RIM (Blackberry) is in free fall

[JohnV474]

It's useful when you'are texting or entering data while driving...

This would be a big benefit for many people. As for myself, I am aware that driving is, by far, the most dangerous activity humans participate in on a regular basis... and it is rarely treated as such.

There are many times that not being obligated to look at the keyboard could come in handy. For example, I could be waiting for the crosswalk sign to change while I am sending a message, or while sitting in a traffic jam, or while riding as a passenger--I get carsick if I try to read my phone. In any case, I prefer the feedback of a physical keyboard, but not all users do.

-JohnV474

[JohnV474]

I agree with above. The fact that blackberry syncs with Outlook means you can backup your data within a format that is unlikely to become obsolete for a very long time. I have many notes that may be useful for decades. Not really GTD I guess but an important general filing system.

I have also learnt that using the best system for GTD means going against the flow a bit. Palm was the best and has gone down. Blackberry may be next, so I must be doing something right!

There is a pattern:

consumer-grade (gizmo) with flashy design and lots of add-ons and hype (priorities: fashionable cutting-edge technologies, touch screens, streaming media, doodads, COST) vs industrial-grade equipment used by professionals (priorities: dependability, durability, quality, and capability, THEN cost)

We see this pattern in comparing trendy phones (take your pick) with business phones (Blackberry, Palm), consumer laptops (Dell Inspiron series) vs. business laptops (Lenovo Thinkpad T or W series), keyboards or stereo equipment sold at Costco vs Denon, JBL, or rackmount equipment sold for professional use, $600 fashion handbags/briefcases vs $600 Saddleback or Colonel Littleton bags, and the list could go on and on.

I would gladly pay $2000 for a phone, $6000 for a laptop, or $50,000 for the vehicle that met all of my requirements, but they do not exist, so compromise is inevitable. If buying a phone is akin to buying a video game system, then cost is a priority. If buying a phone is akin to a mechanic selecting a toolset, then ROI overshadows initial cost.

Okay, off the tangent and soapbox... I look forward to Blackberry's next releases, though my current model has exceeded my expectations in all measures of increased productivity.

-JohnV474

[TesTeq]

Perhaps it would sound better if I said RIM's long-term vision was flawed, and their short-term catchup strategy has not worked. It will be interesting to watch what happens with RIM, HP and Microsoft, from an academic point of view.

I was cleaning up today, and came across an old Sharp Wizard organizer. It was hard to read, slow, and had very sophisticated integrated software. Palm came along, started simple but synched to PCs nicely, and before too long the only Sharp organizers were $20 at office supply stores. I don't know what's next, but I don't think we have exhausted disruptive technologies.

Companies do not learn from other companies' experiences. RIM walks the Palm's path...

[mcogilvie]

consumer-grade (gizmo) with flashy design and lots of add-ons and hype (priorities: fashionable cutting-edge technologies, touch screens, streaming media, doodads, COST) vs industrial-grade equipment used by professionals (priorities: dependability, durability, quality, and capability, THEN cost)

We see this pattern in comparing trendy phones (take your pick) with business phones (Blackberry, Palm), consumer laptops (Dell Inspiron series) vs. business laptops (Lenovo Thinkpad T or W series), keyboards or stereo equipment sold at Costco vs Denon, JBL, or rackmount equipment sold for professional use, $600 fashion handbags/briefcases vs $600 Saddleback or Colonel Littleton bags, and the list could go on and on.

I think one has to be very careful with these sorts of arguments, because many companies love to sell people on the distinction between consumer and professional goods. I generally look for companies that are focused on good design, high functionality, and quality. For me, neither $600 fashion handbags/briefcases nor $600 Saddleback or Colonel Littleton bags have the functionality I want (although I love good leather), which I find in ballistic nylon at half the price. RIM had a business model that was predicated on businesses of a certain size: a proprietary push server with dedicated IT people to look after it. RIM did very well for a time, just like Novell networks did, but it probably can't compete anymore because cell phones are now whole-life devices.

[humblepie]

My take Is that paper based system is the safest. This coming from a person who developed an android task list