[LimeTripBlog]

By David Pogue THE NEW YORK TIMES
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Although the BlackBerry Bold 9900 is a huge leap ahead of previous phones, it will still have a very tough time trying to compete with Apple's iPhone and phones running Google's Android software.
(THE NEW YORK TIMES)
�*Enlarge photo
Research in Motion just unveiled a new smartphone, the BlackBerry Bold 9900. The question is: Does anybody care?

The competitive landscape looks absolutely brutal. There�s the iPhone, whose 29 percent of the app phone market is the result of 110 million slavering fans and a bottomless app store. Rumor has it that Apple is readying a new iPhone for release this fall. Nobody will ask, �Does anybody care?� about that one.

Then there�s Google. Its Android phone operating system now has 52 percent of the market. About the only thing that could make Google more powerful is a book of Hogwarts spells.

Is RIM up to this battle?

It�s not looking good. Its market share is sinking because it is giving up customers to Apple and Google. The company is laying off 11 percent of its workforce (2,000 people). Its shares recently hit their lowest point since 2006. A series of anonymous letters posted at bgr.com report chaos and flagging morale among the workers. One product after another is delayed. In April, one of RIM�s two chief executives, clearly stressed out, stormed out of a BBC television interview.

That was just about the same time that RIM released its iPad clone, called the PlayBook � filled with bugs and enormous feature holes (for example, no built-in email program or calendar).

But listen: for the sake of argument, let�s pretend that nobody knew any of that. Let�s pretend that the new BlackBerry Bold 9900 existed in a vacuum.

How is it?

Gorgeous, for one thing. Stainless steel makes its first appearance on a BlackBerry � a classy rim around the sides, making a nice complement to the shiny front and holographic-patterned back. The keys, buttons and tiny trackpad glow white, which is handy in both dim and bright lighting.

It�s also the thinnest BlackBerry ever. It�s substantially wider than the iPhone, but at only 0.41 inches thick, it�s nearly iPhone thin (0.37 inches). And it�s fast, thanks to a high-octane processor inside. Yet its battery can still get you easily through a day, maybe even two, on a single charge.

The 9900 has a spectacularly comfortable physical keyboard, with exactly the right amount of clickiness. The iPhone approach � typing on glass � is more efficient when you want to type accent marks or change languages. But the rest of the time, no question: the BlackBerry keyboard rules. Especially this one.

Yet, for the first time on a slab-style BlackBerry, the keyboard is accompanied by a beautiful, responsive touch screen. It�s only half height, like BlackBerry Bolds of yore, which gets claustrophobic when you�re trying to use the GPS or the Web browser. But it�s sharp and bright and fluid.

Two other new BlackBerry models are also appearing this month: one all-touch screen model, and one with a slide-out keyboard. Along with the 9900, they�re the first phones to come with the BlackBerry 7 operating system.

It�s not a huge leap ahead of BlackBerry 6, and it�s certainly not the complete overhaul (based on something called QNX) that the company promises on new phones next year. But it�s perfectly lovely, modern and efficient. Apart from the baffling apps screen (which displays only the icons but no text or labels for your apps), it�s easy to figure out.

The scrolling strip of app icons just above the keyboard is especially useful. With each swipe of your thumb, you bring another set of six icons into view: Frequent, Favorites, Downloads and Media, for example, which greatly reduces the number of steps you need to get to the stuff you�re most likely to want.

A tap at the top of the screen gives you instant access to your settings for cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and the alarm clock; a tap on the strip just below that opens up the summary of notifications, like new email messages and text messages.

BlackBerry 7 also offers much faster Web browsing (you can pinch and zoom with two fingers to zoom in and out, as on the iPhone) and a digital compass.

There�s a dedicated shutter button for the five-megapixel camera, which can also capture 720p high-definition video. It has a flash, but no autofocus. The pictures and videos look very good, and it�s easy to send them to your friends. But here�s another spot where that half-height screen really feels confining if you�re used to a full-face iPhone or Android screen.

