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BlackBerry May Crack Under Pressure from iPhone 3G
July 30, 2008 05:59 AM
by
Rachel Balik
RIM’s quiet debut of the BlackBerry Bold has not deflected predictions that the company will take a hit from the new iPhone.
30-Second Summary
Research In Motion (RIM), maker of the corporately ubiquitous BlackBerry smartphone, may be losing its alpha position in the market, thanks to the hype surrounding Apple’s new 3G iPhone. BlackBerry has released a new model, the BlackBerry Bold, but has not made efforts to draw attention to it in the United States. It debuted in Australia on July 29, 2008, with minimal press.
Needham analyst Charlie Wolf believes that “the iPhone is bound to cut into BlackBerry’s incredible growth in the consumer smartphone market.”
UBS telecom analyst Maynard Um offered a report to the contrary on July 15, 2008: “we believe concern regarding competition from iPhone and 3G Bold shipment timing is overstated.”
Reviews of the Bold are mixed, while tech blog Engadget’s iPhone review declares that “you're going to have a hard time finding a better device for two hundred bucks—or maybe even for any price.”
Needham analyst Charlie Wolf believes that “the iPhone is bound to cut into BlackBerry’s incredible growth in the consumer smartphone market.”
UBS telecom analyst Maynard Um offered a report to the contrary on July 15, 2008: “we believe concern regarding competition from iPhone and 3G Bold shipment timing is overstated.”
Reviews of the Bold are mixed, while tech blog Engadget’s iPhone review declares that “you're going to have a hard time finding a better device for two hundred bucks—or maybe even for any price.”
Headline Links: Will the new iPhone flatten the BlackBerry?
Investors in Research In Motion (RIM) are unsettled by the success of the new iPhone 3G. RIM’s shares peaked in mid-June, but took a notable drop when Apple released the 3G. RIM has waged a quiet counterattack against iPhone mania with the BlackBerry Bold, its own 3G model. But it hasn’t even announced this product officially in the United States. One analyst says, “while these models should enjoy some success, they have no hope of matching the secret sauce of the iPhone—the tight integration of hardware and software that creates a unique user experience.” Until recently, RIM dominated the smartphone market.
Source: MarketWatch
RIM hasn’t drawn much attention to the BlackBerry Bold in the United States, but it debuted in Australia on July 29, 2008, with RIM spokesperson Dennis Kavelman noting features that improved upon the iPhone. “These were long battery life, expandable memory, a removable battery and being stingy when it came to consuming 3G data, which is very expensive in Australia,” the Australian IT reports. As part of RIM efforts to go after the broader consumer market, Kavelman also said, “Our job in recent years has been to disguise this tool as something fashionable."
Source: Australia IT News
Reactions: Which smartphone are people buying?
In a poll of people planning to purchase a smartphone in the next 90 days, the Hotwire blog found that 56 percent of them intended to purchase an iPhone. At the same time, “RIM's share of consumer planned purchases is set to take a significant hit over the next 90 days.” The blog reports that Apple’s announcement about the 3G phone had “tsunami-like impact on the smartphone market.” The efficacy of RIM’s plans to counter the new iPhone with upcoming product releases of its own remains to be seen.
Source: Hotwire Blog
UBS telecom analyst Maynard Um predicts that BlackBerry won’t lose many customers to Apple, even with the introduction of the new iPhone. Um polled iPhone buyers in the United States and the UK and found that fewer than five percent of those in line to buy the new 3G were replacing their BlackBerry. He concluded, “We believe concern regarding competition from iPhone and 3G Bold shipment timing is overstated and expect stronger growth driven by current investments in the back half and into next fiscal year.”
Source: Financial Post
Needham analyst Charlie Wolf says that “While RIM’s dominance of the enterprise market appears secure, at least for now, the company’s great growth driver—the consumer market—is bound to come under siege because of the iPhone.” The BlackBerry Pearl helped the company tap into the consumer market, but Wolf says, “the iPhone is bound to cut into BlackBerry’s incredible growth in the consumer smartphone market.”
Source: Barron’s Tech Trader Daily
Opinion & Analysis: BlackBerry Bold vs. the iPhone
The Boy Genius Report Tech blog got its hands on an early model of the BlackBerry Bold and reports, “It is the most vibrant, color-rich, sharp screen we’ve ever seen on a mobile device.” Unfortunately, it scratches easily. The Boy Genius also reviews every other element of the new Bold. It notes improved connectivity, excellent call quality and declares enthusiastically that “And if there is anyone who understands keyboards, it’s usually RIM.” However, a few aspects of this new keyboard are “awkward.”
Source: Boy Genius Report
A comprehensive review of the new iPhone from Engadget was primarily favorable, and noted that kinks from the old iPhone had been ironed out. The blog anticipates that some diehard BlackBerry users will be feel like the iPhone is “playing catch-up,” and recognizes BlackBerry efforts to produce its own share of improved devices, “but even the would-be iPhone killers being churned out weekly haven't yet found a way to counter the iPhone's usability and seamless integration of service and software, desktop and mobile, and media and internet.”
Source: Engadget
Reference: BlackBerry Web Guide, shopping for smartphones
The findingDulcinea BlackBerry Web Guide offers a host of resources on the Web dedicated to enhancing the user experience for this trend in modern communication.
Source: findingDulcinea
findingDulcinea’s “Shop Around the Web: Cell Phones” provides additional information about the pros and cons of various smartphones, including the BlackBerry and the iPhone.
Source: findingDulcinea
© 2009 Dulcinea Media, Inc.
