Verizon

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...

Is the Google Mobile app available yet? If not, why not? (as of 10:08 Sunday night it wasn’t). Well, Google Mobile App was available but it was the same old lame Google Mobile App as before. The one you want is:

Sadly that app isn’t available yet. Too bad because that is a completely killer app. If Apple has a lick of sense it will get that one out as soon as possible and whip up some commercials showing it off. Sure, Urban Spoon is mildly diverting (Me hungry, me can no pick food!) but it is more gimmicky than truly useful.

Which app do you think worries RIM and Verizon more?

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...

Quick, what is the worst thing about the iPhone? No physical keyboard? An accelerometer that only works 75% of the time? THE FACT THAT IT IS TIED TO AT&T? Yeah, we’ll go with the last one. Everyone knows that Apple signed some kind of exclusivity deal with AT&T but know one outside of Apple and AT&T really know how long that period actually lasts. 9to5mac has assembled various to think that sometime in 2009 Apple will punt the whole AT&T only deal and go with more than one carrier. That is something Apple would like to do. Check out the full article at 9to5Mac.

You remember the Blackberry Storm right? Verizon’s answer to the iPhone. Coming this fall. Fisrt touch screen Blackberry. For all the blah, blah, blah on the storm check out the video in this post. The Storm seems pretty cool to those stuck on Verizon but AT&T doesn’t sell it so the company has come up with a flier explaining why the iPhone is better (see the flier at BoyBeniusReport).
What are some of the advantages of the iPhone over the Storm (update: THe Storm actually has these things but looking at the flier you’d never know)?
No multitouch!
No 3G!
No Wi-Fi!
Good lord, is the storm a phone or a brick painted to look shiny? Geeze what a piece. You know what else the Storm doesn’t have? GPS. That’s right, you get lost in a canyon and you won’t know where you are with a Storm. You’ll wander for days and finally starve to death. Can you believe it, Verizon is selling a phone that could kill you!

Well, it isn’t… more...

It must be iPhone killer day here on iPhonematters because it isn’t just HTC making some noise, it is also the Blackberry Storm. The Storm will be the first touchscreen Blackberry and looks a lot like the iPhone. Bonus points? You can only get it from Verizon.

Okay, so far we have:
Looks like an iPhone
Tied to a single carrier like an iPhone
Visual voicemail like an iPhone
Button free like an iPhone…
So it is pretty clearly an iPhone rip off. Which is fine, imitation sincerest form of flattery, competition is good etc.. The really cool thing is that we can calculate how long it takes to make a full fledged iPhone killer. First we’ll need to decide when Verizon and RIM decided they really wanted a complete iPhone killer. Forward thinking companies would have soiled themselves at MacWorld 07 but Verizon didn’t want anything to do with the iPhone back then. So a logical time seems to be June 2007 when people were canceling their Verizon contracts to hope on the iPhone bandwagon. Using that as the start date… more...

After turning down the iPhone, Verizon has been confident in their abilites to combat AT&T but they have recently extended their campaign of global domination, err, continuing to be America’s leading wireless service.

AT&T, can you hear me now? Good!

Blogged On My iPhone

First post of my challenge, wasn’t too bad, just a small post and according to my Spell Checker only Verizon is spelled wrong.

I’ve been a Verizon wireless customer since 1997. Yep, 10 years. And now I’m about to say good riddance. Bitter? You bet. Why? Well, here are my reasons why I can’t wait to switch away from Verizon:

1) Fees, fees, fees. You start off with a 24.99 plan that ends up costing 60 bucks somehow. Its always been like this and I’m sick of it.
2) No innovation: Verizon has these horrible locked-down interface on their phone. Sure, you get a Razr...but you get one with a craptacular Verizon interface.
3) More device selection. Of course this doesn’t matter now with the iPhone but Verizon has always lagged behind in device selection.
4) Sticking it to the arrogance of Verizon for passing up on the iPhone.
5) Getting back at them for not letting me upgrade a phone 1 month before my 2 years even though I was having problem with my phone, and had been a customer for 8, yes 8 years.

Sure, I know AT&T will probably be a pain from a plan standpoint. And yes I know that all the cell carriers in the US… more...