Is Apple scared of RIM?
(Credit:
RIM)
Is it a coincidence that Apple's iPhone 2.2 update was released on the same day the BlackBerry Storm hit stores with a touch screen, 3G connectivity, and enterprise-friendly functionality that rivals anything Apple has on the market?
I think not.
Today's iPhone update is Apple's first salvo of many in its fight against Research In Motion for dominance over the cell phone industry. Some might say Apple's decision to update the iPhone is pure coincidence, but I don't think that the company is that naive.
Apple realizes that RIM is releasing a major offering that could shake Steve Jobs and Co. to its core, and it doesn't want anyone to think it's not doing everything it can to continually update its own product.
But Apple's decision to release the update just as RIM releases the Storm strikes me as one of the most fascinating moves the company has made in quite some time. After checking out the update and considering the timing, I can't help but wonder if Apple is more than a little concerned about the BlackBerry Storm and RIM in general.
Sure, it's easy for some to say Apple has no reason to be scared of RIM, because the iPhone's popularity keeps growing, and its business functionality is now on par with RIM's, but I'm not so quick to agree. The BlackBerry Storm appeals to consumers who want a "next generation" cell phone, as well as company employees that want a new BlackBerry with all the extra fixins, to boot.
Say what you will, but Apple is scared. And it should be.
I have a feeling that the cell phone war between Apple and RIM will look much like the operating-system war Apple is fighting against Microsoft: RIM will hold the business ground and Apple the consumer space.
That said, neither company wants it to end that way, and perhaps that's why RIM is finally bringing a touch screen to the market, and Apple is making business functionality a key selling point with iPhone 3G.
Regardless, the BlackBerry Storm provides the kind of experience that we haven't seen yet from RIM. Unlike its previous iterations, in which a physical keyboard was the centerpiece of its strategy, RIM finally woke up and realized that the future is in the touch screen because that's where Apple brought us. And although it's probably not the most ideal form of text entry for business professionals, I think most will see past that, realize that the touch screen can be a better alternative, in some cases, and choose the Storm over any other device.
But perhaps the real reason why Apple should be scared of RIM is not because RIM is changing the way cell phones are made, or altering the dynamics of the industry. Apple should be scared because of its own shortcomings with the iPhone 3G.
Consider this: the BlackBerry Storm offers cut-and-paste (duh!) functionality, its touch screen provides tactile feedback, it works as a tethered modem (a major plus for businesses), allows for expandable memory, boasts video recording, and the battery is removable. The list goes on, but I think that grouping proves the point well: the iPhone 3G is not as capable as we may think.
Now, that's not to say that there aren't any shortcomings associated with the Storm, but let's face it: the number of shortcomings in the iPhone 3G far outweigh those found in the Storm.
Although it will never admit it, and Apple will claim that its iTunes integration and App Store makes it a better choice, you can bet that company executives are running scared Friday. Even though Apple created this category and revolutionized the market, RIM just one-upped the founders, and Apple knows that.
Say what you will about RIM, but the fact that the Storm's battery is removable, and it can be used as a tethered modem, is enough to justify companies picking them up for employees. And with the help of a touch screen and all the goodies consumers enjoy in the iPhone 3G, the Storm is an attractive choice for teenagers, college students, and even stay-at-home parents.
The iPhone was cool, up until yesterday. But today, there's a new phone in town, and if you ask me, it just took the title.
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Don Reisinger is a technology columnist who has written about everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Don is a member of the CNET Blog Network, and posts at The Digital Home. He is not an employee of CNET. Disclosure.
Just like Apple copied Xerox PARC's ideas and came up with their own version.... Much of the progress in computing involves improvements and derivatives of existing ideas.
Also, there's a diff between licensing a tech and copying it. ;)
TIME Magazine: ?Novelty screen feels cheap; steer clear of this storm?
Chicago Tribune: ?Can?t compete with Apple?s iPhone?
Gizmodo: ?Heavy, laggy, sluggish, unstable, clunky, and tiring?
Engadget: ?Frustrating, inelegant, uncomfortable; a disappointment?
