends talk that way. RIM knows this too and that is why they are currently advertising the hell out of BBM.

I was out at the bar the other night with some friends and some family and some of the family are in their 20's. They had some friends there too. Even the DJ came over to talk for a few minutes and everyone but ONE PERSON had a BB. And that one person is a friend of mine and is getting a Bold 9700 this month.

I still maintain that a hardware-locked messaging platform like BBM will not ultimately succeed. It will become cross-platform or will decline in relevance & prominence as the world outside the walled garden of Blackberry continues to grow.

But we will have to agree to disagree on that one and see how it plays out.

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by sclitheroe

But we will have to agree to disagree on that one and see how it plays out.

I guess we will have to agree to disagree because that is the #1 reason why people I know keep their BB's and why others are getting BB's.

That and real keyboards.

[sclitheroe]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

I guess we will have to agree to disagree because that is the #1 reason why people I know keep their BB's and why others are getting BB's.

That and real keyboards.

Then why are half of polled Blackberry users ready to switch to another platform in the future

Enough though, we will revisit this topic in a years time.

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by sclitheroe

Then why are half of polled Blackberry users ready to switch to another platform in the future

Yeah, all 2000 people surveyed. Sorry, very small sample.

[silentsim]

The most popular android`s are also touchscreens, alongside the iPhone. I`d say the physical keyboard argument(that people want it) is no more. Sure, the people who buy Berries want it, but the overall concensus is towards touchscreens.

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by silentsim

The most popular android`s are also touchscreens, alongside the iPhone. I`d say the physical keyboard argument(that people want it) is no more. Sure, the people who buy Berries want it, but the overall concensus is towards touchscreens.

Really?

So what about those people that don't? I had an iPhone. I hated the touch screen. I love the real KB and can type much better. It's one of the main reasons why I bought a BB and ditched my iPhone.

Consensus is a strong word. Not sure it should be used here at all. Many still use a physical KB and prefer it. Obviously, as they are still selling BB's and people are still buying them.

I've also had a few friends and associates who got drawn in by the whole allure of Droid's and iPhones and you know what, everyone I know that did this is now back to a BB. They simply missed what the BB is and what it does too much. Shiny and new is definitely what the iPhone 4 and current Droid's are. Let's see how it all plays out in a couple more years.

[silentsim]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

Really?

So what about those people that don't? I had an iPhone. I hated the touch screen. I love the real KB and can type much better. It's one of the main reasons why I bought a BB and ditched my iPhone.

Consensus is a strong word. Not sure it should be used here at all. Many still use a physical KB and prefer it. Obviously, as they are still selling BB's and people are still buying them.

I've also had a few friends and associates who got drawn in by the whole allure of Droid's and iPhones and you know what, everyone I know that did this is now back to a BB. They simply missed what the BB is and what it does too much. Shiny and new is definitely what the iPhone 4 and current Droid's are. Let's see how it all plays out in a couple more years.

Based on market share figures and the most popular phones, right now concensus is the appropriate figure IMO. I am not bashing Blackberries in anyway- I still think they rock, I still use mine alongside the iPhone.

However, I do believe that touchscreens are taking over- and RIM is halfway there with the Storm 2 and 9800. (Nice idea to keep the physical keyboard on the 9800 still, as it is their new ``main` phone.)

[Potty]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

I guess we will have to agree to disagree because that is the #1 reason why people I know keep their BB's and why others are getting BB's.

That and real keyboards.

I have a ton of friends on BBM and would hate to lose it. I love the physical keyboard, too.

But I also use Twitter and Facebook a lot, as well as internet browsing.

I am wrestling big time whether to get the BB Bold, iPhone4 or HTC Desire.

[photon]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

Yeah, all 2000 people surveyed. Sorry, very small sample.

Polls don't have to be huge to be statistically valid in representing a much much larger group of people, they just have to be done properly. I don't doubt those #'s at all.

[burn_baby_burn]

Does it really matter which OS is first, second, or third? If some people prefer Android thats great. If some people like the iPhone thats also great. If people like the BB because of push email and BBM whats wrong with that? Why does there need to be a crusade from iPhone fans to convert those of us who, god forbid, use a BlackBerry?

[Potty]

Originally Posted by burn_baby_burn

Does it really matter which OS is first, second, or third? If some people prefer Android thats great. It some people like the iPhone thats also great. If people like the BB because of push email and BBM whats wrong with that? Why does there need to be a crusade from iPhone fans to convert those of us who, god forbid, use a BlackBerry?

Agree, different OS's offer different advantages to people and some people can't see what is best for them doesn't always suit everyone else.

The one thing that sucks is that one of BB's biggest advantages is BBM, which is reliant on your contacts also having a BB. The more people move to other smartphones, the more my list of BBM contacts shrink.

[OilKiller]

Originally Posted by Potty

I have a ton of friends on BBM and would hate to lose it. I love the physical keyboard, too.

But I also use Twitter and Facebook a lot, as well as internet browsing.

I am wrestling big time whether to get the BB Bold, iPhone4 or HTC Desire.

Yeah, I'm sure that's a tough call for you. I don't browse the Net hardly at all on my phone so it's no big deal for me. I do use the Facebook app on my Bold and find it works just fine for what I need. I don't use Twitter so I've never even opened the Twitter app that was loaded on my Bold.

Originally Posted by photon

Polls don't have to be huge to be statistically valid in representing a much much larger group of people, they just have to be done properly. I don't doubt those #'s at all.

True I suppose to an extent. I simply don't trust polls that don't include a large number of people surveyed. Much in the same way I don't think the TV ratings system in the U.S. is very good. One person with a box sitting in a trailer park in Nebraska represents half a million people and them watching The Bachelor causes something like FireFly to be taken off the air. Ugh.

[sclitheroe]

Originally Posted by OilKiller

Yeah, all 2000 people surveyed. Sorry, very small sample.

Still bigger than your “me and my friends and DJ at a bar” sample.

That’s my last post on the topic though, the last word can be yours.

[silentsim]

Regardless of the junk, I still love my BB. Can't imagine living without BBM

I do admit, i do dig physical keyboards. I am almost up to par on the touchscreen's though...lookout world!:P