This won't be taking sales from the iPad 2 (which will be out around the same time), but provided the product is as good as it appears, I suspect many BB owners will go for it. The tablet market looks ready to expand like the smartphone market has, and we'll all benefit.
If IT already has a BB rollout and are tied to BB enterprise services, this tablet would be an easy extension as opposed to a new platform and and new underdevloped enterprise solutions. You cant screw with BB in the enterprise they have this covered. Plus data conservation and security are a big deal Apple isnt there yet.
But I am not sure there was a controversy. A few people with certain fixations and a complaint that grew old very very quickly.
The Apple haters tried really hard to make it a controversy but I think they started to look like more and more morons as they tried to keep that one going. At least any comments on this are not trying to be infantile so far so that's a good thing. I find it interesting RIM picked this name. They are trying to break away from being seen as only a company making a product for men in striped suits. It seems in keeping with the ads they ran recently with dorky people and some really weird people using their little phone with a pull out keyboard and a touch screen (I was so busy laughing at the ads I forget the name of the phone).
The closest I can recall is the AppleTV, then called iTV. They actually intoruced a new product by a code name they knew wouldn’t be used for the shipping product!!!
Jobs showed slode of the HW with all the various ports, and one in hand and a working one to use with the IR remote to show you how it will function. The sound it makes when you press the remote to the time it takes for the menu to change actually seems a little slower than the working product that shipped. But it was about 6 months so I’m sure they refined some things before then.
This was still a working demo of a working product, still 6 months away from shipping (and is was still delayed by a month). If that is Apple, then I don’t have high hopes for any of these vapourware promo videos.
To me, this atypical demo screams that Apple was focusing on convincing the content owners of giving Apple rights before the AppleTV launched, not focusing on the consumer. Not that they re-introduced it before introducing the iPhone.
Rehearsed or not, it’s a real test. Though I have to say that Jobs fumbling with the iPad seemed completely unrehearsed, like he was given a tour for the first time 10 minutes before and then sent out on stage to show it off.
Everyone was in for a rough ride and still is. No one else has or had the expertise of HW, SW, UI and ecosystem for devices ranging from the iPod Shuffle to the Mac Pro. We talked about how great we thought Apple could make a phone if they wanted to, and how efficient and module Mac OS X was that they would eventually be able to run that is handheld devices. They’ve done that and they are expanding it. I don’t see anyone besting Apple in the profits game (the one that matters to companies) for the foreseeable future, but I hope some, RiM, can carve out a healthy niche for themselves.
Yes, I forgot the iTV but in a way (to me at least) that falls into the same category as an Airport or other peripherals so I don't really expect demos of such things in the way I do of the main items.
I hope SJ didn't work for weeks on that iPad demo and reads your comment ... you may just be on his s*it list LOL.
It seems to me as best I can recall that Apple and usually SJ in person, always demos an actual product regardless of the level of specifications you may feel are lacking. I don't remember a new hardware product being merely shows as a video concept since Steve returned. It isn't sizzle at all to me when he hold a product in his hands and actually uses it live, mishaps and all. It is steak I can always taste. Shipping dates may be some time later in some cases but often they are pretty swift. I also seem to recall SJ usually details the tech specs pretty well, usually telling us what we will see, showing us and then telling us again what he told us already.
I'm not comparing a Steve Jobs on-stage demo with an advertisement. Nobody does a product dog-and-pony show like Jobs. Nobody really even tries. I am only talking about ads. As for specifications, I don't recall if Steve told us the clock speed on the processor when the iPad was announced, but I know that some specs for the iPad have still never been officially disclosed, like the RAM. Not that I care -- it's simply a matter of selling product in the most effective manner.
Quote:
Originally Posted by solipsism
Lets compare like devices. The iPad, Kindle and PlayBook.
I'm not trying to compare devices, only the approach to advertising them. I well remember the reaction around here to some of the first iPad videos and ads. So many people were sure that you simply could not use the device as it was shown to be used.
I'm not trying to compare devices, only the approach to advertising them. I well remember the reaction around here to some of the first iPad videos and ads. So many people were sure that you simply could not use the device as it was shown to be used.
I think comparing the advertising methods are important, and I included Kindle and the N97 to give a more rounded and objective answer as to why this is not on the same level as the iPad (or Kindle).
