After getting delayed, RIM’s BlackBerry 10 platform finally has a launch date set. On January 30, RIM will hold multiple events across the world simultaneously where it will launch both the OS and the first the BlackBerry phones to use it.
The BB 10 OS will hit the ground running – it will launch with “a large catalog of the leading applications from across the globe and across all categories” and a FIPS 140-2 certification (which means that government agencies can switch to BB 10 right away and count on security). You can read more about FIPS 140-2 over here.
During the event, RIM will give details on the two launch phones and their availability. We’ve most likelyseen them already – the touchscreen operated L-series and the more traditional QWERTY-packing N-Series. Then there’s the rumored BlackBerry 10 Aristo device with a quad-core Krait and a 4.65″ AMOLED 720p display.
RIM’s press release didn’t say anything about the first two BlackBerry 10 phones, so the Aristo remains in the rumor mill for now, but the company did say that the phones are being tested by 50 carriers (with more on the way), pointing to a wide launch.
Good news for fans of Research In Motion: the embattled BlackBerry maker may soon see some much-needed light at the end of a long tunnel as the company has confirmed putting finishing touches on the way overdue BlackBerry 10 operating system. RIM also has some new phones and they’re all done, too.
Yesterday, RIM’s new CEO Thorsten Heins agitated spirits with news that his company is actively seeking partners to license BlackBerry 10 software, which was unveiled three months ago. It would mark a significant departure for RIM as the company never allowed a third-party to make BlackBerry-certified handsets.
Today, Heins reveals a couple more tidbits on the state of the BlackBerry platform…
Arik Hesseldahl of AllthingsD interviewed RIM’s CEO Thorsten Heins on the current state of affairs. RIM, Heins claims, is readying a “one-two punch” for the BlackBerry for early 2013.
Heins said the BlackBerry 10 software is currently going through its final phase of “polishing” but is essentially complete. The company has taken a lot of criticism for postponing the launch of devices running the new OS several times.
Not sure if Heins deserves benefit of the doubt given numerous BlackBerry 10 delays in the past. As for the new devices, RIM is keen on exploring dual strategy, with two types of new phones:
One with an all-touch interface nearly identical to a prototype shown at a RIM developers conference in Orlando in May; the other at first glance looks more like a traditional BlackBerry sporting the iconic Qwerty keyboard.
The way I read this, RIM isn’t ready yet to break with the past and start anew. It’s probably a logical move to give its 80 million fans what they want (a traditional BlackBerry phone with that famous clickety-clack keyboard) while luring first-time RIM buyers with all-touchscreen devices.
Within those two types there will be three product segments, essentially high-end, mid-tier and lower-tier devices aimed at different market segments and price points. Heins didn’t talk about target prices.
Again, this strikes me as way more reasonable strategy, especially compared to RIM’s previous co-CEOs who wouldn’t budge and instead stubbornly insisted that the world stood still while they sold their obsolete devices to enterprise.
New devices will take advantage of RIM’s acquisition of startup Paratek, which specializes in a technology that allows phones to transmit and receive on multiple frequency bands using just one antenna.
RIM’s new phones will utilize this tech for improved call and data quality. In addition, it will let RIM manufacture fewer variations of devices to cater for different markets.
And what about folks who dumped their BlackBerry phones in favor of Android?
First we’ll serve the loyal BlackBerry customer base. Second, we’ve heard of some BlackBerry users going to Android and being dissatisfied. We’ll try to win them back, one by one if we have to.
The company kicked off the smartphone revolution, it invented mobile messaging and email and for (too) long was synonymous for smartphones, until the iPhone came along in 2007.
Losing RIM would be a tragedy for all cell phone users, regardless of the camp they belong to.
Worse, it would be a tragedy for competition and the entire mobile landscape.
Thousands of very talented people have already been booted from RIM and many more thousands will be let go as RIM’s new management cuts costs aggressively, attempting to save the company from oblivion.
Boy Genius Report‘s Zach Epstein wrote an excellent analysis of RIM’s fate (“the giant with no legs”) and all the wrong moves the company made in years past.
No matter what your opinion of Siri is, you have to admit that it has really sparked an interest in digital assistants. Voice commands and recognition obviously existed long before the feature, but not like this.
And you don’t have to look any further than the competition for proof. Shortly after Apple unveiled its Assistant last fall, other manufacturers started beefing up their voice technology. Samsung, for example, now has its S-Voice, LG has Quick Voice, and there are several others bubbling up…
RIM is the latest phone-maker to try its hand in smartphone secretaries. CrackBerry is reporting that the company has added a Siri-like function to the latest BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha update. Here it is in action:
Keep in mind that this is just a developer alpha (which comes before beta), so there’s a chance that this feature could change dramatically before the final BlackBerry 10 release, if it even makes it that far.
Of course, our money is on RIM keeping it around, as it seems like digital voice assistants are more of a necessity for smartphone-makers these days, rather than a luxury. Something that, once again, can be attributed to Siri.
But Apple didn’t just inspire a string of copycats, it actually pushed the technology forward. Many would argue that that new Google Now feature in Android 4.1 is actually better than Siri in several ways. And I’d have to agree.
It’ll be interesting to see where voice recognition tech is two years from now.
We all know that RIM is going through a very difficult period right now, with a current line-up of highly unappealing BlackBerry OS 7 smartphones and an OS 10 launch that probably isn’t going to happen until early next year. Plus, it’s not certain if the release of the next-gen BB devices will make any difference.
Probably due to this overwhelmingly gloomy atmosphere over at the BlackBerry camp, independent designer Michal Bonikowski has decided to show his vision of how the new BlackBerry phone should look. Obviously, Bonikowski envisions a very large screen, overall stylish casing, and… Windows Phone?!
Oh dear, it looks like the only people in this world who’re still having any hopes in the BlackBerry OS are those working at RIM. But hey, if Windows Phone is what it takes to get the company back on its feet again (although some people will say there’s nothing wrong with it in the first place), then do it! Of course, it’s easy for us to say it.
RIM is holding a BlackBerry Jam conference next month in Orlando where it is supposed to give out development devices running the upcoming BlackBerry 10 to ten of the developers attending the event. We are now seeing what are allegedly pictures of this developer device, courtesy of a CrackBerry forum member.
The phone looks like a shrunken down PlayBook, with the same matte plastic back that goes around the side and surrounds the display. The front has the earpiece and a camera at the top, the display in the middle and what seems like a (blurred out) logo at the bottom.
Of course, how this device looks like is irrelevant because it is only intended as a developer unit and won’t make it to production. The final devices are likely to have a bit more flair although to be honest this doesn’t look to shabby either.
Elie Chahine 