Example of bad press killing Playbook.

[rs422a]

Just a rant here concerning so called "technology writers" on various websites who write about the Playbook. I just read an article on C/Net concerning the Playbook written by a gent with 20 years experience writing technology articles and here is what he said:

The Playbook has no built in GPS. (Then he retracted after a reader corrected him)
The Playbook has built-in email.
The operating system is unstable.

It's things like this that are perceived by uninformed people that have damaged the Playbook. What he didn't say:

The PB can do Flash.
The PB is the only tablet approved for use by various governments including the U.S.
The PB can multitask.

It isn't just C/Net. I've seen poor reviews on numerous techno sites the past few months. The average user of advanced computer technology is a bout as technically literate as a bag of hammers, so it is reviews like these that sway public opinion on a device, any device for that matter. If I recollect, the Ipad had serious issues the 8 months of its release too, but because Apple had the clout, they were able to squelch the bad press to a large degree. If you bash a company like Apple too bad, they won't send you equipment to hands-on for free. Which, I believe, is why we never hear anything negative about anything Apple sells. But go over to the Apple support forums and take a look. That will give you an idea of the troubles Apple has, like any other manufacturer, with its products. I'm not saying the PB is perfect (it is for me) but I really think it has gotten a bum deal in the press.

[kbz1960]

I'll jump before the usual do.

No bad press is not killing the playbook, RIM and sales are.

Brought to you by the you know who.

[rs422a]

Bad press=bad sales.

[Jifffer]

Let the press bad-crap it all they want ....I surely don't need the opinion of a tech writer to make up my own mind on a quality product. I hate to admit it ...but everyone is pretty much purchased - one way or another - wether its advertising dollars, subscriptions, launch invitations, etc .....true journalism is pretty much a thing of the past.

Only one right way to do it, roll up your sleeves, get your hands dirty and formulate your opinion / conclusion !!!

[BB9700CA]

You have only to realize the so-called technology writers are the same people who cannot troubleshoot simple problems and immediately blame any manufacturer except Apple. Leo Laporte, for example, bashes the BlackBerry PlayBook with misinformation although he is an Apple fanboy on oar with the Microsoft fanboys of the 1990s. Has Research In Motion made colossal mistakes in the development and marketing of the BlackBerry PlayBook? Absolutely. February 2012 is do or die month for this company so any failure will be amplified to a deafening roar as it should be. The markets will not react favourably to failure.

[trelawrence]

Originally Posted by Jifffer

Let the press bad-crap it all they want ....I surely don't need the opinion of a tech writer to make up my own mind on a quality product. I hate to admit it ...but everyone is pretty much purchased - one way or another - wether its advertising dollars, subscriptions, launch invitations, etc .....true journalism is pretty much a thing of the past.

Only one right way to do it, roll up your sleeves, get your hands dirty and formulate your opinion / conclusion !!!

Thank you. Well said.

We get so worked up about what others say about how we spend our OWN money.

The perfect item for me is the item that I think is perfect. I truly don't care who uses it or who writes about it.

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[VanCity778]

As we all know the media can be EXTREMELY powerful in swaying public opinion. So a negative story on RIM can, will and does have an impact on sales. I've talked to many people that switched from Blackberry to Android or Apple because they were afraid of RIM failing.

[amro]

the cnet article and the author were both already torn apart a few weeks ago. no need to rehash it

[Superfly_FR]

"La bave du crapeau n'atteint pas la blanche colombe".
"The slime of toad does not reach the white dove"

Let's start to ignore these articles, unless they point a valid default or suggest something new that appears to be relevant. Internet is full of crap, let's not transform CB in a collecting bin.

[Philldoe]

Originally Posted by kbz1960

I'll jump before the usual do.

No bad press is not killing the playbook, RIM and sales are.

Brought to you by the you know who.

Bad press causes bad sales. If the ignorant masses believe everything they hear (And they often do) then a handfull of stupid talking heads can ruin a company.

[mark37724]

Lots of great points, it really doesn't matter if os 2 comes out and it earth shattering, these so-called tech writer's are not going to retract any of their negative reviews and they really carry alot of weight. If I am going to purchase a large ticket item, I research it via reviews whether it be a car, tv or tablet computer. So yes, reviews really have damaged the PlayBooks reputation, hopefully when the new models come out, new reviews will follow as hopefully opinions will be favourable.

[kbz1960]

Originally Posted by Philldoe

Bad press causes bad sales. If the ignorant masses believe everything they hear (And they often do) then a handfull of stupid talking heads can ruin a company.

Oh I agree. I was just saving certain people from having to post that morsel.

I'm sure they will still be in to inform us all that if it were complete (as if any other 1. OS has ever been complete and bug free) it would have received better press.

[fanatical]

Originally Posted by rs422a

It isn't just C/Net. I've seen poor reviews on numerous techno sites the past few months. The average user of advanced computer technology is a bout as technically literate as a bag of hammers, so it is reviews like these that sway public opinion on a device, any device for that matter. If I recollect, the Ipad had serious issues the 8 months of its release too, but because Apple had the clout, they were able to squelch the bad press to a large degree. If you bash a company like Apple too bad, they won't send you equipment to hands-on for free. Which, I believe, is why we never hear anything negative about anything Apple sells.

I don't think the sending free eval HW is an issue for most of these places, however..... the AD REVENUE IS !!! look at the ads on most of these sites..... android, android, apple, android, apple, apple, android, etc....

Everywhere I go now, esp. tech site are full of Android ads. Apple ads are not far behind. So when you are a tech writer, or editor for such a site.... and you know you get a large % of your revenue from Company A and Company B and non from Company C..... How is this going to reflect your so called reporting ?

[swyost]

I am really beginning to think that many Playbook users suffer from some form of iPad envy. Yes, I do mean that in the equivalent sense of a different sort of male envy. This is the only place that I find Apple is brought up again and again and again. As far as Apple never getting negative press, when is the last time you heard a positive thing about Apple TV or about Apple's relationship with Foxconn? For that matter, they hardly got a free pass from the press over the iPhone signal drop out issues, or either the screen quality or recent battery issues. RIM gets occasional unjustified bad press but so do other companies. The difference at the moment is that RIM is (pretty much) dominated by bad press that is mostly of its own creation. RIM released the half finished Playbook, marketed to business, but without a native app for the thing upon it built its reputation (email). On that front, Bridge simply does not cover that up because they did not market the Playbook as a BB extension but as mass market professional grade tablet. They are also a year late on promised updates and have a phone line that simply looks dated in comparison to the competition.

For a long time RIM/BB was the golden child that could do no wrong and its products were the status items to have. The company is no longer on that pedestal and going to get trashed in the media, as every other company does, when they make mistakes or fail to deliver on a product. If RIM made fewer mistakes, and looked less generally inept, they wouldn't garner as much of the bad press. Yes, bad press hurts products and hurts companies but the cycle usually starts with bad products or bad decisions. BTW, while the Playbook is certainly a nice piece of hardware, from a marketing perspective it could hardly count as a good product when launched given the botched marketing campaign and lack of industry standard (and expected) features. Products seldom get a second chance and the Playbook is no exception....

[squ1nts]

let the press be the press... just makes us stronger and strive to further excellence. The playbook will shine at the end of this month. keep ur heads up