[michael banjany]

So last night I get home from work, just like I did on the release date of the iPhone 6... And wanted to watch the keynote. To no prevail, blackberry still doesn't understand the power of marketing and showcasing there products by having th keynoye on their website or even on YouTube for that matter.

So I turn on my Apple TV.. And go to the WSJ app to view videos seeing what coverage they had. All they had was a negative review of the passport.

Now I'm not trying to start a battle here, I'm a blackberry enthusiast, love my q10 and love th passport ( although I can get my hands on one, nice job again blackberry and verizon, way to sort it out)

However, the review I watched actually brought up a good point. Towards the end of the pathetic 3 minute review that they gave the amazing phone, she said " sorry blackberry but everyone connects in more ways than just email now a days".

Now think about this, it's a valid point. There's no argument that blackberry has the best email service . BBM is great although no one uses it. So in reality we just text. Everyone else is on iMessage, and we're texting them , which is not real time like iMessage or BBM, and it's an inconvenience.

Point being, one of the major ways we communicate is Facebook (which is good on blackberry ) but also Instagram, voice notes , hate to say it, but also iMessage.

The fact that blackberry still has not implented a native Instagram app, has choppy texting between cross platforms, do you guys feel that "email" as blackberry praises is really appealing for consumers nowadays ?

The excuse that the phone is targeted for specific professionals is not valid, as I am a professional and still communicate more using the above mentioned services more than email. Not having a native Instagram STILL having to do workarounds like igrann (although not bad, it's not just the same) this means that there's no hub intergration, which is blackberry's strong suit and best feature.

What are your thoughts ? Is blackberry just missing the lifestyle of individuals? Do they think we all send emails all day long ? Did they disappoint with this device ? Did they not fully utilize their partnership with Amazon ?

I'm just confused at why they miss the little things. Keynotes presenting to the public on thei website, create some "ahh" effect. Although Chen is a great manager, he is not a salesman. In fact i don't think anyone at blackberry knows the first thing about sales or the psychology behind it

[Dmessenger]

Yes. Its true BlackBerry is best for emails.But it won't work now.Times have changed its not 2005 - 2008.

I personally know many hard core business professionals (including my ceo) who all uses note 3 or ip5.The difference between them and a BlackBerry professional is that a BlackBerry professional only use his phone for replying emails, checking fb and limited browsing,but they(apple and sammy users) play around with quality apps,games,camera in addition to what a BlackBerry user do with their phones.

Lack of Quality apps is now the biggest challenge BlackBerry facing.

Posted from my Black Beast Q10

[BBFanatic4Life]

Why are you stuck on emails? The Passport excels at showing you more regardless of what kind of messaging service you are using. If that's email, BBM, sms, WhatsApp, kik, Facebook messenger or anything else. And it's not meant for everyone either, people really need to realize this.

There are people that use their phones for emailing and reading documents and the Passport does an amazing job for these tasks. Keep in mind too the Passport can show people more information for many different situations.

The Passport is a new device and a new form factor so it's natural that it's going to have a polarizing effect on people. I think the people that are going to like it will like it a lot and they'll grow to like it even more over time and for others it'll just never be for them, and that's perfectly fine.

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[whoa]

Yes, but in the professional world, emails are used extensively. This is the target audience.

[walt63]

Did they not fully utilize their partnership with Amazon ?

Whatever Amazon has, BlackBerry user can get. So, once/if Amazon gets Instagram or any big name, BlackBerry users will have it unofficially officially.

So in reality we just text. Everyone else is on iMessage, and we're texting them , which is not real time like iMessage or BBM, and it's an inconvenience.

Everyone doesn't have an iPhone, iMessage is only nice when Apple to Apple and all the people you communicate with has an iPhone. In many situations, thats not the case. Android is widely used. So texting is still important to communicate across all platforms, unless you have BBM or Whatsapp.

And this is just my opinion, but when we post a status update or picture and some just "likes" it, is that really communicating? I get what you're saying and I slightly agree but to say that's THE way people communicate, isn't necessarily true. If I want to communicate with my parents, I'm not going to post it on Facebook and wait for their response. I will email/text them. Better yet, do the old school way and call them. Last time I checked, my boss doesn't tweet at me when a project is due.