There are 8 gigabytes of built-in storage, as well as a memory-card slot that can give you up to 32 more gigabytes.

The phone supposedly has a built-in NFC transmitter, too. That stands for near-field communications, which refers to the convenience of paying your things simply by passing your phone over a tag at the cash register, or grabbing more information from a poster by waving your phone over it.

Sounds great. Unfortunately, NFC has been one of those �coming next year� technologies for several years in a row now. Show me a U.S. store chain that lets you pay with a swipe of your cellphone, and I�ll call to thank you from my video wristwatch.

The phone is available in two versions: model 9900 from T-Mobile (AT&T will offer it soon), and model 9930 from Sprint and Verizon.

The T-Mobile version is priced at a nose-bleeding $350 with a two-year contract, more than even the top-of-the-line iPhone (although a $50 mail-in T-Mobile rebate helps). It�s supposedly a 4G phone, which means that you get superfast Internet connections in cities where T-Mobile has installed 4G towers. Unfortunately, there are only 194 of those cities so far, so � well, good luck.

The 9930 (without 4G) is $250 from Verizon and only $200 from Sprint.

Calls sound good to both caller and the called; one of my calling partners could detect �zero difference� in audio quality between the BlackBerry and the iPhone. The BlackBerry�s speakerphone was a little louder and more muffled.

Despite its virtues, the 9900 still can�t compete with iPhone and Android. There�s no front-facing camera, so you can�t do video chats. You can�t turn the phone into a personal hot spot that lets nearby laptops get online.

And the sparse, unimpressive BlackBerry app store is but a whisper of a shadow of an echo of a silhouette of the iPhone and Android app stores.

You know what? The number of players in the smartphone game shrank suddenly, and it�s a shame.

In just the last two weeks, Hewlett-Packard killed the TouchPad tablet and Palm Pre phones. Then Google bought Motorola�s cellphone division � creator of the Razr, Droid and Atrix � for $12.5 billion. Innovation is good; competition is better. A world with nothing but Apple and Google phones would be a less exciting place.

It�s sad to see RIM struggle for a future. Yes, the company has made some gigantic mistakes: It sat smugly on its business phones for far too long, ignoring the public�s obvious love of touch, multimedia and beautiful design. It spent too much time and diverted too many resources trying to come up with its disastrous PlayBook tablet.

But the stellar 9900 shows that when its back is against the wall, RIM can produce winners. This phone is the best BlackBerry RIM has ever produced, but against the gigantic technological and marketing forces of iPhone and Android, it�s a whisper in the wind. Let�s hope that there are enough BlackBerry fans left to support their favorite phone and that the company completes its reboot in time to prevent the 2013 headline, �RIM RIP.

[beamolite]

I like how these analysts always conveniently ignore RIM's growth in emerging markets and the amount of cash they have on hand. Yawn.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[LimeTripBlog]

I felt sad reading this article this morning, especially the last second paragraph


It�s sad to see RIM struggle for a future. Yes, the company has made some gigantic mistakes: It sat smugly on its business phones for far too long, ignoring the public�s obvious love of touch, multimedia and beautiful design.
"((It spent too much time and diverted too many resources trying to come up with its disastrous PlayBook tablet.))"

[AlexCEO]

"... disastrous Playbook tablet".
Are all those (so called) tech analysts blind?
Maybe they have such short memory (isn't it convenient?) that they always forget the struggle of other tablet OS.
They've forgaten the struggle of Apple iOS who still don't provide real multitasking or a better notification system. Lucky us they have copy/paste after so many variants.
Don't get me wrong. I'm an Apple funboy, but I'm also an Blackberry funboy.
So in this position I know better then the rest the best and the worst parts of both platforms.
Sure, RIM made a lot, and I mean A LOT of wrong moves in their history. I gues you know them better then anybody else. But they are trying hard to improve lately with the new phones and the Playbook.
Keep it up RIM and those fools what QNX is capable of...

