1. Shadrackc's Avatar
    This is a copy/paste of an article I just had published on Seeking Alpha. Though I would drop it here see if anyone agreed.



    About 6 months ago, prior to the first article I wrote on Seeking Alpha, I would catch up on information of the then coming BB10 products through typical Google searches and certain fan sites. My incentive was to educate myself as to what choices to make for my own company, a small technical support/communications company that I started a few years ago after being in the same industry for 25 years of my life. We were currently on the existing BlackBerry Bold/BES 5 combination, and RIM (as they were known at the time) had just delayed the release of the first products again and had taken the resulting stock hits as part of that announcement.

    My dilemma was that I had to make decisions for the direction that my company would take, and the outlook was getting bleak for RIM. The options out there were iOS and the iPhone 4/5, and Android running on some flavor of hardware. Should we stick it out and see if there really was something behind what RIM was working on?

    Because I deal with customer information that can be considered private, I have always put security of that information as a priority when it came to features needed in my smartphone.

    Sure, I wanted to move to the more feature filled, altered life, experienced through the eyes of an addled iPhone or Android owner. I wanted to have access to any application, whether it was for communications, entertainment, or funny noises. My dilemma was always keeping one thing front and center: Security. Maybe I was okay accepting that all my texts could be looked at, and the phone numbers I called and received calls from, were tracked.

    I wasn't okay with my email being open to this. BBM had become a tool that I used to communicate with my staff, business partner, wife, and children. Those are private communications. Customers that used BlackBerry devices were given my pin number, and we used these tools to better the way we communicated with our customers. Our friends. Our families. I enjoyed knowing that those conversations were private. I don't recall ever reading about a breakdown in the security provided by RIM. If you read their history, you will see that they came from a background that was in the lead position from the beginning and in my eyes, still is today.

    I stayed with BlackBerry, tiring out Bold 9900s in most cases, but only suffering in the apps and screen real estate departments, still holding our own when it came to communication, both delivery and receipt.

    February 5th rolled around and finally, we were able to get our hands on a device that had been in the hands of a select few. Leading up to the launch, in a phone call with someone from BlackBerry who had been using the smartphone for awhile, said to me:

    "It is by far the best smartphone I have ever had. I always wanted to try an Android phone, have played with some friends', and like it. My issue was I know from being in this industry how open those platforms are. When you get one of these phones Alan, you'll see what I mean after using it for a few days. See if you can go back."

    There was not only a sense of pride in how he said it, but a life that reflected good on a company that had been through some very hard times. A fall from grace that would be hard to recover from. The fact that they are here competing is a testament to the will and ability of the current group. Just for being here, they have my applause.

    Now leading up to that launch, BlackBerry (BBRY) stock had been rising from a low under 12 at the beginning of this year to a high of almost 18, but the trend was a growth leading up to the launch. There are three main parties that always get mentioned, and a fourth that can probably be considered a disappointment, Microsoft (MSFT) with WP8. I think the broad disappointment with Windows 8 and almost a reluctance to upgrade, may have hurt their chances in this race. The association is obviously there. Two of the parties, owners of a very significant part of the market, are Google (GOOG) with a lot of Samsung's help, and Apple (AAPL). These are companies with a very devout following, and the majority of the OS' that control this space.

    There is no reason for me to prove that the open structure of Android is what makes the environment wrong for security. There is also no reason for me to make a case that BlackBerry is more secure an environment than Apple. Anyone debating that to themselves needs to do some research before finishing this article. Ask any true IT professional that simple question: "What is more secure? BlackBerry, Apple, or Android?" It is an easy majority for BlackBerry. The same way you could ask what has the most apps, even the most useful apps, and probably also the most useless apps, the answer would be Apple or Android. These are measurable variables that don't need to be based on opinion. The research is out there.

    In my opinion, there were two main reasons that BlackBerry lost the market position they once had. First was their failure to accept the changes that were brewing, and they under estimated the product that Apple had released into the market. They could have been like Samsung and started to develop a product based on the same concepts put forward by Apple. Touch Samsung didn't have to develop and maintain an operating system. It was provided for them. They didn't have an A list of clientele that used their products like RIM did. Clients such as government agencies, military personnel, and Fortune 500 companies who depended upon what they had become accustomed to. Fast delivery of email, and a device built to communicate securely. Making a whole scale change wasn't going to be easy, and the current OS couldn't compete.

