[zachflauaus#CB]

I am extremely jealous. To all the people who say the iPhone is just crap, why don't you try an iPod touch with just WiFi and see what happens when you're on the road.

Easy full web browsing? Nope.
HTML email? Not the way the iPod touch/iPhone does it.
Streaming radio? It's a joke on the BlackBerry.

Sure, the iPhone does have it's large amount of flaws (really? No stereo Bluetooth? No video recording? No MMS?), but so does the BlackBerry (really? No decent streaming audio? Crappy apps? Memory leaks?). If I could switch the iPhone (if AT&T was more prevalent around here), I'd switch easily. I love my Pearl and all, but the Thunder/Storm better be THE thing come November or else I may switch to Windows Mobile.

RIM really needs to do some stepping up. My list of suggestions?

1) Make applications easier to develop for and less crap. Seriously, all of these apps seem like they're legacy on my 8130. Small, old style fonts.
2) Full HTML Email. I don't mean just colors and bold, I mean FULL formatting. I know it's a business device, but they can save text email for BES. If they want to get further into the consumer market, they need to take compromises.

There needs to be a Pandora application developed (or some other streaming audio app) and a much better browsing experience and then I'll be happy.

[boss4life#AC]

Joel,

I agree with you completely sir.
Apple is lightyears ahead of RIM in terms of software development. The systems in place through Apple are quite amazing actually. Jobs is an inspriing business man, and Apple is an inspiring company.

That being said. The launch of Bold and Thunder will be the ultimate answer to your questions and mine. There is absolutely no way that RIM will survive if they don't step up to the plate with their next gen devices and software.

Now that Apple is threatening the corporate side of the mobile business, RIM will have to wake up, no question.

I am a die hard Apple fan. I have owned 3 laptops, (iBook, MacBook, and MacBook Pro), hand full of iPods, and a professional editing system for movie production. However, I use a blackberry 8800, not because my work requires, and not because I couldnt find an iPhone.. Simply because Blackberry has an intangibility that Apple couldnt touch.

That feeling, which I suspect many of us on these forums share, may soon change if RIM doesn't perform.

Good choice with the Apple stocks, my portfolio loves them too

I have to agree as well. As a loyal BB user I need RIM to grow up

[Apollo_Creed]

It boils down to what you really want on a Berry or iphone. Myself personally, I hate touch screen phones and love my keypad. The apps that I want on my Berry I have and they work great. Blackberry for life!!!!!

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[csiguy1]

I am taking my iPhone 3G back in 3 hours. The biggest problem with it is very poor battery, I cannot get a half of a work day before it is dead. Second is AT&T, I cannot get reception at my office with it. So back it goes and back to my Curve and Verizon. I have to have a good solid work phone with long battery life, and good reception and the Curve on Verizon does that for me.

[liestarter]

Well I use both Blackberry and iPod. Soon I'll have an iTouch.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[MJThib]

I don't want an iPhone at all. The lack of a hardware keyboard is just unacceptable to me. I do feel that both RIM and Microsoft need to improve their APIs and make software development easier or they will fail against Apple or Android and end up like Palm.

[Blacklatino]

And Crucial makes a wonderful point... I totally agree!

Apple has a great media experience, wonderful apps, great great great UI and easy to develop for!!

RIM has a number of things going for them as well... such as business oriented features. Now do not attack me about this and bring up MobileMe, I think MobileMe is great... but we have to wait and see how it goes!!

I am extremely supportive of Apple and I am only waiting for the day (if it ever comes) when the iPhone has a slider QWERTY!!

Apple Fan, but Berry addict... gonna stick with my Curve. And I cannot wait to see what the Thunder has in store. At this point, Apple and RIM are both totally amazing but their devices are aimed at different crownds. With the iPhone 2 and the next-gen Berries... each company is crossing into other boundaries and trying to expand into different markets. Apple is trying to get into the business world and Berry into the Media world

Just my 2c!

I agree. The fact that the two companies are in competition (whether you agree or disagree) for "new" customers will allow the development of better products for years to come. I'll hang onto my Curve until the BOLD or whatever becomes available.

[JazzeeJEF]

Nope not jealous! If i want one that bad i would settle for the itouch

[danny595]

I went out and purchased an itouch to hold me over until the Bold comes out.

[iamjoel5]

I was just checking out the liveblog Gizmodo is doing on the new applications now available for the iPhone/iTouch, and I have to say, I am a little jealous.

iTunes Remote. Pandora Streaming Radio. Midomi Audio Recognition. AOL Radio. A decent To-Do list app. All are of which are free.

I never really realized how much BB is suffering in the software area until today, and quite frankly, I am more than a little disappointed with how hard RIM has made it for developers. Heck, Steve Jobs has made every mobile OSX developer distribute their software through his store, and there' are already over 500 apps on the first day! You can say that RIM has a closed platform, but last time I checked the iPlatform was using FairPlay for applications!

I think we can all agree that it is time for RIM to step up their game. Just having push email and corporate communications support is not going to cut it any more. Heck, if Apple released an iPhone with a decent keyboard and a couple shortcut keys, I can only help but wonder if my loyalty to my 'Berry would falter.

How big of a hit will RIM take from all of this? It remains to be seen. In the mean time, I'll just watch my Apple stock continue to climb as I wait for RIM's answer.