Oh, and release that NDK faster, and the 2.0... upgrade for the Playbook...

[rickgainsmith]

My guess is a 1.5 Ghz processor version will be announced at Devcon. New hardware and new software to re-launch the Playbook... This will ensure new reviews will be had.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[CrackedBarry]

They've forgaten the struggle of Apple iOS who still don't provide real multitasking or a better notification system. Lucky us they have copy/paste after so many variants.

Copy/paste has been there for years, notifications are out in October, and for all practical purposes, the multitasking on iOS works just as well as on the Playbook (Useless visual tricks aside).

But really, what "struggle" are you talking about, considering that Apple has sold millions of devices, even without those options.

My guess is a 1.5 Ghz processor version will be announced at Devcon. New hardware and new software to re-launch the Playbook... This will ensure new reviews will be had.

Doubt it... RIM has allready taken a hefty hit on the Playbook, so its doubtful whether they'll invest more in a platform thats unlikely to succeed at this point.
iPad3 is also coming, at which point the Playbook will be a generation behind in hardware.

[togardergrosse]

But listen: for the sake of argument, let’s pretend that nobody knew any of that. Let’s pretend that the new BlackBerry Bold 9900 existed in a vacuum.

I love this line! Totally hilarious..

[LimeTripBlog]

iPad is successful only because of those apps its got. And sadly for playbook the app developers are playing the wait game, in terms of hardware Playbook is far superior than the ipad. Playbook needs to get those basic app asap, otherwise the sales are gonna dip.

[Just Me]

Ive been travelling through asia for the past 2 weeks, BlackBerry is far from dead here. There are heaps of BlackBerries with shiny new trackballs. Yup trackball, people here just need the phone to communicate, there seems to be little demand for expensive touchscreen toys. Sure I saw the odd iPhone in China but over all the real communication devices Nokia and BlackBerry are still king.

That article sounds like it comes from another person who is struggling to come to grips with the diminishing role North America is playing in the world.

[kb5zht]

An ipad clone? Okay first let me say that the New York Times is crap. If declining marketshare is, in and of itself, something that terrible, then they need to explain why they are declining in subscriptions and circulation. Um, The Wall Street Journal isnt.... But enough of that. An ipad clone? How is it a clone when it is a different size, superior hardware, more memory and features the ipad doesnt (like an hdmi port)??? Okay, i successfully trashed most of the bias. Yea im well known for bashing rim lately but the playbook is a fabulous device on its own.

The only things i will agree on is the points the article made that highlight rim's problems. Nearly everything that article said is true regarding rim; declining marketshare (in the US), declining stock price, lay offs, etc etc. These issues havent gone away and need to be addressed. I will add one more point; nothing yet has happened to change these trends. Rim is still infamous for delays and the two numbskulls in charge are still in denial and shoving their fingers in their ears while saying "la la la la" when their consumer base screams at them regarding their issues and problems.

We shall see...

[world traveler and former ceo]

The new Bold 9900 is the hottest and best in class product out there now! ...no doubt ... its amazing to use!!

...RIM stock price up over 30 percent in less than two weeks, as the new blackberries start to hit the markets around the world ... with very impressive results ...

The writer should perhaps stop reading his newspaper and get out into the real world ... perhaps then he would be both better informed and more objective on the subject ...

[kb5zht]

The writer should perhaps stop reading his newspaper and get out into the real world ... perhaps then he would be both better informed and more objective on the subject ...

I actually did myself a disservice by continuing to read after the words "New York Times". That rag is to news and politics what BGR is to tech coverage. Very biased.

But seriously, an ipad clone? Did the writer really say that? I mean, and was serious? Sorry but i call horses**t on that one. Unless of course he believes it because the writer knows nothing about the playbook.

Okay i have ranted enough.