PS: The android is a JOKE, 2 months more and it will be like the Sprint Instinct "Wow something new and after you buy it, you still have the same crappy interface as other phones, poor video playback quality and poor software"
I do find the article's contention that the 2.2 update was designed to be specially released today in an effort to 'dampen the storm' if I dare turn a phrase is a bit of a reach. I coulda sworn it was released in the US on the 20th, which was yesterday. That being so I'm not sure how an OS update for the iPhone today would affect the storm's sales or buzz.
As for Apple being afraid of RIM, I dunno that afraid is quite the right world. Certainly Apple knows they are a big competitor but for what little time Apple has been in this market they have gained a remarkable share. Clearly the market needed a shakeup and Apple provided that, now RIM has taken up the challenge and made their stab at it. I think if there's anyone who's afraid in the smartphone category it's probably Palm.
Palm pretty much owned this market via its Handspring acquisition in the summer of 2003, but its choice to spin off the OS side at the time was a fully boneheaded move. Eventually they would buy it back but the stagnation on it's operating system had taken hold by then. At the same time Palm's user satisfaction ratings have nosedived.
The iPhone led the satisfaction ratings last quarter but a large margin, once we get another quarter out we'll see how the Storm does and then we'll have a better grip on who's 'afraid'.
I have been an early adopter and Apple user since 2002. However I will never fall into this trap of believing that the pioneers at able are employed anywhere other than the marketing department. They bring many interesting technologies together in neat ways, but they didn't really "invent" any hardware nor where they the first to incorporate any new hardware. The inovations that shine from Cupertino, CA are software and user interface revolutions as well as interesting ideas for bringing new and pre-existing technologies together for profit. The Storm's main screen dosen't look much different from the main screen of a Blackberry 7290, or a PalmOne. The only thing that I can say is truely a copied iPhone inovation is Visual Voice-Mail.
Um . . . Apple didn't copy Xerox, they licensed the technology because no on else wanted it. The mouse as an input device was laughed at then, just as people laughed at the iPhone. There's a HUGE difference between incorporating technologies into an existing idea, and doing it legally, and simply 'copying'. RIM would be in the latter category with this device, but because Apple had the smarts to patent the iPhone out the wazoo, what they've come up with feels like . . . a cheap copy.
This is one of the only positive pieces I've seen for the device amidst an overwhelmingly negative reaction to real world use.
There will be no iAnything killer unless Apple itself fails and gets bought out by Microsoft. Too many fanatics who buy Apple crap just because its Apple, no matter what.
And yes, no wi-fi these days is idiotic.
Look out for Storm when it's available outside US (GSM network). It will surely have Wi-Fi build in it.
in other words nothing that happens with the UK market effects the US market trends enough to care about, but what happens with the US market ultimately effects the market trends all over the world
but yes the article is ridiculous
i don't think apple is scared they are just doing what they do, strategic marketing as usual
If they were anybody else, who doesn't have a reputation with surgically-precise marketing announcements then this would be a non-issue.
CNET articles are really laughable this days.
I want to surf the net at 50Mbs rather than 3Mbs when at a conference or work or home or out getting coffee. The real reason for the no WiFi, I'm almost positive, is because Verizon didn't want their customers using VoIP...Then, why the hell did RIM go with Verizon? I want to be able to use VoIP porgrams while in my house, because reception sucks on all carriers. (and I live in the city of Chicago).
Then the fact that they have released so few phones to stores today is another mystery...I think they could have had an iPhone killer, but they don't.
Which I think is sad, I would have bought it today. :(
Stupid article
yes, run circles indeed. And I'm not bashing apple products, just iPhone.
I love my iPod Nano.
Your comments and deductions are idiotic if not plan out ludicrous. Isn't there anything else for you to write about today.
Every major comparison of these two phones so far shows that the Storm is far superior to the iPhone and is just another "Me Too" wanna be version of the iPhone.
On top of that, Verizon has cripled this phone so much it is not even funny.... well actually it is quite funny.
Where are the 1000's of cool applications for this phone, where is the WiFi, even their new commercial for this is just plain silly.
Don, if these are the kind of articles you are going to write, I would stick to writing about the Flowbee 2000.
I sense a quantum conumdrum in your statement.
