Would you still recommend a Blackberry to someone?

Former Blackberry fan here. Android convert. Here's a summary of things I was able to accomplish today with my Samsung Galaxy SII:

1. Received several phone calls from business partners at home. Sounds simple, but the difference is on my previous 9900, I had terrible cellular coverage in my house (I live in the suburbs). With this phone though, I had a lot better signal.

2. Drove to the gym. As using your cellphone is illegal, and I felt like posting to both Twitter and Facebook, I used a voice recognition app that allows me to not only text or call people using voice commands, but also post to social networking sites. It was 100% accurate. The drive.ly free app that RIM gave away is a bit similar, but was very buggy on my 9900. Yup, I did all the troubleshooting.

3. While working out, conversed through IM (AIM actually) with some more colleagues. The AIM standalone app is not supported (to the best of my knowledge) on the 9900 or OS7.0. I know there are other IM apps out there that integrate everything, but I just prefer having the official individual IM apps separate.

4. Drove to a client for a photo shoot (I'm a photographer). On my way, I heard a very good song playing on the radio but had no idea what the title was. Fired up Shazam on my Android to figure out what the song was. Shazam, to this day, to the best of my knowledge, remains an unsupported app for OS7 devices.

5. A client called and asked me for a scanned copy of a receipt. Since I had no access to a scanner, I used the camera of the phone to take a shot of the receipt. It was a very clear, detailed, crisp macro shot. Sent it via e-mail on the phone. On my previous 9900, that photo would have turned out a bit blurry or at best, less detailed.

6. An hour later, the client (in item number 5) replied to the e-mail and said everything is good to go. A minute later, she calls and tells me everything is good to go, she said she replied to the e-mail, but wanted to be sure I got it. I told her don't worry, I have reliable push e-mail.

7. Got lost, fired up Google Maps. I know it also works on the 9900, but you guys should see how much better it looks on an Android device. Simply stunning.

8. Got to my client a bit earlier than expected. Received several more e-mails, replied to them. When my client arrived, she looked quite stressed. She needed Internet access to look up something on her laptop, but her DSL connection was down. I told her, hey no worries, fire up your Wi Fi and connect to my phone. Yes, my Galaxy SII has Wifi Hotspot abilities. And it's already working, it's not something that is going to be a feature next year, or next month, or whatever.

9. As she was getting ready, I wanted to amuse myself for 5 minutes. All work and no play, right. So yeah, I played Angry Birds RIO.

10. Client wanted a debrief meeting in two weeks. Put that on my Calendar. When I got home later in the afternoon, opened my Mac and noticed that calendar appointment was on my iCal application- totally forgot that I setup my Android to sync everything with my gmail account, and that my Mac's address book and calendar were also synching to my Google account.

Notice that I used my phone today for gaming for only 5 minutes. Not because there's not a lot of games, but because I'm a photographer / businessman who has little time for games. My Android is hardly a toy.

Could I have accomplished what I did today with my 9900? I don't think so. If I'm mistaken, please let me know.

Thanks.

Originally Posted by anakin1979

Former Blackberry fan here. Android convert. Here's a summary of things I was able to accomplish today with my Samsung Galaxy SII:

1. Received several phone calls from business partners at home. Sounds simple, but the difference is on my previous 9900, I had terrible cellular coverage in my house (I live in the suburbs). With this phone though, I had a lot better signal.

2. Drove to the gym. As using your cellphone is illegal, and I felt like posting to both Twitter and Facebook, I used a voice recognition app that allows me to not only text or call people using voice commands, but also post to social networking sites. It was 100% accurate. The drive.ly free app that RIM gave away is a bit similar, but was very buggy on my 9900. Yup, I did all the troubleshooting.

3. While working out, conversed through IM (AIM actually) with some more colleagues. The AIM standalone app is not supported (to the best of my knowledge) on the 9900 or OS7.0. I know there are other IM apps out there that integrate everything, but I just prefer having the official individual IM apps separate.

4. Drove to a client for a photo shoot (I'm a photographer). On my way, I heard a very good song playing on the radio but had no idea what the title was. Fired up Shazam on my Android to figure out what the song was. Shazam, to this day, to the best of my knowledge, remains an unsupported app for OS7 devices.

5. A client called and asked me for a scanned copy of a receipt. Since I had no access to a scanner, I used the camera of the phone to take a shot of the receipt. It was a very clear, detailed, crisp macro shot. Sent it via e-mail on the phone. On my previous 9900, that photo would have turned out a bit blurry or at best, less detailed.