[mobibiz]

RIM released its iPad clone,

LOL. I would not be amused if the writer of that idiotic review goes ahead and writes that every touchscreen phone is a Iphone clone.

Does anybody care?

Well, my help-desk has received over 400 calls for the 9900 alone. For support in setting up the emails or other issues. So Mr writer wake up? I always liked Apple products but now when I read Apple supporters write like this I wonder I would be considered the same insanely idiotic person as these who obviously carry an Iphone or an Ipad. I am not gonna venture out with any Apple device.

[Zirak]

my fave is when these guys take a phone and an OS and lump them together, ie the Android has xx market share.. so what, last i heard RIM was still selling a lot of phones.
i was out with a friend that works at RIM, he is in the top 4000 employees, he said there was an explosion of hiring (dont they have 20k?) and cut out some who probably never should have been hired in the first place.
The author should have walked out of his bedroom when doing research on NFC, 3 examples off the top of my head are
touch card to get into the office
Mastercard paypass
London Underground Oyster card

i think the rest of you have covered the other points

[rolexconfuse]

"... disastrous Playbook tablet".
Are all those (so called) tech analysts blind?
Maybe they have such short memory (isn't it convenient?) that they always forget the struggle of other tablet OS.
They've forgaten the struggle of Apple iOS who still don't provide real multitasking or a better notification system. Lucky us they have copy/paste after so many variants.
Don't get me wrong. I'm an Apple funboy, but I'm also an Blackberry funboy.
So in this position I know better then the rest the best and the worst parts of both platforms.
Sure, RIM made a lot, and I mean A LOT of wrong moves in their history. I gues you know them better then anybody else. But they are trying hard to improve lately with the new phones and the Playbook.
Keep it up RIM and those fools what QNX is capable of...

Oh, and release that NDK faster, and the 2.0... upgrade for the Playbook...

that's the problem, when Apple's IOS "struggled" as some say, it was at a time when the market wasn't as saturated and competition was non-existent. Secondly don't forget that Apple was the one that really made the tablet popular to the masses as well. Apple didn't land in the sea of highly competitive "tablets" and climb to the top. They popularized the tablet and were at the top to start with. It's 2 different markets, and RIM came out when the market had evolved with more competition. I don't particularly agree with the TIMES on a lot of the things that were said but I have to argue that the "playbook" wasn't as successful as it could have been.

[xandermac]

Nice, a 9900 review by an Apple tech geek in the playbook forum that bears no significance to the thread title. All in all a wonderful post.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[togardergrosse]

Nice, a 9900 review by an Apple tech geek in the playbook forum that bears no significance to the thread title. All in all a wonderful post.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

I believe the OP is neutral towards that writing.
And the significance is inside the writing, PB is told as a clone
Darn, never knew New York Post is so biased.. Well.. whatever..

[xandermac]

Darn, never knew New York Post is so biased.. Well.. whatever..

Really? The Times itself, perhaps not, but Pogue is an Apple Fanboy from day one.

"Pogue wrote for Macworld Magazine from 1988-2000. His back-page column was called The Desktop Critic. Pogue got his start writing books when Macworld-owner IDG asked him to write Macs for Dummies to follow on the success of the first ...for Dummies book, DOS for Dummies, written by Dan Gookin"

David Pogue - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"In an op-ed piece, Hoyt wrote "His multiple interests and loyalties raise interesting ethical issues in this new age when individual journalists can become brands of their own, stars who seem to transcend the old rules that sharply limited outside activity and demanded an overriding obligation to The Times and its readers."[11] Of three ethicists consulted, each agreed Pogue's position created a "clear conflict of interest" and placed the paper on "tricky ethical terrain." In response, Pogue pledged to be more open with his conflicts of interest, and while he initially claimed that because he is not a journalist he is not bound by journalistic ethics,[12] he soon recanted and agreed to offer a full "fanboy disclosure" on his website."

[Economist101]

An ipad clone? How is it a clone when it is a different size, superior hardware, more memory and features the ipad doesnt (like an hdmi port)???

