[klondikeee]

Full quote is :

The PlayBook can be a success, if RIM turns all its energies to marketing it for business.

This article has a tough outlook on the future of RIM, but suggests that we can all learn something from our mistakes.

Cisco and RIM's travails should be a lesson to all tech companies. I'm not advocating that all of them steer clear of the consumer space, but before any of them go into it or invest to heavily, they should know their own strengths and weaknesses and if they have the will to survive consumer's capricious desires.

Cisco, RIM and the Lure of the Consumer Market | Lance Ulanoff | PCMag.com

[dandbj13]

To me the problem is simpler than Lance makes it. Apple is cool. Steve Jobs is cool. The products they produce ooze with cool. Apple is the rock star or rapper. Cisco, RIM, and HP, do not have a thimble full of cool between them. They were never cool, nor will they ever be. But they desperately want to be.

Let us not confuse cool with successful. If Apple is the hot pop sensation, the others are great opera singers. They are great at what they do, but what they do does not matter to the populous. They represent the stage tenor who is envious of Lady Gaga. Just once, they want the huddled masses to cheer for them and call their name.

That is the only reason I can think of that explains why RIM: a business phone manufacturer, would care about what portable computer you use. Apple did what MS couldn't; they made tablets cool. They also made smartphones cool, which is where this all begins. Suddenly, no one cared about Blackberries and Treos, and whatever HP was up to four years ago. All people wanted was an iPhone, then an iPad.

People started rejecting the company phone and company policy, and started bringing their iPhone and iPads to the office. Bosses also brought these devices and demanded that IT find a way to make them work on the network. This began eating into the lunch of companies like RIM, who never needed the average user to like or want the phone. When people got a choice, they overwhelming chose something else, something cool.

Now, these companies that don't know a thing about cool, had to crack the code, or lose more business. They also just wanted to be cool. Leo A. at HP starts babbling about how he wants people to think of HP products as cool like Apple. RIM enters the tablet market and starts a fight with the cool kid that they had no chance of winning and didn't even need to start. There are few things more pathetic than uncool people self-consciously trying to be cool. It can't be faked, and people can smell it a mile away. Neither RIM nor HP stand a chance at that game against Apple who is genuinely cool. It is like Richie trying to out Fonz the Fonz.

Solution:

RIM and HP must stop all attempts at being cool. People are laughing at them. They need to go back to making business machines and doing what they do best. RIM should have introduced something like the Cisco Cius. HP should be more concerned with volume discounts rather than Russell Brand commercials. Neither company should ever show their product playing games and watching YouTube.

The best example I can think of is IBM. They are a thoroughly boring company, that prints money. They got out of the business of cool before it destroyed them. RIM and HP: two peas in a pod, need to do the same before it is too late.

[klondikeee]

Thanks for input, I get what you're getting at.
I personally think my Tour is way cool,
but maybe cause I've just had it for barely two weeks (even though it's an older phone). I kinda love it.
If RIM wants to be hip and noticed, couldn't they easily get some celebrity endorsement (as there are many celebs who enjoy their BBs, Celebrity BlackBerry Sightings)?
I've written this many times on this board, but even if Tour is a few years of age, it's still the best/most convenient/fastest/smooth/cool smartphone I've ever used.
It's a pleasure not to have to touch the screen to do something (and instead doing it with buttons+trackball).

[scorpiodsu]

How about they actually add some business features to it? You know like email and calendar.... silly stuff like that.

[dandbj13]

How about they actually add some business features to it? You know like email and calendar.... silly stuff like that.

Couldn't agree more. This is another area where RIM and HP are in lockstep, marching in the wrong direction. RIM treated email and calendar like an afterthought, while HP left out any way to edit a document or video out. Their words say business; their execution says casual user.

[sosumi11]

RIM and HP must stop all attempts at being cool.

Do you know what "cool" actually means? RIM MUST make their customers a "cool" product.

cool
1. awesome
2. popular; like in a social hierarchy
3. nice
4 wicked (new england stlye, NOT evil= wicked)
5. good or great

[blackjack93117]

Thanks for input, I get what you're getting at.
I personally think my Tour is way cool,
but maybe cause I've just had it for barely two weeks (even though it's an older phone). I kinda love it.
If RIM wants to be hip and noticed, couldn't they easily get some celebrity endorsement (as there are many celebs who enjoy their BBs, Celebrity BlackBerry Sightings)?
I've written this many times on this board, but even if Tour is a few years of age, it's still the best/most convenient/fastest/smooth/cool smartphone I've ever used.
It's a pleasure not to have to touch the screen to do something (and instead doing it with buttons+trackball).

Hey Obama has one, isn't that cool enough? High security is cool.

I've always felt RIM dropped the ball by following the leaders and playing "me too" in the consumer market, instead of sticking with what gave them success - superior business and professional tools.

.

[Economist101]

I've always felt RIM dropped the ball by following the leaders and playing "me too" in the consumer market, instead of sticking with what gave them success - superior business and professional tools.

They really had no other option. Growth in the enterprise sector cratered, so if they wanted to sustain growth, they need to push into consumer markets. Trust me, if RIM could've maintained growth as a company focusing exclusively on the enterprise they would have done so.

[EchoTango]

I think, this is what we're being told to think. While I do agree the tenor of your post, I might take a different view of the cause.

