iPhone Killer

In Knoxville TN it is a bit on the cool side. 7:30 AM and the mercury was pegged at 31 degrees with the occasional flurry blowing around. Not the best weather for line standing but yet there they were:

And what were these people standing in line for? Hot coffee? Nope, they were standing in line outside the Turkey Creek Verizon to get the BlackBerry Storm. The store presumably opens at 8 and I didn’t ask when the first person got there but unless something has seriously changed since the last time I got a phone from Verizon the twentieth guy in that line won’t be home in time for dinner. Line standing is always a good indicator that something has caught the imagination of at least a few people so clearly these folks really want an iPhone but are tied to Verizon. At least that is what one person who intends to get a Storm today related to me.

If you want a little perspective this line was nothing compared to the iPhone lines on the original release date and positively paltry compared to the… more...

Looks like the world is still waiting for an iPhone killer (so far the only successful iPhone Killer has been the smackdown the iPhone 3G put on the original iPhone). The phone everyone suspected might be an iPhone killer, the Blackberry Storm, seems to have been little more than a poorly done experiment by RIM. Let’s check the reviews:

PC World:
BlackBerry’s Storm: Awkward and Disappointing

But people who were hoping for a credible iPhone alternative fortified with BlackBerry’s strengths as a mobile tool for corporate travelers will likely find the Storm a disappointment. When it comes to touch interfaces, Apple still has no peer.

Engadget
BlackBerry Storm review (Hmm, someone needs to head over the Engadget and help them with creative titles)

The only hitch in this plan is a major one: it’s not as easy, enjoyable, or consistent to use as the iPhone, and the one place where everyone is sure they have an upper hand—that wow-inducing clickable screen—just isn’t all that great. For casual users, the learning curve and complexity of this phone will feel… more...

I’ll admit it, I’m an iPhone addict. I’m more likely to walk out of the house without my keys than the iPhone so I’m not an objective judge of what makes an legit iPhone killer. There are a lot subtle things that are great on the iPhone that you can’t grasp from looking at a spec sheet or spending three minutes with one.

Side note: This is true of most things. While everyone is happy to throw up a review of an app after using it for 5 seconds to really get a feel for things you have to use it for some time. That’s why iPhonematters all star reviewer Jovan Washington demands to use an app for at least a week before reviewing it.

Back to the topic. The greatness of the iPhone is in the stuff not on the spec sheet but could the Storm be just as great. As mentioned earlier you can have my iPhone when you pry it from my cold, dead hands (in truth you’ll probably have to cut off my fingers) but you’re an intelligent person capable of making your own choice. So you tell me, is the Storm… more...

In case you haven’t heard (and you might not of, this is a new Blackberry not a new iPhone) the Blackberry Storm is coming out this week on November 21st. You’re going to be hearing a lot about the new Storm and how it compares to the iPhone. There will be useful lists which discuss each and every little difference in the spec sheets that will try and make it seem as though people are choosing between the iPhone and Bold as though they were trying to pick stocks. This stock has a trailing PE ration of.....

Don’t believe it for a second. The differences between an iPhone and a Bold, for the vast majority of consumers, comes down to the network. Or more precisely, the decision comes down to “I am friggin stuck at Verizon, what phone do they have that is most like the iPhone?” I come to this conclusion by a simple study: On the refrigerator there is a bit of direct mail announcing the Bold and the get in on date. I’ve got an iPhone so I don’t need the reminder. The wife is tied to Verizon but… more...

That is the new Blackberry Storm commercial. Time for predictions:

Prediction the first: The Storm will be a huge hit
It is easy to see why the Storm will go big, you can only get it at Verizon and people love the coverage of Verizon. The biggest reason the iPhone isn’t everywhere is because the iPhoneisn’t on Verizon.

Prediction the second
The Storm will be the best Blackberry ever. And it will mark the steady downfall of RIM.

Prediction the third
Reviewers will love the thing but they’ll end up saying it is no iPhone. Which shouldn’t come as a surprise, the Storm is an obvious attempt to be everything the iPhone is while still being a Blackberry. That is like trying to be a really manly cheerleader, sure you can put on a great pair of pom poms but your arms are still hairy.