I think the "iPad clone" argument arises from the belief that without the iPad, there wouldn't be a PlayBook, TouchPad, Xoom or Galaxy Tab. It's no coincidence these devices all trailed the iPad announcement by 10 months or more.

[Economist101]

Darn, never knew New York Post is so biased.. Well.. whatever..

The New York Times and the New York Post are two different papers. Pogue writes for the Times.

[togardergrosse]

Really? The Times itself, perhaps not, but Pogue is an Apple Fanboy from day one.

"Pogue wrote for Macworld Magazine from 1988-2000. His back-page column was called The Desktop Critic. Pogue got his start writing books when Macworld-owner IDG asked him to write Macs for Dummies to follow on the success of the first ...for Dummies book, DOS for Dummies, written by Dan Gookin"

David Pogue - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"In an op-ed piece, Hoyt wrote "His multiple interests and loyalties raise interesting ethical issues in this new age when individual journalists can become brands of their own, stars who seem to transcend the old rules that sharply limited outside activity and demanded an overriding obligation to The Times and its readers."[11] Of three ethicists consulted, each agreed Pogue's position created a "clear conflict of interest" and placed the paper on "tricky ethical terrain." In response, Pogue pledged to be more open with his conflicts of interest, and while he initially claimed that because he is not a journalist he is not bound by journalistic ethics,[12] he soon recanted and agreed to offer a full "fanboy disclosure" on his website."

Thanks for the info.

I think the "iPad clone" argument arises from the belief that without the iPad, there wouldn't be a PlayBook, TouchPad, Xoom or Galaxy Tab. It's no coincidence these devices all trailed the iPad announcement by 10 months or more.

We understand that, but the choice of words is misleading. By 'clone' it means we will see/hear Apple suing RIM for patent/design infringement already. I would've respected it more if the word 'wannabe' as in iPad wannabe was chosen.

The New York Times and the New York Post are two different papers. Pogue writes for the Times.

My bad. I was going to write 'Times' but my mind wasn't at the right place.

[mandony]

RIM has patents and technology that will allow successful continuation of the company for many years to come.

The NYT article clearly stated that the current lineup of phones is the best ever, and will continue to improve with the next generation. One product, IE: PB, does not make a company.

In the world of technology, it is short sighted to think what is popular today will be still popular in five to ten years. Apple, RIM HP, IBM, and all the other high tech super powers, all are planning their own re-invention. Some may have some failure in the short range, but more likely all will just change their focus in the long range.

[samwlee]

I have so many friends with android and iphones who say RIM is dead. But clearly they had no idea how strong RIM is in Asia and Europe. All they know is the US market. And when people travel internationally and want the the same phone and full roaming capabilities, they are not using an android or iphone cuz they don't have the capability (ok, just the Motorola Droid 2 global). Once I mention the above, they shut up real fast....

[LimeTripBlog]

I have so many friends with android and iphones who say RIM is dead. But clearly they had no idea how strong RIM is in Asia and Europe. All they know is the US market. And when people travel internationally and want the the same phone and full roaming capabilities, they are not using an android or iphone cuz they don't have the capability (ok, just the Motorola Droid 2 global). Once I mention the above, they shut up real fast....

I'm from India, the second largest mobile market in the world after China. The mobile market which was once dominated by Nokia is now being dominated by Androids. That's the truth. Blackberry is used only by corporates and that too because these phones are provided to them from the company they work at. The main reason Blackberry and Iphone are not doing well in India is because of the pricing, its too expensive. Blackberry is not very popular with youths because of the design. Brands like samsung, Htc and Lg have become very popular in the last one year. Rim has to come out with phone that appeals to the youth.

[freedomx20a]

yawn* if anything even comes close to rip rim... microsoft would just buy rim and pump it up with at least 5 trillion knvestment...


lol that k is an i ....on playbook not gonna correct it.