QNX has been around a very long time, and has had a very respectable reputation. I would not dismiss them based on the RIM purchase. Oh speaking as a 3G owner that tried to run 4.0 on his iPhone, Apple would be able to learn a thing or two from QNX.
Google 'blackpad iPad killer' and you already get 68,500 hits.
I hate the phrase not because of any real threat, but because its just such lazy journalism.
In this case, AI did not use the phrase and neither did Blackberry. It's not lazy journalism so much as lazy criticism. "Oh, Blackberry wants to make a tablet? Obviously, it's supposed to be an iPad killer and it will fail."
I think it is time to notice (again) how Apple has been able to turn the name "pad" into the standard term for a thin tablet. Lest we forget, only 6 or 7 months ago the term was derided by trolls and Apple critics and openly questioned by many supporters. Now? It is the unquestioned standard...
Anyway, I am curious to see what RIM comes up with.
Apple took a common name for thin tablets and prefixed it with an "i". It isn't a wonderful new creation but a simple retasking of common usage.
Don't get me wrong Apple does do wonderful things but in this case they just brought up rights to a preexisting mark. The fact that Apple is doing real business on the product is another issue altogether.
Apple took a common name for thin tablets and prefixed it with an "i". It isn't a wonderful new creation but a simple retasking of common usage.
Don't get me wrong Apple does do wonderful things but in this case they just brought up rights to a preexisting mark. The fact that Apple is doing real business on the product is another issue altogether.
Likewise, "pod" is just a word, meaning among other things, a school of whales. Nobody would seriously argue that Apple hasn't made it synonymous with something entirely new and different in the popular culture. Recalling also that before its release, the iPad was widely rumored to be called the iSlate, and also referred to as Apple's forthcoming tablet computer. So this choice of names did matter. RIM could easily have called their tablet the BlackSlate, which has a marketing logic of its own -- but they chose to call it a "pad," and not without good reason.
Apparently there is a pent-up demand for tablets in hospitals, medical facilities, etc. It appears that several companies are targeting 7" tablets for this use. I would think the larger screen iPad would be a superior solution.
.
OK how does a larger screen actually work better in the above described industries? Remember you are talking about people that are constantly on the go. IPads size is an issue for many potential business users. It is simply to big to carry around on a long shift. Oh it isn't the wieght either, but rather the size. To be useful the pad would have to go in the same pockets as the rest of stuff these professionals carry.
Yes they do. You can buy Blackberry accessories in pretty much every outlet that sells iPhone accessories.
Don't forget that Blackberries outsell iPhones by a huge margin.
I think that when he said "vibrant ecosystem" he was mostly referring to the apps and media companies that support the iOS platform, although you are right that RIM has a vibrant ecosystem of users, re-sellers, accessory makers etc.
To me RIM's essential problem is that the iPad is primarily a slick, passive media consumption device. Something the Blackberry (or any of RIMs products), didn't even do until recently and has never done well. Unless the berryPad is aimed at business users (and thus not even competing with iPad), I don't see why anyone is going to buy one. Apple has better deals with the media moguls, it has iTunes, it has the app store, etc. etc.
They could show up Apple by making a business pad that you can do serious work on, but somehow I think they are likely to aim at the wrong market segment again and thus fail.
Wrong. There are good reasons why books and magazines aren't printed landscape.
You seem to forget one important thing here, a little something called screen rotation. In a small device a wide aspect ratio is much better at displaying a column of text. In fact the difference is huge in comparison to a 4:3 aspect ratio that offers little advantage when rotated. Likewise for book reading. Look at a column of text in a paper back book, what is the aspect ration of that column of text? The text not the paper page.
To me RIM's essential problem is that the iPad is primarily a slick, passive media consumption device. Something the Blackberry (or any of RIMs products), didn't even do until recently and has never done well. Unless the berryPad is aimed at business users (and thus not even competing with iPad), I don't see why anyone is going to buy one. Apple has better deals with the media moguls, it has iTunes, it has the app store, etc. etc.
They could show up Apple by making a business pad that you can do serious work on, but somehow I think they are likely to aim at the wrong market segment again and thus fail.
My guess is that the RIM will be a hybrid which capitalizes on the platform's existing strengths, while overlapping other markets.
