[mikelcal]

First off, let me begin by saying that I come in peace. According to you, Mr. Jonathan S. Geller, I come from a distant planet where my species is dying out. I'm here to confirm that such wild and volatile statements are untrue. Now, more than ever, I am proud to support BlackBerry and their offerings. I am certain that there are thousands more like me out there that appreciate RIM for what they have been able to accomplish.

Sure, RIM has lost their grace amongst many due to the fact that they were not willing to compromise security and reliability in their messaging back end in favor of adding yet another "flavor of the month" short-lived customization. The Android Runtime player currently available on the PlayBook tablet is proof that RIM could have decided to take the plunge and switch their OS to Android, and swim with a sea of competitors to try and differentiate their offering. Had they gone that route, "media reporters" such as yourself, would have most likely claimed that security and bbm are not enough. No matter the scenario, it appears you have made it your personal crusade to bash RIM from every angle you can. Wether it is managerial decisions, OS features that are agreeably dated (at least visually, looks, as we all know have nothing to do with performance), developer announcements, etc, Mr. Geller, you always find a way to give it a negative spin.

Today, after the BB10 keynote, you continue to follow this trend. Now, I don't mind hearing the bad descisions RIM has made recently and in the past, but this total lack of professionalism is unacceptable. I may just be a naïve end user that doesn't know any better, but I actually liked what RIM had to show today. The virtual keyboard, though not a physical one, should get at least the slightest recognition. I'm positive that designing a virtual keyboard from the ground up is no easy feat, no less a keyboard that needs to addresses some of the flaws in the offerings from some of its competitors. In this case, the keyboard is an element where RIM leapfrogs the competition. From what I could see, no cpmpromises were made, from the visual layout, to the swipe up gesture to enter predictive text, it shows RIM has been listening to customers. We won't really know how good the keyboard is untill we actually try it, but the live demo has given me ample confidence that RIM has once again innovated in the keyboard world of mobile devices. Also, to not even once mention the new peek "flow" of apps with the homescreen tiles is a huge omission. If anything, this is a welcome change in how we interact with our mobile devices. It is a creative solution to continue being in the forefront of mobile multitasking and a fresh approach that defferentiates BB10 from the way things are done in iOS and Android.

Now Mr. Geller, you might have a very short memory span, but the iPhone was not at all complete at launch. Many key features were missing, such as MMS nowhere to be found. Add to that cut and paste, multitasking, exchange and push notifications. The so often praised iOS lacked many features present with BB devices for years. Customizeable notifications is a feature most recently added to the now bland and apparently *minimally* changing OS. To this date you can't transfer files via Bluetooth, and you must continue syncing and purchasing music through iTunes, unless you jailbreak the device. You may retort back with "but it just works", or "why mess with success"? But I must remind you that arrogance is the reason BB is in the situation it is today, and as you can see, RIM has learned from their mistakes. Today they presented themselves not as arrogant, unchangeable stone aged elders, but rather a humble yet confident company that is "laser focused" on getting it right. They have shown that they know where they stand and that they know who their target user base is. They have taken back to their roots and recognized that it is the enterprise users that made them successful, and that at the same time that they can be welcoming to the consumer base by recruiting gamong developers. What's more is that as we have learned today, RIM is incentivizing developers who develop quality apps. Of course this is just the opening of a week long of events and sessions, and there is much else yet to come in the following weeks and months.

In closing, I, Mikel Calderon, a lowly BlackBerry user for over 5 years, with the support of my fellow BlackBerry users from around the world at Crackberry.com, formally request a cease-fire. You have every right to your opinion, and I encourage you to share it with whomever wants to listen on your personal twitter, public forums such as this one or to your friends and family, but in this case, I am saying ENOUGH! If you don't have something nice to say; in other words, if you are not going to report on all the facts, then refrain from posting it on BGR as "news". I'm sure you have worked hard to grow BGR into what it is now, and would like nothing more than your site to vanish from all memory, but in my eyes you are no longer a lone "boy genius;" your dedicated staff of editors writers and contributors have earned that title more than you can currently call claim to and they don't deserve to be out of a job just as it would not be fair for all of RIM's employees wold wide to lose theirs. I don't know what RIM has personally done to you, but it seems personal, and you may need help.

Cordially,

MikelCal
A lowly BlackBerry enthusiast with an opinion just like you.


Update: Oopsies, it was Chris Umi who just posted a great piece on how Thorsten addressed the media. Perhaps my last paragraph needs to be Kevin's closing paragraph.

Let me wrap up by saying that RIM needs two things to recover in the market. They need great products, and BlackBerry 10 is the engine to deliver this requirement. But they also need good press. They need to stop being kicked in the teeth while they're down. They need to heal so they can get back up again and fight. Thorsten convinced me, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that he's the right guy to accomplish this at RIM.