There's no question Apple has shown its a marketing powerhouse and with regard to the iPhone and iPad, they have successfully positioned themselves as the "thought leader". Notice how all new devices are compared to Apple products and the differences described as "deficiencies". Take RIM for example, Apple was able to convince you that the biggest player in the sector was "tired" and "decrepit" producing "stogy" and "outdated" products. Their product was entertainment based and different, not better. But many bought into this marketing hype and the carefully crafted artificial Apple mystic. Today we see the results of those highly effective efforts in the market numbers.

I do agree RIM is under attack from a market perspective and needs to retreat to a position of strength. I'm thinking they're doing this with the product "brown-out" and the "hold on its coming" answer to all product related question. I suspect the new round of products will be highly corporate focused and extremely enterprise friendly.

What's really odd is that many young cell phone users like BBerry. If you think of these folks as the new smart phone buyers, RIM should have it all wrapped up.

[kbz1960]

I guess if RIM really doesn't want the avg joe to buy one then OK. It sure seems like they don't.

[JasW]

Do you know what "cool" actually means? RIM MUST make their customers a "cool" product.

cool
1. awesome
2. popular; like in a social hierarchy
3. nice
4 wicked (new england stlye, NOT evil= wicked)
5. good or great

Either that, or Mike L. needs to start dressing in a black turtleneck and jeans. Unfortunately, he strikes me as a Banlon shirt, shorts, and black socks with Asics running shoes kinda guy.

[scorpiodsu]

I've always felt RIM dropped the ball by following the leaders and playing "me too" in the consumer market, instead of sticking with what gave them success - superior business and professional tools.

.

I think this is something that had to do more than what they wanted to do. As we can see by how long it's taking RIM to develop QNX, they really didn't want to change. They were fine the way they are and so are many blackberry users. The problem is the market in 2006 is different than 2011 and RIM had to change with the times. Regardless of how many people still prefer the current blackberry OS, it cannot so the things that the majority of smartphone users now want to do. And iOS and Android is penetrating into the business sector so RIM has to respond. I mean think about it, if you work for a corporation and you had to pick between an iPhone and BB and you're company gave it to you for free...... you get all your emails just as fast, comparable security BUT with the iPhone u get all the other things like apps and a very media centric device, there's no way blackberry can compete over the long term. Can't use "our battery lasts longer" forever. At some point you have to start matching and beating your competition in the areas they are killing you. Otherwise you will die. It's more likely RIM is changing for necessity and not just to say "me too".

[Rootbrian]

Both consumers and businesses can take advantage of the playbook.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[lunatyck]

To me the problem is simpler than Lance makes it. Apple is cool. Steve Jobs is cool. The products they produce ooze with cool. Apple is the rock star or rapper. Cisco, RIM, and HP, do not have a thimble full of cool between them. They were never cool, nor will they ever be. But they desperately want to be.

Let us not confuse cool with successful. If Apple is the hot pop sensation, the others are great opera singers. They are great at what they do, but what they do does not matter to the populous. They represent the stage tenor who is envious of Lady Gaga. Just once, they want the huddled masses to cheer for them and call their name.

That is the only reason I can think of that explains why RIM: a business phone manufacturer, would care about what portable computer you use. Apple did what MS couldn't; they made tablets cool. They also made smartphones cool, which is where this all begins. Suddenly, no one cared about Blackberries and Treos, and whatever HP was up to four years ago. All people wanted was an iPhone, then an iPad.

People started rejecting the company phone and company policy, and started bringing their iPhone and iPads to the office. Bosses also brought these devices and demanded that IT find a way to make them work on the network. This began eating into the lunch of companies like RIM, who never needed the average user to like or want the phone. When people got a choice, they overwhelming chose something else, something cool.

Now, these companies that don't know a thing about cool, had to crack the code, or lose more business. They also just wanted to be cool. Leo A. at HP starts babbling about how he wants people to think of HP products as cool like Apple. RIM enters the tablet market and starts a fight with the cool kid that they had no chance of winning and didn't even need to start. There are few things more pathetic than uncool people self-consciously trying to be cool. It can't be faked, and people can smell it a mile away. Neither RIM nor HP stand a chance at that game against Apple who is genuinely cool. It is like Richie trying to out Fonz the Fonz.

Solution:

RIM and HP must stop all attempts at being cool. People are laughing at them. They need to go back to making business machines and doing what they do best. RIM should have introduced something like the Cisco Cius. HP should be more concerned with volume discounts rather than Russell Brand commercials. Neither company should ever show their product playing games and watching YouTube.

The best example I can think of is IBM. They are a thoroughly boring company, that prints money. They got out of the business of cool before it destroyed them. RIM and HP: two peas in a pod, need to do the same before it is too late.

What he said ^

[kbz1960]

One persons cool is another persons DUH.

[Rooster99]

Not to be picky, but there's an error part way through :

"RIM still has a built-in business audience and the PlayBook offers the bridge feature to marry business BlackBerries to the tablet. Smart. Except for the fact that the device arrived without that particular capability."

I thought the Playbook shipped with the Bridge working? Perhaps not as well as it should, but the basic capability was there. Or am I wrong?

Sorry if this is a bit of a hijack - the underlying premise of the article is still valid. I'm just curious about this point.

TIA - R.