Both devices are excellent devices yet they are used for different purposes hence both have great features the other doesnt. ex - email. iPhone's email cant come near to touching the blackberry just as blackberry cant come close to touching the applications you can creat on the iPhone (mostly due to RIM not opening access to openGL and those of the sort)

This will give you a better understand of the pros and cons of each and how different they are in their specific ways:
BlackBerry Bold vs. iPhone 3G: yeah, we definitely went there : Boy Genius Report

[iamjoel5]

Also important to note, Apple is a marketing GIANT
(for example, Bose Sound Systems are not NEARLY as good as their price or advertisements. there are many equivilants out there for MUCH cheaper...they just definitely know how to market their product, simply put they are marketing geniuses)

Apple/iPhone has targeted the vast amount of the population...yet Blackberry is also a giant, just not in the same manner Apple is. The iPhone is definitely not near as good as the Blackberry's for corporate world. Just for example, iPhone's security sucks...it's nothing special, while Blackberry has the most security of any mobile device proven. That comercial you see where that Army luitenant or w/e is sporting an iPhone talking about how his men's lives are on there and depend on the iPhone...yadayadayada is BS, the Army would not risk having sensitive information on an iPhone, it does not have any level of proven security or encryption. - even that is a genius marketing device. Blackberry's main goal is not to target the youth. They have one of the most solid OSs out there, and while they are somewhat accomidating to the youth with games and browser upgrade with media and such...the youth is just simply not their goal
Just food for thought

[Namji]

I don't blindly love one company over another but I will say this...
If the iphone had the following then I would get it.

1. Full Qwerty physical keyboard
2. Removeable battery
3. Able to add a SD card for expandable memory
4. Available from Verizon Service Provider

[paulrosenthal]

To me, the iPhone 3G is 90% hype, 10% usability. The physical QWERTY keyboard, push email, removable memory slots, etc. are the BB advantages. The keyboard on the iPhone is way too hard to use, and probably not meant for typing anything more than a sentence. Some of the games on the iPhone are cool, though.

[justagirl]

I don't blindly love one company over another but I will say this...
If the iphone had the following then I would get it.

1. Full Qwerty physical keyboard
2. Removeable battery
3. Able to add a SD card for expandable memory
4. Available from Verizon Service Provider

Verizon will never get the iphone because it has none of those features apple first offered it to VZW but VZW rejected it

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Nismotic]

when i see an iphone, it reminds me of a 17 yr old...kinda like the sidekick.

[Namji]

Verizon will never get the iphone because it has none of those features apple first offered it to VZW but VZW rejected it

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

yeah I read the news when the iphone first came out. I was just saying if the iphone had those qualities I would get it.

[rysbb]

i just want to know if RIM and Pandora going to create an app that will allow blackberry access. Does anyone have any updates of this?

[justagirl]

yeah I read the news when the iphone first came out. I was just saying if the iphone had those qualities I would get it.

I love when customers come into VZW and ask for the iphone and I ask the what it is they like about the iphone and they have no answer! LOL

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[MagyariBulan]

The music I need can be played on the BB. Touch screen looks greasy all the time. If I wanted an I phone, I would get one. I'm not a trendsurfer either.

[dlgus]

I love my bb--more than my Palm, and that's going some, but I do agree that RIM has a ways to go in the 3rd party app market....the thing I LOVED about my Palm was how many 3rd party apps there were for it--I had everything I wanted on it, and MOST of it for free......but I can cut RIM some slack because they are relatively new to the BB as a consumer platform gig.....but I am seeing more good 3rd party apps for the bb and have no doubt that with RIM moving more and more into the consumer market with it's phones, the developers won't be far behind.

[nyc_rock]

I agree on the bb third party apps market. Its bizzare really, how many millions of berry's are out there? Jivetalk is as quality a app as I have seen on Winmo or the Iphone so the potential is there. How about a decent weather app?

In terms of the Iphone. bought it on a Friday, returned it the following Saturday. Its about the least functional phone you can buy.

For those who dont think you can live without a physical keyboard, note to you, you're wrong. If the thunder can emulate what Apple has done then I will be sold.

[asianinvasioniv]

Ok

i am a 19 year old college student so i understand why all my friends have the iphone

i've had the sidekick 3, moto q, iphone, and now my bberry (pearl to curve now to 8830)

I totally agree that the apps need to be improved but I am sure RIM is working diligently on this issue. They know by now what they have to do to compete with apple.

The berry outlasts all my previous phones for the simple fact of effectiveness. I have yet to seriously swear at my phone for giving me a headache, and yes the iphone can be full of them. I could never overlook the full physical qwerty keyboard when I had the iphone. Email is just priceless on my bberry and my life and my school revolves around email. However, the iphone looks great, has a great browser and **** it is sweeping the market. However, bberry has found a very special niche in my heart and all our hearts (i.e why are we on this site when we should be working? lol), and I know and have alot of faith in RIM that they will catch up to the curve and then leap beyond it like it has over the past years.

i just find the iphone to be the kid in the rice'd out civic with a huge spoiler revving his engine and shooting out the gate only to fizzle out when he hits third

while the iphone is the porsche carrera -s: looking classy while looking at said kid in the rear view window

bberry - tested and proven and sure to advance
iphone - great phone but just too flashy and less functional for my needs

[miss_michelle]

nope, not the least bit jealous. I love my Curve - it does everything I need it and want it to do. Sure there are probably some apps for iPhone that would be really cool to have, but that's the same for PC vs Apple or Playstation vs Wii, etc. You just have to weigh the positives vs the negatives and go with what works for you. And like JazeeJEF, I would get an iTouch before an iPhone any day!

[mobiman]

nope, not the least bit jealous. I love my Curve - it does everything I need it and want it to do. Sure there are probably some apps for iPhone that would be really cool to have, but that's the same for PC vs Apple or Playstation vs Wii, etc. You just have to weigh the positives vs the negatives and go with what works for you. And like JazeeJEF, I would get an iTouch before an iPhone any day!

Couldn't have said it any better. Spoken as a true Berry addict.