So, even in this digital age, basic communication functions of a mobile device is still important and needed. I like BlackBerry because they don't forget that. The Passport is an example of how important efficient and clear communication is. Not only for business, but for personal use as well.

[vladi]

Well if Apple is your toy of choice then iMessage comes natural doesn't it? And no matter what there is nothing you can do about it if you are on any other platform other then iOS, simple as that. Apple is pushing iMessage so hard on their devices so all messages default to iMessage over SMS hence resulting into data charges to those who don't know the difference between green and blue. Trust me there are a lot of them.

Its all about your workflow essentially it has nothing to do with the device itself. If you are dependent on Google service then some Android, preferably Nexus, should be your primary phone. No reason buying an awesome Nokia 1020 phone to shoot photos and post them on Instagram only to complain how it doesn't support Google Business Apps.

Before you choose your phone put your workflow on paper and sort out the priorities. Unfortunately that's how it goes cause your general consumer got caught in the app game and all she or he craves is separate apps instead of better integration. If you ask me all this app approach is flawed for a consumer, its great for developers and app store owners but not for the end user. How come? Well it limits your choice of devices for one. If you like Passport but you depend on Slack you cant switch to Passport because there is no Slack app for BlackBerry 10. You can lash out all you want on BBRY for not "motivating" developers but its actually a consumer that got himself into the place to not have what he should have had no matter what OS and device he chooses. See Slack could have just made a better mobile website because there is no app for Slack on Desktop so why there should be an app for mobile? All communication could have been routed through one messaging service like Hub instead of a need to switch between apps like it is today. Shame cause it could have been great for everybody.

But what really concerns me is the lack of anti-trust procedures applied in mobile environment cause its clear as a sky on sunny day that online services monopolist like Google is abusing its monopoly to get advantage in hardware sales. Same can be said about Apple as well and the same could have been said about BBRY when they were on the throne by not providing BES service on other phones.

Im sursprised how anti-trust didn't hit the mobile market yet

[FR33MAN]

There is also phone calls to communicate. And to communicate you need a smartphone alive meaning a good battery life. Some points she did not raise.

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[gatorboi352]

So last night I get home from work, just like I did on the release date of the iPhone 6... And wanted to watch the keynote. To no prevail, blackberry still doesn't understand the power of marketing and showcasing there products by having th keynoye on their website or even on YouTube for that matter.

So I turn on my Apple TV.. And go to the WSJ app to view videos seeing what coverage they had. All they had was a negative review of the passport.

Now I'm not trying to start a battle here, I'm a blackberry enthusiast, love my q10 and love th passport ( although I can get my hands on one, nice job again blackberry and verizon, way to sort it out)

However, the review I watched actually brought up a good point. Towards the end of the pathetic 3 minute review that they gave the amazing phone, she said " sorry blackberry but everyone connects in more ways than just email now a days".

Now think about this, it's a valid point. There's no argument that blackberry has the best email service . BBM is great although no one uses it. So in reality we just text. Everyone else is on iMessage, and we're texting them , which is not real time like iMessage or BBM, and it's an inconvenience.

Point being, one of the major ways we communicate is Facebook (which is good on blackberry ) but also Instagram, voice notes , hate to say it, but also iMessage.

The fact that blackberry still has not implented a native Instagram app, has choppy texting between cross platforms, do you guys feel that "email" as blackberry praises is really appealing for consumers nowadays ?

The excuse that the phone is targeted for specific professionals is not valid, as I am a professional and still communicate more using the above mentioned services more than email. Not having a native Instagram STILL having to do workarounds like igrann (although not bad, it's not just the same) this means that there's no hub intergration, which is blackberry's strong suit and best feature.

What are your thoughts ? Is blackberry just missing the lifestyle of individuals? Do they think we all send emails all day long ? Did they disappoint with this device ? Did they not fully utilize their partnership with Amazon ?

