[CyberMan2013]

changing to a device that is 1.5 years old isnt an upgrade really

Age of the device has nothing to do with whether it's an upgrade or not. There are many things that you can do on a Z30 that you can't on a Z10. The whole experience is an upgraded experience. OS responsiveness, Games, App performance, especially Android App performance is better and that's a tangible improvement. Battery life is tremendously better, that's another big one. The sound quality is much better / louder / clearer. The FM radio is a nice addition as well. The larger screen makes for easier reading. USB OTG makes the phone much more versatile compared to the Z10 and being able to use HDMI and USB OTG simultaneously puts it at the top of the BlackBerry 10 list for a media center / console / PC replacement. Even the Samsung Galaxy S4 and S5 don't have simultaneous USB OTG and HDMI out. Then we have Miracast and WifiDirect to add to the list.

So those are huge upgrades in my opinion and having used some of those features on my Passport, I can say that I really didn't know what I was missing coming from a Z10. The Passport is also a great option even with the keyboard. It doesn't take away anything from the experience. It's much better for reading while scrolling through articles and web pages using the keyboard.

Posted via CB10

[edwinsberry]

I may be delusional but I don't think so because I actually agree with most of the article in substance. However, I like me some Blackberry. I am hopeful that Blackberry will do enough and the strategy will be good enough to keep them making handsets but realistically it may not happen.

[ankenn]

There are genuine critical points to be made about Blackberry's
1. Endemic launch lateness, a feature of the last few years. Launching products late with software even later does not endear the products to the consumer.
2. Lack of or incorrectly targeted advertising. If anyone remembers the Superbowl ad for a non-launched phone you will know what I mean. The lack of presence in the market is not just about products, it's also about information, and there is none about for the general consumer.
3. The waste of the Q5. It was criminal. Too expensive and in the wrong places.
4. lack of pushing the BBOS. iOS does pretty much all the same things, no doubt after see what Blackberry came up with first. BBOS is brilliant but it no longer stands out.
5. Utter lack of offensive punches. When reviewers plant bad and uninformed reviews in the press they spread unanswered. I know there's a lot to say when it comes to Apple-paid journalists and Apple's management of the media but why the complete ceding of the talk-space to them?
6. lack of support of the passport. What we need is new passport right now. The genius of the broad screen could definitely create a new standard but we need to see it being updated (the AT&T re-design is a start) and re-packaged.

[ljfong]

The article basically rehashes all the arguments that CrackBerry forums have had over many many threads. The article does not say anything new. A large part of the reason why BlackBerry is so badmouthed today is due to the smugness of the co CEOs back in the day and the general elitist attitude of the company. Not very unlike Apple today. Beating up on the once mighty that has fallen is always dramatic and fun.

[Blacklatino]

LOL. I always take these type of articles with a some salt, lime, and a shot of Patron. The Z10 and Q10 were late- nothing new. Already documented about OS 10. So, these articles are repetitive and nothing new has been said ......unless you're new to BlackBerry. IDK. My concern is BlackBerry waiting to release a full touchscereen(that everyone is using on other platforms) hoping that people want to comeback to a keyboard device. I know, most of us on here will get it. BlackBerry isn't concerned about us.....it's the Android and iPhone crossover users- whether for corporate businesses or personal/small business like myself. Good or bad, it's also about timing.

[trsbbs]

I liked the write up. Some points were made but nothing new or earth shattering.



BlackBerry hates America!

[anon(9208252)]

Well I don't care I'm a delusional blackberry owner, and loving it,

[jellybeen]

I agree with some of the points whoever I think whenever BlackBerry releases the 10.3.xxx update the phones will be a better version of capabilities then they are now. I still think the Z30 is the best phone I have ever owned.
BlackBerry has to announce the updates instead of leaving everyone hanging to every rumor that surfaces and then being let down.

Posted via CB10

[berry4life99]

One observation I have about us: we are simultaneously the most informed and misinformed about our platform. There's only a handful of iOS and Android users who know more of the inner workings of the OS. Anyone who has been a BlackBerry user for more than the standard 2 years of (American) contracts tend to understand the ins and outs of the OS well enough and are willing to learn some more.

On the coin's other side, we get excited about ANY information on BlackBerry and run with it even if it's later proven to be false. It isn't hard to get us going and even harder to slow us down or redirect us.

I think the age of the fanboy does need to come to an end. Devices are both common and affordable enough to get acquainted with all platforms. I am a hardcore Crackberry user and even I have gotten to a point where I want to understand the other platforms. However I will always disagree with the kind of outdated bashing the article's author uses.

When I was anti-Apple many years ago I used to distort the truth to get people not to buy iPods at the store I worked in so I wouldn't feel like I was the only person who didn't like the iPod of that time. It was still popular regardless of what I said and did, and I look back on my younger self with great regret. My opinion gave me unction to "help" people to form a negative opinion of something that ultimately wasn't an argument that needed to be won or lost.

