[Tre Lawrence]

Unfortunately, Blackberry breaks the most cardinal rule for being an alternative for everyday consumers. It is not available to purchase anywhere!

1/ BB10 is practically unavailable at all physical retailers in the US.
2/ There is no current (<1 yr old) Blackberry device officially supported by any of the major US cellular networks at this time.
3/ Supply of many models like the Passport or Verizon Z30 is intermittent and difficult to find online even for die-hard fans.

For Blackberry to be an alternative, a consumer must be able to find one to use. Even many fans are being forced off Blackberry.

This.

[Bbnivende]

Unfortunately, Blackberry breaks the most cardinal rule for being an alternative for everyday consumers. It is not available to purchase anywhere!

1/ BB10 is unavailable at practically all physical retailers in the US.
2/ There is no current (<1 yr old) Blackberry device officially supported by any of the major US cellular networks at this time.
3/ Supply of many models like the Passport or Verizon Z30 is intermittent and difficult to find online even for die-hard fans.

For Blackberry to be an alternative, a consumer must be able to find one to use. Even many fans are being forced off Blackberry.

Of course that is the USA perspective. Hope that it does not come to that in Canada. The Z30 should have could have been better.

[spikesolie]

Unfortunately, Blackberry breaks the most cardinal rule for being an alternative for everyday consumers. It is not available to purchase anywhere!

1/ BB10 is unavailable at practically all physical retailers in the US.
2/ There is no current (<1 yr old) Blackberry device officially supported by any of the major US cellular networks at this time.
3/ Supply of many models like the Passport or Verizon Z30 is intermittent and difficult to find online even for die-hard fans.

For Blackberry to be an alternative, a consumer must be able to find one to use. Even many fans are being forced off Blackberry.

Usa-centric point

Posted from zee flicking coolest smartphone evah!

[BenH9360]

I'm not a business user, purely consumer and I have the passport for personal use

Posted via CB10

[BanffMoose]

It goes beyond apps, IMHO. Apps are a major part of it, but "ecosystem" goes way beyond just apps.

In any case, the question isn't whether some people don't need apps. Ignoring the fact that those people, based on mindshare alone, would still probably pick another platform (no law states one must install apps on an iOS, WP8 or Android device, which are easier to procure to boot), the question is whether this segment is sizable enough for BBRY to be profitable.

I agree with everything you say. However, the OP's question was:

"My question is do you think Blackberry is still a brand that can bring in the average consumer? I do not use social networks but do have some apps and games on my device. Is it even worth trying to attract non-business consumers?"

BlackBerry definitely has a way to go on many fronts, but they have included many industry standards in BB10 so BlackBerry can actually make use of devices that don't specifically say "made for BlackBerry." If you want to stream videos or your phone's screen to a modern TV, bring a HDMI cable or use Wi-Fi direct or buy an adapter like the NetGear Push2TV and do it wirelessly. You want a smart watch, get a Pebble. Have a Sonos sound system, get Room Tunes off BlackBerry World. Want to connect to PS4 or XBOX, do it out of the box via DLNA. (ok this last one comes from memory of threads from last year. I think this is true.)

So, back to the OP's question, YES, BlackBerry works decently enough for "the average consumer" and for some, BlackBerry can possibly work better than the competition. I'm targeting multilingual people who want to type in multiple languages at once, with this comment. And don't forget about the forthcoming BlackBerry Blend.

Those of us on CB and other BlackBerry-related sites know that we can tap an ecosystem larger than just "BlackBerry" labeled devices. Too bad telco sales people and much of the media haven't bothered to learn that. But that still doesn't change the answer of "yes, it can bring in the average consumer."

[Superdupont 2_0]

I am convinced that BB 10 is the best consumer OS for various reasons.

1) Very intuitive user-friendly GUI, easy handling thanks to features like Picture Password, Hub and Quick Settings. Android and iOS are definitely more complicated.

2) BB 10 is not forcing us into clouds, because your blackberry-id is never linked to any cloud service. There are many people who upload a back-up into Android-, Apple- or MS cloud services by mistake. Most prominent example here is "the fappening"-case.


3) BB 10 devices support sd cards of 32GB-128GB.

4) There are more than enough Apps in BB World now and there will be more coming with the Amazon store.
The average user will never use all the features/apps which are available for BB 10, the same is true for Android/iOS/WP.
Yeah, some geeks need all crazy features to manage their drones and "smart homes", but the average user definitely not.
(Most people I know are using their iPhones/Samsungs mainly for messaging and taking selfies.)


