RIM Launches Next-Generation BlackBerry Z10, Announces Corporate Rebranding

jonnysods said:

Everyone needs competition, I hope it goes well and lights a fire under Apple and Android.

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How much competition is too much. I mean is the market already too crowded with android phones, win8 phones, and of course the beloved iPhone?

Win8 is having trouble gaining traction, though it appears sales are now increasing for Nokia (having made a profit last qtr) but I wonder if consumers will not really flock to blackberry when there's so many quality phones already available. Even the enterpise segment may prove difficult as businesses are quite happy to let employees use their own iPhone/android phones instead of spending $$ supplying one for them.

samcraig said:

I love the comments like "too little too late" or "late to the game"

Companies can turn on a dime. The right product at the right time can make all the difference. Do I think Blackberry has it this time - maybe not. But to "condemn" them for changing gears and bringing some new products to the market is ridiculous.

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But this is an Apple forum and damnit, if I'm an Apple fanboy I should be able to condemn any company that isn't called Apple! It's my Jobs-given...oops, I meant God-given right! (sarcasm of course)

samcraig said:

You know - people said Apple was too late in the game to enter the cell phone market.

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Yup... I remember that and those naysayers were proven wrong. So lets try not to deride BB for trying

Some of the new Blackberry features look good.
Like the battery draining multitasking and the universal inbox.

I also liked the new keyboard interface.

iOS is due for a keyboard improvement.
I don't like the way my iOS keyboard does not learn from my frequently used words. I'm always correcting the same stuff.
They should rev the iOS keyboard.
That needs to happen for iOS ASAP just for them to stay comparable.

I also like how they gave Alicia Keys a job as Creative Director.

TouchMint.com said:

Like others have said the product isnt too bad there are just way too many players they might as well cut and run before they lose everything.

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What exactly is a phone company supposed to "cut and run" to? Making lawnmowers?

niuniu said:

Too little too late RIM

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They aren't RIM anymore, they've renamed the company to "Blackberry" Also how do you know? I'm sure people thought that of Apple in the 90's.

BGR review

http://bgr.com/2013/01/30/blackberr...rce=featuredposts-widget-main&utm_medium=home

BlackBerry is back! Or is it? With a brand new operating system, brand new hardware, and a restructured company with some new people, Research In Motion (RIMM) has done everything possible to make the company’s brand new flagship smartphone a success. It combines the tried and true hardware we all know and love with a new take on the BlackBerry software experience. But is it enough to fight through the sea of iPhones, Android phones, and even Windows Phones?

Without getting into specifics, it’s very easy to recap what happened with RIM. This company is one that changed the game multiple times. First with an email-only messaging device and then with an email-focused smartphone.
...

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Peterg2 said:

Early reviews not promising.

http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/30/3929760/blackberry-z10-review

BGR:

http://bgr.com/2013/01/30/blackberr...rce=featuredposts-widget-main&utm_medium=home

If people thought Windows Phone 8's eco system is weak, this looks far worse.

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I don't think many BB users buy it for the apps...

rmwebs said:

Unless BB10 is a complete rewrite it'll still continue to be a failure. Blackberry OS feels archaic compared to iOS and Android.

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It is. It's based off of QNX, a ...unix? derivative. This isn't your grandmom's blackberry!

clunky

this will be blackberry's death blow.

Here's hoping

Well, it'll be an uphill battle for them, but hey a couple of things stand out, including the high res screen, the removable battery (even though that has been proven to be unnecessary), the apparently awesome soft-keyboard, and a few other features.

I'd also like to point out from the pictures of the device that apparently RIM (err Blackberry) is also capable of producing a touch-screen device that's NOT a direct rip-off of Apple's iDevices, unlike Samesung.

mytdave said:

Well, it'll be an uphill battle for them, but hey a couple of things stand out, including the high res screen, the removable battery (even though that has been proven to be unnecessary), the apparently awesome soft-keyboard, and a few other features.

I'd also like to point out from the pictures of the device that apparently RIM (err Blackberry) is also capable of producing a touch-screen device that's NOT a direct rip-off of Apple's iDevices, unlike Samesung.

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Troll harder. The Note and GS3 look nothing like the iPhone.

alexgowers said:

clunky

this will be blackberry's death blow.

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Clunky...yes. Death blow.....probably not. I think, at this point, people are used to there being some pretty big issues with v1.0 software.

The biggest problem BB will have to deal with here is the app gap.....and that isn't going to be solved overnight for sure. There are a lot of devs not even buying into WP at this point. BB may have an easier road to hoe seeing as how they have such a large built in user base, but the adoption rate for BB10 is going to need to be showing signs of sustained growth through the year in order to entice devs to put in the work.

looks a whole lot better than blackberry torch. it is a gorgeous phone. i don't see myself owning one but i definitely see companies using these.