The same is true here. I want to see BlackBerry succeed as many of the forum posters here do. However, I want it to be due to an image of quality and capability no iPhone or Android user can deny. I no longer care if BlackBerry is #1, #2 or #3. All that matters to me is BlackBerry gets its fair shake and does what's needed to get back to health and keep producing appealing products.

The masses be damned, we're BlackBerry people. Let us have our BlackBerry judgement free.

Posted via CB10

[RazrRob]

The argument that BlackBerry is not worth hacking simply doesn't hold up. I assume you're inferring due to market share. Aren't the G7 countries important, or Militaries, Financial institutions, Presidents or Heads of State? To claim it's not worth it due to market share is akin to saying a Lamborghini or Rolls Royce or (insert luxury car name here) is not enticing to thieves because their market share is small.

[berry4life99]

While I get your statement, it isn't an apples to apples comparison. Additionally, when iCloud was hacked we didn't see secure documents that could upset the national balance, we saw naked pictures of celebrities. Value is surprisingly subjective.

BlackBerry is secure, no doubt about it. However, it would be put through its paces more often if more value were placed on it.

Granted there are high powered people using BlackBerry devices all over the world. But is there information valuable in the same manner? That's the question we need to answer. I think so, you think so, but do the people who make the news by exposing private pictures placed on an insecure platform think so?

Posted via CB10

[RazrRob]

So are you claiming that hackers place more value in posting nude pictures than in obtaining highly sensitive information and making a name for themselves (at least in the hacker world)?

[berry4life99]

I'm saying they are more interested in causing a stir. The average person expects hackers to target companies and high powered people. That's what movies and TV tell them hackers do. Most hackers want to cause a panic and get people talking about them. You and I see how it's more valuable and lucrative to expose the secrets of someone with money and hold their information for ransom. How often does that get on the news, in chatrooms, on podcasts? Not very often.

I heard about the iCloud breach on a podcast I listen to. I had no clue something like that was even a target. Not long after I listened to it I heard some of my coworkers talking about it. For the next few days I saw references to the breach on TV and online (some of it here bashing iOS). Bottom line: the goal isn't always money, but it is often mindshare. Bragging rights, if you will.

I don't think you're incorrect. I just see more evidence of the contrary. I believe your example makes more logical sense, honestly. Unfortunately, not everyone thinks like us.

Posted via CB10

[anon(2313227)]

How about pasting the content of the article so I don't have to click on it?

[tp2386]

How about pasting the content of the article so I don't have to click on it?

This. Can someone paste it here please?

Posted via CB10

[Richard Buckley]

How about pasting the content of the article so I don't have to click on it?

Really? You want to read what he wrote but you don't want to give him even a click for his efforts? Wow.

Z10STL100-3/10.3.1.2072

[Phone Guy 4567]

The argument that BlackBerry is not worth hacking simply doesn't hold up. I assume you're inferring due to market share. Aren't the G7 countries important, or Militaries, Financial institutions, Presidents or Heads of State? To claim it's not worth it due to market share is akin to saying a Lamborghini or Rolls Royce or (insert luxury car name here) is not enticing to thieves because their market share is small.

Most hackers are interested in making easy money IMO and they go where the users are, and that's not BB. Are these world leaders using new BB10 devices or older OS7 devices? Are they using stock BB devices or highly customized locked down devices? My bet is they are highly customized, locked down devices where apps are not installed at random. If that's the case forget about comparing apples to oranges blackberries to blackberries can't even be compared on a level playing field.

[birdman_38]

"...childish emotionalism". Best two words of the article. We see it time and time again in these forums and in the blog comments.

[gariac]

Most hackers are interested in making easy money IMO and they go where the users are, and that's not BB. Are these world leaders using new BB10 devices or older OS7 devices? Are they using stock BB devices or highly customized locked down devices? My bet is they are highly customized, locked down devices where apps are not installed at random. If that's the case forget about comparing apples to oranges blackberries to blackberries can't even be compared on a level playing field.

Actually if on BES, bb10 is very secure. Even BlackBerry can't decide the email or bbm. In fact you want strict MDM so that the user doesn't download apps (AKA vectors).

For voice security, you need the crypto chip that BlackBerry now sells.

With any phone, if you ran your own mail server in a secure location, that is not in the cloud, your messaging would be secure if you used TLS.

What BlackBerry doesn't provide is native GPG. There is an app that you can cut and paste the encrypted text, but that is messy. However you can run K9 mail on bb10, then add GPG. Trouble is K9 mail is a battery hog, at least when I tried it a year ago.

BlackBerry could show us some love and add Gpg to the native email.

I'm waiting for the final 10.3 to be released then will try Red Phone again. I could only get it working in one direction.

Posted via CB10

[Douken]

I wrote a comment which I want to live here as well in which I debunk 80% of what he says.

