[genedwes]

Will we ever find out why Verizon delayed and then didn't advertise the 9650??
Seems like they could have sold more phones with marketing. They sure market the droids.
Gene

[dblockinit]

Will we ever find out why Verizon delayed and then didn't advertise the 9650??
Seems like they could have sold more phones with marketing. They sure market the droids.
Gene

lets see if something happens on 6/7

[Doc Z]

I think they recognize that BBs have a very set market niche and they won't really appeal to the same users who could be easily impressed with phones like the Incredible. BB users won't need a lot of advertising/marketing and any further investment of such resources would simply be a waste of money.

As far as the delay goes, I'm sure it simply had to do with the last minute decision to change the name from Tour to Bold and add that extra memory.

[Mr. Marco]

I think Verizon still has a bad taste in their mouth with all the money they poured into advertising the Storm. Blackberry doesn't seem to be their biggest draw, they can sure market and sell the cr*p out of a fully loaded Android device though (e.g. Droid, Incredible).

Blackberries are rather plain looking devices compared to most other smartphones coming out these days. Verizon knows they can sell the "cool" factor of those other devices to customers who are looking for the latest phone that makes people go wow when they see it.

Blackberry does email great but to most of the general public looking into purchasing a smartphone Android devices do better at what people are looking for, like slick browsing experience, multimedia, social network integration, etc. And also I'm pretty sure Android devices do just fine in the email department as well for general use.

[TheOne01]

I think Verizon still has a bad taste in their mouth with all the money they poured into advertising the Storm. Blackberry doesn't seem to be their biggest draw, they can sure market and sell the cr*p out of a fully loaded Android device though (e.g. Droid, Incredible).

Blackberries are rather plain looking devices compared to most other smartphones coming out these days. Verizon knows they can sell the "cool" factor of those other devices to customers who are looking for the latest phone that makes people go wow when they see it.

Blackberry does email great but to most of the general public looking into purchasing a smartphone Android devices do better at what people are looking for, like slick browsing experience, multimedia, social network integration, etc. And also I'm pretty sure Android devices do just fine in the email department as well for general use.

Well said sir, thank you.

[paintdrinkingpete]

The 9650 is basically the "Tour 2". I'm not saying that it's a bad thing, but there's nothing "revolutionary" about it...at least not from a mass marketing perspective. I'm sure it will start showing up in ads, but there's hasn't really been a huge buzz around this one.

Heck, I don't remember really seeing a single TV ad for the Incredible until after it came out, and there was a huge buzz around the release of that one around these parts.

Devices like the Storm (the first one), or the Droid get crazy marketing because they're considered "breakthough", and VZW anticipates that an extensive marketing plan will cause a flood of sales.

Or, to put it another way, they're not gonna spend a ton of advertising money unless they think it will make a significant difference in sales.

[caseydietz]

Perhaps they waited intentionally to release the device the day before the EVO dropped? That's what I would have done... and Verizon did. Good move on their part if you ask me.

[papped]

^^ Yep, that and unproven phones require a ton more advertising than proven ones, especially when at a higher price point. Hence why the Curve series is always a top seller even though it practically never gets direct advertisement (other than a mention in generic carrier BOGO offers, etc).

[itsdollar]

I think Verizon still has a bad taste in their mouth with all the money they poured into advertising the Storm. Blackberry doesn't seem to be their biggest draw, they can sure market and sell the cr*p out of a fully loaded Android device though (e.g. Droid, Incredible).

Blackberries are rather plain looking devices compared to most other smartphones coming out these days. Verizon knows they can sell the "cool" factor of those other devices to customers who are looking for the latest phone that makes people go wow when they see it.

Blackberry does email great but to most of the general public looking into purchasing a smartphone Android devices do better at what people are looking for, like slick browsing experience, multimedia, social network integration, etc. And also I'm pretty sure Android devices do just fine in the email department as well for general use.

I love my BB and Droid phones are nice but aren't for me but I have to say that was a great statement on how they feel about marketing BB phones.

[tourboy]

Well, looks like the 9000 is right around the corner.

Leaked Photos of BlackBerry Curve 9300 Surface

Will we ever find out why Verizon delayed and then didn't advertise the 9650??
Seems like they could have sold more phones with marketing. They sure market the droids.
Gene

[cbreze]

I thought it kind of interesting I heard an ad on the radio 3 different times for a verizon BB that "runs on the fastest,largest, most reliable 3g network" and thought it was going to be the bold, but it was for the tour! This was yesterday the 2nd. I'm in Arizona.

[pflorio]

No camera flash, no thanks! Why won't they make the curves with the flash anymore??

Well, looks like the 9000 is right around the corner.

Leaked Photos of BlackBerry Curve 9300 Surface

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[TheOne01]

Perhaps they waited intentionally to release the device the day before the EVO dropped? That's what I would have done... and Verizon did. Good move on their part if you ask me.

Why? The EVO will out sell this phone by at least 10:1, probably more.