6. An hour later, the client (in item number 5) replied to the e-mail and said everything is good to go. A minute later, she calls and tells me everything is good to go, she said she replied to the e-mail, but wanted to be sure I got it. I told her don't worry, I have reliable push e-mail.

7. Got lost, fired up Google Maps. I know it also works on the 9900, but you guys should see how much better it looks on an Android device. Simply stunning.

8. Got to my client a bit earlier than expected. Received several more e-mails, replied to them. When my client arrived, she looked quite stressed. She needed Internet access to look up something on her laptop, but her DSL connection was down. I told her, hey no worries, fire up your Wi Fi and connect to my phone. Yes, my Galaxy SII has Wifi Hotspot abilities. And it's already working, it's not something that is going to be a feature next year, or next month, or whatever.

9. As she was getting ready, I wanted to amuse myself for 5 minutes. All work and no play, right. So yeah, I played Angry Birds RIO.

10. Client wanted a debrief meeting in two weeks. Put that on my Calendar. When I got home later in the afternoon, opened my Mac and noticed that calendar appointment was on my iCal application- totally forgot that I setup my Android to sync everything with my gmail account, and that my Mac's address book and calendar were also synching to my Google account.

Notice that I used my phone today for gaming for only 5 minutes. Not because there's not a lot of games, but because I'm a photographer / businessman who has little time for games. My Android is hardly a toy.
Could I have accomplished what I did today with my 9900? I don't think so. If I'm mistaken, please let me know.

Thanks.

Exactly my point. I don't consider any device as being a 'toy' unless you want the device to be a 'toy'. I am only trying to figure out why the iPhone 4 is always singled out as being the 'toy'.

The only reason I have games is for time killers, such as being on the john, waiting for the wife, or what have you.

Originally Posted by blackhawksfan75

Exactly my point. I don't consider any device as being a 'toy' unless you want the device to be a 'toy'. I am only trying to figure out why the iPhone 4 is always singled out as being the 'toy'.

The only reason I have games is for time killers, such as being on the john, waiting for the wife, or what have you.

Jealousy. Envy.

It's the same game that we see in politics and elections here in the US: trash the other side in an attempt to make yourself look better.

If the iPhone had a physical keyboard, then I wouldn't deride it as a toy. Same goes for these Android slabs.

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Absolutely if it was the phone best suited to their needs. I have recommended the Bold and Torch to friends who purchased them and seem quite happy. Then I would explain the PB's benefits and it's shortcomings and let them make up their own minds. Anyone who knows me already knows how much I love my phone and PB, but everyone has their own needs.

Originally Posted by adam-schuetze

If the iPhone had a physical keyboard, then I wouldn't deride it as a toy. Same goes for these Android slabs.

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Please enlighten me as to what considers the touchscreen keyboard as being toyish.

Do you also consider the Torch 9850/9860 a 'toy' because they don't have physical keyboards? How about the Torch 9800/9810 which is capable of both? If someone uses the screen for typing then it's considered a toy but if you slide up the screen and use the keyboard then it is not a toy? I don't get it.

Originally Posted by blackhawksfan75

Please enlighten me as to what considers the touchscreen keyboard as being toyish.

Do you also consider the Torch 9850/9860 a 'toy' because they don't have physical keyboards? How about the Torch 9800/9810 which is capable of both? If someone uses the screen for typing then it's considered a toy but if you slide up the screen and use the keyboard then it is not a toy? I don't get it.

He's clinging to the last balsa-wood thin argument he has, humour him. I can now type faster and more accurately on my toy after a little practice.

Originally Posted by adam-schuetze

If the iPhone had a physical keyboard, then I wouldn't deride it as a toy. Same goes for these Android slabs.

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Just because it has a keyboard doesn't mean it's not a toy.

Yes if... They want:

A durable device that has good battery life and is a messaging machine.

If they are infatuated with the apps hype I would tell them they should look at iOS, Android, WP7, and BlackBerry and see if there are must haves. Some apps are not on BB.


Sent from my BlackBerry 9930 using Tapatalk

**** ya. I own my own business and my 9900 is just a dream. Plus it is just dead sexy Baby!

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk

I am about to jump ship. Beyond texts and minor personal email, my 9650 is not getting used. I don't like having my personal information on a company phone, but the Droid 2 they issued me is able to do a lot of things my Berry can't. With Active Sync, I have noted my email is consistently arriving on my phone at the same time it is on my computer. It does that day in and out. The Droid renders HTML correctly.