As for those that don’t think it could work that way despite iPads on laps with hands manipulating them and a video of Jobs using it during the event and reviewers saying just how impressively snappy it was after the event. Christine O’Donnell said, "You know what, evolution is a myth. Why aren't monkeys still evolving into humans?” There will always be doubters.
I believe this is RIM with all guns blazing, fighting for future sales from their existing client base. They don't have anything to show, they're under pressure and they MUST deliver the goods (at least according to the media). I think we are all slightly suspicious here because they are promising a lot for a tablet in terms of specs and capability. I suspect the thing will be pretty heavy and with many 'problems' based not upon technical know-how but upon the belief that they cannot possibly manage to bring such a powerful, capable product to market with an all new OS in such a short time. But regardless of what the product may be and how well it will perform - RIM is shouting loud and waving promises in order to make their existing clients 'jump ship'. There may be a lot of companies thinking they have so much invested in RIM, and that this looks like a very capable product so they'll wait. They are waving impressive specs and they are aiming the device squarely at business users. I think it is what they MUST do at this point but who know what will happen if they fail.
Pretty good analysis... It's a battle for survival.
Though, if I were in IT or management, for an enterprise trying to implement a mobile solution, I don't think I would gamble and wait 4-6 months for a RIM solution. Rather, I'd go full bore ahead with the iPad -- the only tangible. I'd take care to design solutions that would work on either form factor.
Then, no matter the eventual hardware deployment, I'd be 6 months ahead of the game.
How does Flash handle mouseovers -- a modal hover mode?
It's ironic, but Apple with its integrated CPU and OS, could, likely, do an acceptable job of solving the Flash battery drain...
'Course that means that Adobe and Apple would need to develop a "joint" implementation.
.
"How does Flash handle mouseovers -- a modal hover mode?"
Honestly I have will have to back to you on that because I just installed the update. So other then doing a benchmark on fps I haven't really played around with it much yet. I was happy to see on average 57-60fps.
I really do believe Apple and Adobe could solve the battery drain issue which I why I hope they kiss and make up at some point.
Research in Motion on Monday announced the "PlayBook," a 7-inch multi-touch tablet that represents the smartphone maker's first attempt to take on Apple's highly successful iPad....
Wow. They're sure kissing the female segment of the market goodbye. I would think that would be the most loyal segment too. Corporate users are fickle.
And at the same time, they showed basically no productivity apps beyond the basic stuff that's on everyone's phone.
So they are aiming at the male, corporate market, with a product that does the same picture shows and video watching as the iPad? And 90% of the video is just concepts and not actual UI? Or maybe they haven't got any word processing apps lined up yet? Seems like they are scrambling here at best.
I think comparing the advertising methods are important, and I included Kindle and the N97 to give a more rounded and objective answer as to why this is not on the same level as the iPad (or Kindle).
As for those that don?t think it could work that way despite iPads on laps with hands manipulating them and a video of Jobs using it during the event and reviewers saying just how impressively snappy it was after the event. Christine O?Donnell said, "You know what, evolution is a myth. Why aren't monkeys still evolving into humans?? There will always be doubters.
What do you mean by level?
What about the iPod campaign, which Apple ran for years with images such as these:
Yeah - that's why I sense a lot of scepticism here. The other thing is the eco system. Even if it can grow and become relevant and significant RIM face a big task laying the foundations for this to blossom.
RIM current OS on their smartphones is really outdated. They are really going to have to pull a rabbit out of a hat if they want this Tablet to take off at all.
While I have used BB, iPhone and now currently giving Adroid a try I have to say I grabbed by friends BB the other day and compared to Android it was like going back to a 1970 Pinto.
You mean, like Apple announcing the iPad in January and not shipping until April? I read "early 2011" as possibly being little more than three months away.
The difference is that what the iPad is, what it does, and what it would cost were already set. Apple showed them off, told you when you could get it, and got developers on board.
RIM presented a sort of sketchy portrait, didn't say exactly when it would be released, and no idea what it will cost. Basically, they just got done designing this thing but still have some loose ends, and they don't even know the answers to those questions.
You mean, like Apple announcing the iPad in January and not shipping until April? I read "early 2011" as possibly being little more than three months away.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mazda 3s
Was gonna post the same thing...
