[Rizzleman716]

I think a lot of people on here post issues they see others post, and don't have true reasoning behind their statements. Play back is perfectly fine for me.

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[g29er]

I was a Blackberry user for almost 2 years. I loved my Curve 8330,but all the while I was seeing other amazing devices hit the market. I have recently jumped ship and I am now using an Htc HD2. These 2 phones are completely like night and day. I felt very limited on the Blackberry. Android and Windows are not just about apps and games,they are truly powerful, all in one business devices.

The HD2 as well as other smart phones on the market now are the new generation of phones.
Gone are the days where one had to choose between a multimedia device and a business device. Now they are now one in the same.

The Blackberry is no longer the premier business phone.

I use my phone for business, and I have to say that effortlessly surfing the web without having to move a trackpad around a tiny screen, having Flash on my browser,and the ability to create and edit Powerpoint,Word, and Excel on a 4.5" screen is truly amazing. I can also customize my entire OS if I please. And watching the occasional movie or reading an e-book,or watch a YouTube video on my phone while I am on the train is also on added bonus. And I can do all these things simultaneously. In the minds of my co-workers and I, that is a dream come true in a business device,and a multimedia device. There is no such thing as a "just for business phone" anymore.

Blackberry cannot claim email as a selling point anymore either because most newer smart phones have push email and great messaging capabilities as well.

RIM needs to understand that Business and casual users want a great business, and a great multimedia experience on their devices. Look around at what is out there. Blackberry just seems so dated when you compare them to newer devices.
RIM does make changes and updates to their devices but it seems like those changes are too subtle. Essentially, they just change processors,screen resolutions,pointing devices,software updates and phone designs, but what else?

I know it will happen eventually but it will be a while before Blackberry even gets a 1Ghz processor, a 5 or an 8 MP camera or flash on a browser.
I really wanted to stay with Blackberry,but to me, and alot of other people, they are no longer valid as a business device either.

I am not hating on Blackberry, but Blackberry is not only dead as a consumer Platform,but also as a business platform.

I hate to say it, but HTC is the new Blackberry. And no the iphone is not HTC..not even close.

[disinhibited]

Thanks Graham.

So is this correct - BlackBerry is able to compress date like zipped file whilst for example the iPhone is not?

Is this the case? If so, what sort of consumer (to answer the original question) requires a smart phone that is able to fulfil its potential only in specific places? Just doesn't seem practical from an everyday standpoint.

The remainder of the experiment - you may have guessed but the iPhone battery died.

I dunno, but if you're sat at your desk or at home, iPhone on charge or near Apple supply, wifi on tap, I'll bet it's a lot of fun. If that was me in that environment I'm sure I'll make a strong case for it. iTunes would probably **** me off, but meh.

My suspicions are that in 'the field' or 'the cuds' the BB works well, the iPhone is less reliable. This is based on the last few months of my experiences.

I like the iPhone; I may purchase one, why not if there's a bit of spare cash floating about? But I think it's easy to overlook the real world functionality of the BB and how it would suit consumers - voice call quality, battery life (that's a biggy!!) keyboard, straightforward...

Many people I'm sure would just prefer to have a dumb phone that does email and a bit of browsing without too much fecking about. Throw build quality into that also, and the BB seems to be a logical choice because on some level it's a dumb phone with email.

I can't see why people get so bent out of shape about the BB existing and actually meeting the needs of the people that buy it.

You use an anecdote as proof of your point. My wife has an iphone, and I have a 9700. We both get or don't get reception in the same places; there hasn't been any difference in the past two years regarding reception. Therefore, based on my anecdotal evidence, there is no similar advantage between the berry and the iphone where I live and work.

I'm happy with the "dumb phone with email" portion of my phone; the issue is that applications are becoming more and more important to smartphones, and I see RIM has a laggard in this regard. So much so, in fact, that I worry the platform is falling behind. Particularly in my field, which is medicine. There are useful applications for other platforms that do not exist on the Blackberry OS, and that concerns me.

Perhaps you do not share these concerns because the Blackberry does everything you need. That's great; unfortunately, I would like to see more functionality beyond what is currently available.

