[Joao Oliveira]

To those who think that BlackBerry will do a Z10 with Passport pricing after 6 months or a year, forget about it. Wake-up to the reality of BlackBerry under John Chen. Some points to remember:

1. The Z10 inventory fiasco brought BlackBerry to the brink of becoming extinct. The previous management grossly overestimated the demand for BB10 devices.
2. The unsold inventory of these devices was written down massively to less than cost. That is the reason that those devices were available at ridiculously discounted prices within 6 months to a year of their launch. It is also the reason why BlackBerry tethered on the verge of bankruptcy last November.
3. The BlackBerry of today under John Chen would prefer to err on the side of caution, even if it means that they could lose out on potential sales due to non-availability of inventory.
4. John Chen, ever since he took over, has kept a tight leash on margins. In fact, on the recent earnings call, one of the reasons provided for the revenue decline in Q2 2015 was that they had to turn down some low margin deals. He further stated that the Passport is priced to make money for BlackBerry. i.e. It is not going to be a loss leader like the Z10.
5. The Passport is targeted at a niche audience. It is and most likely will never be a device that appeals across the spectrum of users. In other words, it is a low-volume but relatively better margin product. BlackBerry priced this product based on its modest expectations of a comparatively lower sales number.
6. BB never expected this device to set the sales charts on fire given that it was targeted at this niche audience. If people don't see the value in the Passport for their mobility needs, they are free to move on and buy the device that best suits their requirement. BB wouldn't mind one bit.
7. This is not the BB of early and mid 2013, its driven by a new management which has ruthless focus on its margins. Get used to it.

True... I'll add that the Passport is a much more complex design with a one of a kind screen and keyboard, so the margins of profit might not be as fat as other BB10 devices, wich increases the risks if they build more inventory than demand... I also add that the Passport not only has the same specs as the flagships from other brands, but has hardware keyboard wich is free with "on screen keyboards", yet, the cost is about the same as the Samsungs, HTC's, LG's etc

[chinmay007]

Yah an itna sannata kyon hai bhai.....

Posted via CB10

[collinc93]

Why is the BB Passport is so expensive in India? i thought it is $599 base price. Why it priced $835? higher than US. It should be cheaper

.....autopilot response eh?

[grevan88]

I dont know why I am so intrigued by this thread but Ive scrolled through so many pages of people complaining and saying the same thing over and over lmao

[sentimentGX4]

True... I'll add that the Passport is a much more complex design with a one of a kind screen and keyboard, so the margins of profit might not be as fat as other BB10 devices, wich increases the risks if they build more inventory than demand... I also add that the Passport not only has the same specs as the flagships from other brands, but has hardware keyboard wich is free with "on screen keyboards", yet, the cost is about the same as the Samsungs, HTC's, LG's etc

The CPU, one of it not the most key aspect of a phone, in the Passport is dated. Mobile fans may think that a Snapdragon 800/801 near the end of a generation still cost roughly the same as the Snapdragon 801 in the Nexus 5 near the beginning; but, OEMs like Nokia or Blackberry actually reap savings by releasing their CPUs right at the end of the CPU generation. It's a decent strategy as the OEMs still come off half-relevant since the next gen cpu has not reeled out en masse yet.

[wincyUt]

Well, if you find the Passport price too high, you'll actually have only a few options:

1. Wait for the price to come down.
2. Don't buy it, get something else.
3. Ask someone to ship one from another country.
4. Move (or travel) to another country where the price is cheaper.
5. Get it as a gift or kiss your boss' a...
6. Name your child John Chen an ask JC to be its sugar daddy or sugar Passport daddy.
7. Rob a store (not recommended)
8. Die and therefore no more worries about anything (not recommended, unless you're a politician)
9. Stop complaining, there are people dying from hunger, not from not getting/having the Passport (yet)
10. Let your imagination free

Insanity!!!

[chalx]

It seems prices in India are never what the market expects. Never fails. Within minutes of a device announcement in India, someone is here saying how it'll never sell. This will end up being a massive rant thread about the price, the taxes in India and how BlackBerry should price it better and how it can't compete with bottom dollar Android devices, yadda yadda yadda. Thread will be locked because of bickering, device prices will drop, special offers will be made yadda yadda yadda. The World will go on. Rinse, wash, repeat with the next device announcement.

So you are saying that $800+ is OK price which gives Passport a competitive edge in Indian market? Knowing that you are from US, a country of heavily subsidized phones where everything above $199 is expensive, your comment is not OK.

[Dave Bourque]

So you are saying that $800+ is OK price which gives Passport a competitive edge in Indian market? Knowing that you are from US, a country of heavily subsidized phones where everything above $199 is expensive, your comment is not OK.

He's from Canada... and we pay almost the same price as you guys.
699+ tax = just below 800
Z10STL100-3/10.2.1.3247

[raino]

So you are saying that $800+ is OK price which gives Passport a competitive edge in Indian market? Knowing that you are from US, a country of heavily subsidized phones where everything above $199 is expensive, your comment is not OK.