The iPad was announced at the end of January and was in peoples hands at the beginning of April. What is that, around 60 days? And they announced pricing as well.
The RIM product has no pricing and an early 2011 ship date. If it was going to ship in January, they would have said so. What "early 2011" means is that they aren't confident about the ship date which will be Feb or March, at the earliest.
The early announcement was done, as others have suggested, to keep some people from buying competitors products. This is especially important because more and more Google powered devices will be hitting the market in this time frame. And make no mistake, it is not just about the tablet. RIM knows as their users adopt other devices they will start leaving their phone platform as well.
This RIM announcement reminds me of when Palm announced web OS for their new phone. Lots of hype and promises and while it was a okay device, the market had pegged it for irrelevance by the time it actually shipped.
The same thing will happen to RIM's pad. The company will be on life support and bought by another company in 18-24 months.
What about the iPod campaign, which Apple ran for years with images such as these:
... with the product barely even visible?
Hello ... talk about apples and oranges ... That's an ad ... not a product announcement that is supposed to highlight the next revolution the company is about to undertake ... as is the PlayBook for RIM.
The iPad was announced at the end of January and was in peoples hands at the beginning of April. What is that, around 60 days? And they announced pricing as well.
The RIM product has no pricing and an early 2011 ship date. If it was going to ship in January, they would have said so. What "early 2011" means is that they aren't confident about the ship date which will be Feb or March, at the earliest.
The early announcement was done, as others have suggested, to keep some people from buying competitors products. This is especially important because more and more Google powered devices will be hitting the market in this time frame. And make no mistake, it is not just about the tablet. RIM knows as their users adopt other devices they will start leaving their phone platform as well.
This RIM announcement reminds me of when Palm announced web OS for their new phone. Lots of hype and promises and while it was a okay device, the market had pegged it for irrelevance by the time it actually shipped.
The same thing will happen to RIM's pad. The company will be on life support and bought by another company in 18-24 months.
-kpluck
That's quite a prediction for a company with that much marketshare, and such a strong hold on enterprise.
I don't know how this device will go, but I recall the predictions of android being a non starter and didn't stand a chance against the iphone.
The iPad was announced at the end of January and was in peoples hands at the beginning of April. What is that, around 60 days? And they announced pricing as well.
The RIM product has no pricing and an early 2011 ship date. If it was going to ship in January, they would have said so. What "early 2011" means is that they aren't confident about the ship date which will be Feb or March, at the earliest.
The early announcement was done, as others have suggested, to keep some people from buying competitors products. This is especially important because more and more Google powered devices will be hitting the market in this time frame. And make no mistake, it is not just about the tablet. RIM knows as their users adopt other devices they will start leaving their phone platform as well.
This is also one of the reasons Apple broke their usual rules and pre-announced the iPad, so obviously two can play. I'm not counting days, as that's just a game. I'm also not guessing what RIM's pre-annoucment means in terms of a real shipping date, as that's just a fool's errand. I simply do not understand the position that the video is a "fake" and that the product is like Microsoft's nonexistent Courier. I've challenged people who say this to show me how RIM could be so stupid as to release a video a product that will either never arrive or not look at all like the promotional ad, but I notice nobody has taken me up on it.
Hello ... talk about apples and oranges ... That's an ad ... not a product announcement that is supposed to highlight the next revolution the company is about to undertake ... as is the PlayBook for RIM.
Huh? Whatever they happen to be advertising, they are both advertisements.
The iPad was announced at the end of January and was in peoples hands at the beginning of April. What is that, around 60 days? And they announced pricing as well.
The RIM product has no pricing and an early 2011 ship date. If it was going to ship in January, they would have said so. What "early 2011" means is that they aren't confident about the ship date which will be Feb or March, at the earliest.
The early announcement was done, as others have suggested, to keep some people from buying competitors products. This is especially important because more and more Google powered devices will be hitting the market in this time frame. And make no mistake, it is not just about the tablet. RIM knows as their users adopt other devices they will start leaving their phone platform as well.
This RIM announcement reminds me of when Palm announced web OS for their new phone. Lots of hype and promises and while it was a okay device, the market had pegged it for irrelevance by the time it actually shipped.
The same thing will happen to RIM's pad. The company will be on life support and bought by another company in 18-24 months.