    BlackBerry fell into the trap of providing what was currently successful, but not scalable, to devices that current customers wanted. The Storm and Torch weren't up to the competition that was iPhone version X and Android on almost any device. The desertion was massive because the growing users of smartphones cared more about apps and features than they did about security and private fast communication.

    BlackBerry needed to reboot while staying viable enough to hold a base level of customers. They did this quite well under the circumstances.

    Now here is where things stopped making sense to me.

    BlackBerry announces a security vulnerability that they had already patched on a version they didn't even support anymore, and their stock goes down. This affected nobody. Nobody. This is a feel good. BlackBerry disclosed it. It wasn't discovered.

    In comparison...

    ...We have the iOS 6.1 problems that saw battery drain and caused servers to overwork. Whether Apple likes it or not, Exchange is the dominant server in the workplace. There is no excuse for a version 6.X of anything making this type of mistake. Their was relatively no noise about this. This affected potentially millions.

    There are a lot of examples of this in the last few years. The service interruption that RIM went through in September of 2012 that saw a 7% drop of shares that day. This service interruption was for 3 hours, and affected a small percentage of their customers.

    In December of last year, Google experienced an outage across many different services and almost nobody commented.

    Samsung releases the Galaxy S4, having built up hype with eye scrolling and tracking, only to release it with head tracking instead. If this was BlackBerry, then there would have been much more media on the disappointment that seemed to disappear when it was Android and Samsung. The fact that Apple used a proprietary connecter, again, leaving behind millions of devices and already loyal users being forced to buy adapters or new devices. This would be chastised if it had been on the latest BlackBerry device. Instead, BlackBerry uses standard USB micro and micro HDMI, but gets no accolades.

    Apple this year had their flagship device hacked and declined to respond to questions. How many could this potentially affect? How many people haven't heard about it?

    When you follow the plight of one company as you struggle to make decisions for your own, you start to notice how biased the media, especially North American media, truly is.

    Why is BlackBerry not being looked upon as the comeback kid? I own the Z10. It isn't perfect, but that title belongs to no smartphone past or current. It is better, in my eyes much better, than both iPhone and flagship Android devices. I have yet to notice any lag or slowdown with multiple email accounts, one BES and one POP, Facebook, LinkedIn, BBM, Text, Twitter, and notifications all present in the Hub. Speaking of the Hub, good luck finding anything out there that competes with the speed and efficiency of this structure.

    I have had no battery issues getting a full day easily with regular use. I have an extra battery that I can slip into my pocket if I was ever running close. Construction is fantastic and after just one update, almost all quirks have been ironed out.

    Still, we have naysayers about AT&T's (T) launch, not realizing that BlackBerry has never been about the 6 block line ups. BlackBerry is more about the pre ordered and work ordered business that they have perfected over all previous generations. I have personally seen a lot of small businesses switching to the latest smartphone with complete love for the device. I have not heard one negative comment from over 15 people I know personally that have the Z10. All of them work in a business environment that stays connected with their staff.

    In the past, media could control our overall opinion, as they were the conduit to our information. With the massive access to communication that we all have, I am hoping that people will see a high percentage of the reviews for what they are.

    Afraid.

    BlackBerry has a very strong group of 80,000,000 users. Those were the ones that hung on. They are fans not because of the apps. Not because of the aluminum and glass. Not because of the 12 MP camera. They are fans because of the structure. Because of the attention to the core concepts that a portable device of this importance should carry:

    Responsiveness.

    Security.

    Speed.

    Ease of use.

    Standards.

    Commitment.

    BlackBerry has shown all of these. As to why North American media continues to be negative on this tested manufacturer? I am still baffled.

    Do yourself a favor. Find someone that has a Z10 and ask them what they think. Then ask them to give you a 10 minute lesson in the core concepts.

