I'm currently a Bold 9700 user. I'm eligible for a handset upgrade on the 31st of May, and was thinking of getting a Torch or Bold 9900. Then I heard about BB10 on the news, but there's no confirmed release date. If I get the Bold 9900, I'll have to wait another 2 years before upgrading to BB10.
If you were in my shoes, would you wait till Oct or Nov and hope that BB10 comes out?
For all the optimism surrounding BlackBerry World 2012 and BB 10, RIM still stands a good chance of screwing things up by building up a lot of enthusiasm and only releasing after the enthusiasm has gone lukewarm (remember Palm with Palm Pre?). Also, not all the apps you currently use on BB will be immediately available on BB 10 phones. BB 10, at this point, simply does not seem to provide any compatibility with apps written for the current java-based OS. The apps have to be ported over. Without the killer apps (the apps people keep asking for over and over again) on the day of release, the repeat of the situation with the dearth of apps with the initial release of PlayBook will render BB 10 dead on arrival.
Personally, I am optimistic about the general outlook of things based on the keynotes from the CEO, however, I would wait and see for BB 10 and just go straight ahead for the BB 7 devices now (they are nice).
I miss my 9900 and BB unified notifications just how seamless it all was.
If the BB10 Alpha device was a production unit it would sell quite well.
I'm very curious why they released it to developers with no File Manager app pre-installed, how are developers going to install their apps - especially with now BB AppWorld installed, or does the Browser have a hotlinked bookmark like BB's do to download OTA style without AppWorld?
No one knows for sure if BB10 will be worth it, but if you do have the patience, you could wait until the new devices come out. If they're all they're hyped up to be, then great. If not, then you could probably pick up a BB7 device off Craigslist for dirt cheap, as lak611 mentioned.
I'm currently a Bold 9700 user...If I get the Bold 9900, I'll have to wait another 2 years before upgrading to BB10.
Since you're a 9700 user, and considering a 9900, I am assuming that the keyboard is important to you.
Consider the following about the first BB10 devices:
1) It seems the first device will be all touchscreen
2) RIM has a track record of struggling with the initial release and software on a major new product, e.g., Bold 9000 overheating, Storm cranky software, Playbook OS 1 incomplete
3) RIM takes a long time to role out a new product. The 9000, Storm and Playbook were all a very long time in coming to market. Even then, the former two had limited availability - In the US the 9000 was an AT&T exclusive and the Storm a VZW exclusive.
So, if you consider the above, the first BB10 device could release much later than anticipated, be tied to one carrier, and early versions of the software could be buggy.
Given that, I'd upgrade to the 9900 (fantastic device, amazing keyboard, mediocre battery life) and wait for RIM to iron out the kinks in BB10. You don't want to be rushing to buy the first BB10 device at a high price only to end up a beta tester.
I have a hypothesis that may be less than popular, but can make sense. BB10 is done, Heins has a few features demonstrated to get interest and hands out dev devices to get developers on board with the software and used to the UI environment, and spending all this time testing the OS on the hardware that will be released.
I may be giving them too much credit. But I can believe the mistakes of the past can teach even a big corporation.
I also have a 9700 and wanted the 9900 but after owning the Playbook and seeing all the BB10 stuff...I am definitely going to hold off. I'm up for an upgrade in August and know if BB10 is as good as I think it will be I will kick myself and if not then perhaps I'll get the 9900.
I may be giving them too much credit. But I can believe the mistakes of the past can teach even a big corporation.
I think the software is mostly done based on the demos at BBW, probably locked down and going through the bugs. The chips they want to use will not be ready for a little longer. I don't think there is a bunch of BB10 phones sitting in a warehouse ready to roll.
I have a hypothesis that may be less than popular, but can make sense. BB10 is done, Heins has a few features demonstrated to get interest and hands out dev devices to get developers on board with the software and used to the UI environment, and spending all this time testing the OS on the hardware that will be released.
If you'd attended BB10 Jam, I think you'd find this statement entirely laughable.
The OS is far from done.
What they handed out to us in the Alphas is in fact barely different from the PlayBook, in the first version. The devices were manufactured only about a week before the Jam, and they have significant deficiencies at present.
And they've stated clearly that the hardware will be different. Even if you believed in spite of all that that it will be the same, what they've given us in the Alpha so far would not allow us to test anything useful in terms of the OS capabilities, so they'd have failed entirely if that were their mission.
I'm in the market for a personal phone. I've been using a work phone for the past 5 years, but I'm in the process of giving it up. I've never owned a personal phone and have been following the news about BB10 with great interest. All my friends and co-workers have gone to the iPhone 4S and they just rave about it. I'm not an Apple fan.
I personally want to wait for the BB10 phones as I have a Playbook and love it. 4 or 5 months will go by quick, summer always does!!!!
Keep your bold for now. You all ready have a pb so you know more or less what will be coming. I barely use my phone now for any more than calls and text, the pb does the rest.
I agree. I have a PB and use that for most everything now. I am going to wait for OS 10. I still have a Bold 9650 (brief stint with Samsung Galaxy Nexus). I looked on Craigslist and eBay myself for an OS 7 device, but they are still really expensive out of contract.