In the end the Storm will probably be a better Blackberry but it won’t be better than the iPhone.

The Blackberry Bold is finally here. And in the US you can only get it at AT&T. The specs match up with the iPhone fairly well with the notable exception of the price: The Bold will set you back an extra benjamin with a coupon. Without the coupon (onine only) the bold retails for $399. Memo to RIM, the new price to match is $199 expensive phones are too 2007ish.

Great, with that out of the way it is time to take a look at what other folks are saying about the long awaited Blackberry. First stop: 13 Good Reasons to Dump Your iPhone for BlackBerry Bold Read the whole thing for all thirteen points but here is the conclusion:

Sorry Mr. Jobs, please don’t revoke my Mac Club Card, but the iPod touch with a mediocre phone = an iPhone that just isn’t eve close to the functionality of the Blackberry Bold. If you want a business communications handset with excellent multimedia internet capability, GPS, WiFi and a 2MP video camera, get a BlackBerry Bold.

Interesting.… more...

Yesterday we noted how Microsoft won’t shut up about the iPhone. Mix in the G1 from Google and T-Mobile, upcoming releases by RIM and you’ve got to wonder if there is any room left for Microsoft in the mobile market. There’s only so much room in consumers minds for OSes and Android+OS X mobile+RIM doesn’t leave much room for Windows Mobile 7.

Quick digression: When IBM came out with a PC Apple took out a full page ad out in the Wall Street Journal welcoming them to the party. The reason wasn’t to promote IBM but because Apple wanted consumers to see Apple as the other major player even though there were still a few other serious computer makers around (Commodore, Radio Shack etc.).

How dark are things looking for Microsoft? Jack Shofield has posted a good over view of the situation at the Guardian. From the article:

But while Microsoft sold 18m smartphone licences in the year to June, 2m short of its target, Apple says it sold 6.9m iPhones during the last quarter alone. As the iPhone goes global, it’s… more...

When you are building an iPhone killer there are some considerations to take into account. How much should it look like an iPhone, do you try and copy the iPhones functionality or improve upon it and should you dress up the OS to look like?

One company has decided that only looks matter. They’ve said: “Screw functionality, screw the OS, let’s just go for looks!” Who is this company? No name is given but the phone they are peddling looks exactly like an iPhone. Press the home button and the Apple logo appears but that is it. Once you get the phone home you discover that, well, it is just an iPhone shell with a lightbulb inside (see, the OS doesn’t matter!)

Don’t worry about ending up with one unless you live in China for now. For pics and more details visit Popgive.com.

It’s official, the Blackberry Storm is coming to Verizon and it has been publicly confirmed by RIM. That isn’t a surprise, Verizon has undoubtably been chafing at all the iPhone defections and was likely to give RIM anything the company wanted to make a legit challenger to the iPhone. Still in the dark are prices and availability. Keep this stuff coming out in a steady trickle and maybe you can people excited enough to line up outside a Verizon store.

Is there any reason for Apple to be worried? The most obvious one is that the Storm will be available on Verizon and many people prefer Verizon to AT&T. I’m aware of at least one company that limits cell carriers to Verizon or Sprint if the employees want to be reimbursed for their wireless bills. But the Storm has more going for it than just Verizon. In response to the feel of the virtual iPhone keyboard the Storm’s keyboard will actually depress slightly when users mash it. This behavior, accompanied with an audible click, will supposedly make typing more reliable. The idea is intriguing but if the Storm is using a resistive… more...

Yesterday we covered a spec sheet showdown (where the iPhone lost) and opined that this a battle that wouldn’t be won with a spec sheet. Today we learn that the spec sheet was misleading. Eric Zeman runs through the specs and actually gets to use the thing. Yes, the 5800 wins on the spec sheet war but loses the “this is something I actually want to won battle”
Why? Nokia cut corners to keep the price down, the phone feels cheap, it uses touch resistance instead of touch capacitance and the OS sucks.