I just need to get my personal information off the company phone, so the Berry must go. My position allows me to pick what device I use, I had thought of porting my company number to my Berry and communing with our BES server we just reactivated. I have decided not to. There really is no advantage to my Berry anymore.

Some would say battery life would be a major issue. I just ordered a Boost Case for an iPhone 4s. The case has 2,200 mAH of battery in addition to the onboard battery. Why would I really care about a phone that is thrifty in battery usage? I am grandfathered in on VZW's unlimited handset data plan... so I really could care less about how little data berries use.

That said, why would I buy a new phone that doesn't even have an operational wifi hotspot? Every other VZW smart phone I am looking at has that option.

RIM has crapped the bed. Time for me to cut my losses. Sad part is I have been around since the iPager days!!! Before there were Berries. When RIM was innovative and not purporting to be looking five years down the road. Yet, when their products are delivered, be 2.5 years out of date....

I would have no idea what else to recommend.

I have 8 email addresses on my BB with 8 different signatures. And I need 8 different signatures (2 different positions, 2 owners associations, etc...). Cannot do that on an iPad, and I understand one cannot on an iPhone!!! How stupid is that?

I agree with you on the email part if you are not on a BES because the push on BB does take a few minutes. I used a droid for about 2 months and was happy to go back to my 9650. I went to use the hotspot on the droid and found that verizon is now charging extra for it to be active. I am not sure about the data plan but to my knowledge if you go 4g you loose the unlimited unless you only have 3g active. I have since gotten the 9850 torch from verizon and all can say is it is awesome. The last thing I will point out is the security on a blackberry is the best. With all that said I do wish you luck in the platform you choose.

For me I think it depends on the person's needs and wants. IF they want a physical keyboard, and if texting, email, and messaging are their most important features, and they can accept some compromises on web browsing and "app" availability, then BlackBerry is recommended. If they want ease of use, with access to all the apps they can get their hands on, BUT ease of use is the key feature then iphone is my recommendation. If they are techie, want the latest and the greatest, and they like to fiddle, and they are willing to accept some compromises regarding battery life and device fragmentation (that is there are TOO many choices, too many vendors, too many versions of the OS, etc), then Android is my recommendation.

Originally Posted by pkcable

For me I think it depends on the person's needs and wants. IF they want a physical keyboard, and if texting, email, and messaging are their most important features, and they can accept some compromises on web browsing and "app" availability, then BlackBerry is recommended. If they want ease of use, with access to all the apps they can get their hands on, BUT ease of use is the key feature then iphone is my recommendation. If they are techie, want the latest and the greatest, and they like to fiddle, and they are willing to accept some compromises regarding battery life and device fragmentation (that is there are TOO many choices, too many vendors, too many versions of the OS, etc), then Android is my recommendation.

I agree with this... but I do find that I am recommending iPhone and Android more often then blackberry.. Hopefully bbx changes this and creates a more application friendly environment.

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the phone to anybody but I'd also point out the major draw back of the limitation of app availability and the fact iPhone and Android in my opinion may not have the stability in their hardware and OS but the app availability would probably make it a more fun experience.

When my upgrade comes up I'm seriously going to look into other platforms as I'm tiring now of having the enjoyment of my phone held back by the fact other platforms have better apps.

People say QNX phones will ease this problem but will it? Or will it just be another load of hardware and software for developers to have to consider when developing for Blackberry and another reason not to.

Seriously, if RIM don't do something to encourage people to develop a wide range of first class (not second class after thoughts) apps for their platform then it could drive away a lot of people and I have certainly stopped giving an all out recommendation of a BB to people because of this issue.

Originally Posted by mark-d

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the phone to anybody but I'd also point out the major draw back of the limitation of app availability and the fact iPhone and Android in my opinion may not have the stability in their hardware and OS but the app availability would probably make it a more fun experience.

When my upgrade comes up I'm seriously going to look into other platforms as I'm tiring now of having the enjoyment of my phone held back by the fact other platforms have better apps.

People say QNX phones will ease this problem but will it? Or will it just be another load of hardware and software for developers to have to consider when developing for Blackberry and another reason not to.