[BBA Brian]

pay no mind to Geller anymore. He was so stupid to reveal his hand. He was NOT given a BB10 Dev device, despite other tech blogs lower than his in popularity being given them. He made a point to state this because is pissed.

BGR has taken a nasty turn on RIM coverage over the last year, especially over the next 6 months. I long believe that BGR has been blacklisted in a way. This confirms it. RIM is telling him to off by not giving him a dev unit.

BGR is pissed and is being pissy. I hope RIM continues to do this to him going foreward and I hope that when RIM finishes their comeback, they continue to do this to him

[lotuslanderz]

MikelCal -- the only way to deal with that narcissistic boygeniass is to ignore his site. Fewer page views = less $.

[kbz1960]

Well that was good until the last paragraph. Does boy wonder hang out here?

[Premium1]

You are giving him exactly what he wants which is more attention and more people visiting his site which = more $$$

[dbmalloy]

The best revenge is a good life.... if RIM comes through with a good life......

Remember... Haters want the attention... that is why they do what they do.... If you want to deal with a child treat them a such.... If they throw a tantrum... ignore them.....

Some will say that the individual in this case has clout... who cares... if he is proven wrong... there goes the clout.....

[howarmat]

i have seen more about BGR on this forum in the last 2 days than about the wonderful things happening down in Orlando. Just ignore him and move on to better things in life. Not that hard to do really.

[anon(2325196)]

What's BGR? Who are we talking about? Seriously.

Anyway, whoever this little bgr act is, who cares... ive never heard of bgr.

but, wow - did you see the keynote today? friggin' amazing, i seriously super excited for a bb10 device.

!!!!!!!! bb has always been the best. it never matters what some little bgr thing says or posts to whatever, it cannot change the fact bb has always been the best. nothing can change the truth.

[stackberry369]

What is this bgr you speak of?a rock group?

[litig8or98]

Sorry, but I don't get the point of this post. In particular, I take some issue with your last paragraph, where in one breath, you are telling Geller that he's free to his opinion, and on the other, telling him to shut up unless he's willing to communicate an opinion that you agree with. To post this on Crackberry is, in my view, the height of hypocrisy. Any view here that departs from the mainstream (and by mainstream, I mean as it relates to this site) warrants a "troll" tag, and at it's worst, censorship.

I'll admit I likely don't know all the issues, but isn't telling Geller to stop publishing RIM-negative opinions on his site is akin to telling Kevin that he can't bash Apple or Android here. And I recognize that Kevin generally doesn't engage in such bashing, but if he wanted to, is there any disagreement that he'd be entitled?

Again, I don't get it. I don't get how one could presume to tell someone that they can't speak their mind "in their own house". What are you trying to achieve with this post?

And as for disagreeing with Geller, fine...I read his opinion (and note, it is filed under BGR under the tags "feature" and "opinion") and I too disagree with it. He's clearly got an ax to grind. So what? There's greater risk in ignoring what he has to say.

I haven't been following the stuff coming out of Blackberry World...I hope it's spectacular. In my view, it has to be. The opinions of current Crackberry (or Blackberry) users isn't the be all, end all, and I think what's been overlooked in large part is the fact that aside from plummeting stock, aside from lackluster take-up of the Playbook, and aside from loss of market share, Blackberry just isn't the cool kid on the block anymore. I think we have to listen to the negative buzz...it's reality. Do you believe the kid in highschool (or junior high) getting his first phone is excited about a Blackberry? There was a time when that was the case. It's not happening anymore. It's only by listening to the negative that one understand the real problems faced by RIM right now. They're not the cool kid anymore. Here on Crackberry, that's considered sacrilege. We have our heads in the sand. But you would have us dig deeper.

I want RIM to succeed. When it comes time to upgrade my 9900, I want there to be something amazing to replace it. I want there to continue to be apps made for my Playbook. I want my stock to go up. These things won't happen by us silencing our detractors. It'll only come when RIM really does something to shine. It has to do more than have a few new features and some slick advertising. It has to fight it's way back to the cool kids' table.

[Doc Z]

Sorry, but I don't get the point of this post. In particular, I take some issue with your last paragraph, where in one breath, you are telling Geller that he's free to his opinion, and on the other, telling him to shut up unless he's willing to communicate an opinion that you agree with. To post this on Crackberry is, in my view, the height of hypocrisy. Any view here that departs from the mainstream (and by mainstream, I mean as it relates to this site) warrants a "troll" tag, and at it's worst, censorship.

I'll admit I likely don't know all the issues, but isn't telling Geller to stop publishing RIM-negative opinions on his site is akin to telling Kevin that he can't bash Apple or Android here. And I recognize that Kevin generally doesn't engage in such bashing, but if he wanted to, is there any disagreement that he'd be entitled?