    Hub. Flow. Peek. Balance. (if they have that installed)

    Feel the materials and how easy it is to hold. Type on the keyboard that learns to fix your mistakes and has been universally acknowledged as being the best touch keyboard on the market. See how easy it is to go from place to place and do the things you need a smartphone to do.

    Do yourself that favor first before committing your money one way or another. The more people that see what a great device BlackBerry has designed, built, and distributed, the better the chance that we can have a feel good story that is truly deserved.

    Additional disclosure: My intention is to provide my opinions from within the IT industry and my views as the owner of an IT Support and Communications company. My first smartphone was a Windows based Treo and I currently use a BlackBerry Z10.
    03-25-13 10:36 PM
  2. Carjackd's Avatar
    Great read.

    Posted via CB10
    03-25-13 10:47 PM
  3. ddlax22's Avatar
    hm. good article. i like the last part, and honestly if someone stopped me to ask about the z10, i wouldnt be able to stop.
    03-25-13 10:50 PM
  4. Baseball619's Avatar
    Fantastic, well-written, and I couldn't agree more with all of it.

    +1
    03-25-13 10:51 PM
  5. EauRouge's Avatar
    interesting read. and I agree, I dont know if its a conspiracy, but there is nothing people love more than to watch a slow painful collapse. and they seem to be trying to artificially put BBRY through that.
    BBVegasGirl80 and Carjackd like this.
    03-25-13 10:53 PM
  6. vincenzio's Avatar
    We need more people like Shadrackc. What happened to fairness in the playing field? I always felt the media was unfair to RIM. Was there a conspiracy? I'm not sure but I've always thought RIM was being picked on. After reading this, I know hope is still out there. BlackBerry has got my vote!

    Posted via CB10
    BBVegasGirl80 likes this.
    03-25-13 11:07 PM
  7. Dgree03's Avatar
    I think BBRY brought all the negative connotations on themselves. It is that simple.. sure the media sensationalized their demise but not without BBRY feeding the fire.

    It is a really nice OS.. but feature for feature it is not on par with iOS and Android. It is just not.. the more BBRY fans admit this the more we can push BBRY to bring Apps and OS feature parity to be on the same playing field as the other big dogs.

    I enjoyed your write up.. You made some good points.

    Posted via CB10
    millerliteboy likes this.
    03-25-13 11:14 PM
  8. Aguilucho's Avatar
    Excellent article. I too hope that people can start noticing all the good features of bb10. It is time that ignorant and blind consumers opt for a different, more efficient, top notch security and better multitasking OS. I can see the day when consumers stat to worry about security, but unfortunately for a lot of the consumers, it will be to late.
    03-25-13 11:16 PM
  9. anon(4141156)'s Avatar
    I almost didn't read this because of its length, but I'm very glad that I did. Great article, great points. Too many people are not doing their homework. Security is my number one concern, and nothing beats BlackBerry.
    03-25-13 11:27 PM
  10. DawnMills's Avatar
    Thanks for writing the article. You said many things that needed to be brought out into the open, such as the iOS 6 bug which very few in the media blasted Apple about.

    It's a great vote of confidence, but it's still gonna be a long haul for BB to regain favour in the eyes of the public. Good start!
    03-25-13 11:32 PM
  11. Duffman19's Avatar
    Even though I didn't read entire article, I agree with op

    Posted via CB10 from my BlackBerry zed one zero
    03-25-13 11:37 PM
  12. josaki's Avatar
    Good read.

    Posted via CB10
    03-25-13 11:41 PM
  13. jchavealot's Avatar
    Well done!

    Posted via CB10
    03-25-13 11:41 PM
  14. Schmurf's Avatar
    Great article! I am definitely sharing this all around. By the way, my first smartphone was a Treo as well, but having been a Palm addict for years prior, it was the Palm OS version. As for the Z10 - I completely love it!
    03-26-13 12:02 AM
  15. shiakap's Avatar
    let them be..i'll stick with my stunning bold looking device with 7 chrome berries at the back of it..

    BB FTW..
    03-26-13 12:19 AM
  16. Omnitech's Avatar
    interesting read. and I agree, I dont know if its a conspiracy, but there is nothing people love more than to watch a slow painful collapse. and they seem to be trying to artificially put BBRY through that.

