Have you noticed lately, that the name BlackBerry is starting to become a generic term for mobile email devices regardless of if the device is a BlackBerry or some other smartphone? It kind of reminds me of the brand names Band-Aid and Vasolene. No matter who makes those little bandages in a box, you call them Band-Aids. It is the same way with Petroleum Jelly. No matter who makes it, you call it Vasolene.
Here is play-by-play of a conversation that illustrates this comparison that I was just in with several friends just after seeing a T.V. commercial for the new Treo 700w during one of the playoff games over the weekend.
(Friend 1) Dude, that new BlackBerry is pretty sweet.
(Me) That wasn’t a BlackBerry, it was a Treo.
(Friend 1) Seriously? It had a keyboard and everything.
(Friend 2) I heard it has a camera on it and you can listen to music like an iPod.
(Friend 1) Can you get email on it like a BlackBerry?
(Me) Well, not exactly like a BlackBerry, but you can get email on it and it does have a camera and you can play MP3s on it.
(Friend 2) My BlackBerry sucks compared to that. I can only get email on it.
(Me) Well, getting the email is pretty important and no one does email nearly as well as the BlackBerry. What kind of BlackBerry do you have?
(Friend 2) An old blue one that is like 2 years old and all scratched up. I was thinking about getting a new one but now I will have to check out this new Treo BlackBerry.
(Me) I meant what model do you have and a Treo and a BlackBerry are two different devices from two different companies.
(Friend 2) It is a Verizon BlackBerry but I don’t know what the model is. That Treo BlackBerry was on Verizon wasn’t it? I think I am going to upgrade to it.
(Me) Dude, I keep telling you that was just a Treo, not a BlackBerry. They are two different devices.
(Friend 2) What difference does it make. They both have keyboards and you can get email on them.
(Friend 1) Both of you shut up already… The game is back on. That new BlackBerry is pretty sweet though.
[…] a couple of friends back during the NFL playoffs where I was trying to tell them that the Treo 700w was not a new Blackberry. These kinds of conversations make me wonder why there are so many dif […]