Seriously, if RIM don't do something to encourage people to develop a wide range of first class (not second class after thoughts) apps for their platform then it could drive away a lot of people and I have certainly stopped giving an all out recommendation of a BB to people because of this issue.

What stability issues? I never have to battery pull and my phone is rock solid. My wife's iPhone is the same.

Yep... kinda with PK. Depends on the needs. I picked up two the other day for family based on specific needs, and I don't even use one as my daily driver.

BBs still are valid devices, IMHO.

I started with BB in 2006, Android in 2010, next up probably iPhone. I'd recommend RIM if the person's main use was messaging (email/txt/pix), with a little photography thrown in. I'd have them try the keyboard first, and see if the screen was big enough. But if their thing was browsing for news, sports, video then no way Jose. Obviously if they're an Apple computer user (like I am now), that seals the deal. I had an 8900 for a year and I really like that phone and its OS, but the browser sucked.

Yes I would, no doubt.

Sure, i would recommend the Blackberry 9900 Bold.

Originally Posted by blackberry-unlocking710

Sure, i would recommend the Blackberry 9900 Bold.

It appears that across the board, 9900/9930 users would still recommend blackberry... That says quite a lot about the phone.

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I wouldn't. A few of my co workers thought it was nice I got emails before them but I talked a few out of it. App world sucks compared to other app stores. Strongly considering the iphone 4s

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For the past week, I have been using an iPhone4, Samsung Galaxy Tab, and a Samsung Galaxy SII.

Oh, wow. After so many years of being a Blackberry fanatic, I have totally converted to Android / iOS5 (the iPhone4 is just a gift from my telco, I'm giving it to my sister). I can't stop raving about Android.

I won't just go out there and not recommend a Blackberry to anyone, I'm actually thinking of proactively telling my friends and their friends to AVOID a Blackberry.

Everything your Blackberry can do, an Android and iPhone can do. Even better. Even e-mail. I used to think that nothing will beat Blackberry for e-mail, but after seeing the other side of things, I was wrong. Push e-mail is true push e-mail, the interface looks 100% better, and HTML e-mail looks so much better.

The 9900, in my honest opinion, was nothing more but a catch-up phone with the rest. In terms of hardware, I mean. Fast, true. Innovative? Hardly. It is just trying to catch up with the iPhone4 and the Galaxy SII in terms of speed and efficiency. But even on the camera aspect, they couldn't compete.

And as I have pointed out in previous posts, OS wise, there is a very small selection of apps. Even some basic ones are still missing. The last app they gave away for free to appease angry customers about the recent outage, Shazam, doesn't even work with OS7 devices. And I'm not sure if it's just me, but the App World on the 9900 is laggy and slow.

And as for the Playbook- good hardware with nothing on it. Flash can't be a selling point for it anymore. My Tab beats the browser anytime.

No native e-mail, calendar, contacts. No Skype. For those who want a bit of entertainment, no Angry Birds. Didn't the CEO go out in public and announce Angry Birds would be "Coming Soon" back in May of this year? Yikes. That was just one of many things they (he) promised that never happened.

Virtual keyboards? Go ahead and try one. You'd be surprised at how efficient you can get once you get the hang of it.

Between having a great keyboard and behind the technology times and having a virtual keyboard with so much more, I'd go for the latter.

I mean look at the recent Engadget posts about Samsung being the top smartphone seller in Q3 2011. If you read further, RIM isn't even mentioned.

Such a long post for me to say that after objectively trying to make a list of its strengths, Blackberries (whether smartphones or tablets), are outdated and bare. Why, in good conscience, would I still recommend it? I

In fact, I'd be doing my friends a good favor by proactively telling them not to patronize RIM products and services.

Originally Posted by daveshiz

yes depending on their needs
if for games etc big no
if for a very cool smart fast browser(bb 9900 ) fone brilliant with emails and bbm
i,d also warn them that app world is pants !!

App world is pants? :confused::confused::confused:

Emails came through fine on my BB but I hated truncated emails.

Originally Posted by adam-schuetze

I never recommended the iPhone, it's a toy for teens. I stand by that.
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So, I should consider myself a 31 year old teenager now? I know more professionals with iPhones than I do with BBs. We are not teenagers nor do we consider our phones toys.

Originally Posted by adam-schuetze

If the iPhone had a physical keyboard, then I wouldn't deride it as a toy. Same goes for these Android slabs.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

So by your definition, the RIM branded BlackBerry Storm1 and Storm2 are also toys because they have a v-keyboard?