Selling the sizzle instead of the steak. Apple's ads don't dwell on specifications, or even the functions of their products. If the ads work at all, it's because they make you excited about the concept they are selling. I've got nothing against it; this is just how advertising works. This is what RIM is doing with this ad. Very light on the specifics and long on eye-catching generalities. A lot like an Apple ad, is what I thought when I saw it. That BTW is not a criticism. Apple is the master of this approach.
The difference is Apple, post Jobs return, always uses the device itself in the ad used to sell the concept. They use the widget to tell a 30 sec story of the things it does and how you can feel cool using it.
RIM used Minority Report graphics completely disassociated from their product. The way cool images that have absolutely no chance of meeting expectations in the reality. The best potential differentiator in the ad, the augmented reality shot in the art gallery, could have been spectacular if it had been done with an actual device. But when you see it the second time you can tell the scene was composited. Badly. With the actual background bleeding through the too transparently composited element inside the picture frame.
The random switching between a 4:3 and 3:2 ratio in the Minority Report graphics are sure to be a bone of contention when the delivered screen doesn't look like most of the commercial. There is a section in the middle that looks most reasonable for a 3:2 display, but unless RIM is getting a custom panel, 1024x600 is shipping everywhere else as essentially 16:9. That means the geometries for content they are visually promising won't be there in reality.
They are also setting themselves up for potential buyer dissatisfaction because a 7" display is relatively small, but they always show it as really big. Yes, it's just advertising, not a literal promise, but RIM didn't put any context in there to mentally prepare buyers for e smallish screen. iPhones have tiny screens in comparison, but Apple always used real hands in the ads, so that phone in the ad on a 52" screen didn't cause any mental conflicts when you got to the store. The hand is an invariant that grounded the screen size despite being radically enlarged in the ads.
It's little stuff like this this that is incredibly important in shaping attitudes when people finally get to see the real thing. RIM is literally overselling the device, unintentionally, and setting themselves up for blogdom panning and overall disappointment when it actually ships.
Comments
This won't be taking sales from the iPad 2 (which will be out around the same time), but provided the product is as good as it appears, I suspect many BB owners will go for it. The tablet market looks ready to expand like the smartphone market has, and we'll all benefit.
If IT already has a BB rollout and are tied to BB enterprise services, this tablet would be an easy extension as opposed to a new platform and and new underdevloped enterprise solutions. You cant screw with BB in the enterprise they have this covered. Plus data conservation and security are a big deal Apple isnt there yet.
But I am not sure there was a controversy. A few people with certain fixations and a complaint that grew old very very quickly.
The Apple haters tried really hard to make it a controversy but I think they started to look like more and more morons as they tried to keep that one going. At least any comments on this are not trying to be infantile so far so that's a good thing. I find it interesting RIM picked this name. They are trying to break away from being seen as only a company making a product for men in striped suits. It seems in keeping with the ads they ran recently with dorky people and some really weird people using their little phone with a pull out keyboard and a touch screen (I was so busy laughing at the ads I forget the name of the phone).
I find it interesting RIM picked this name.
Playbook* (Highlight text or put on your They Live sunglasses to see why this is an aptly named device)
The closest I can recall is the AppleTV, then called iTV. They actually intoruced a new product by a code name they knew wouldn’t be used for the shipping product!!!
Jobs showed slode of the HW with all the various ports, and one in hand and a working one to use with the IR remote to show you how it will function. The sound it makes when you press the remote to the time it takes for the menu to change actually seems a little slower than the working product that shipped. But it was about 6 months so I’m sure they refined some things before then.
This was still a working demo of a working product, still 6 months away from shipping (and is was still delayed by a month). If that is Apple, then I don’t have high hopes for any of these vapourware promo videos.To me, this atypical demo screams that Apple was focusing on convincing the content owners of giving Apple rights before the AppleTV launched, not focusing on the consumer. Not that they re-introduced it before introducing the iPhone.
Rehearsed or not, it’s a real test. Though I have to say that Jobs fumbling with the iPad seemed completely unrehearsed, like he was given a tour for the first time 10 minutes before and then sent out on stage to show it off.