1. Bla1ze is Canadian. Canada is the country largely to the north of the US.

2. He was talking about all devices. In India, the Passport won't be the only phone that's $800+, or well past that "everything above $199" range. When the new iPhone launches in India, it's said to be even more expensive. The Galaxy phones launch in the same price range. And nowhere in his post did he say that the price gives this phone a competitive edge. In fact, all this predictions about this thread were largely true.

[ZeroBarrier]

So you are saying that $800+ is OK price which gives Passport a competitive edge in Indian market? Knowing that you are from US, a country of heavily subsidized phones where everything above $199 is expensive, your comment is not OK.

The only comment that's not OK is yours. The device is competively priced for it's specs, regardless of market. If you have a problem with the amount of VAT that your country charges on top of products, then your problem should be with your country's policies and is not BlackBerry's concern.

You can think anything you want, your entitled to your opinion; but what your not entitled to is badmouthing a company or a product because it's not priced to please you.

Posted via CB10

[zocster]

This will end up being a massive rant thread about the price, the taxes in India and how BlackBerry should price it better and how it can't compete with bottom dollar Android devices, yadda yadda yadda. Thread will be locked because of bickering, device prices will drop, special offers will be made yadda yadda yadda. The World will go on. Rinse, wash, repeat with the next device announcement.

He told you so, please stop the bickering.

[bhrgvr]

Oh well... after the initial rant of mine, I kind of stepped back and realized that it is pointless to argue here because BlackBerry has taken a decision to price the passport for themselves and not for the general public. They certainly see a niche market and they should follow it and grab it. The consumer is going to come last always.

I had hoped that BlackBerry might be a little concerned for the public at large but then the average Indian is used to everything subsidized. We are beginning to become a capitalist country, so it takes time to trickle down that if you like something you pay the full price and not have any company subsidize it in India which hurts their margin.

Posted via CB10

[ZeroBarrier]

Oh well... after the initial rant of mine, I kind of stepped back and realized that it is pointless to argue here because BlackBerry has taken a decision to price the passport for themselves and not for the general public. They certainly see a niche market and they should follow it and grab it. The consumer is going to come last always.

I had hoped that BlackBerry might be a little concerned for the public at large but then the average Indian is used to everything subsidized. We are beginning to become a capitalist country, so it takes time to trickle down that if you like something you pay the full price and not have any company subsidize it in India which hurts their margin.

Posted via CB10

Why is it that so many people think that companies should sell their products at a loss? Some companies can sell devices at a loss and make that money back on services, some companies have an easier time selling devices at a lower price point because they don't spend the same amount of money on R&D (Android devices for example, Google pays the way for Android R&D so device manufacturers save tons of money this way).

I hate to break it to you and the countless other complaining about the Passport price, but BlackBerry isn't in the same position as these other companies. BlackBerry needs to make profits from their handsets or else they won't be manufacturing devices for very much longer. And it's crystal clear that BlackBerry can't sell a ton of devices for a small margin, so they have to sell few devices at a higher margin; get that through your heads.

A bit off topic, but I'm sick and tired of hearing about BlackBerry devices and India. Seriously, it feels like there's 3+ new threads every day fill with complaints about how BlackBerry devices are to expensive for people in India. Listen, Lamborgini and Maseratti manufacture cars that are to expensive for me to justify spending money on, but I do NOT go to forums and complain about the price of these vehicles. If I can afford something and I see enough value in a product, I will purchase it; if I can't afford it but I still see value in a product, I will save or finance it and purchase it and if I can't afford it and do not see value in a product, then I just won't purchase it. Please stop complaining.

Posted via CB10

[Bluenoser63]

The CPU, one of it not the most key aspect of a phone, in the Passport is dated. Mobile fans may think that a Snapdragon 800/801 near the end of a generation still cost roughly the same as the Snapdragon 801 in the Nexus 5 near the beginning; but, OEMs like Nokia or Blackberry actually reap savings by releasing their CPUs right at the end of the CPU generation. It's a decent strategy as the OEMs still come off half-relevant since the next gen cpu has not reeled out en masse yet.

You still here? Please tell me how much a faster CPU will make BB10 operate? Even my Z30 doesn't lag so just because you need a faster CPU to get your Android working has nothing to do with CPU and OS efficiently.

NetWare and Linux ran circles around Windows on the same hardware. A bloated and inefficient OS needs more CPU to function properly. Jealous that OS10 doesn't need the as much CPU as Android?

[divyan]

II think we need to keep in mind is that this is targeted as a BUSINESS phone.
Business customers in India who would buy this phone are not as price conscious as one might think, because business people in India are usually in the affluent category that like showing off.

I'm of Indian origin with family all over the country, and when I go to India or talk to my parents, I keep hearing bragging about how much so and so paid for their house, or how much they paid for a wedding, or that so and so bought a mercedes imported, blah blah blah

Well, I think different.

Business people here make money by hard negotiations , heavy bargaining and also saving every penny(paise) wherever possible. The high end phone market is always driven by the Youngistan - 20 - 35 years age group. They use a phone for a couple of months , sell it and then buy the next glittering one. That is why there is such a huge cry about the steep price drop of Z10. The above customer group now afraid to spend that kind of money because they think that the price of passport may drop like that of Z10.

