BlackBerry Cool

BlackBerry products are ahead in the enterprise space, but waay behind in the consumer space. People developing new mobile apps don't even mention BlackBerry anymore; iPhone is at the top of their list, with a second to Android.

It's nice though that apps on the BlackBerry are allowed to do a lot more than Apple's restrictive App Store sandbox allows. If you want to do anything techie or advanced, you have to hack your phone.

I laughed when I saw Apple’s “First Steps” commercial (http://www.apple.com/iphone/gallery/ads/) where the Mom records her child taking first steps, sends the video via e-mail, and then gets on a conference call with her parents. All on her iPhone.
Really?
Ground breaking.
Been doing that on my BlackBerry for a while now.

They're behind in the consumer space in one sense, but way ahead in another. Yes, apps are developed for iPhone first, but the iPhone is still relatively expensive compared to the free BlackBerrys out there. What's more consumer friendly than a free smartphone?

Can you say Hidden Dock? Today, maybe? Dedicated app slots?

There are themes for BlackBerry that blow the default iPhone UI away.
But each to it's own. It's great the iPhone is getting upgrades.

Maybe iPhone could deliver a keyboard… then we can still continue to gloat!

Keyboard is a personal preference. I've had an iPhone for 2 years and type quite proficiently using the touchscreen. To me comparing keyboard BBs to iPhone always seemed like an apples and oranges comparison. The fact the market is now flooded with touchscreen devices just shows that maybe keyboards aren't as necessary as you make them out to be.

Those 40% of blackberry users supposedly thinking of switching may have a compelling reason starting tomorrow. If these rumored features are true, Apple will be closing the gap on most of RIM's competitive advantages.

I've been a BlackBerry user for years. And I've loved every minute of it. BlackBerry devices have helped me to do things with great efficiency. Having said that, I purchased an iPod Touch several weeks ago and quickly determined that, if AT&T had a decent network in my area (heck, if they had a decent network anywhere), I would drop my BB for an iPhone immediately and with no regrets.

The number of useful apps for the iPhone far outnumber those available for the BlackBerry. And the intuitive UI is very well done. Themes are not the same as UI, so comparing the two is a bit on the nonsensical side of the argument. The development limitations on the BlackBerry make apps that are available for both devices look very weak on the BB compared to their iPhone counterparts.

Yes, Apple is about to introduce things that BB has had for quite some time. But that doesn't make the BB better. It just makes them first. Apple ups the game and passes the BlackBerry with this OS release in my opinion.

Alas, AT&T doesn't have a good network here, so I have the best of both worlds. No complaints. For now.

I've been a BB user for years as well and agree with you completely. My experience is with the iPad but after 10mins of using it and getting it hooked up to my exchange server at work (was incredibly easy and I never had to ask my IT person to do a thing unlike BB where they had to add me to the server before I can start using it) I had email, contacts, and my calendar working perfectly. I do wish the email notification was based on getting a new message since last I looked vs. how many unread messages I have but I can live with it. I am a Storm 2 user so I am committed to the touch screen experience. If an iPhone screen is anything like the iPad in responsiveness then I have no doubt that I can change and never go back. The real game changer is all the apps that are available and how well they run. My Storm 2 just feels wrong after using the iPad. I suspect that the day that Verizon gets the iPhone will be a very dark day for RIM. I know that I will be switching immediately!

No offence to the poster, but I think this post is a pretty good example of the stagnant and arrogant attitude that RIM itself has. For me, there is a faint hope that this will pick them up of their laurels and stop showing off their “multitasking” and “global inbox” as if RIM had exclusive patents on it. They need to really start thinking forward instead of looking behind at how close Apple is getting, or Apple will overtake them as forecasted in 2011.

The iPad can connect without IT intervention because it uses insecure protocols of email connection that were designed in 1982 called SMTP and POP3 which use plain text to transmit their commands meaning that anyone on your wifi knows your email and your password if they want to. I don’t think that IT should be included in everything but there is a reason why IT get involved and it is to make sure things are setup right and securely. Next to that it may if you lucky be using ActiveSync which uses some encryption this is what Windows Business use In a business this is not acceptable you need encryption unless all you do is make toilet paper dispensers.

I switched because I could. There's a difference between a person who CAN switch, vs another with work BB whose company will not support another smartphone. Exchange works great syncing my calendar, contacts and email to the cloud and is not prone to BIS outages. Many large corporations are beginning to allow users to choose their own device. RIM can not sit back and thinking their stranglehold on enterprise will last forever. RIM's growth IS and will continue to come from the Consumer space. They need to focus on innovating in the Consumer space if they want to stay relevant.

you can't do a battery pull on an iPhone. Oh that's right….YOU DON'T NEED TO.

Thanks… I hope to update it when Apple release OS4 – should be interesting.

I'd love to put an Android through the same tests, but I haven't found someone who wants to give me one for a month or so.