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[Branta]

So much so, in fact, that I worry the platform is falling behind. Particularly in my field, which is medicine. There are useful applications for other platforms that do not exist on the Blackberry OS, and that concerns me.

Don't medical applications fall into the realm of "business & professional" rather than "consumer" ?

[EnergyPlus]

I SO WISH that your thread was labeled: "I'm in the medical profession, which device has the best apps?" as opposed to yet ANOTHER "Blackberry is Dead/Doomed/EPIC FAIL" (take your pick). I'm so very sick of those and every single one of them is written by children. Blackberry is NOT doomed. To fit your description, NO, it's not doomed as a consumer device, either. I will say that it may not be (or ever will be) the top rated consumer device, who knows? Surely, nobody here does, in spite of any claims otherwise.

Now, to get serious to your question though, I've been learning that many lawyers like the iPhone for some specific legal apps that are available for the device and my own doctor uses an iPhone though, I can't say what medical apps he's using, with one exception. I seem to recall him pulling it out once to review with me, some prescription information (you know, the disclaimers at the end that tell you "some users may experience blindness, heart attacks, brain hemorage, erectile dysfuntion and death, but hey, this is great stuff anyway"

I don't know what medical apps are available for Android.

I won't bother with the great business features of my Blackberry, since those are well established. I need great email access to run my practice, so I have a 9700. But I'm frustrated by the fact that I don't see the entertainment/media options of the OS improving much. Webkit browser will be great, but what else is coming? The apps available are paltry. Media playback is sad. I don't want 2 devices. My next phone may be an android phone or, sad as it is to say, an iPhone. Which actually has more useful apps for my profession (medicine) than Blackberry. Including electronic medical records.

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[KoolKeyth5]

I think it's still a consumer and a business phone, more of a better business phone though. The iphone is more of a toy.

[Mister Xiado]

Plus, you know how secure Apple devices are, compared to RIM equipment.

A shame the DOD allows its members to use iPhones and iPads. To pull out a rusty old oxymoron, military intelligence.

[Branta]

I think it's still a consumer and a business phone, more of a better business phone though. The iphone is more of a toy.

The constant bickering and childish behavior of some users proves that all smartphones should be considered as toys.

[belfastdispatcher]

Most blackberries have a tiny screen compared to iphones and android because the rest of the space is taken up by a fully functional and full of shortcuts qwerty keyboard. If somebody wants a powerful smartphone but doesn't want touch screen, is there anything better for him then a blackberry? I tried touch screen and I found it a very frustrating experience.

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[xtrmemtnmn]

I was a Blackberry user for almost 2 years. I loved my Curve 8330,but all the while I was seeing other amazing devices hit the market. I have recently jumped ship and I am now using an Htc HD2.

Right there says it all to me....your comparing apples to oranges....to me the 8330 is a starter phone for the BB...you havnt even got into what BB has to offer...
It like me saying...my first truck was a toyota two wheel drive and 4 cyl. and then i jump into what i have now....a 2010 Ford F-450 crew cab Dually with Diesel engine. what the ****...you cant compare the two.
but Toyota makes a great full size truck now with v-8 and does very well.

I had a 8320 BB and now the storm2 ..there is no comparison....

I also have a cousin that has the iphone..just cuz everyone else has one...because of his job they gave him the storm2 his iphone is mow his mp3 player and he uses the storm for everything else...it gets down to business in his words.

[NoahFecks]

RIM does make changes and updates to their devices but it seems like those changes are too subtle. Essentially, they just change processors,screen resolutions,pointing devices,software updates and phone designs, but what else?

Ummm, what else is there?

I know it will happen eventually but it will be a while before Blackberry even gets a 1Ghz processor, a 5 or an 8 MP camera or flash on a browser.

It is well known (well, apparently not to you) that saying a device has a 1Ghz processor means absolutely nothing in terms of how well a device operates. People like you are insanely misinformed in thinking that the higher processor speed named, the faster the device. Same goes for the number of megapixels in the camera. A 5 or 8 MP camera doesn't make it better by any stretch of the imagination. These are absolutely horrible reasons to cite why one would think RIM doesn't cut the mustard.

I really wanted to stay with Blackberry,but to me, and alot of other people, they are no longer valid as a business device either.