I'm just confused at why they miss the little things. Keynotes presenting to the public on thei website, create some "ahh" effect. Although Chen is a great manager, he is not a salesman. In fact i don't think anyone at blackberry knows the first thing about sales or the psychology behind it

Given the questions you are posing in this post, I believe you may be missing the 'point' of BlackBerry. Especially the Passport. BB is ENTERPRISE focused. All of your questions are certainly valid, and for an Android and/or iPhone, they would be concerning. Because those 2 brands are CONSUMER driven.

I think, if those are your genuine concerns, you may be after the wrong kind of device and phone company to fit your needs.

[ubizmo]

Point being, one of the major ways we communicate is Facebook (which is good on blackberry ) but also Instagram, voice notes , hate to say it, but also iMessage.

The fact that blackberry still has not implented a native Instagram app, has choppy texting between cross platforms, do you guys feel that "email" as blackberry praises is really appealing for consumers nowadays ?

Is Apple licensing iMessage for cross-platform use? If not, there's nothing BlackBerry or anyone else can do about it. If you must use iMessage, you need to get an iPhone or iPad.

As far as Instagram is concerned, there's a history there. When BB10 was launching, BlackBerry offered to send software engineers to assist in the development of a native Instagram app. Instagram refused. BlackBerry can't make a native Instagram app without permission from Instagram. They don't have that permission. So, the best we can do is use third party Instagram clients, such as iGrann. As you point out, it works. Of course it's not exactly the same; it's not allowed to be. Why does Stern not mention that there are third-party apps for Instagram and SnapChat? Aren't those details relevant in a review, if you're going to take the time to mention the absence of the first-party apps?

Did the reviewer mention that WhatsApp is available? WhatsApp is the most popular messaging platform in the world, so you'd think it would deserve a mention. Answer: No, she didn't mention it.

She goes out of her way to describe how she can only type 45 wpm on her Passport after three weeks of practice. She then adds that she can now type 55 wpm on the iPhone 6, thanks to the larger screen. She doesn't say what her speed on the iPhone 5 was. After these dispiriting comments, she adds:

Things speed up significantly when I use the Passport's predictive text feature, which is as fast or faster than Android's or the iPhone's because of the trackpad-like keyboard. The gestures have become second nature. Swipe up on the keys to pick one of the predicted words, swipe down to scroll through an email, swipe left to delete a previous word.

Huh. Now the Passport is faster than iPhone or Android, when used to full advantage, i.e., with predictive text turned on. Well, it's nice that she added that, but what's puzzling is why she included the previous comments about it being slower at all. The real take-home message here should be that used properly, text entry on the Passport is as fast or faster than it is on the other leading platforms. Somehow that message gets diluted.

The app gap is real, but there's not much BlackBerry can do about it that they haven't already done.

As for the presentation, I thought Jeff Gadway actually did a very good job demonstrating the benefits of the screen and keyboard design in a detailed and informative way. But I'll have to agree that John Chen is no salesman.

[michael banjany]

I understand its enterprise focused and a niche market device. I'm just asking these questions to see what the followers such as us feel. I personally love the passport, the look , sleekness and I can only imagine how it feels in hand. However I cannot even purchase it if I wanted because I habe verizon. I do have a Q10 so I know first hand that blackberry OS is the best OS on any platform. However, I am typing this on my iphone 6, and I do have an iPad mini retina and MacBook air.

It's just the attention to details, enterprise or not, blackberry still is missing. Just as a poster stated above that blackberry could not get permission from IG to make a native app. Just like they probably got the "no-go" from verizon. This is a problem. Blackberry needs a team of influencers, movers and shakers, to spread this device around.

Enterprise only ? Every company I've worked for or work for , no longer offers blackberry's. They all switched to iPhone or android.

I agree that apps are not always relevant and necessary, as the blackberry browser is phenomenal. However, certain apps are really a must.