What's more consumer friendly than a free smartphone? Answer: a consumer friendly smartphone

I wouldn't be too surprised if Apple beat BlackBerry to having their own advertising UI. Currently, the lack of support from AdMob has BlackBerry behind in this area.

I wouldn't be surprised if Apple doesn't add multitasking for a few more years (their loss)…

I think you have not experienced a BlackBerry properly. You plug your new BlackBerry into Desktop Manager and it will ask you if you want to use the new device. You click yes and BES server does the rest and moves everything to the new device as well security policies are downloaded and applied. In 5 minutes my device is up to date, as well company security Is maintained. I can lose my device 1 minute later with no worry the company is at risk. You lose your device you have to explain to IT that you cannot wipe it and all company email is on it with client information. BTW slide to lock is useless cause you can remove the drive… iPhones/pads are not secure by default because make up was more important then security.

Well… what's RIM been doing lately? They've got the same structure as Apple doing incremental hardware and software improvements. RIM has been in the smartphone market much longer than Apple has so it would stand to reason that there are a lot of features that RIM introduced first. Apple and RIM are very different consumer markets. RIM focuses almost entirely on smartphones while Apple also engineers computers, iPods, etc.

It's hard to ultimately compare the two phones because they have different functionality. BB is more designed for business enterprise while iPhone is more engineered for ease of use and hardware/software performance.

I live in Canada and I love that RIM is a Canadian company, but Apple has obviously created a product that has hurt RIM's market share. There are really three phones sharing the top slots of smartphones; Blackberry, iPhone, and the HTC Hero.

What a stupid post. I have both and the iPhone is a toy period. I rarely use it to be productive and have yet to find one App that helps me do actually work. (3 model iPhones later and countless downloads). Why can't I delete any of the core Apple crap I don't want – the stock ticker, the compass, etc. How about being able to at least hide them, group them into folders (Apps, Games etc)?? It's a playskool approach for the begineers to smartphone.

What BB are you using? I have not seen a hour glass on any 4.6+ higher device. Yes there is a limit to how much stuff you can put on the device but thats true of every platform. Do you even know how to manage your Blackberry and tweak it? Maybe it's a bit to techie for you – stick with the toy phones and “Apps” it's about all you can handle son.

it's also a dirty little secret that most Blackberry users don't care about “Apps” as they you know actually have work to do …

Blackberry users are productive focused, iPhone users play games.

Not to mention BES OTA activation and no need to install iTunes in your corporate environment.

Thank god we killed the ActiveSync connection last year.

“I have not seen a hour glass on any 4.6+ device.” Hahaha. Here’s a little assignment for you: go to Google.com, type in “blackberry hourglass” and take a look at the drop down menu Google provides to complete your query. The fact that you categorized the problem by OS instead of device shows you probably don’t know what you’re talking about. I have a Bold 9000 with 128mb. This problem probably doesn’t occur as often on 256mb models. My point is that the cheapest iPhone has 32x the application memory of the most expensive BlackBerry. The reason is that RIM sandboxes the app environment from the rest of the phone for security reasons. That’s not an excuse, and is a slap in the face to the consumer and developer base that relies on BlackBerry as a first-class device. 99% of people don’t have both an iPhone and BlackBerry, so why do you? You’ve bought three iPhones thinking what, the apps would be different on each one?

I can assure you I know how to handle my BlackBerry, as it’s the only way I can squeeze it with all the apps I need and at least be able to go half a day without having to reset. For you to even talk about me knowing how to tweak/manage my phone or that it’s too “techie” for me is laughable because a) I know the phone inside out b) you’re saying ALL BLACKBERRY USERS NEED TO BE TECHIES TO USE THEIR PHONES NORMALLY. Maybe you would prefer that it be a niche phone for techies only? That’s a brilliant business strategy. Perhaps you should apply to RIM.

I have a BlackBerry for a reason and I do not want an iPhone. That doesn’t mean I can’t criticize RIM and be concerned about the direction it’s going in. No offence but your post was a joke and it makes me upset that people back up a device just because they have it.

“I have not seen a hour glass on any 4.6+ device.” Hahaha. Here’s a little assignment for you: go to Google.com, type in “blackberry hourglass” and take a look at the drop down menu Google provides to complete your query. The fact that you categorized the problem by OS instead of device shows you probably don’t know what you’re talking about. I have a Bold 9000 with 128mb. This problem probably doesn’t occur as often on 256mb models. My point is that the cheapest iPhone has 32x the application memory of the most expensive BlackBerry. The reason is that RIM sandboxes the app environment from the rest of the phone for security reasons. That’s not an excuse, and is a slap in the face to the consumer and developer base that relies on BlackBerry as a first-class device. 99% of people don’t have both an iPhone and BlackBerry, so why do you? You’ve bought three iPhones thinking what, the apps would be different on each one?

