A lot has been written about the BlackBerry 10 operating system and hardware, and also about RIM as a whole. Someone recently grabbed a lot of page hits on their article, calling the upcoming BlackBerry 10 platform “Dead on Arrival”. Quite harsh, I believe. Reeks of fanboy-ism too, though I really can’t say which other platform the writer is a staunch fan of. As a reviewer, it is my job to keep all preconceived notions and prejudices under lock and key, when at work. Irrespective of whether I like a platform, product or device of not, it is important to be as objective as possible, and any subjectivity – personal opinions – should be accompanied by enough logic, reasoning or proof.
Unfortunately, that is quite contrary to how most reviewers and tech journalists’ work. Whatever happened to analyzing things when the final product was actually sitting in your hands? Or is YouTube now the window to reviewing gadgets and technology? However, the moot point is – RIM seems to be doing everything to survive 2013 and come out on the other side stronger than before. The indications are already being decoded within the industry, and not without strong reasons. “Desperate times call for desperate measures” – and RIM knows that better than most, by now.
Which corner do I stand in? Am I the fanboy of that OS which comes with names that inevitably make you hungry? Or am I one of those who use an iPhone and look down upon all else from a platform of my own imagination? Or do I just try to sound more knowledgeable than I might be and conjure up complicated sentences to say Windows Phone rocks? The answer to where I stand lies in none of the above questions / statements. I simply stand in a corner, waiting for the moment to arrive. Not to say that I do not take in all the information, misinformation in some cases, the leaks and the updates and try to analyze how the BB10 platform is all coming together.
And I must specify, that there is a sense of optimism that BB10 will do well, and I have my reasons. Maybe you don’t agree with them, but they are fairly valid, nevertheless.
A new OS is a new start
Yes, there has been a significant gap of time between OS7 and the upcoming BB10. However, the old adage, “better late than never”, applies in this case. Rather than coming out with a half-baked OS8 or OS9 (or whatever that may have been called), RIM decided to gamble with a fairly long period and silently work on an OS that could finally match up to the rivals, if not offer more.
Agreed, this has taken far too long in an era where OS updates roll out within 6-8 months, on an average. But critically, the developers have taken center-stage at RIM, which makes me rather optimistic about a solution for the long standing grouse – the app ecosystem, will be well populated when BB10 arrives on the scene. That has always been one of the top points on which RIM has faced flack, but solving that will go a long way in helping defecting criticism. From what we have seen in the information shared by RIM, and some leaks, the user interface (UI) looks absolutely brilliant.
Well, before you retort, just remember the UI on the Playbook. Yes, the device bombed rather badly, but the UI was absolutely brilliant, and coupled with a fairly capable hardware, the multitasking was an absolute delight. I mean, how many devices in this day and age can boast of being able to screen a full HD movie to a TV via HDMI while letting the person holding it to play Need for Speed at the same time, without a single stutter? The Playbook did that successfully, which points us in one direction – RIM know how to do it, and this time around, they are very much motivated. The fight for survival does that to most people!
U.S. Govt. departments are not an indicator of anything!
The inevitable RIM bashing started every single time some government department in the U.S.A switched over from the iPhone. But, if the U.S. government departments were the actual indicators of the smartphone market, and if they were actually smart buyers, why were they buying hundreds and thousands of Bold Touch 9900 smartphones for their employees not too long ago?
Look at the timeline here – the Bold Touch 9900 and other BlackBerry handset upgrades were done in huge numbers between October 2011 and December 2011. So, really, did it suddenly dawn upon them 8-10 months down the line that all the phones they just bought are not good enough? Clearly, their logic is not the most foolproof, and only someone who isn’t thinking correctly will take these moves as a barometer of RIM’s fortunes.
The enterprise crowd is still not lost
The recent phenomenon of bring your own devices (BYOD) have become fairly popular in most enterprises. However, once this initial excitement of being “flexible” and “not being restricted” dies down, the problems will come to the fore. One is ensuring that every platform is able to handshake with the setup, and that may not always be possible. But the bigger issue is the one of data security. It will only take one or two instances of data compromise before the same “flexible” enterprises crack down. And in that scenario, the first word out of the mouth is BlackBerry.
Despite what some people may have you believe, no smartphone platform at the moment is focused on the need to the enterprises. The best they have done is walk the middle path, trying to keep the regular consumer as well as the IT hotshots in companies satisfied. But that approach will not work well for long. Which is why, the timing of the BB10 is perfect for companies to switch back to the tried and tested method.
The third place is still up for grabs
The smartphone industry, globally, is a fairly volatile place. With Samsung and Apple pretty much duking it out for the top two spots, the battle for third place is still pretty much open. Sony took third spot very recently, not because the sales of the Xperia phones suddenly shot up, but more so because Nokia and HTC shot themselves in the foot. Despite all the shouting, hyping and screaming (and faking, at one point), Windows Phone’s assault with Nokia isn’t gaining momentum as much as Microsoft would have liked. With BB10, RIM could very easily come into the reckoning for the third spot. People confuse brands with operating systems most of the time. There as well, Android and Apple iOS are fighting amongst themselves for the top two spots. Windows Phone has not secured third spot by any stretch of the imagination, and a good showing with BB10 will confirm BlackBerry as the solid third option behind Android and the iOS.
80 million
It may not be a huge number, but keeping in mind RIM has had fairly bad last 3-4 quarters, this number does look fairly strong. The reason for the weak year has been the lack of a new range of phones for the consumers. However, 80 million enterprise and consumer base is fairly strong to build on. This is the number that RIM will have to build on, with the new platform. The key will be to retain a major chunk of this demographic, and add on new users. Those who have switched may never return, but those who are still figuring out which platform suits them will be available for a discussion.
BlackBerry Messenger
It was initially a surprise to see so many school and college going demographic totting BlackBerry smartphones. But the reason for that was very clear – BlackBerry Messenger became popular with the crowd. Yes, there was Whatsapp available on all other OS platforms as you may encounter, but who is to argue with the crowd that purchased BlackBerry phones for BBM. The numbers speak for themselves – 80 million users globally. Additionally, the new BlackBerry Messenger version brings in audio and video chats as well, where you will not be charged for voice, but only for data. Hook up to a good data plan, and you are all set.
The QWERTY
Touchscreen phones are so sleek, some say. However, a big demographic (yours truly included) cannot do without a physical QWERTY keypad. Everyone has different requirements from a phone, and a QWERTY works for a lot of users. The Bold and Curve series does it for a lot of users, and RIM realizes that. The touchscreen is an additional bonus, and the handsets after Bold Touch 9900 do indicate that RIM is trying to offer both aspects to its users. Not to say that full touchscreen phones will be neglected, because the BB10 L-series phone is pretty much what the touchscreen phone lovers would want.
It will be interesting to see how RIM has redone the touchscreen QWERTY, particularly with the suggestions and the swipe gestures. And equally, the Nevada handset will have the touchscreen plus the QWERTY.
Correct pricing
RIM will have to be very careful with the pricing structure of BB10 phones. Yes, the initial bunch will be high end phones, but not much later, there need to be BlackBerry phones available around Rs 10,000 and upwards. This is critical to see the huge numbers, particularly in markets like India.
All in all, with whatever knowledge I may have about this field, I am going to squarely stand on the neutral ground till we actually see what BB10 is all about. And that, surely, would be the sensible thing.