Find more reasons here:

http://forums.crackberry.com/blackbe...y-bb10-965337/

[Tre Lawrence]

I think BB10 is a great OS for consumers, it's just a matter of convincing them. There are three app stores to choose from (Blackberry World, Amazon, Google's app store via Sna app)...there's everything one really needs already available.

Ease of access is a biggie.

[SunshineStateFlyer]

I absolutely do think that BlackBerry can be attractive to consumers. For a lot of people it is actually more a self-imposed barrier, rather than real arguments, not to choose BlackBerry.
Many consumers don't even use the whole range of functions they're given with an Android phone. Others appreciate the iPhone maybe for its design and simplicity, but at the end of the day, they use it for texting, mailing, social media and browsing. Nothing you couldn't do on a BlackBerry.

Of course there are plenty of people who do have legitimate reasons to buy different phones than a BlackBerry, but many of them don't.

Most people I know, who came from iOS for example, were totally happy with their BlackBerry when they switched and even surprised how easy BB10 is. People still think BlackBerry is complicated to use, old, and for business people only. That's simply not the case and, while it seems to be slowly changing, it is a slow process. But to answer clearly again: Yes, BlackBerry does make great consumer phones too.

[ymb]

I'm not a business man and I love BlackBerry 10 os so yes consumers can be very happy they just need to give it a fair chance

Z30STA100-3/10.2.1.3289

[Playbook007]

Sideload and snap are in the past. Passport and 10.3 are the future. No need to Sideload Anything.

Posted via CB10

[Bbnivende]

Ok I will bite. Why is Snap not required ? Many of my Android apk's came via snap because they are not in BBW or Amazon.

[Tre Lawrence]

Exactly. That so many non-tech-saavy people, parents, grandparents, little kids can pick up an iPhone and quickly use it, is a huge selling point for Apple. You can beat that crowsourced, word of mouth praise. BBRY needs to harness that, and I hope the Classic and Passport do that

Well said.

[Playbook007]

Ease of access is a biggie.

10.3 has BlackBerry World and Amazon pre-installed. Doesn't get any easier than that. I have a device that runs bb10 apps and android apps. We now have Blend which is fantastic and has huge potential. Can BlackBerry be a great consumer experience. Absolutely. Most BlackBerry users, do not have 10.3, nor blend so most opinions here are dated to an extent. BB10 is moving in the correct and unique direction very fast. No other platform is showing as much potential.

Posted via CB10

[prithvi64]

No comparison of BB OS with any other platform at the moment but closely observing windows 10 integrated OS to be released. Meanwhile, if blackberry doesn't improve and concentrate on service quality and customer concerns, difficult to stop migration. How long and at what cost, customers will be with blackberry. If company is not able to replace z30 device under warranty in 3 months?

Posted via CB10

[spikesolie]

Exactly. That so many non-tech-saavy people, parents, grandparents, little kids can pick up an iPhone and quickly use it, is a huge selling point for Apple. You can beat that crowsourced, word of mouth praise. BBRY needs to harness that, and I hope the Classic and Passport do that

Ease of access because they've seen it work before. Let's not kid ourselves. It's nothing different from bb10 or any other technology in that you require basic knowledge of how it works

Posted from zee flicking coolest smartphone evah!

[Tre Lawrence]

10.3 has BlackBerry World and Amazon pre-installed. Doesn't get any easier than that. I have a device that runs bb10 apps and android apps. We now have Blend which is fantastic and has huge potential. Can BlackBerry be a great consumer experience. Absolutely. Most BlackBerry users, do not have 10.3, nor blend so most opinions here are dated to an extent. BB10 is moving in the correct and unique direction very fast. No other platform is showing as much potential.

Posted via CB10

It is WAY easier (and more comprehensive) than that elsewhere. That's what ultimately matters to the average consumer, IMHO.

Amazon? Let's be real here...

The problem with being late is that a lot of folks are already grounded. Had iOS just come out now, in the face of a mature mobile market, even it would struggle to gain traction.

If BBRY is truly as innovative as we hope, I believe it will continue to get more users. To do that, it has to continually find ways to fix the app issue.

The good news is that in my estimation, BBRY has not been this malleable in quite some time. I think JC has a definite plan, and will do what is necessary to see it through.

[Bbnivende]

It is WAY easier (and more comprehensive) than that elsewhere. That's what ultimately matters to the average consumer, IMHO.

Amazon? Let's be real here...

