[Pilchard]

She's not at all techie and struggled to get on with her Bold 9700. Lots of mums on the school run had iPhones which they swore by and she went with the flow. She doesn't do apps, she doesn't surf the net, she doesn't do email, but she had to have an iPhone and she's delighted.

My brother is �600 poorer.

My point, if I have one, is that apart from functionality RIM has to overcome the whole fashion thing that Apple has going for it, and that's going to be tricky. I think my sister in law just wanted an iPhone because it was trendy.

[Rickroller]

The average person will say "I need a new phone", and then friends, coworkers etc will say "You should get an iPhone! They are great! I can do this and this and this!" Even though most people will still only use the phone for some simple texting and phone calls, people go by word of mouth. And the word on the "street" is, iPhone.

[Economist101]

If she's delighted, does anything else really matter? It sounds like you expect her totake you happy moreso than herself.

I'm curious though, instead of simply "thinking" why she wanted it, why don't you just ask her?

[undone]

People get sold on stuff period. Knowing why they got sold on something wont make them look anymore informed or educated about product lines. People are generally lazy on non-important things. They will also take a bad experience and make general assumptions followed by bashing a product.

Consumers suck. They are sheep with the occasional sheep dog thrown in.

[tcbower]

I have always been a BlackBerry lover and supporter and couldn't be happier with my Bold 9930 and 16G PlayBook. They both do everything I need them to do. My wife is a School Teacher in the Philadelphia school district and recently a student took her beloved purple Blackberry 8530. Since we do not have an upgrade with Sprint until April I switched her back to an old BlackBerry 8330. I said to her "Ya know Sprint now has the iPhone and in April you can get that." She replied " Why on Earth do I want a phone just so I can take pictures and make 'fat faces' and play 800 fart noises?" I started laughing hysterically. She then said " Just get me another BlackBerry or I'll just keep this one".

[lnichols]

Apple has brilliantly convinced people that they need an iPhone and apps via clever marketing. It is the cool thing to have. RIM could learn a lot by Apple's marketing. For some its a fashion statement, for some a status statement, and then their are some people out there that legitimately use the out of the things. In the end it doesn't matter why they are buying them to Apple, just that they are buying them.

[sam_b77]

She's not at all techie and struggled to get on with her Bold 9700. Lots of mums on the school run had iPhones which they swore by and she went with the flow. She doesn't do apps, she doesn't surf the net, she doesn't do email, but she had to have an iPhone and she's delighted.

My brother is �600 poorer.

My point, if I have one, is that apart from functionality RIM has to overcome the whole fashion thing that Apple has going for it, and that's going to be tricky. I think my sister in law just wanted an iPhone because it was trendy.

If I were you I'd be in the marker looking for a new brother .

Seriously though, It's all good. His wife is delighted and his life would be happier for that ( at least for a few hours).

Thing is iPhones WILL sell. It has its customers and a lot of them. As BB fans we can't stop the sale of iPhones and neither can RIM. The market is big enough and RIM just needs its share of it. No need for a device that intends to kill all others. Options is what consumers need.

[cntrydncr223]

Not my bag, but I'm super glad she's happy.
I'd much rather see a happy iphone user than a complaining bb one.

[adrenaline_x]

The word on the street should be samsung galaxy s 2.

Its kills my iphone and my BB. If i were to get a new phone it would be the s2.. Simple.. Big killer screen with great color depth.

I like my 9900 but if i wanted a full touch screen it would be this s2 (I have one on demo from rogers for a few weeks) Battery stellar, but i'm using it every resting minute vs my BB.

[brucep1]

It was a very similar situation for me a couple of years ago. All my friends had Blackberrys, including myself. Whenever someone who had a dumb phone complained about their phones, we always pressured them into going Blackberry.

Nowadays, none of my friends still have Blackberrys as their personal phone. A couple, including myself, have corporate issued Blackberrys. I would have never switched from my 9650 personal, but the added functionality of the iphone moved all of us over.

[CanadianThomas]

To me its simple. The design is way out of date. All the trims and buttons and edges and all make them look late 80's style. Industrial design is what's lacking and lacking big.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9700 using Tapatalk

[teeuwen]

The word on the street should be samsung galaxy s 2.

Its kills my iphone and my BB. If i were to get a new phone it would be the s2.. Simple.. Big killer screen with great color depth.

I like my 9900 but if i wanted a full touch screen it would be this s2 (I have one on demo from rogers for a few weeks) Battery stellar, but i'm using it every resting minute vs my BB.

lol! just what i wanted in a phone! great color depth!

[Lead_Express]

The word on the street should be samsung galaxy s 2.

Its kills my iphone and my BB. If i were to get a new phone it would be the s2.. Simple.. Big killer screen with great color depth.

I like my 9900 but if i wanted a full touch screen it would be this s2 (I have one on demo from rogers for a few weeks) Battery stellar, but i'm using it every resting minute vs my BB.

Yep. Galaxy S2 is the best Android phone currently available IMHO. I almost got one instead of my Bold. It's the keypad and the Playbook that kept me on board but, for the same price, the Samsung was hard to say "no" to.

[tack]

Some people actually choose the iPhone because they like it better instead of being sheep tricked into buying it by Apple's evil schemes or because they are too stupid to know better! I have had a BB, an Android, and the iPhone in the past year. I chose it because it fit my use the best, and I don't have one fart app on it. I also have less than 5 games. It does a great job serving my business use however.

I can actually use any of them to be honest. They are not that different in the most basic of functions.