Everyone was in for a rough ride and still is. No one else has or had the expertise of HW, SW, UI and ecosystem for devices ranging from the iPod Shuffle to the Mac Pro. We talked about how great we thought Apple could make a phone if they wanted to, and how efficient and module Mac OS X was that they would eventually be able to run that is handheld devices. They’ve done that and they are expanding it. I don’t see anyone besting Apple in the profits game (the one that matters to companies) for the foreseeable future, but I hope some, RiM, can carve out a healthy niche for themselves.
Yes, I forgot the iTV but in a way (to me at least) that falls into the same category as an Airport or other peripherals so I don't really expect demos of such things in the way I do of the main items.
I hope SJ didn't work for weeks on that iPad demo and reads your comment ... you may just be on his s*it list LOL.
It seems to me as best I can recall that Apple and usually SJ in person, always demos an actual product regardless of the level of specifications you may feel are lacking. I don't remember a new hardware product being merely shows as a video concept since Steve returned. It isn't sizzle at all to me when he hold a product in his hands and actually uses it live, mishaps and all. It is steak I can always taste.
I'm not comparing a Steve Jobs on-stage demo with an advertisement. Nobody does a product dog-and-pony show like Jobs. Nobody really even tries. I am only talking about ads. As for specifications, I don't recall if Steve told us the clock speed on the processor when the iPad was announced, but I know that some specs for the iPad have still never been officially disclosed, like the RAM. Not that I care -- it's simply a matter of selling product in the most effective manner.
Lets compare like devices. The iPad, Kindle and PlayBook.
I'm not trying to compare devices, only the approach to advertising them. I well remember the reaction around here to some of the first iPad videos and ads. So many people were sure that you simply could not use the device as it was shown to be used.
I'm not trying to compare devices, only the approach to advertising them. I well remember the reaction around here to some of the first iPad videos and ads. So many people were sure that you simply could not use the device as it was shown to be used.
I think comparing the advertising methods are important, and I included Kindle and the N97 to give a more rounded and objective answer as to why this is not on the same level as the iPad (or Kindle).
As for those that don’t think it could work that way despite iPads on laps with hands manipulating them and a video of Jobs using it during the event and reviewers saying just how impressively snappy it was after the event. Christine O’Donnell said, "You know what, evolution is a myth. Why aren't monkeys still evolving into humans?” There will always be doubters.
I believe this is RIM with all guns blazing, fighting for future sales from their existing client base. They don't have anything to show, they're under pressure and they MUST deliver the goods (at least according to the media). I think we are all slightly suspicious here because they are promising a lot for a tablet in terms of specs and capability. I suspect the thing will be pretty heavy and with many 'problems' based not upon technical know-how but upon the belief that they cannot possibly manage to bring such a powerful, capable product to market with an all new OS in such a short time. But regardless of what the product may be and how well it will perform - RIM is shouting loud and waving promises in order to make their existing clients 'jump ship'. There may be a lot of companies thinking they have so much invested in RIM, and that this looks like a very capable product so they'll wait. They are waving impressive specs and they are aiming the device squarely at business users. I think it is what they MUST do at this point but who know what will happen if they fail.
Pretty good analysis... It's a battle for survival.
Though, if I were in IT or management, for an enterprise trying to implement a mobile solution, I don't think I would gamble and wait 4-6 months for a RIM solution. Rather, I'd go full bore ahead with the iPad -- the only tangible. I'd take care to design solutions that would work on either form factor.
Then, no matter the eventual hardware deployment, I'd be 6 months ahead of the game.
At $500 per this is a no-risk, no-brainer.
.
How does Flash handle mouseovers -- a modal hover mode?
It's ironic, but Apple with its integrated CPU and OS, could, likely, do an acceptable job of solving the Flash battery drain...
'Course that means that Adobe and Apple would need to develop a "joint" implementation.
.
"How does Flash handle mouseovers -- a modal hover mode?"
Honestly I have will have to back to you on that because I just installed the update. So other then doing a benchmark on fps I haven't really played around with it much yet. I was happy to see on average 57-60fps.
I really do believe Apple and Adobe could solve the battery drain issue which I why I hope they kiss and make up at some point.
Research in Motion on Monday announced the "PlayBook," a 7-inch multi-touch tablet that represents the smartphone maker's first attempt to take on Apple's highly successful iPad....
Wow. They're sure kissing the female segment of the market goodbye. I would think that would be the most loyal segment too. Corporate users are fickle.