Also, the fact that people mention that blackberry focuses on the basic and real functionalities of devices such as actual phone calls "and they don't forget that" is not a valid argument to say it nicely. iPhone has HD calling to all devices, and now the iPhone 6 is the first device on verizon with Volte. Blackberry is only HD calls to other blackberry devices. Which I'm sorry, but the market share in the U.S. is slim to none.

[michael banjany]

Point is, blackberry is just not keeping up with the technological environment. Excellence is in the details. The most minute details in fact. Not saying apple is better than blackberry because their each unique. But look at apple. Global device rollouts on the same day. iOS updates on the same day across the globe. Blackberry can't even release a phone in the same state on the same day.

Just unorganized, too many restrictions placed upon them from media and carriers.

[matt4pack]

Point is, blackberry is just not keeping up with the technological environment. Excellence is in the details. The most minute details in fact. Not saying apple is better than blackberry because their each unique. But look at apple. Global device rollouts on the same day. iOS updates on the same day across the globe. Blackberry can't even release a phone in the same state on the same day.

Just unorganized, too many restrictions placed upon them from media and carriers.

Also new phone releases that can bend from normal use, os updates that kill cell service on brand new phones, hacked cloud services.

The grass is always greener I guess.

Posted via CB10

[ubizmo]

It's just the attention to details, enterprise or not, blackberry still is missing. Just as a poster stated above that blackberry could not get permission from IG to make a native app. Just like they probably got the "no-go" from verizon. This is a problem. Blackberry needs a team of influencers, movers and shakers, to spread this device around.

We don't know the Verizon story, but I'm leaning toward what you said here: Verizon didn't sell many Z30s and didn't want to repeat the experience with the Passport. Yes it's a problem, a huge problem.

Consider the fact that WP ahead of BB10 in market share, and Microsoft has a lot more money to throw around, but WP still has a significant app gap. That gives you an idea of the sheer scale of the problem. If anybody qualifies as having "mover/shaker" status, Microsoft does, but they are struggling to get traction with WP. And WP is a pretty nice OS, in my opinion.

I'm not going to play CEO. I know nothing about it. But from where I sit, the Android runtime and, eventually, the Amazon partnership were the only play BlackBerry had left. They knew you can't pull the big-name apps out of thin air, and you can't force the development houses to make them if they just don't want to. Chen has admitted that a BlackBerry version of Android was considered but rejected, due to security concerns. Who knows, maybe they'll revisit that for the consumer market someday. BB10 for secure enterprise; BB-Android for everybody else. It could happen, but at the moment we have BB10 plus Android runtime.

[southlander]

I actually find the preferred method of communication with my business contacts is always calls and emails. No one ever asks me to message them on Facebook or follow their instagram account. Or even message them on Twitter.

I guess there are some industries where folks use social media instead of email. But not mine.

Anyway the Passport is Enterprise. Not consumer. And it does have access to lots of Android apps.

IMessage is Apple only by Apple's choice. If they ever open it up to Android you'll be able to use it on BlackBerry.

[southlander]

Point is, blackberry is just not keeping up with the technological environment. Excellence is in the details. The most minute details in fact. Not saying apple is better than blackberry because their each unique. But look at apple. Global device rollouts on the same day. iOS updates on the same day across the globe. Blackberry can't even release a phone in the same state on the same day.

Just unorganized, too many restrictions placed upon them from media and carriers.

Yes. BlackBerry is weak when it comes to dealing with carriers. The days of them calling any shots are gone, perhaps forever. They have very limited resources. They've cut their workforce just to stay alive.

So I am happy they are just still in business with a plan to grow again. I don't think one can expect more than that.

[early2bed]

At this point, Blackberry is doing things based on what it can afford to do. If that isn't enough then they will have to get out of mobile. As the other platforms diversify into other mobile products like tablets and wearables, Blackberry will not be able to participate as well. If you don't think that email and messaging are good enough to satisfy the professional niche then you probably shouldn't get a Blackberry. Amazon isn't going to offer much more than access to their app store.

[Chelmsford]

Speak for yourself. I communicate almost exclusively through BBM, and in other places it's even more widely used (Indonesia for example) . I think it is at between 80-100 million active subscribers. BlackBerry's communicate in many ways. The worst argument that could be made is one suggesting BlackBerry is inferior for communication.