[Ben1232]

Are we able to 'divorce' sister inlaws ?

[BBNation]

If she's delighted, does anything else really matter? It sounds like you expect her totake you happy moreso than herself.

I'm curious though, instead of simply "thinking" why she wanted it, why don't you just ask her?

Sure, she is deligted but $600 expense can take some delighment alway among the family..so is it really worth for something than can get lost or stolen within minutes..and u always have to worry 24*7 about not losin it..

[FSeverino]

She's not at all techie and struggled to get on with her Bold 9700. Lots of mums on the school run had iPhones which they swore by and she went with the flow. She doesn't do apps, she doesn't surf the net, she doesn't do email, but she had to have an iPhone and she's delighted.

My brother is �600 poorer.

My point, if I have one, is that apart from functionality RIM has to overcome the whole fashion thing that Apple has going for it, and that's going to be tricky. I think my sister in law just wanted an iPhone because it was trendy.

its not even that... those other moms probably have angry birds and other stupid games and thats what makes the phone 'cool'. Dont get me wrong, I have an iphone and LOVE it... but the vast majority of people just have iphones because they are 'cool' just like BB was a few years ago.

There are reasons why people like the iphone over BB, but those dont tend to be the reasons why the average user gets an iphone over a BB. Personally, my next phone might have to be a BB especially if the new PB is anywhere near as good as it should be.

[4one1]

if people want an iphone then let them get an iphone. if people want a blackberry then let them get a blackberry. its really pathetic how fanboys get all emotional and start talking down to people who are on other platforms. If the person is comfortable with whatever phone they have then people should respect i and stop proselytizing. If people ask for your opinion or help then by all means go all in.

anyway this is my sad attempt at a rant. I have a meeting to get to.

PS. I am not saying that the OP is a person that does this. Reading this just sparked something that has been ticking for a while i guess.

[qbnkelt]

I tried to like the iP4S when it came out. Actually went to the store to buy it. But the UI was identical to the 3GS I'd briefly owned. No themes unless jailbroken. Locked battery. So I didn't buy one
My 9930 is my daily driver, but I now have an Atrix and a SG II. Skyrocket. Only flaw ln the Skyrocket is the atrocious battery life.
I'm all about my BB. But I do enjoy the two Android. Although it was a hard road!

[Dapper37]

To brainwash someone or to be brainwashed is easier than making ones own mind up.

[Rickroller]

Sure, she is deligted but $600 expense can take some delighment alway among the family..so is it really worth for something than can get lost or stolen within minutes..and u always have to worry 24*7 about not losin it..

As opposed to a Bold 9900, which also costs $600? I'm not sure what point you're trying to make here exactly.. That if they had bought a Blackberry, then they wouldn't have to worry about someone stealing it?

As I said, people buy what other people recommend. And people are recommending iPhones...obviously due to "brainwashing" eh Dapper

[Pilchard]

As opposed to a Bold 9900, which also costs $600? I'm not sure what point you're trying to make here exactly.. That if they had bought a Blackberry, then they wouldn't have to worry about someone stealing it?

As I said, people buy what other people recommend. And people are recommending iPhones...obviously due to "brainwashing" eh Dapper

I'm not sure what point I am making either (which I mentioned in the OP) but it wasn't a choice between upgrading the 9700 to the 9900 or to the iPhone. If she had wanted to stick with Blackberry she would have kept the 9700 (which my brother also has) and there would have been no �600 (that's US$950 by the way).

I think my fundamental point is not that people buy iPhones in preference to Blackberry, it's that the choice sometimes seems to come from desire rather than functionality. RIM has said that one of its big tasks is to increase marketing and this must be why. It isn't just about objective measures.

[brucep1]

Sure, she is deligted but $600 expense can take some delighment alway among the family..so is it really worth for something than can get lost or stolen within minutes..and u always have to worry 24*7 about not losin it..

I would buy insurance on it then, just to be safe.

[Economist101]

If she had wanted to stick with Blackberry she would have kept the 9700 (which my brother also has) and there would have been no �600 (that's US$950 by the way).

She must have really wanted that device.

If she had wanted to stick with Blackberry she would have kept the 9700 (which my brother also has) and there would have been no �600 (that's US$950 by the way).

I think my fundamental point is not that people buy iPhones in preference to Blackberry, it's that the choice sometimes seems to come from desire rather than functionality. RIM has said that one of its big tasks is to increase marketing and this must be why. It isn't just about objective measures.

Was this purchase at least partly emotional? Probably so. But that's how it goes, and it's the same reason my wife drives a Q5 and not a Camry. As a result of her choice, we'll pay more for the car, maintenance, fuel and insurance, but it's what she wanted, and we can afford it. That's how life is.

As for the "objective measures," different strokes for different folks. What's important to you probably isn't all that important to her, and vice versa, so don't make the mistake of thinking that because your particular list of objectives favors one device that everyone's should.

[bllbored]

i bought my 9900 outright...it suits me well and i love it, but i've been recommending android to my gf. we wall have different needs in our gadgets, and android just suits her better. my brother is as tech savvy as it gets to say the very least(actually a scary understatement), and as i was checking out his new alienware laptop his phone rang, and he pulled out his old beat up bold with tape holding the battery door on..it suits him. my boss has an ipad which i tease him ad nauseum about, but it suits him...there's a reason there are so many different devices on the market and i'll choose what works for my needs at the time, not what others are using...that said, those s2's look awfully cool..