Smartphone Wars Coming to a Head in 2013 – Does BlackBerry Have a Puncher’s Chance?
There once was a time that most people would agree BlackBerry was the smartphone device to beat before Apple screwed everything up with something called an iPhone. Latest RIM earnings reports show a company that was climbing from the depths of hell with a growing excitement among developers for its long anticipated BlackBerry 10 platform. Alec Saunders, RIM’s VP of developer relations is quoted:
“The focus we have had on building a true developer ecosystem and community is clearly working,” he said in a statement today.
Still, the challenge he faces was underscored by a report last month which showed RIM’s share of U.S. smartphone sales in the 12 weeks ended Oct. 28, tumbled 6.9 percentage points to 1.6% from a year earlier. RIM’s new BlackBerry 10 phones will be unveiled Jan. 30 before going on sale on “multiple continents” in February.”
Now comes the 12/20 earnings call where RIM outperformed street estimates but they cut future earnings based on lower service fees. CEO Thorsten Heins said that lower-end users will generate “less or no service revenue” in the future – an area that just happens to be a very profitable source of revenue . I know much has been written here on WSO about RIM as a potential buyout candidate, a true case study in the making for investors, etc. but can we all really expect this business to turn around a fight with the likes of Apple and Samsung?
Here are some real reasons you might be excited for BlackBerry 10:
- Peek view in every area of the UI
- The flick typing of words in predictive text
- Groupings of contact interaction in one area as opposed to browser, contacts, LinkedIn, etc.
- Seemingly seamless transition between enterprise secure data versus personal use (a potential savior for anyone who carries two phones for this exact reason)
At the BlackBerry Jam Americas (keep in mind this title is likely from the same CEO who was allegedly going to “rock and roll this!” after his initial appointment) keynote back in September, the company demoed some of these features in their
. Certainly some really cool features, but many of us are already seeing on our (enter smartphone other than BlackBerry here) device. This is one of the biggest critiques of the company of late in being a late mover to new technology and features (Apple has also garnered some criticism here). Can this really be what keeps this company from falling into oblivion or is it an “audition” to develop a package that they can license to other smartphone manufacturers?One last thing. I recently read that the Cubes is squarely in the corner of Microsoft, saying his Nokia 920 (running Windows Phone 8) “crushes the iPhone 5. Not even close” . First and foremost, I am a believer that competition drives innovation which in turn can only lead to a better environment both for manufacturers and consumers alike. Could this be a technological ménage-a-trois among Apple, Samsung and Windows that consumers have been clamoring for? And, if so, where does BB fit into the equation?
I've got the iPhone 5, but this thing looks sexy: http://bgr.com/2012/12/12/blackberry-l-series-photos-leak/
I'd definitely get that over any Android phone on the market. I've never used a Windows phone, so I can't comment on them.
I feel the need to support the company that started the whole smartphone craze, and I still think BBs have the best keyboards on the market.
Do you still have the link to the report regarding the climbing market share of RIM? I'm interested in taking a close look in that. Thanks
Sorry for the late reply - here's a few links from some googling/their website investor relations section:
http://press.rim.com/content/dam/rim/press/PDF/Financial/FY2013/Q3_FY20…
http://www.rim.com/investors/documents/pdf/pressrelease/2012/Q3FY13_fin…
No.
I would take a BB over my iPhone if the internet experience and apps were improved.
So has blackberry completely done away with the qwerty keyboard to total touch screen? This was the only thing that kept me using a blackberry as I had trying to type email on an iphone.
Apple have saturated their smartphone market share. Blackberry have not. Longed RIMM @ $11
Android is now, as has been noted by many techies, the mobile OS to beat. With iOS 6.0.1, Apple lost a lot of fans...can't blame the diaspora from iPhone, looking at the same OS and identical interface for 7 straight years is mind-numbing.
BlackBerry?
What is this - 2008?
The ship has sailed for BlackBerry. Their one saving grace was their addicted and captive market of business users. This market has been cracked open by Apple and Android. Blackberry also alienated many of their non business users with multiple failed iterations of touch screen competition. Why should I give them another chance when there are so many great alternatives?
This phone looks great and much better than anything they previously released, but is it better than the Iphone? The new Samsung coming out (the note I think)? Better than the Windows 8 phone? RIM is trying to fight back and come behind with a good product, not an amazing, better than the rest product.
I think they are a solid acquisition, much better than shitty Palm, but this phone isn't going to return them to glory any time soon.
I'm an iphone/ipad guy - the new berry is pretty sweet. Probably the most underrated feature is true multitasking. On iproducts its kinda a pain to go between email, Safari, and evernote. Seems much more seamless with the berry.
Pretty slick product. Keep in mind that things can change quickly with tech/telecom. Moto was on the top of the world in 2006, got killed by the iPhone but is back and is doing decently well. At one point AAPL was on the verge of collapse.
A lot of truth in that. Right now in my opinion, one of the coolest features on moto android phones is the smart actions. if you have a moto droid phone definitely look into this as there's some really cool stuff you can do. here's a video example:
Interesting post on a pro user switching from iOS to android
http://www.24100.net/2013/01/an-iphone-lovers-confession-i-switched-to-…
http://www.forbes.com/sites/ericsavitz/2012/12/06/rimm-no-qwerty-bb10-d…
Definitely RIM's first half 2013 earning won't look too good. If you are looking for RIM's game changer, BB10 will probably disappoint you.
Rebound slim according to citi (cited from BGR this morning anyways)
http://bgr.com/2013/01/24/blackberry-10-sales-estimates-citi-304788/?ut…
Just saw this pop up on Fortune today - for any interested it's an analysis of who can become the #3 player behind Google and Apple and why any position beyond that doesn't matter.
http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2013/01/28/microsoft-blackberry-iphone-andr…
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