For example, while enterprise acceptance will likely dwarf anything Apple is likely to see, its form factor likely will work much better for casual video watching too. I see wide acceptance, despite it being optimal for certain users and not a "lowest common denominator" appliance.
OK how does a larger screen actually work better in the above described industries? Remember you are talking about people that are constantly on the go. IPads size is an issue for many potential business users. It is simply to big to carry around on a long shift. Oh it isn't the wieght either, but rather the size. To be useful the pad would have to go in the same pockets as the rest of stuff these professionals carry.
Bigger screen and wider viewing angle is better:
-- to display video & images: Scans, XRays, etc. and share with colleagues and patients.
-- to handwrite notes RXs
-- bigger virtual kb and larger remaining display area for typing.
Carrying, pocket size is an issue. I don't know if the pockets on Lab Coats or Scrubs are large enough to hold the iPad-- I searched and couldn't find an answer.
A soccer teammate of my granddaughter attends a medical high school -- I know she wears scrubs, and I'll check to see if she has access to lab coats. (She says her cell phone gets lost in her scrubs).
But, even if the pockets are large enough for an iPad or a 7" tablet, they would need to be re-enforced and weight-distributed to be comfortable.
I suspect that some enterprising person will design an underarm, over the shoulder, holster for the iPad... Maybe I will, what with carrying an iPhone, iPad, Camera Bag, Tripod, Folding chair and a water bottle to soccer practice and games.
A comfortable, utilitarian iPad holster would, likely, be acceptable in the fashion-agnostic medical profession.
For those of us that follow such things, another couple of milestones have been reached-- one earlier today.
AAPL surpasses MSFT market value by $50 Billion.
AAPL market value is 1,135% of DELL market value.
... maybe Apple should take part of that $42 Billion cash, buy Dell, liquidate it, and pay off the shareholders.
.
What I always find the most interesting in this is not that Apple is at 260 billion but that Microsoft actually dropped from over 500 billion.
I would expect Apple to be at 260 because they are doing everything well at this point and selling very well. What always gets me is how badly Microsoft has dropped over the years.
You seem to forget one important thing here, a little something called screen rotation. In a small device a wide aspect ratio is much better at displaying a column of text. In fact the difference is huge in comparison to a 4:3 aspect ratio that offers little advantage when rotated. Likewise for book reading. Look at a column of text in a paper back book, what is the aspect ration of that column of text? The text not the paper page.
Which is why books are printed without margins and the pages are single sided, so I can enjoy that special "one column at a time" experience in the skinniest possible form factor?
For instance, is my reading experience improved by slicing off the margins of this?:
Or is there something off-putting about this presentation?:
Sure, widescreen is better for some videos. I don't think it's reasonable to argue that it's better for reading books or web browsing or any number of apps, since more screen real estate is more screen real estate.
Originally Posted by AppleInsider;1719043 In August, RIM held a high-profile publicity event to launch the BlackBerry Torch, a smartphone meant to compete with the iPhone 4.[c
Although RIM failed to generate any Apple-ish buzz with the launch of the Torch, folks that have played with the device say it?s not as bad as portrayed. In fact, expectations seem to be low enough for the Torch that many users will be pleasantly surprised.
In other words ... oh well, we weren't expecting much ... and we weren't disappointed. priceless!
Which is why books are printed without margins and the pages are single sided, so I can enjoy that special "one column at a time" experience in the skinniest possible form factor?
For instance, is my reading experience improved by slicing off the margins of this?:
Or is there something off-putting about this presentation?:
Sure, widescreen is better for some videos. I don't think it's reasonable to argue that it's better for reading books or web browsing or any number of apps, since more screen real estate is more screen real estate.
IMO, the portrait view adds margins that are more then twice as wide as normal. Firat there is the nice white margin, and then a huge black margin.
The format looks suboptimal to me. Slavishly following an old medium in order to offer a lookalike replica on a new medium rarely works best.
Comments
QNX has been around a very long time, and has had a very respectable reputation. I would not dismiss them based on the RIM purchase. Oh speaking as a 3G owner that tried to run 4.0 on his iPhone, Apple would be able to learn a thing or two from QNX.
So true
.
Google 'blackpad iPad killer' and you already get 68,500 hits.
I hate the phrase not because of any real threat, but because its just such lazy journalism.