Dear author Galen. I will apologize for the corrections I'm going to point out, but seeing that the validity of some of your arguments are questionable, to not say invalid, all I can conclude is that you, and again, *sorry to say so, are in some wrong and in some ignorant on 4 of your 5 points. So allow me to debunk 80% of your article for your reading pleasure.


"Delusion" 1 about marketing

Marketing does in fact help the sales, in the US marketing wasn't really done with effort. Or anywhere. You also mention that the Z10 and the Q10 were rejected.

That may be true but not because the consumers didn't want the phones. All of that happened because it was on Thorsten Heins (CEO at the time) and his team's agenda. They did a bad work on purpose in order to drive the price of the company down in order to make it attractive to buyers buyer. That way they could get sell the company and step down with plenty of cash in their pockets (56 million for him and another 20+M distributed among his friends if they sold the conpany), this is the reason you see a huge decline in market share among other things in the Thorsten Hein era (2011-2013) because they had the big incentive to sell the company, not turn it around. So to recap, Marketing would have really help turn around the company but Thorsten and his friends had other plans.

Source:*https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/bl...134500803.html

"Delusion" 2: No growth in any country

This is even easier to debunk. United States, France, Germany, People's Republic of China, Argentina and Italy are not key markets for BlackBerry. Key markets for BlackBerry are countries like Nigeria and Indonesia where there has been growth over the past 3 years. I think saying "In no country are BlackBerry device sales growing" is in fact delusional, or maybe just a case of ignorance.*

Source - Nigeria marketshare growth for BlackBerry: http://techcabal.com/2014/07/23/nige...e-four-graphs/

Source - Indonesia market share growth for BlackBerry:*http://www.statista.com/statistics/2...-in-indonesia/

Delusion 3: iPhones and Androids are toys

In this respect you are correct, but then again,I don't think like that. Thus you could be subject to generalizing. I am aware of the issue you mention which has validity, but then again, right now realistically the company has to survive after the mess that Heins and his friends did. Thus competing in the niche market and downsizing for profitability is a smart decision and it doesn't mean the company will not compete in the average consumer market in the near future.

"Delusion" 4: Chen says if it's necessary will eliminate hardware. Mr Chen is aware that sometimes he comments on things and is taken too seriously. He says this in one of his interviews. So people tend to take little things he says and make them a huge deal for the purpose of making yellow press news articles. I think the 5 year deal he made with Foxconn to manufacture some devices and manage inventory debunks this "Delusion".

Delusion 5: Security will pull customers.

I'm no expert or know much about this subject nor think like that. So I have no say on this.

Next time if you want to write about BlackBerry just head to the Crackberry forums and ask questions, people there breathe BlackBerry and the community is very knowledgeable in a lot of subjects and you can ask for sources. That way you can get good and actual information. Sorry again.

Visit GTR Lifestyle @ C001247FA

[reeneebob]

Ironically a lot of those 'debunked' points you went after the author for are conspiracy theories at best that can easily be blown out the water and be themselves debunked.

Not helping the case at all.


Sent from my iPad Air using Tapatalk

[Velocitymj]

In Delusion 1, your statement about consumers not wanting the Z10 is incorrect.
The Wall Street Journal reported that returns of the Z10 out paced sales.
I returned mine within 5 days of purchasing it.
The Q10 had the same problem as the Z10: the operating system was buggy, skeletal and time consuming to use: as in efficient.
The only things it had over the Bold was faster internet and stability.



Posted via Q10 CB10

[yokogeri374]

Couldn't be bothered reading it, as they say empty vessel's make the most sound!

Posted via CB10

[gariac]

In Delusion 1, your statement about consumers not wanting the Z10 is incorrect.
The Wall Street Journal reported that returns of the Z10 out paced sales.
I returned mine within 5 days of purchasing it.
The Q10 had the same problem as the Z10: the operating system was buggy, skeletal and time consuming to use: as in efficient.
The only things it had over the Bold was faster internet and stability.



Posted via Q10 CB10

Eh, I use a z10. Fine phone. Nothing buggy.

Posted via CB10

[Phone Guy 4567]

Actually if on BES, bb10 is very secure. Even BlackBerry can't decide the email or bbm. In fact you want strict MDM so that the user doesn't download apps (AKA vectors).

For voice security, you need the crypto chip that BlackBerry now sells.

With any phone, if you ran your own mail server in a secure location, that is not in the cloud, your messaging would be secure if you used TLS.

What BlackBerry doesn't provide is native GPG. There is an app that you can cut and paste the encrypted text, but that is messy. However you can run K9 mail on bb10, then add GPG. Trouble is K9 mail is a battery hog, at least when I tried it a year ago.

BlackBerry could show us some love and add Gpg to the native email.

I'm waiting for the final 10.3 to be released then will try Red Phone again. I could only get it working in one direction.

Posted via CB10

And how many BB devices actually run in a configurations like you describe? Not many as a percentage of the total number of devices I suspect. If you take a modern iOS or Android device, don't jailbreak or root the device and prevent the installation of apps they will be secure too.