[divyan]

Almost all Indian credit cards have the EMI option already. So why should you want BlackBerry to do anything about that?

I think the suggestion made by Ment is not complete. I guess it was something like " zero interest" EMIs on credit cards.

[divyan]

As for people crying buckets over diminished value of over priced z10, look around and you will notice z30 retains much of its value even today. You paid for what it said on the tin can, not that Blackberry cheated anyone by asking 40+ grand and delivered an unbranded gold copy of vertu to you.

For this price even I am holding on from pre booking unless i see the device in real and feel it in my hand before committing to pay up. Ok I was expecting the best price of passport about 43-45. But at 50 for me, its almost there. Am neither a frequent flyer nor do I carry Amex card so I will loose on the amazon offers and pay 50 eventually, but it gives me no right to start whacking about on Blackberry like a headless chicken and lump my personal tirade as countrywide phenomena.

That sums it up. Want it? buy it. Can't? Don't.

[BB Adict]

So, the fact that they sold 200k units in a matter of hours on launch last week doesn't lead you to think there's some demand for something different?

The post is specific to India. I don't think people casually part with that kind of money just because its "something different."

Posted via CB10

[divyan]

Just curious, how does the passport compare to the iPhone 6 in India?

Posted via CB10

Honestly? To use an analogy, a person carrying iPhone 6 is viewed by Indian public is akin to Lindsay Lohan walking in Afghanistan wearing a bikini.

A passport bearer , I think , will definitely be a green alien practising yoga.

[Thunderbuck]

The post is specific to India. I don't think people casually part with that kind of money just because its "something different."

Posted via CB10

I think a lot of it was driven by people looking for "something different", absolutely. I don't think there are 200,000 BlackBerry fans out there willing to pay this much for this phone, so they're drawing a new crowd from somewhere.

This is evidently a rather desirable phone. Pricing it in premium territory will only make it more attractive to status-conscious people who want the world to know that they can afford a premium-priced phone.

I'm sure India has its share of those.

Posted via CB10

[Krishna Ram]

Sorry guys, looks like the 40 price was a dealer special just for me. My friend was doing me a favor given the number of phones I buy from him. It's 49 for the public.

Here's what's strange though, he had gone to the pre launch party last week. Thursday. And was told it would be 45, down to 40 final.

Looks like either someone was misinformed, or they changed their mind at the last minute.

He's as surprised as I am and as blackberrys largest bombay dealer thinks they've made a mistake. Called them over confident and doesn't think 49 will work in india.

He's got a couple of multi brand shops selling iPhone and Samsung as well and really knows the Indian mobile market.

If anyone in bombay wants to play on the phone, there a demo version here at his linking road shop.

Posted via CB10

[SharonRD]

He's from Canada... and we pay almost the same price as you guys.
699+ tax = just below 800
Z10STL100-3/10.2.1.3247

Dave's right. I'm a Canadian and will be ordering from ShopBB, and after taxes and shipping it wil cost me about $805ish...and Blackberry is a Canadian company. Not sure why you and others expect to pay less than us Canucks? Although, I do feel bad for how our US neighbours get shafted by the carriers, and don't begrudge them the $599 deal, which will go up right away anyway. Just my 2 cents...err, I mean toonie. lol

[coyotejim]

I just checked the Amazon India site - the phone is available only as a pre-order with a release date of the 10th. Even so, it's sales rank is #14 out of the top 100 smart phones, and #71 out of all electronics. So much for it not selling in India...

[addy37]

Dave's right. I'm a Canadian and will be ordering from ShopBB, and after taxes and shipping it wil cost me about $805ish...and Blackberry is a Canadian company. Not sure why you and others expect to pay less than us Canucks? Although, I do feel bad for how our US neighbours get shafted by the carriers, and don't begrudge them the $599 deal, which will go up right away anyway. Just my 2 cents...err, I mean toonie. lol

Well Said!!

[tx ram]

A lot of people outside of India do not know the fact that, most hadsets sold in India are unlocked, unsubsidised devices. That is a 99.8% of devices. The balance would be promotional devices given to developers, sponsors, event managers, retailers/for display etc.

And to my knowledge, most Indian buyers buy these devices by paying upfront. Unlike most other parts of the world.

So somebody who is buying a passport in India is putting up about US$850 upfront.

That is fine. I will buy it if I can afford it. Will not if I will not.
But 2 months from today, BlackBerry India will slash prices and the same 850 will be 500.

BlackBerry can prices their phones as much as they want. But I will not buy another BlackBerry until it has been in the market for at least 9 months. Because that is the time, BlackBerry would cut prices to 50% or lesser. I have timed my q5 purchase so that by the time my q5 finished it's 18 month warranty, I will be ready for th passport around 25K ?, and BlackBerry would have realised their mistake of pricing high. Mr Chen would have been given the pink slip by the board by then. A new CEO would have come in realised the dead inventory /stock in the wear house and would slash prices to pay for their salaries, rents etc.

Never buy a BlackBerry on launch. Wait atleast 9-12 months after launch. In the mean while get the 10.3OS on ur older devices and see if it's worth it.

Q5SQR100-3/10.2.1.3247