The problem with being late is that a lot of folks are already grounded. Had iOS just come out now, in the face of a mature mobile market, even it would struggle to gain traction.

If BBRY is truly as innovative as we hope, I believe it will continue to get more users. To do that, it has to continually find ways to fix the app issue.

The good news is that in my estimation, BBRY has not been this malleable in quite some time. I think JC has a definite plan, and will do what is necessary to see it through.

JC has a definite plan ? - Let's be real here.

His only plan is to hope that Legacy owners who have few current apps will not have a large app appetite and that Enterprise users are not into consumer apps to any great extent.

I think if there was a plan, we would have heard it by now.

It appears that the plan is for us users to make do with what apps we can beg, borrow or steal because we like the hardware and the OS. There is only one Classic and one Passport and the OS is better than Android IMHO. I also make do because we have plenty of other media / app using devices in our household.

[MarsupilamiX]

Usa-centric point

Posted from zee flicking coolest smartphone evah!

Of course that is the USA perspective. Hope that it does not come to that in Canada. The Z30 should have could have been better.

It's not really that different around the world tbh.
It's nearly impossible to get a BlackBerry handset in a brick and mortar store, if you aren't in an emerging market (or Canada)
And ShopBB is probably the worst online shop in the industry

The Z30 MUST have been better.
That thing basically used 2 year old hardware when it launched and cost 600$...

Posted via CB10

[spikesolie]

It's not really that different around the world tbh.
It's nearly impossible to get a BlackBerry handset in a brick and mortar store, if you aren't in an emerging market (or Canada)
And ShopBB is probably the worst online shop in the industry

The Z30 MUST have been better.
That thing basically used 2 year old hardware when it launched and cost 600$...

Posted via CB10

Most places buy outright so it's less of a factor

Posted from zee flicking coolest smartphone evah!

[MarsupilamiX]

Most places buy outright so it's less of a factor

Posted from zee flicking coolest smartphone evah!

So when I buy outright, but my only choice is to buy from ShopBB (no thanks) or... Nobody...?
How do I get my BlackBerry then?

I didn't solely mean carriers, if that's what you think.
I meant "real life" stores in their entirety.

Posted via CB10

[Tre Lawrence]

JC has a definite plan ? - Let's be real here.

His only plan is to hope that Legacy owners who have few current apps will not have a large app appetite and that Enterprise users are not into consumer apps to any great extent.

I think if there was a plan, we would have heard it by now.

It appears that the plan is for us users to make do with what apps we can beg, borrow or steal because we like the hardware and the OS. There is only one Classic and one Passport and the OS is better than Android IMHO. I also make do because we have plenty of other media / app using devices in our household.

LOL. I don't think you're wrong at all.

I think he's still focused on an enterprise-based future.

[ubizmo]

It appears that the plan is for us users to make do with what apps we can beg, borrow or steal because we like the hardware and the OS.

Yup, I think that's a big part of the plan. The other part, I believe, is to grow the user base gradually until it starts to interest developers. Obviously, this part of the plan depends on there being enough people attracted in the first part of the plan.

I don't really know what other plan is even possible for BlackBerry at this point, other than splitting the handset business into a secure BB10 division and a "BB Android" for consumers, i.e., an actual Android device with a BB10 skin. I don't really think the latter plan is on the table, but who knows what gets discussed behind closed doors?

[MarsupilamiX]

Yup, I think that's a big part of the plan. The other part, I believe, is to grow the user base gradually until it starts to interest developers. Obviously, this part of the plan depends on there being enough people attracted in the first part of the plan.

The plan already sucks anyhow (but I agree with you on the analysis), but it sucks even more when you focus on keyboard phones, with a 1:1 screen ratio.

1) It's bad, simply because at least 99.5% of smartphone buyers this year will have bought a touchscreen phone.

2) Basically all apps are optimised for 16:9.

3) I don't see devs doing some special "brainstorming" on how to use a 1:1 screen ratio effectively, if 0.3% (at max) of the market will have bought a 1:1 BB10 phone.

Posted via CB10

[igor10000]

The most common consumer does not give a damn about apps. They just text and call.

Normally, they would have a feature phone and they only have a smartphone coz there are no feature phones anymore. Usually, they use some low-end android.

Posted via CB10

[BK_NY_RAY]

Why the hell do people ask these type of questions all the time?

YES! BlackBerry 10 is just as good for "consumers" non enterprise consumers as ios and android.

Don't believe me? Just look at all the non corporate people like myself who have a BlackBerry 10 phone.

Posted via CB10