Based on the reviews I've read, the Storm has a hard to use screen that you have to actually click (slowing typing down), poor predictive typing, a browser that is still not on par with Safari, some programs that are not fluid or designed for a touchscreen, no WiFi, and syncing software that does not even begin to compare with the iTunes ecosystem... but, it does have Copy and Paste. Whoopie.
I've always been a Mac fan, and I've never owned a Blackberry. The iPhone made me consider a smart phone (but then I had a little lie-down and the crazy went away), but if I were to choose one, I'd be hard pressed. Because as an iPod Touch owner I know that the iPhone is pretty darn cool. But as a resident of Waterloo, living a stone's throw from the RIM campus, I want RIM to be wildly successful, because they employ a lot of my friends and family; they give back to the community (a lot, too) and they have helped attract a booming tech industry (including Google's Canadian office) to the city; which in turn employs some more of my family and friends, and means that my company has a whole lot of business that is going to keep me employed for the foreseeable future, economic downturn be damned.
So that's why, if I ever go crazy and decide I need a smartphone, I'll be a Mac user with a Blackberry. But in reality, I'm a pay as you go kind of guy.
Furthermore, Apple's unwillingness to incorporate Apps that have been in high demand since the product's launch 18 months ago (landscape keyboard, MMS, copy-paste?!?!) demonstrate a company attitude that does not care at all about what its customers want, or is completely out of touch with its customer base. Either way, it's a pathetic display of how Apple customer support operates.
RIM just delivered a phone that works, and provides practical mobile services and Apps that the typical cell phone user demands. I'll wait for the early reviews to come in, but RIM and Verizon may have just won my business. I'm sick of "hoping" for adequate updates from Apple.
But thanks for caring, buddy.
Drop the iPhone. You'll be amazed at how good it feels to have a phone that actually works again.
Alex Alexzander
Thanks for the tips, but the idea of having to add all of these separate Apps for basic functionality really irks me. Also, the only fully functional MMS App requires jail-breaking my iPhone, which I'm not interested in dealing with. With tethering, landscape typing, copy-paste, and MMS all features that are NATIVE to the Storm... it's hard for me to ignore.
If Apple threw us a bone by providing native MMS and landscape typing (in BOTH email AND MMS) in this latest firmware update, I would've considered sticking around to see how the iPhone evolved. However, they've jerked customers like me around one too many times by keeping these basic Apps away from the iPhone.
Verizon... here I come.
And you're wrong... next month there won't be a new thing; because MMS, tethering, and removable batteries are actually quite old technologies.
Tethering is coming btw, AT&T has already announced that. I'd also like to add on thing that the storm cant do, is get on an hour long phone call and still deliver your email, or allow you to browse. Far outweight MMS if you ask me. OH, better yet, I can just attach the picture I'd otherwise MMS, to an email while I'm on a phone call.
by Get_Bent November 21, 2008 9:58 AM PST
"it is now easy for everyone to copy Apple's ideas and come up with their own version."
Just like Apple copied Xerox PARC's ideas and came up with their own version.... Much of the progress in computing involves improvements and derivatives of existing ideas."
Apple paid Zerox for that, but we all follow in the footsteps of others.
Disclosure: I would happily dig up a corpse and desecrate it in any way or method my employer's CEO wants me to, if doing so meant that I could get rid of BES server (and its licensing costs) ASAP. I'm very sure that I'm not the only sysadmin (or CIO, or...) who would do the very same thing if the option were presented. Not because BES is evil (though it is at times), but because it's an added expense when there's really no need for it, technically (MS Exchange is expensive enough, kiddies...)
Right now, execs are getting cozy with the iPhone and (for the most part, though admittedly purely anecdotal) liking what they see.
As for the Storm? Nice concept, though even CNET has panned it in reviews.
CNETs recent not-so-shiny review of the Storm aside, it seems that every time someone (who isn't Apple) coughs up a touchscreen smartphone, it's an "iPhone Killar!!!11!!111OMGWTFBBQ!" Just like every time someone coughs up a PMP, it's suddenly an "iPod Killar!!!11!!!OMGPONIES!"
Sometimes it's like the tech opinionating crowd had graduated from The Pavlov School of Journalism or something.
Seriously - Apple isn't afraid, if the iPhone's growth curve (damned near veritcal) and impending marketshare dominance is any indication. It makes sense to keep ahead, but that's not a sign of fear - it's a sign of keeping ahead.
