1. andy275's Avatar
    I've noticed that a lot of people get laughed at or criticized for using Blackberry smartphones (especially in the US), but I live in Canada (Ottawa region) and I've (thankfully) never ever experienced this (perhaps not yet). I have however heard some small criticism of Blackberry smartphones (but no criticism about Blackberry smartphone users). Some of the things I've heard are that there are no apps and no games (exaggeration), the phone is garbage (criticism of legacy BBOS devices - the new Blackberry phones are excellent), and that the company is slowly dying (subjective and only partially true). On the bright side, I know people who have a positive reaction to seeing my Blackberry such as one person who said she missed the physical keyboard so much (she told me typing on a virtual keyboard is so slow), a few people who ask me "Is that a Blackberry? It looks so cool! (referring to my Z10 or previously my Blackberry Curve). I'm hoping that the positive reactions in Canada are not exclusive to Ottawa. Are they? I hope most Canadians are still cheering for the company. At least Canadians do not bash the company and its smartphones as much as Americans do (In my opinion so far.) Perhaps it might be due to Blackberry being a Canadian corporation.

    Let me know if Canadians really do bash Blackberry and its smartphones and smartphone users less than Americans do.
    04-23-15 05:32 PM
  2. Poncherelly's Avatar
    It's really a North American thing though I think the voices are a little quieter.

    I too am in Ottawa (Kanata) and even hearing from friends on other platforms I get the negative comments. I simply look at my BlackBerry as I do my Audi Q7, it's not the most bought in the market, but it does everything I need it to do and provides me the security I want while using it.



     Posted using my powerful BlackBerry Z30 
    BrentRoss likes this.
    04-23-15 05:37 PM
  3. thurask's Avatar
    Perhaps it's the usual Canadians compared to Americans discussion?
    04-23-15 05:40 PM
  4. CecilTsunami's Avatar
    Bashing isn't as bad as it was before BB10 although every so often I get "informed" of something I'm missing out on by someone who just left their 6 year old BlackBerry for a new phone. This comparison is not valid and it's one of my pet peeves.

    Mostly people are just surprised BlackBerry is still in business. This kind or surprises me because the phone carriers here all still display at least one BlackBerry phone.

    Posted via CB10
    andy275 likes this.
    04-23-15 06:11 PM
  5. z10Jobe's Avatar
    I regularly get the iPhone is the King followed by the inane unsolicited and unsuccessful idemonstration of why their idevice reigns supreme and I live in less than a 5 hour drive from Waterloo.

    Posted via CB10
    04-23-15 06:29 PM
  6. bakron1's Avatar
    It does make me proud as an American that Canadians still support their own companies and always should.

    I for one look for the Made in USA labels and try and support our American workers, but now it's about being politically correct and watching our industry being shipped overseas for the sake of cheap labor.

    As with you, we still have Apple which is an American company and employs a lot of engineering and management folks here in the USA, even if they manufacture their products offshore in China just like Blackberry does.
    andy275, wolfpacal and Tatwi like this.
    04-23-15 06:49 PM
  7. anon(9188202)'s Avatar
    Never heard one negative comment regarding BlackBerry in Canada or while living in the U.S. Maybe it is the age group that I primarily work and hang with, but I can't imagine someone laughing at or criticizing someone else because of their choice of phone (unless done in good-natured humour). IMHO, there are far more important things in the world to concern yourself with.
    bakron1, bp2k7 and bungaboy like this.
    04-23-15 06:59 PM
  8. bp2k7's Avatar
    I'm an American and the reactions I've received to my Passport have been universally positive. I had two friends who would at first jokingly give me crap about it, but then 4 people in two hours came up to me to ask me about my "awesome phone," and they've shut up ever since.

    People do sometimes say things like, "wait, you still use a BlackBerry?" Then I show it to them and they agree that while they might not buy it, it's still pretty neat. So I guess I'm lucky that I don't belong to a social group that makes fun of people based other phones. Sounds like a lot of Americans here are having that problem. For reference, my social circle is young professionals aged 21-35.
    04-23-15 07:01 PM
  9. TCB on Z10's Avatar
    As with you, we still have Apple which is an American company and employs a lot of engineering and management folks here in the USA, even if they manufacture their products offshore in China just like Blackberry does.
    Remember that, before the Foxconn deal, BlackBerry's main supplier was Jabil Circuit of Florida. They were badly hurt.


    TCB on Z10
    04-23-15 09:17 PM
  10. cribble2k's Avatar
    Ottawa eh?

    #GoSensGo

    Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android
    04-23-15 09:20 PM
  11. mad_mdx's Avatar
    I think it's a shame Canadians have switched to other devices and most don't give BlackBerry a chance. Those thousands of jobs lost and millions in the economy will not come back from another industry overnight. Apple isn't hiring any engineers in Canada. I'm proud to be Canadian but sometimes I wonder why no one cares about supporting a strong and definitely worthwhile Canadian company.
    GreenCopperz and rtang1007 like this.
    04-23-15 10:17 PM
  12. Tre Lawrence's Avatar
    Curious... does BlackBerry have any responsibility with regards to instilling loyalty?