    I agree that I wouldn't have characterized this article as promulgating the idea of a "media conspiracy", but I do think the US press in particular has been unbelievably bearish on BBRY for reasons that more often than not don't seem to meet the definition of "reason". But it's not just the press, it's the populace too.

    I think one reason has to do with product and corporate loyalty having become a sort of religion these days. (I could go on-and-on on that point but I'll leave it at that for now. )

    And I think another reason has to do with Blackberry's historical association with the corporate world. I really think that there are lots of people running around that, perhaps unknowingly, harbor some very irrational dislike - even hatred - for Blackberry. Why? Because lots of people associate them with some company they once worked-at, that distributed locked-down Blackberries to their staff, devices which they couldn't install whatever they wanted on, couldn't sit and watch videos on because those were blocked too, couldn't listen to music on, etc etc. And whether or not that was Blackberry's "fault" or not (certainly it wasn't, they wouldn't be there if the management didn't design those restrictive policies themselves), people tend to associate "Blackberry" with "those evil I.T. guys that wouldn't let me play Angry Birds and watch Hulu in my office on my phone".


    I think BBRY brought all the negative connotations on themselves. It is that simple.. sure the media sensationalized their demise but not without BBRY feeding the fire.

    How?


    Thanks for writing the article. You said many things that needed to be brought out into the open, such as the iOS 6 bug which very few in the media blasted Apple about.
    Personally I think the author let Apple off too easy. There have been TONS of MobileMe and iCloud outages that hardly got any wide publicity at all. I think he should have run down a laundry-list of them, personally. The contrast with how RIM was excoriated for their few outages is stark.

    ,
    agp101 likes this.
    03-26-13 12:21 AM
  17. mmcpher's Avatar
    Very interesting article. I confess I like it because it fits within my own thinking, but I'd also like to think it is a rational analysis. I think a lot of the tech press comes out of and is driven by the US market , and our culture is still in the waning grip of our collective fetish for gigantism. Some of this is marketing and a national affinity for large things. We gravitate toward the biggest stores, the wealthiest sports franchises and the movies with the biggest box office. There is a correlation between quality and value to volume, but our business press appears disproportionately fixated on sheer size. There is also a correlation between wealth concentration, overall business concentration and media business concentration, and the amount of attention and enthusiasm for stories about the largest companies and their influence and dominance over "smaller" enterprises. You see an odd reflection of this in the comparative coverage of Microsoft in the pc and software sectors, contrasted to the decidedly more stand-offish coverage of Microsoft's entry into the smartphone market. I get that the biggest fish displace the most water and make the most noise so they deserve the most attention. But surely, at least IMHO, the scales are tipped too heavily in favor of the top two. This gravitational might tends to flatten out the qualities and distinct features of the products of the the others. How often have we read a begrudging concession that BB and BB10 do have something to offer, but that it won't be enough to summit and displace Andapple? When I am using the Hub, or BB Bridge, or the Z10 keyboard, why do I have to temper my appreciation and enthusiasm for those features and their productivity, with a concession and an acknowledgement that Appdroid will continue their market dominance, even when their products are not as good? BB certainly has made strides and broken out of its doldrums and is now making interesting and competitive products. That's a good story. I like to learn what these products can do. I think I may remember reading a story or two about BB's declining market share and the success of companies who are ahead of BB alphabetically. Obviously those companies also make terrific products, but it hasn't escaped my attention how both of those entities have used their massing economic might to dictate terms and pricing on the market. Each of the A's have an interest in making this a game of one-on-one. There are many ways to run that game so that the only "one" that loses are their customers. Either by virtually nickel-and-diming us so that the fees are so constant and incremental that you hardly notice that you're paying for everything all the time. The other formerly, non-evil company, as its grown inexorably larger, has developed a keen taste for predatory business practices. BB's resurgence really is good news for the entire segment. So its curious to see how persistently the tech press is trying so hard to turn it into a "too little-too late" story.
    Last edited by mmcpher; 03-26-13 at 12:40 AM. Reason: to make it even more longwinded
    DawnMills and Omnitech like this.
    03-26-13 12:33 AM
  18. NotGoodIMO's Avatar
    You are not making much sense? Are you saying that IOS and Android are better than BB10 or are you just complaining about the ecosystem? If it's the former then stop trolling or may be you sincerely try using Z10.
    03-26-13 12:42 AM
  19. black-dash's Avatar
    You are not making much sense? Are you saying that IOS and Android are better than BB10 or are you just complaining about the ecosystem? If it's the former then stop trolling or may be you sincerely try using Z10.
    Lol. I dont think this person even read the article......Great read though! I am extremely happy about all the support is Blackberry is now getting despite much negative criticism and adversity.
    03-26-13 01:19 AM
  20. ddlax22's Avatar
    And not only is this a great article, it's a great story In a way as well