Again, I don't get it. I don't get how one could presume to tell someone that they can't speak their mind "in their own house". What are you trying to achieve with this post?

And as for disagreeing with Geller, fine...I read his opinion (and note, it is filed under BGR under the tags "feature" and "opinion") and I too disagree with it. He's clearly got an ax to grind. So what? There's greater risk in ignoring what he has to say.

I haven't been following the stuff coming out of Blackberry World...I hope it's spectacular. In my view, it has to be. The opinions of current Crackberry (or Blackberry) users isn't the be all, end all, and I think what's been overlooked in large part is the fact that aside from plummeting stock, aside from lackluster take-up of the Playbook, and aside from loss of market share, Blackberry just isn't the cool kid on the block anymore. I think we have to listen to the negative buzz...it's reality. Do you believe the kid in highschool (or junior high) getting his first phone is excited about a Blackberry? There was a time when that was the case. It's not happening anymore. It's only by listening to the negative that one understand the real problems faced by RIM right now. They're not the cool kid anymore. Here on Crackberry, that's considered sacrilege. We have our heads in the sand. But you would have us dig deeper.

I want RIM to succeed. When it comes time to upgrade my 9900, I want there to be something amazing to replace it. I want there to continue to be apps made for my Playbook. I want my stock to go up. These things won't happen by us silencing our detractors. It'll only come when RIM really does something to shine. It has to do more than have a few new features and some slick advertising. It has to fight it's way back to the cool kids' table.

Absolutely agree. This was silly and childish, not to mention downright mean and unprofessional in some segments.

[papped]

BGR relies on flamebait so, hook and sinker...

[Thud Hardsmack]

Matt's right. We all need to cut Gellar some slack; he has a right to be upset over not getting his developer device - his contribution to BB10 would put RIM back in the driver's seat.

[mikelcal]

Sorry, but I don't get the point of this post. In particular, I take some issue with your last paragraph, where in one breath, you are telling Geller that he's free to his opinion, and on the other, telling him to shut up unless he's willing to communicate an opinion that you agree with. To post this on Crackberry is, in my view, the height of hypocrisy. Any view here that departs from the mainstream (and by mainstream, I mean as it relates to this site) warrants a "troll" tag, and at it's worst, censorship.

I'll admit I likely don't know all the issues, but isn't telling Geller to stop publishing RIM-negative opinions on his site is akin to telling Kevin that he can't bash Apple or Android here. And I recognize that Kevin generally doesn't engage in such bashing, but if he wanted to, is there any disagreement that he'd be entitled?

Again, I don't get it. I don't get how one could presume to tell someone that they can't speak their mind "in their own house". What are you trying to achieve with this post?

And as for disagreeing with Geller, fine...I read his opinion (and note, it is filed under BGR under the tags "feature" and "opinion") and I too disagree with it. He's clearly got an ax to grind. So what? There's greater risk in ignoring what he has to say.

I haven't been following the stuff coming out of Blackberry World...I hope it's spectacular. In my view, it has to be. The opinions of current Crackberry (or Blackberry) users isn't the be all, end all, and I think what's been overlooked in large part is the fact that aside from plummeting stock, aside from lackluster take-up of the Playbook, and aside from loss of market share, Blackberry just isn't the cool kid on the block anymore. I think we have to listen to the negative buzz...it's reality. Do you believe the kid in highschool (or junior high) getting his first phone is excited about a Blackberry? There was a time when that was the case. It's not happening anymore. It's only by listening to the negative that one understand the real problems faced by RIM right now. They're not the cool kid anymore. Here on Crackberry, that's considered sacrilege. We have our heads in the sand. But you would have us dig deeper.

I want RIM to succeed. When it comes time to upgrade my 9900, I want there to be something amazing to replace it. I want there to continue to be apps made for my Playbook. I want my stock to go up. These things won't happen by us silencing our detractors. It'll only come when RIM really does something to shine. It has to do more than have a few new features and some slick advertising. It has to fight it's way back to the cool kids' table.

Let me Clarify a few things. I do not mean to "Troll." Haters' gonna hate, which is why at the end of my letter I say that he is entitled to his opinion, and I'm sorry if I wasn't clear, after all I don't run my own tech blog or have the "clout" he does. Basically what I'd like is for sites that misrepresent the news about RIM to either give the full picture or not say anything at all. J.S.G can go on twitter, public forums such as this one and express his dissatisfaction with RIM or whatever. But at the end of the day, he is not much owner of BGR as Jim and Mike are at RIM. RIM, much like BGR, Crackberry.com or any given site are nothing without their user base. I wrote this letter as an expression of my frustration with media outlets who bash on RIM because they do not have a magic wand to speed up the process of transitioning to a new OS. Given all the aquisitions that took place all of the last few years, it takes time to brief all involved parties as to what the direction and goals are for RIM as a whole. Canada and Sweden are not next door neighbors, and the time differential must also be taken into consideration.