In this case, AI did not use the phrase and neither did Blackberry. It's not lazy journalism so much as lazy criticism. "Oh, Blackberry wants to make a tablet? Obviously, it's supposed to be an iPad killer and it will fail."
I think it is time to notice (again) how Apple has been able to turn the name "pad" into the standard term for a thin tablet. Lest we forget, only 6 or 7 months ago the term was derided by trolls and Apple critics and openly questioned by many supporters. Now? It is the unquestioned standard...
Anyway, I am curious to see what RIM comes up with.
Apple took a common name for thin tablets and prefixed it with an "i". It isn't a wonderful new creation but a simple retasking of common usage.
Don't get me wrong Apple does do wonderful things but in this case they just brought up rights to a preexisting mark. The fact that Apple is doing real business on the product is another issue altogether.
RIM bought QNX, which makes operating systems for everything from "cars to nuclear reactors."
Should go down a bomb then. Sorry couldn't resist.
Bye!
Apple took a common name for thin tablets and prefixed it with an "i". It isn't a wonderful new creation but a simple retasking of common usage.
Don't get me wrong Apple does do wonderful things but in this case they just brought up rights to a preexisting mark. The fact that Apple is doing real business on the product is another issue altogether.
Likewise, "pod" is just a word, meaning among other things, a school of whales. Nobody would seriously argue that Apple hasn't made it synonymous with something entirely new and different in the popular culture. Recalling also that before its release, the iPad was widely rumored to be called the iSlate, and also referred to as Apple's forthcoming tablet computer. So this choice of names did matter. RIM could easily have called their tablet the BlackSlate, which has a marketing logic of its own -- but they chose to call it a "pad," and not without good reason.
Should go down a bomb then. Sorry couldn't resist.
Bye!
Which, curiously enough, has just the opposite meaning in American and British slang!
.........
Apparently there is a pent-up demand for tablets in hospitals, medical facilities, etc. It appears that several companies are targeting 7" tablets for this use. I would think the larger screen iPad would be a superior solution.
.
OK how does a larger screen actually work better in the above described industries? Remember you are talking about people that are constantly on the go. IPads size is an issue for many potential business users. It is simply to big to carry around on a long shift. Oh it isn't the wieght either, but rather the size. To be useful the pad would have to go in the same pockets as the rest of stuff these professionals carry.
Yes they do. You can buy Blackberry accessories in pretty much every outlet that sells iPhone accessories.
Don't forget that Blackberries outsell iPhones by a huge margin.
I think that when he said "vibrant ecosystem" he was mostly referring to the apps and media companies that support the iOS platform, although you are right that RIM has a vibrant ecosystem of users, re-sellers, accessory makers etc.
To me RIM's essential problem is that the iPad is primarily a slick, passive media consumption device. Something the Blackberry (or any of RIMs products), didn't even do until recently and has never done well. Unless the berryPad is aimed at business users (and thus not even competing with iPad), I don't see why anyone is going to buy one. Apple has better deals with the media moguls, it has iTunes, it has the app store, etc. etc.
They could show up Apple by making a business pad that you can do serious work on, but somehow I think they are likely to aim at the wrong market segment again and thus fail.
Wrong. There are good reasons why books and magazines aren't printed landscape.
You seem to forget one important thing here, a little something called screen rotation. In a small device a wide aspect ratio is much better at displaying a column of text. In fact the difference is huge in comparison to a 4:3 aspect ratio that offers little advantage when rotated. Likewise for book reading. Look at a column of text in a paper back book, what is the aspect ration of that column of text? The text not the paper page.
which makes operating systems for everything from "cars to nuclear reactors.
Nuclear reactor UIs are very, very nice.
.
For those of us that follow such things, another couple of milestones have been reached-- one earlier today.
AAPL surpasses MSFT market value by $50 Billion.
AAPL market value is 1,135% of DELL market value.
... maybe Apple should take part of that $42 Billion cash, buy Dell, liquidate it, and pay off the shareholders.
.
For consumers, is any of that important?
To me RIM's essential problem is that the iPad is primarily a slick, passive media consumption device. Something the Blackberry (or any of RIMs products), didn't even do until recently and has never done well. Unless the berryPad is aimed at business users (and thus not even competing with iPad), I don't see why anyone is going to buy one. Apple has better deals with the media moguls, it has iTunes, it has the app store, etc. etc.