    Should folks be loyal to indigenous companies no matter what?
    04-23-15 10:59 PM
  13. RH1Pearl's Avatar
    I think it's a shame Canadians have switched to other devices and most don't give BlackBerry a chance. Those thousands of jobs lost and millions in the economy will not come back from another industry overnight. Apple isn't hiring any engineers in Canada. I'm proud to be Canadian but sometimes I wonder why no one cares about supporting a strong and definitely worthwhile Canadian company.
    I don't see many people wearing North Star shoes nowadays. It's up to the Company to remain competitive. If Google decides to offer its 1G broadband service in Canada at a fraction of the ransom Canadians are paying the Telcos now, I'm sure millions would switch in a heartbeat
    kbz1960 likes this.
    04-23-15 11:08 PM
  14. dbmalloy's Avatar
    I think it is more of a case of hearing what you choose... I have many friends who have pitch battles as to which phone is better Android or Apple.... When I listen to them go at it makes the BB critique look mild in comparison. In my mind everyone is entitled to their opinion. Unfortunately, many are misinformed on all sides... and are a bit too free to offer said opinion. As for the difference between Canada and the US.. I have worked extensively in both countries and find Americans far more vocal about their opinions... not a bad thing but Canadians tend to be a bit more stayed in their opinions.
    04-23-15 11:12 PM
  15. RH1Pearl's Avatar
    I think it is more of a case of hearing what you choose... I have many friends who have pitch battles as to which phone is better Android or Apple.... When I listen to them go at it makes the BB critique look mild in comparison. In my mind everyone is entitled to their opinion. Unfortunately, many are misinformed on all sides... and are a bit too free to offer said opinion. As for the difference between Canada and the US.. I have worked extensively in both countries and find Americans far more vocal about their opinions... not a bad thing but Canadians tend to be a bit more stayed in their opinions.
    I think it depends on the issue. Animal rights, environmental topics I find are voiced very openly. Mobile phones and high telco fees not so much. I've seen so many news in Vancouver about ducks getting saved, treated by several specialists, and then gently released in the wild. That 10 minute segment is then followed by a 2-min piece on a murder somewhere in the city.
    04-23-15 11:55 PM
  16. mad_mdx's Avatar
    I don't see many people wearing North Star shoes nowadays. It's up to the Company to remain competitive. If Google decides to offer its 1G broadband service in Canada at a fraction of the ransom Canadians are paying the Telcos now, I'm sure millions would switch in a heartbeat
    And you're implying BlackBerry isn't competitive ? The product is definitely competitive. We are all here because we wanted BlackBerry phones over others. There's no price difference for most of us. We chose BlackBerry because it's good. As a bonus it's a Canadian company and injects millions to the economy. Again, that's good for all of us.
    04-24-15 12:42 AM
  17. Tre Lawrence's Avatar
    And you're implying BlackBerry isn't competitive ? The product is definitely competitive. We are all here because we wanted BlackBerry phones over others. There's no price difference for most of us. We chose BlackBerry because it's good. As a bonus it's a Canadian company and injects millions to the economy. Again, that's good for all of us.
    If it's competitive, then what's the problem?
    04-24-15 12:46 AM
  18. mad_mdx's Avatar
    If it's competitive, then what's the problem?
    Well the point of this thread is that people are negatively biased vs the BlackBerry brand. Regardless of the product or how competitive it is.
    What's your point?
    04-24-15 12:49 AM
  19. BerrySoul's Avatar
    I my circle of friends and most of my family members have BlackBerries 10. They are very happy.

      
    04-24-15 12:54 AM
  20. Tre Lawrence's Avatar
    Well the point of this thread is that people are negatively biased vs the BlackBerry brand. Regardless of the product or how competitive it is.
    What's your point?
    Simple logic.

    You insist the brand is competitive. If that is true, then the discussion is all but redundant.

    Either it is or it isn't.

    If we're using performance as a metric, a reasonable person may I infer that BBRY is not competitive.

    But I'm quite curious as to the nationalistic sentiment. In my opinion, it's dangerously disingenuous. My responsibility to a "for profit" (can we emphasize this?) corporation of any origin is to hold it to a high standard. That's what keeps them in business.
    RH1Pearl, MikeX74, Witmen and 1 others like this.
    04-24-15 01:30 AM
  21. bakron1's Avatar

    But I'm quite curious as to the nationalistic sentiment. In my opinion, it's dangerously disingenuous. My responsibility to a "for profit" (can we emphasize this?) corporation of any origin is to hold it to a high standard. That's what keeps them in business.
    And to make products both the consumer and business sector ask for!!!! If I am not mistaken,that's what got them into hot water in the first place!!!!!
    RH1Pearl likes this.
    04-24-15 04:19 AM
  22. Smokeaire's Avatar
    On the other side of the coin, my car brand and model of choice is Honda and the CRV. A Japanese car brand made in the USA, Ohio to be more specific. The CRV is also made in Canada. So is it the brand name that is important or the country of manufacturing?

    Posted using my BlackBerry Passport.
    RH1Pearl likes this.
    04-24-15 05:45 AM
  23. Nick Spagnolo's Avatar
    I see blackberry every where still strong in Orangeville Ontario, and just to be a pest, the Senators as doomed. Not that I am cheering for the Habbs.

    Z10
    04-24-15 06:22 AM
  24. kbz1960's Avatar
    Just in to read the comments since I'm not Canadian.
    04-24-15 07:37 AM
  25. Berry-cracked-up's Avatar
    I live in Southern Ontario and drive to the K/W region for work, and BB devices are everywhere to be seen. Do I get the odd "you still use a blackberry?", absolutely. But when I pull out my Passport and show them what it does, they pretty much take their words back. I've owned a Z10, Z30 and now a Passport and my wife has the Q10. I am never shy to show off my phone, and I have yet to have someone tell me they didn't like either the phone, or what the OS can do after I show them. I personally don't care what device anyone uses...if it's doing what you need it to do, then there's nothing wrong with your choice, but if you're bashing a device, without even knowing what it can do, I have no desire to talk to you.
    04-24-15 07:40 AM
47 12

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