I havent really followed what is going on at BGR, but if you see his tweets, he went in with very low expectations and a very negative attitude and that is what he saw.

[Economist101]

. I wrote this letter as an expression of my frustration with media outlets who bash on RIM because they do not have a magic wand to speed up the process of transitioning to a new OS. Given all the aquisitions that took place all of the last few years, it takes time to brief all involved parties as to what the direction and goals are for RIM as a whole.

True, there is no "magic wand," but it's also not as though RIM woke up one morning and its planned future platform was missing. RIM is where it is today for one simple reason: it's own strategy was flawed. It's not okay to pile on the company, but it's also not okay to suggest that RIM isn't largely responsible for both its perception and its current position. Actions have consequences.

[lnichols]

That rag couldn't make a genius if you combined all the contributors IQ's together. He didn't get his developer device and made an of himself. Just stop going there, don't post links to the site and let them spin up the RIM haters that would post all the time in the comments section. We have enough RIM hating trolls that post here daily without having to link to ones on the outside.

[detfan]

Let me Clarify a few things. I do not mean to "Troll." Haters' gonna hate, which is why at the end of my letter I say that he is entitled to his opinion, and I'm sorry if I wasn't clear, after all I don't run my own tech blog or have the "clout" he does. Basically what I'd like is for sites that misrepresent the news about RIM to either give the full picture or not say anything at all. J.S.G can go on twitter, public forums such as this one and express his dissatisfaction with RIM or whatever. But at the end of the day, he is not much owner of BGR as Jim and Mike are at RIM. RIM, much like BGR, Crackberry.com or any given site are nothing without their user base. I wrote this letter as an expression of my frustration with media outlets who bash on RIM because they do not have a magic wand to speed up the process of transitioning to a new OS. Given all the aquisitions that took place all of the last few years, it takes time to brief all involved parties as to what the direction and goals are for RIM as a whole. Canada and Sweden are not next door neighbors, and the time differential must also be taken into consideration.

I havent really followed what is going on at BGR, but if you see his tweets, he went in with very low expectations and a very negative attitude and that is what he saw.

Ignore them dude. Ignore the guys above this post too. You post what you want until a mod tells you not to. They have a choice not to read it.

Sent Using My Galaxy Note

[9of13]

I'm agreeing with Mike. There's a difference between posting an editorial opinion and posting news. When media outlets finally going back to showing the difference between the two, credibility won't be the same.

[BluCheze]

I really dont see a problem in BBR post. If he doesnt like RIM oh well. I think by writing this open letter to him only causes him to gain more popularity. He is within in right (he owns the blog as well) to write whatever he wants. Dont like him, dont visit his blog. Simple as that.

[louzer]

That which does not kill you only makes you stronger.

[Doc Z]

Ignore them dude. Ignore the guys above this post too. You post what you want until a mod tells you not to. They have a choice not to read it.

Sent Using My Galaxy Note

Like the OP has a choice to not read BGR?

[emirozmen]

I only hope RIM comes back good

[hurds]

RIM is where it is today for one simple reason: it's own strategy was flawed.

Today being the operative word. I think RIMs strategy is the best of all the companies. Obviously you'd disagree and today you would be right.


Funny how gellers articles on RIM get a lot of hits. Too bad they are dead according to him. It appears hes losing a lot of credibility and posters on his site are taking notice. The more likely scenario is BGR is dead and these are gellers last sad attempts of attracting attention.

[Gucci33]

Well that was good until the last paragraph. Does boy wonder hang out here?

Katiepee does for him and reports back

[leftypepper716]

Ignore them dude. Ignore the guys above this post too. You post what you want until a mod tells you not to. They have a choice not to read it.

Sent Using My Galaxy Note

I think Geller(BGR) went a little overboard in his op-ed piece, Obiviously being opinionated is what he is, but it was like a peeved off rant at RIM, and all his frustrations with them came out like the Hoover dam cracked open IMO, if? OS10 isn't a WOW and I mean WOW! device from the get go, then it will be DOA. By the time of it's release, iphone 5S or 6 will be availble, not to mention whatever new device's Samsung & HTC will have out. I think RIM should have upgraded thier devices two years ago, instead of wasting time on the PlayBook. The OS10 devices should have been ready and available a week after BBW 2011. Or had a 4" playbook designed full touchscreen w/qnx os for all the major carriers intead of the Torch 9800 in November of 2010, even if it was a bust, at least it'd have shown RIM taking the leap into the fray. Sorry to say, a day late and a dollar short. Woulda, shoulda, could of.