Video comparing the iPhone 5 and the BB Z10
http://www.idownloadblog.com/2013/01/21/blackberry-z10-against-i5/

The device looks nice, not cheap looking at all. I have always liked Blackberry, reminds me of Apple in a way. They create their own software to go with the hardware. Its one thing I dislike about Android devices. Too many odd combinations of UI and hardware between the competing companies.

The OS on this device looks promising. Very fluid and responsive, and the quick access to all of your communications/social networking is a nice touch. I love how easy it is to simply gesture your way around the OS. Its clear that they put effort into BB10.

I might seriously look into getting this phone, but I feel that there will a rough road ahead for BB. I think too many people are invested into iOS and Android to jump ship for BB. While I believe they will make a seriously threat to WP8 sales, they will remain a distant 3rd at best to iOS/Android.

Good effort Blackberry, thanks for stepping it up finally.

alexgowers said:

clunky

this will be blackberry's death blow.

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They were already dead. This is the last-chance rocket sent to blow up the asteroid as it hurtles towards earth. It at least gives them a shot for third place.

I was always a big fan of the iPhone, but since it was always almost 3 times expensive than BB I was using BB for a long time.

I'm using BB Bold 9900 right now and software developers cannot even fix a bug in polish language where calendar is being shown in swedish ! There was so many software updates and the bug is still there. Another common bug is mute calls also no fix at all.

This time I'm going to definetely switch to iPhone 5. It will be a great pair for my Mac Pro

I want blackberry to live, but this is too little too late..

samcraig said:

I love the comments like "too little too late" or "late to the game"

...

You know - people said Apple was too late in the game to enter the cell phone market.

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Difference is that apple introduced a revolution in phone design, service and expectation. BB here is a copy cat catch if I can move with little innovation. QNX (bb10 os) is the best thing going here for bb.

I really feel they should have come out with something different like this in 2009, not 2013.

Dwalls90 said:

Awesome. Glad they are making a comeback. The more competition, the BETTER our iOS devices.

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Not necessarily. Look what PC did to Mac back in 90s. The Mac didn't get better as a result of losing market share and revenue. The world suffered as a result because crappy PC products nominated the market.

I guess it is a collectable item.

They are desperate, and they are putting every last penny they have into revitalising the company with BB10, Alicia Keys (Most likely paying her millions to have her on board), and the two new phones.

Sure they have got one or two good features, but its still playing catch up with iOS, MS and android, while I feel that it will appeal to their usual blackberry lovers, it wont attract those away from iOS/android at least, and don't forget that corporates have already left RIM in the dust and aren't going to turn around.

To little to late if you ask me. While I applaud them for trying to stay unique, they might find that not moving over to android (it's core anyway) was a bad move.

HenryDJP said:

You don't even get it. What competition? There's not one single "trump card" feature that would make people switch back to Blackberry or force Apple to up their game. In fact all it looks to be is a fusion of iOS, Windows Phone 8 and Android. It's "OKAY" but not exactly a dealmaker.

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definitive said:

except that ios has hardly changed since its first release, and android already holds a bigger share of the smartphone market.

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This is Blackberry's (No longer "RIM") first iPhone 2G and iOS 1.0, or Android 1.0 OS. Is it perfect? Hell no. But iOS 1.0 and Android 1.0 were pretty basic, boring and in a lot of ways useless to the average consumer.

I think they have made a very strong first effort, and the more competition in any marketplace, the stronger competitors must strive to achieve a sale (in quality of product put forth, and the price they charge).

Before Windows Phone 7/8 and Blackberry 10, it was a duopoly of iOS and Android. Duopoly's are rarely a good thing (see AT&T and Verizon), thus if you appreciate your iPhone, you should be praising this.

While this isn't an immediate means of dethroning iPhones or Androids, rest assured competitors are watching this closely. This is important in any efficient free market.

Rim rip

All I can say is ugly... I will never buy a RIM device again.


Apple. rules...

jamesryanbell said:

"and LTE support, though Mossberg got extremely poor data speeds on AT&T and RIM couldn't explain why."

lolling.

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Most likely reason for this is Blackerry is STILL making BB10 devices use their infrastructure. So, viewing a web page, reading your e-mail posting on twitter, no matter WHAT you do, if it uses data, it MUST go through Waterloo or one of Blackberry's other network centers, where all data is compressed and encrypted before it reaches your handset.

I'm betting that network isn't quite up to the task of pushing all that data at LTE speeds yet. No doubt BB10 devices will hog as much data as iPhones do, something they've never had to deal with before. Being the weakest link speed-wise, LTE won't mean much until that backhaul is upgraded, or Blackberry allows their devices to be a little more autonomous.

This used to be Blackberry's big selling point: routing everything through their network meant total security. And even now Blackberry die-hards will gleefully parrot how "Secure" their phones are. Completely ignoring the fact that Exchange ActiveSync, SSL, and VPN tunnelling can now happen on just about every other smartphone, and in fact may even be more secure than Blackberry's network is today, considering how they've allowed governments to turn their "secure" network into swiss cheese.