    Posted via CB10 - FINALLY
    03-26-13 01:32 AM
  21. ddlax22's Avatar
    Lol. I dont think this person even read the article......Great read though! I am extremely happy about all the support is Blackberry is now getting despite much negative criticism and adversity.
    He's got Six forum posts. Lol. Nuff said

    Posted via CB10 - FINALLY
    FoxieCleopatra likes this.
    03-26-13 01:33 AM
  22. Mister Xiado's Avatar
    Apple's good at sweeping bad press under the rug. Steve Jobs' daughter who he denied to his dying day, Steve Jobs screwing Wozniak over time and time again, iPhones dropping calls TEN TIMES, IF NOT MORE often than any other phone, iPhones bursting into flames, iCloud getting hacked...

    Meanwhile if someone at RIM hits a squirrel with his car, it's front page financial news. RIM RESPONSIBLE FOR EXTINCTION OF ONE ROCKET J SQUIRREL, STOCK DROPS NINETY POINTS.
    03-26-13 01:44 AM
  23. R Field's Avatar
    Thank you! A well written article chalked with sense unlike US media reviews and fabrications. Real Z10 owners know how good this device truly is. Hopefully the word will spread that way despite extreme prejudice and bias.
    JonathanInToronto likes this.
    03-26-13 01:57 AM
  24. jacmeister68's Avatar
    thank you for the great article. what you have said encapsulates my thinking about the us medias stance on blackberry at the moment. very salient points.

    lets hope that the tmo and vzw launches bring some more positivity to the platform.

    thanks again

    Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk
    03-26-13 02:16 AM
  25. Oscar_E's Avatar
    In reply to this comment, "It is a really nice OS.. but feature for feature it is not on par with iOS and Android".

    OK lets talk about features:

    1-Browser, it beats IOS and Android, you can check it out on YouTube.
    2-Keyboard, it beats IOS and Android, you can check it out using it.
    3-Notifications, it's a lot better than IOS and Android, you can confirm using the phone.
    4-Multitasking, it beats (by far) IOS and Android, you can confirm using the phone.
    5-Instant messaging, it's simply the best platform and BBM the best IM software.
    6-Overall performance, on par and it beats IOS and Android in some scenarios.
    7-Camera, on par with iPhone and Samsung, but with the times shift feature .

    The phone specs are as good as any other, keeping in mind that BB10 doesn't need much power to outperform even Quad Core devices.

    By features did you mean apps? maybe, cause that's the only gap right now, but not for long.
    ibpluto and maxdaniels like this.
    03-26-13 02:19 AM
57 123

Similar Threads

  1. OK I'm not normally into conspiracy theories but...
    By playboldbook in forum General BlackBerry News, Discussion & Rumors
    Replies: 61
    Last Post: 11-13-12, 10:33 AM
  2. The "Official" conspiracy theory thread...
    By Dr.Sadistic in forum Rehab & Off-Topic Lounge
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: 07-19-09, 06:52 PM
  3. The "Official" conspiracy theory thread...
    By Dr.Sadistic in forum General BlackBerry News, Discussion & Rumors
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 07-19-09, 04:59 PM
  4. Conspiracy Theories
    By coronaboy10 in forum Rehab & Off-Topic Lounge
    Replies: 15
    Last Post: 07-18-09, 02:14 AM
LINK TO POST COPIED TO CLIPBOARD