And at the same time, they showed basically no productivity apps beyond the basic stuff that's on everyone's phone.
So they are aiming at the male, corporate market, with a product that does the same picture shows and video watching as the iPad? And 90% of the video is just concepts and not actual UI? Or maybe they haven't got any word processing apps lined up yet? Seems like they are scrambling here at best.
I think comparing the advertising methods are important, and I included Kindle and the N97 to give a more rounded and objective answer as to why this is not on the same level as the iPad (or Kindle).
As for those that don?t think it could work that way despite iPads on laps with hands manipulating them and a video of Jobs using it during the event and reviewers saying just how impressively snappy it was after the event. Christine O?Donnell said, "You know what, evolution is a myth. Why aren't monkeys still evolving into humans?? There will always be doubters.
What do you mean by level?
What about the iPod campaign, which Apple ran for years with images such as these:
... with the product barely even visible?
Yeah - that's why I sense a lot of scepticism here. The other thing is the eco system. Even if it can grow and become relevant and significant RIM face a big task laying the foundations for this to blossom.
RIM current OS on their smartphones is really outdated. They are really going to have to pull a rabbit out of a hat if they want this Tablet to take off at all.
While I have used BB, iPhone and now currently giving Adroid a try I have to say I grabbed by friends BB the other day and compared to Android it was like going back to a 1970 Pinto.
You mean, like Apple announcing the iPad in January and not shipping until April? I read "early 2011" as possibly being little more than three months away.
The difference is that what the iPad is, what it does, and what it would cost were already set. Apple showed them off, told you when you could get it, and got developers on board.
RIM presented a sort of sketchy portrait, didn't say exactly when it would be released, and no idea what it will cost. Basically, they just got done designing this thing but still have some loose ends, and they don't even know the answers to those questions.
You mean, like Apple announcing the iPad in January and not shipping until April? I read "early 2011" as possibly being little more than three months away.
Was gonna post the same thing...
The iPad was announced at the end of January and was in peoples hands at the beginning of April. What is that, around 60 days? And they announced pricing as well.
The RIM product has no pricing and an early 2011 ship date. If it was going to ship in January, they would have said so. What "early 2011" means is that they aren't confident about the ship date which will be Feb or March, at the earliest.
The early announcement was done, as others have suggested, to keep some people from buying competitors products. This is especially important because more and more Google powered devices will be hitting the market in this time frame. And make no mistake, it is not just about the tablet. RIM knows as their users adopt other devices they will start leaving their phone platform as well.
This RIM announcement reminds me of when Palm announced web OS for their new phone. Lots of hype and promises and while it was a okay device, the market had pegged it for irrelevance by the time it actually shipped.
The same thing will happen to RIM's pad. The company will be on life support and bought by another company in 18-24 months.
-kpluck
What do you mean by level?
What about the iPod campaign, which Apple ran for years with images such as these:
... with the product barely even visible?
Hello ... talk about apples and oranges ... That's an ad ... not a product announcement that is supposed to highlight the next revolution the company is about to undertake ... as is the PlayBook for RIM.
The iPad was announced at the end of January and was in peoples hands at the beginning of April. What is that, around 60 days? And they announced pricing as well.
The RIM product has no pricing and an early 2011 ship date. If it was going to ship in January, they would have said so. What "early 2011" means is that they aren't confident about the ship date which will be Feb or March, at the earliest.
The early announcement was done, as others have suggested, to keep some people from buying competitors products. This is especially important because more and more Google powered devices will be hitting the market in this time frame. And make no mistake, it is not just about the tablet. RIM knows as their users adopt other devices they will start leaving their phone platform as well.
This RIM announcement reminds me of when Palm announced web OS for their new phone. Lots of hype and promises and while it was a okay device, the market had pegged it for irrelevance by the time it actually shipped.
The same thing will happen to RIM's pad. The company will be on life support and bought by another company in 18-24 months.
-kpluck
That's quite a prediction for a company with that much marketshare, and such a strong hold on enterprise.
I don't know how this device will go, but I recall the predictions of android being a non starter and didn't stand a chance against the iphone.
The iPad was announced at the end of January and was in peoples hands at the beginning of April. What is that, around 60 days? And they announced pricing as well.