OTOH, one could make the logical argument that RIM's push-out of a pure touchscreen Blackberry (after years of saying they'd never consider such a "toy") is one hell of a sign of fear on RIM's part... and for good reason, considering that Apple is poised to obliterate them.
/P
With that said, I love my iPhone 3G but do miss cut and paste.
In less than two years, the iPhone has managed to obliterate 8 (9 or 10?) years' worth of work that Windows Mobile put into building their global marketshare, and 4-5 years' worth of effort that RIM put into being #1 in North America. Even Symbian is looking at Apple with a somewhat nervous eye these days...
Reality is BES is still the lowest TCO as with Windows Mobile you need to buy ANOTHER product to effectively equal the management of the devices (read more money) and with iPhone you pretty much have no management other then force password / timeout and remote wipe. Which once your saavy users jailbreak said iPhone can disable your ActiveSync policy.
Good luck with that.
...OTOH, there's only one real security policy that's necessary from my POV: removing access to sensitive docs and email if the phone gets stolen or lost (anything else is pretty much useless). Doing this is as simple as disabling mobile access to the mailbox and/or public folders that the thing accesses, which can be done right at the Exchange server. Or, as you've already indicated, change the password and wipe the thing remotely, and you're done. So why do I need a separate server and toolkit for that?
As for device management, that's easier than you think: it's not like iPhone users are going to chuck in unsigned apps or trade apps that haven't already been tested and approved by Apple (same story with RIM, actually). The rest starts delving into micromanagement, something that more often than not means more work than benefit...
/P
Sadly in the large corporate world the need is there to "micromanage" what can and cannot be on a device be it a laptop, desktop or mobile device and having control of that is desired. Apple would gain points seperating the device from iTunes and the Appstore as the majority of large companies don't care if their users can download the latest flashlight app.
I don't need to pay RIM $$$$ per annum just to write a quick spreadsheet macro/script to sort the raw bill, or to leaf through the carriers' report pages/scripts on my corp's account page...
As for the apps, sure - but that's the same story with laptops and etc. Good luck with that - it usually fails (or gets punched full of holes by CxO, IT and exec types) no matter what kit you choose.
BTW - the iPnone actually does have remote lock/wipe capabilities.
/P
Apple has set the bar, Rim's the one that needs to reach it. A new phone without wifi? Really? Really?
Seriously, phones have had MMS a LOT longer than they've had WiFi. *CHEAP* phones have MMS. Non-smartphones have MMS. I consider the lack of MMS a bigger fault than not having WiFi. Maybe Mac fans are used to drinking at Starbucks and being on WiFi all the time, but honestly, WiFi isn't that ubiquitous elsewhere. I get WiFi on my iPhone at home and at work. The Storm can still get on the internet without WiFi. The iPhone is screwed when trying to get an MMS. It *requires* you go to an actual computer. I can't tell you how often I get a "So and so sent you a Multimedia Message. Go to viewmymessage.com blah blah blah".
COPY & PASTE COPY & PASTE COPY & PASTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WIFI overated.
So yes, we can live without wifi. I'm amazed iphone owners can live without all the rest of the features provided by the Storm.
Could it be that MMS is the dinaosaur here? I can take a photo and send it in email to anyone. If their "SmartPhone" can't rcv an email with a photo in it, that's not a fault of the iPhone.
I find it hard to believe that very many of the 6 million who bought iPhones last quarter are going to dump them for Storms or anything less than say and open source cell phone, carrier neutral (and supported!) multi-touch interface personal communication device, that happens to play tunes, with unlimited data for $40/month.
The point is that folks will whine about what ISN'T in the iPhone as a way of licking their bruised egos.
- by Venkatasiva08 November 21, 2008 10:19 AM PST
- Apple should not be worried about RIM at all. Apple should be worried about Nokia. Did the cnet guys check out N71. Except for a touch screen it has everything under the sun and it looks damn cool and an unlocked one comes at about $350 with no strings attached.
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- by Groovydude November 23, 2008 7:56 PM PST
- Cnet's reviews are totally over-rated and the editor seems to lack actual tech experience.
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