Powered by BlackBerry Z30

[bakron1]

I actually find the preferred method of communication with my business contacts is always calls and emails. No one ever asks me to message them on Facebook or follow their instagram account. Or even message them on Twitter.

I guess there are some industries where folks use social media instead of email. But not mine.

Anyway the Passport is Enterprise. Not consumer. And it does have access to lots of Android apps.

IMessage is Apple only by Apple's choice. If they ever open it up to Android you'll be able to use it on BlackBerry.

I agree with you a 100%, I am self employed and work in the auto industry and the primary form of communication is phone calls, email and now SMS text seems to be the messaging system of choice for most of my clients these days. The Blackberry and OS10 has worked perfectly in all these areas and was much improved as I discovered when I installed the 10.3 leak on my z30.

I have also used the iPhone and iMessage of which the majority of my clients hate the iPhone and constantly complain about how bad the email and messaging system is on the device. But, most of them don't say much because as they see it, the company is paying for it, so who cares!!. This is the real issue, until folks start complaining in numbers, the tide will not turn in favor of Blackberry or any other company for that matter.

I use Mac's in my business and they are great machines and perform flawlessly for years with out any issues, Apple has built a great reputation in terms on their computer reliability. I used the iPhone and IOS for years, but I came back to Blackberry last year with the introduction of OS10 and now that I have the 10.3 leak installed on my z30, I am not looking back.

Yes, I am a real business professional who depends on his device for emails and messaging and to me, this is where Blackberry really shines. I know their are folks out there who use their device for everything from social media, gaming, web browsing and watching videos. But, you will find their still is a large percentage of folks like myself who just want a reliable device for my emails, messaging and social media.

Yes, I bought a passport, based on the credible reviews of folks who actually used the device longer then a day and provided me with information based on what I am going to be using the device for. Yes, I spent the 599.00 + 34.00 for a case and the tax and I not going to regret it, I am going to love the device just like my z30. My review of the passport will follow as soon as it makes it's way into my waiting hands.

[Warlack]

Hmmmm.... I rarely send text messages and am mainly talking via bbm, whatsapp, vier, skype, Facebook.

I never had instagram and it is not big in europe.... Currently I can adapt to the preference of the person on the other side to talk to them.

Business wise:

Corporate is just email, calls and lync.

I cannot see myself without the hub anymore.... At least with 10.3 I get notified when someone messaged me and the android app do work headless.


IMessage is something I wouldn't worry about....

There are good and bad parts about the BlackBerry just like any other OS.... yet I am the only one constantly using my phone. All the others are just consuming information when they are bored.... at least that is my perception of it....


Posted via CB10

[walt63]

Point is, blackberry is just not keeping up with the technological environment.

How aren't they? Lack of apps doesn't mean that the device is not built well with innovative technology.

Also, the fact that people mention that blackberry focuses on the basic and real functionalities of devices such as actual phone calls "and they don't forget that" is not a valid argument to say it nicely.

You missed the point here and it's very valid. It wasn't to compare to the competition. It was just a statement to say that BlackBerry puts efficient and quality communication as a top priority. You can see that from what they introduced yesterday in the Passport.

[Pixstar]

@ Bakron1:- Very well put. It fits your needs and that's what matters....and it doesn't bend o

[iBelieveInBB]

it's not meant for everyone either, people really need to realize this.

Seriously, these threads are so annoying. People need to realize that this is NOT a device designed for the average consumer.

[Pixstar]

Was that WSJ review even relevant? Personally, I don't think so, and to me, the reporter does not come across as very tech savvy anyway. Personally I've found that all the negative reviews are from people who have obviously not spent enough time getting to know the OS and the actual workings of the phone, it's not your average cloned phone. They start with a negative attitude towards it and esure that the negative sentiment is carried through to their final verdict on the phone.

[NaijaBerry]

never heard this one before....

[surgeon1919]

Amen! No matter what BlackBerry does, they can't get any respect from these "professional" reviewers.





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