I can assure you I know how to handle my BlackBerry, as it’s the only way I can squeeze it with all the apps I need and at least be able to go half a day without having to reset. For you to even talk about me knowing how to tweak/manage my phone or that it’s too “techie” for me is laughable because a) I know the phone inside out b) you’re saying ALL BLACKBERRY USERS NEED TO BE TECHIES TO USE THEIR PHONES NORMALLY. Maybe you would prefer that it be a niche phone for techies only? That’s a brilliant business strategy. Perhaps you should apply to RIM.

I have a BlackBerry for a reason and I do not want an iPhone. That doesn’t mean I can’t criticize RIM and be concerned about the direction it’s going in. No offence but your post was a joke and it makes me upset that people back up a device just because they have it.

Just so you know BlackBerries sync with iTunes, have a mobile app store, have push messaging, and identical screen resolution as the iPhone.

Given the choice between multitasking or a compass, it really should not be that hard of a choice to make…

Let me add to that…

Let define some foundation here so that we are all on the same page it how each device compares to the other. Please feel free to add if you actually know what your talking about and are not just plagiarizing other peoples numbers.

BlackBerry was designed for the corporate environment. It was designed with security in mind with no exceptions. Because of this BES had to be introduced. BES is able to 100% put its fingers into Exchange. There are no worries if it cannot or wont be able to do something because they designed the software. The only limitation is Exchange. You cannot get BES to do something the Exchange cannot do its self. This is a logical assumption but some people are slow.

iPhones were not meant for the corporate environment. Sure they can connect and sync email, contacts and calendars from Exchange using active sync. but the buck stops right there. There is no way to manage the device. The limitation of using Active Sync is active sync. if it does nto allow you to do it then your screwed. Write an email to Microsoft hoping they will add new features. its limited to only be able to do 4-6 things.

Apple will most likely never be able to do what RIM has with BES. Even if Apple decides to do their own BES type server there will be drawbacks. A) It will most likely will be on a MAC server this is okay if you have a mixed environment but most IT people if they only know Windows Linux will stay away from doing a 1 off install when they could chose BES instead and keep the environment the same. B) Good luck getting Microsoft's help with accessing APIs on Exchange. Apple is a direct competitor they not going to give them access to Exchange development so they can steal the ideas. This is why they created an open standard for Active Sync so Apple cannot cry because they are not allowed to play with Exchange. There is an API use it and if you dont like it build your own MTA.

Apple boasts a 150,000 I have even read as of March 20th that that number is now 170,00 (http://www.tuaw.com/2010/03/20/smartphone-app-n…). I will give Apple the benefit of the fact that there are a lot of applications for the iPhone. To hear people just rhyme that number off sickens me because you are all a victim of marketing and statistics. Learn what a number is before you stand behind it. lets break that number down from what I have researched that almost 50% of all those applications are Games and Entertainment. 50% that a boatload of games and farting applications. Of the rest you have a single application by the same manufacture for each Major team in the world. For instance if ESPN made an application for scores, standing, player info and stats instead of making 1 application to access everything they create an application for each and every team. Do you know how many applications that is? Then to top that off they make one off applications for each sporting event like FIFA and NCAA March Madness. So the number of required applications goes from 1 to an exponential number. Yes I know you can buy a single app to do it all but that is not the point. The whole 170,000 starts to shrink to quite a small number when you take considerations like this out. Plus the fact that 5 different sports reporting companies do this. Then chop the number down again to account for duplicate applications that all do the same thing. Seriously how many farting applications are there? Thats just an example there are 1000s more like that. So when you stand behind a number make sure you know the real number. Its like the age old statistic of Airplanes are safer then cars to travel in. What they never tell you is that it is based on miles/km traveled. So most times in a plane you travel huge amounts of distance so its a perfect number to use. Apple is doing the same thing they find the best way to make them self look huge without explaining the details. You are all a victim of media and its worked because most people just recite numbers and never do their research.

There is no security for IT when we put a iPhone on the network like policies to ensure company data cannot be shared or lost. RIM has this one nailed and locked down years ago.

Apple can never go into the corporate space unless they do some huge changes like a BES server of their own which I explained above will probably never happen. BlackBerry on the other hand owns the corporate environment and is now making its way out to the consumer front. Apple should be scared as hell because they have no where to go they have to stay put and fight out fights. RIM has a fortress that if the consumer market does not pan out for device A they can retreat to the corporate work space and regroup and come back with better and more innovative ideas in device B. It is what they are doing. I agree they have made some major crappy phones but they are learning and when you are testing the envelope you have failure sometimes but it is only a failure if you dont learn from it. At least RIM is trying something different instead of the same old same old you get from Apple. The device has not changed its the same shape its the same design with better hardware in it. RIM is all over the place with different design shape and sizes.

Please add to my post if you have an intelligent answer and you are not just reciting someone else's market dribble. I dont mind having a conversation but to have an argument you must be informed. just repeating marketing is just sad!

Seriously though if you cannot have a discussion without being immature by using then it goes to show the level of maturity that use the play school devices as someone else mentioned. We are all BlackBerry fans here what do you think we are going to do praise Apple stuff here? of course we are going to circle jerk each other its the point of the site!