I just read an interview over on News.com where Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer, has some interesting things to say about “smart devices” and the BlackBerry.
Ballmer seems to believe that when it comes to smart devices the only two players or Nokia/Symbian and Microsoft.
Actually, I’ll be so bold as to say that the two of us (Nokia and Microsoft) stand out in that area. Then you have some guys who are more niche players–Palm is more of a niche player, (Research In Motion’s) BlackBerry is more of a niche player, those Linux devices from Motorola, particularly in China, (mean it) is more of a niche player.
Isn’t it amazing how a cleverly placed word or two can make an otherwise ridiculous claim which is the farthest thing from reality actually plausible?
Let me explain…
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You would not believe the number of times that I have been asked over the passed couple of days if the the new Cingular BlackJack from Samsung is the new BlackBerry that takes pictures and plays MP3s that I have been talking about.
There is a really cool Cingular BlackJack commercial out that has people going to the stores. I wonder how many folks had BlackBerry Pearl on their shopping lists but left the store with a BlackJack? The commercial makes the device look pretty sweet.
This BlackJack could give a bit of competition to the Cingular BlackBerry Pearl whenever it comes out.
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In case you haven’t heard already, Microsoft is about to launch their iPod killer that they have been talking about all summer called the Zune. The Zune is a little bit bigger, lot uglier, MP3 playing knock off of the iPod, however, it does have Wi-Fi and a builit-in FM tuner. (too bad I mostly listen to sports radio on AM channels)
What I think may be cool about Zune is not so much the device itself, but the Zune MarketPlace where, unlike iTunes, Microsoft will offer an all you can download option for about $15 per month. You can also share your content via Wi-Fi with other Zunebies, Zuneophiles, ZuneFolk, or whatever the hell people with Zunes will be referred to as. Copy protected media will be able to be played up to 3 times over 3 days before you are forced to by a licensed copy.
You’ve got to admit, that this is pretty cool. What would be cooler, however, is if you could do this from your mobile device as well as from your Zune.
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I don’t think too many people reading this blog would argue the fact that the BlackBerry OS is more stable than Windows Mobile. Many a BlackBerry user are converted Windows Mobile device users for this very reason. In business you cannot afford to use a device that you cannot depend on to work all the time as compared to most of the time. As you move away from the business world into the consumer world, however, how much does stability really matter?
A lot of BlackBerry users that have never owned a Windows Mobile device may think that Motorola Qs and Treos have to be rebooted every ten minutes, run hot even when turned off, drop calls all the time, randomly delete email, and cause cancer. The reality for me, however, is that so long as I don’t run every piece of freeware that I have installed simultaneously, reset the device once a day or so, keep a charger in my backpack, and only walk down the left side of the street on Tuesdays and Thursdays, it is not a horrible experience.
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Forgive me for the pun, but I just couldn’t resist. The question, however, is a valid one. Will the T-Mobile Dash slow down BlackBerry Pearl sales at all?
T-Mobile unveiled it’s new Windows Mobile powered smartphone yesterday. The Dash has:
- 2.4-inch transflective TFT display
- Quad-band GSM / GPRS / EDGE
- WiFi and Bluetooth
- 128MB flash, 64MB SDRAM, microSD slot
- 1.3 megapixel camera
- myFaves support
- 960mAh battery (vs 1130mAh on the Moto Q)
- 4.4 x 2.5 x 0.5-inch body (vs 4.57 x 2.5 x 0.47-inches on Q)
- 4.2 ounces (vs 4.06 ounces on Q)
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Should RIM create a Windows Mobile powered device? This isn’t the first time that I have asked this question, however, I do have a bit of a different spin on it this time.
Tangent coming…
Over a year ago, when Microsoft put out the first beta of Windows Mobile 5 SP2, I wrote a post about why I was worried about Research in Motion. At the time I thought that wireless email device would become the commodity and that the game would be won on the email backend. I was worried about RIM because they made, and still make, most of their money off of device sales and that they would need to win the service provider battle in order to compete with Microsoft long run. For brevity’s sake, lets just say that I may have gotten this one wrong.
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I work for a company where almost everyone carries some type of mobile smart device with them. The vast majority carry a BlackBerry and we are on a corporate Verizon plan. I would say that over the passed few months, a lot of my coworkers have switched from their BlackBerry 7250 or BlackBerry 7130e devices to the Motorola Q. Is there a trend starting?
Now, I should point out, I don’t work for a small company and I am not talking about just a few people here and there that have dropped their BlackBerrys for the Motorola Q. I have seen dozens of folks that have carried BlackBerry devices for years make the switch, most of whom admit that the Q is not as reliable as the BlackBerry, however, they have no intentions of coming back and almost all say that the Q isn’t that bad.
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I was just reading over on Gizmodo where the Palm Treo 700wx from Sprint will be released on September 3rd. This is Sprints version of the fairly popular Windows Mobile powered Treo that first came out on Verizon.
If you really want a Treo that runs Windows Mobile 5 on Sprint’s network, this, hopefully non-hardware glitched, non-software bug ridden device can be yours for only $650 big ones or $150 less if you sign a 2-year contract with the carrier that arguably has the worst customer service, something you will need to use often if the trend of glitchy hardware and buggy software continues.
The Treo 700wx is way too expensive. It cost more than your middle of the line laptop. No wonder Palm is struggling to keep it’s head above water. They just don’t get it. Someone should have been paying attention to how the Motorola Q, albeit buggy with hardware and software issues of it’s own, destroyed the Treo 700w after it came out. Most people aren’t willing to pay that kind of money for a mobile phone, especially if it doesn’t work all that great.
Palm, Treo 700wx, Sprint
According to Sprint Nextel COO Len Lauer, Sprint Nextel will add the Motorola Q to to it’s line-up of mobile devices in the fourth quarter this year.
Although the Morotorla Q has been known to have a technical glitch or two as compared the BlackBerry, Verizon sales are seen as a total success and Sprint is hoping to bring some of that good fortune to their network.
It will be interesting to see if sales of RIM’s BlackBerry 7130e on Sprint will be affected by the introduction of the Motorola Q.
Read more…
Motorola Q, Sprint