They could show up Apple by making a business pad that you can do serious work on, but somehow I think they are likely to aim at the wrong market segment again and thus fail.
My guess is that the RIM will be a hybrid which capitalizes on the platform's existing strengths, while overlapping other markets.
For example, while enterprise acceptance will likely dwarf anything Apple is likely to see, its form factor likely will work much better for casual video watching too. I see wide acceptance, despite it being optimal for certain users and not a "lowest common denominator" appliance.
OK how does a larger screen actually work better in the above described industries? Remember you are talking about people that are constantly on the go. IPads size is an issue for many potential business users. It is simply to big to carry around on a long shift. Oh it isn't the wieght either, but rather the size. To be useful the pad would have to go in the same pockets as the rest of stuff these professionals carry.
Bigger screen and wider viewing angle is better:
-- to display video & images: Scans, XRays, etc. and share with colleagues and patients.
-- to handwrite notes RXs
-- bigger virtual kb and larger remaining display area for typing.
Carrying, pocket size is an issue. I don't know if the pockets on Lab Coats or Scrubs are large enough to hold the iPad-- I searched and couldn't find an answer.
A soccer teammate of my granddaughter attends a medical high school -- I know she wears scrubs, and I'll check to see if she has access to lab coats. (She says her cell phone gets lost in her scrubs).
But, even if the pockets are large enough for an iPad or a 7" tablet, they would need to be re-enforced and weight-distributed to be comfortable.
I suspect that some enterprising person will design an underarm, over the shoulder, holster for the iPad... Maybe I will, what with carrying an iPhone, iPad, Camera Bag, Tripod, Folding chair and a water bottle to soccer practice and games.
A comfortable, utilitarian iPad holster would, likely, be acceptable in the fashion-agnostic medical profession.
.
.
For those of us that follow such things, another couple of milestones have been reached-- one earlier today.
AAPL surpasses MSFT market value by $50 Billion.
AAPL market value is 1,135% of DELL market value.
... maybe Apple should take part of that $42 Billion cash, buy Dell, liquidate it, and pay off the shareholders.
.
What I always find the most interesting in this is not that Apple is at 260 billion but that Microsoft actually dropped from over 500 billion.
I would expect Apple to be at 260 because they are doing everything well at this point and selling very well. What always gets me is how badly Microsoft has dropped over the years.
You seem to forget one important thing here, a little something called screen rotation. In a small device a wide aspect ratio is much better at displaying a column of text. In fact the difference is huge in comparison to a 4:3 aspect ratio that offers little advantage when rotated. Likewise for book reading. Look at a column of text in a paper back book, what is the aspect ration of that column of text? The text not the paper page.
Which is why books are printed without margins and the pages are single sided, so I can enjoy that special "one column at a time" experience in the skinniest possible form factor?
For instance, is my reading experience improved by slicing off the margins of this?:
Or is there something off-putting about this presentation?:
Sure, widescreen is better for some videos. I don't think it's reasonable to argue that it's better for reading books or web browsing or any number of apps, since more screen real estate is more screen real estate.
[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ][/c]
Is it possible that we will see a review on the "blackpad" that will echo this one on the torch.
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/rims-b...of-mouth/38097
Although RIM failed to generate any Apple-ish buzz with the launch of the Torch, folks that have played with the device say it?s not as bad as portrayed. In fact, expectations seem to be low enough for the Torch that many users will be pleasantly surprised.
In other words ... oh well, we weren't expecting much ... and we weren't disappointed. priceless!
Some prior threads (now dead) were discussing market share vs profits. Here's another source:
http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2010/09/...strys-profits/
.
Which is why books are printed without margins and the pages are single sided, so I can enjoy that special "one column at a time" experience in the skinniest possible form factor?
For instance, is my reading experience improved by slicing off the margins of this?:
Or is there something off-putting about this presentation?:
Sure, widescreen is better for some videos. I don't think it's reasonable to argue that it's better for reading books or web browsing or any number of apps, since more screen real estate is more screen real estate.
IMO, the portrait view adds margins that are more then twice as wide as normal. Firat there is the nice white margin, and then a huge black margin.
The format looks suboptimal to me. Slavishly following an old medium in order to offer a lookalike replica on a new medium rarely works best.
Nuclear reactor UIs are very, very nice.
... don't touch that button!