Will The BlackBerry Flip Phone Flop?

REV
#1. May 19th, 2008, at 8:43 PM.

Well, a flip phone isn’t anything to get all that excited about, I guess. It’s a brand-new form factor for a RIM, but rather old hat for the mobile phone market as a whole.

I applaud RIM for offering more variety in its handsets, but does offering a clamshell BB make RIM that much more competitive? Does it make them stand out or grab attention like 3G and/or a 3.5″ touch screen will?

DP
#2. May 19th, 2008, at 9:51 PM.

My wife is already drooling over the Kickstart. She’s inline to finally get a BlackBerry and is super excited about flip phones.

We are also looking forward to taking advantage of TMobile’s UMA features. I’ll be picking up an 8120 as well.

Eshwar S
#3. May 19th, 2008, at 11:18 PM.

The point is there are a lot of rumors. Anytime you put ‘iPhone Killer’ you get a lot of press. Until someone uses it its hard to say one way or the other. It looks like its the same form factor as Pearl which did very well. We don’t know anything about the specs of this phone. If it has the same features as the bold and if the pricing is right I would think it would see the same kind of success as the Pearl.

crazylegs
#6. May 20th, 2008, at 10:53 AM.

Another form factor can’t hurt RIM as there are many folks who want a flip. I’m not sure it will resonate well with current BB users but if this helps them broaden their appeal and get more users on the platform, then I’m all for it. Also, some people may buy this flip, love the email service, and upgrade n the future.

nedcomm
#7. May 20th, 2008, at 10:54 AM.

I love the idea of the flip phone b/c, in theory, you get more real estate in a smaller package. It should mean a bigger screen and more space for the key board.

Of course, I want to see it, hold it, pet it before I jump for joy. And I want it to show up on VZ.

argonnj
#8. May 20th, 2008, at 11:38 AM.

I predict flop.

PB
#9. May 20th, 2008, at 2:16 PM.

I think it’ll flop only in comparision to their usual hype and excitment seen in their other lines of BB products. However I think its a good idea for them to basically have a training wheel phone for those not ready to jump fully into a blackberry but are wanting to make the move. So with that this phone will pretty much be a stepping stone for those consumers that actually buy it to segway into a true blackberry in the future.

bluehorseshoe
#10. May 20th, 2008, at 7:39 PM.

With all of the offerings out there from RIM (Kickstart, Curve, Pearl, Bold, Thunder, etc.), I can’t see it flopping or hitting it big. I’m interested in it, but with all the talk of new phones coming out, I think I’m holding off on getting the Curve on VZW now (exchanging my Pearl on VZW for it). Maybe the Thunder or Bold until the Kickstart hits VZW, who knows. But I don’t think it’s going to flop or exceed all the others.

Thought
#11. May 20th, 2008, at 8:42 PM.

The flip just doesn’t appeal to the diehard BB fans who read enthusiast blogs like this. It indeed will be aimed at a more casual consumer, who doesn’t immerse themselves in the world of gadget rumor.

I do think it will succeed, but as bhs (bluehorseshoe) notes, it will be neither flop nor huge hit. I also like the training wheels or stepping stone analogy.

SKhan
#12. May 21st, 2008, at 7:57 AM.

Recently a new report confirmed that in United States BlackBerry is in top five best selling devices list. BlackBerry KickStart was the latest release at the start of WES 2008 but RIM employees doest bring KickStart in Spot light.

Faisal Riaz
#13. May 22nd, 2008, at 9:10 AM.

This new device and its design is going to be a break through for BlackBerry. Short and flop top is something very unusual in devices of RIM .

liz
#14. May 26th, 2008, at 12:15 AM.

I am trying the curve out and I like it but am having a tough time getting the desktop software to install and function. I want to tether the curve to use as a modem but it seems the software will not install fo rsome reason. I will try again but I am growing weary and dont want to blame the phone. I would LOVE a clamshell to protect the face of this and also may be simpler to use with a visible keypad. If they improve the tethering process I may wait for that to come out. Its almost August……