Hmmm, so the Droid is the new business device? iPhone maybe? Somehow, I highly doubt you're going to see any company currently using BlackBerry as their business devices (which would be the vast majority) switching anytime soon.

I am not hating on Blackberry, but Blackberry is not only dead as a consumer Platform,but also as a business platform.

I hate to say it, but HTC is the new Blackberry. And no the iphone is not HTC..not even close.

Seriously, you should not even have posted at all, you clearly know about as much about smartphones and the smartphone market as I do about brain surgery.

[noized77]

Blackberry is the epitome of business phone except for the unexcusable truncated emails. The qwerty keyboard shortcuts makes it so easy to type and get to your apps within a push of a button. Also the notification and individual alert is far superior then anything out there. I love the feeling I get when I know who just contact me without having to pick up the phone.That is something no other smartphone can take away from BBs. Browser and videos sux but I can live without those two b/c they're not as important to me. I'm no business man either but I feel its top priority to have a sense of security that my phone won't let me down when it comes to a communication device(call quality,messaging,email..etc).

I see people going android if gmail,browser, games and video is their priority. Nothing wrong with wanting the latest tech/gadget to show ur friend b/c that's how you were blown away by it in the first place right? Its sad to me that I see a lot of people worry more of multi media in phones then what any phones are intented to do...make calls and stay connected, not show your friend how pretty your screen looks or how powerful the processesor is.

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[wndrshwzn]

um, the sprint htc evo 4g also has a front facing camera-which came out first-also in russia like a year ago-so apple is playing catchup to htc.

and samsung galaxy s has front camera too-

bb is awesome, but they should have had that feature on their very first phone.

lol

[grahamf]

um, the sprint htc evo 4g also has a front facing camera-which came out first-also in russia like a year ago-so apple is playing catchup to htc.

and samsung galaxy s has front camera too-

bb is awesome, but they should have had that feature on their very first phone.

lol

they did't have video calling in 2002

[belfastdispatcher]

they did't have video calling in 2002

Video calling is so over rated, it's been around for a few years with the so called dumb phones but it never took off and never will. Reason? Simple, privacy. You'd have to wear a headset unless you want everybody to hear you on speaker phone, can't scratch your arse, pick your nose etc I'm typing this on the toilet lol.

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[Xopher]

=====
they did't have video calling in 2002

Video calling? No.

But there was video conferencing via PC back then. I used to use NetMeeting and CUSeeMe even back in the mid '90s to video chat with family.

There were pics of a BlackBerry with front-facing camera over a year ago (probably mock-ups), so the idea has been around with RIM from even before the i4 was announced.

Video calls may be a year or so from catching on, but I would expect to see a BB model coming out with front-facing cameras in the future.

Posted from my BlackBerry using BerryBlab

[CGI]

Here's my take;

I love my blackberry as a messaging machine, calendar, contact manager, and basic apps. The keyboard is truly the best out there.

But like a poster said earlier; I will probably always need a supplemental device for my consumer needs... advanced apps, media, and internet. The ipad or dell streak for example.

When reading about some of the exciting things Apple, Dell, HTC, Samsung, and others are doing... Blackberry is never going to compete there. Here is why; their device and OS strategies are too fragmented for developers. That's a fact.

Anyone holding out hope that OS6 or webkit changes Blackberry significantly are going to be disappointed.

[BB_Junky]

my.02

I have had the Pearl -> iphone 3g -> and now back to the BB Curve..and i can say that for my personal useage both platforms had their good and bad..the Iphone did have alot of cool apps and useful apps as well, lots of music/movies/video space and clear playback...BUT a very poor Internal antenna for the actual phone its self. I had weak to no service in alot of areas that my buds BB was getting a good signal. Now that i have switched back to the BB i do find it a little boring to use just due to the lack of apps that i miss, i love the battery life on the BB, i now have all my music on my SD card, awesome recpection every where i go for phone calls, the BB is smaller and lighter than my Iphone with my Otterbox case. BB messenger still rules over all as well that was something i really missed over on the iphone as well.
Basically it does what i require which is keep my facebook close at hand, my e-mails, my weather, what else can i say..i bought another one!!!