The RIM product has no pricing and an early 2011 ship date. If it was going to ship in January, they would have said so. What "early 2011" means is that they aren't confident about the ship date which will be Feb or March, at the earliest.
The early announcement was done, as others have suggested, to keep some people from buying competitors products. This is especially important because more and more Google powered devices will be hitting the market in this time frame. And make no mistake, it is not just about the tablet. RIM knows as their users adopt other devices they will start leaving their phone platform as well.
This is also one of the reasons Apple broke their usual rules and pre-announced the iPad, so obviously two can play. I'm not counting days, as that's just a game. I'm also not guessing what RIM's pre-annoucment means in terms of a real shipping date, as that's just a fool's errand. I simply do not understand the position that the video is a "fake" and that the product is like Microsoft's nonexistent Courier. I've challenged people who say this to show me how RIM could be so stupid as to release a video a product that will either never arrive or not look at all like the promotional ad, but I notice nobody has taken me up on it.
The only logical explanation from a vast majority of your posts is that your work for Verizon (or have a short on ATT).
Neither.
Right, you're a Qualcomm shill.
Hello ... talk about apples and oranges ... That's an ad ... not a product announcement that is supposed to highlight the next revolution the company is about to undertake ... as is the PlayBook for RIM.
Huh? Whatever they happen to be advertising, they are both advertisements.
The iPad was announced at the end of January and was in peoples hands at the beginning of April. What is that, around 60 days? And they announced pricing as well.
The RIM product has no pricing and an early 2011 ship date. If it was going to ship in January, they would have said so. What "early 2011" means is that they aren't confident about the ship date which will be Feb or March, at the earliest.
The early announcement was done, as others have suggested, to keep some people from buying competitors products. This is especially important because more and more Google powered devices will be hitting the market in this time frame. And make no mistake, it is not just about the tablet. RIM knows as their users adopt other devices they will start leaving their phone platform as well.
This RIM announcement reminds me of when Palm announced web OS for their new phone. Lots of hype and promises and while it was a okay device, the market had pegged it for irrelevance by the time it actually shipped.
The same thing will happen to RIM's pad. The company will be on life support and bought by another company in 18-24 months.
-kpluck
Whoa! Who will buy them... Oracle? CNBC?
Edit: add IBM to that list.
.
Selling the sizzle instead of the steak. Apple's ads don't dwell on specifications, or even the functions of their products. If the ads work at all, it's because they make you excited about the concept they are selling. I've got nothing against it; this is just how advertising works. This is what RIM is doing with this ad. Very light on the specifics and long on eye-catching generalities. A lot like an Apple ad, is what I thought when I saw it. That BTW is not a criticism. Apple is the master of this approach.
The difference is Apple, post Jobs return, always uses the device itself in the ad used to sell the concept. They use the widget to tell a 30 sec story of the things it does and how you can feel cool using it.
RIM used Minority Report graphics completely disassociated from their product. The way cool images that have absolutely no chance of meeting expectations in the reality. The best potential differentiator in the ad, the augmented reality shot in the art gallery, could have been spectacular if it had been done with an actual device. But when you see it the second time you can tell the scene was composited. Badly. With the actual background bleeding through the too transparently composited element inside the picture frame.
The random switching between a 4:3 and 3:2 ratio in the Minority Report graphics are sure to be a bone of contention when the delivered screen doesn't look like most of the commercial. There is a section in the middle that looks most reasonable for a 3:2 display, but unless RIM is getting a custom panel, 1024x600 is shipping everywhere else as essentially 16:9. That means the geometries for content they are visually promising won't be there in reality.
They are also setting themselves up for potential buyer dissatisfaction because a 7" display is relatively small, but they always show it as really big. Yes, it's just advertising, not a literal promise, but RIM didn't put any context in there to mentally prepare buyers for e smallish screen. iPhones have tiny screens in comparison, but Apple always used real hands in the ads, so that phone in the ad on a 52" screen didn't cause any mental conflicts when you got to the store. The hand is an invariant that grounded the screen size despite being radically enlarged in the ads.
It's little stuff like this this that is incredibly important in shaping attitudes when people finally get to see the real thing. RIM is literally overselling the device, unintentionally, and setting themselves up for blogdom panning and overall disappointment when it actually ships.