BBM vs IMessage

[mikeo007]

I use BBM to make calls in bad cell areas. Does imessage do that? I need cross platform messaging. I have many friends and family that left apple so it has to play nice with everyone.

Posted via the iMore App for Android

yup, voice calls work wonderfully through FaceTime voice.

 

[qbnkelt]

Well we should get a brief respite from the BlackBerry fanbois. The earnings report is due any second so they'll ge reacting elsewhere. God willing.......

 

[zerog46]

There has been some spam or scam I should say on iMessage lately. Not the ad kind, but the phishing kind.


Sent from my ancient but trustworthy iPhone 5. ☮

And I think that has nothing to do with iMessage just scammers have your phone number.

 

[mikeo007]

Well we should get a brief respite from the BlackBerry fanbois. The earnings report is due any second so they'll ge reacting elsewhere. God willing.......

The phone lovers will likely be wallowing in self pity today...numbers are terrible.
Software did ok, but the numbers are still so damn low.

 

[anon(6038817)]

The phone lovers will likely be wallowing in self pity today...numbers are terrible.
Software did ok, but the numbers are still so damn low.

In all fairness, BlackBerry is showing signs of life. The results are promising. Will they ever regain their prominence in handsets? Unlikely. But they will succeed primarily as a software and services company (unless they make a huge blunder in that area, too). And if they can keep selling a few hundred thousand handsets here and there to enterprise and government customers, then they'd probably be fine with that.

They're not competing with Apple and Android in the overall handset market. They haven't even tried since Chen took the reigns.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Hendri Hendri]

Quite good results for the q4

 

[ubizmo]

As I mentioned in another thread, I'm not interested in platform-specific messaging, since messaging itself isn't a platform-specific activity. But I'm also not interested in cajoling people to use a specific tool. Consequently, I use WhatsApp and FB Messenger for everything. I almost never use BBM. Like others, I'm disappointed to see it become adware, just on general principles, but it doesn't affect my usage patterns, which are close to zero anyway.

WhatsApp now has a web app that works at least as well as BlackBerry Blend, if not better. I find it very handy when in the office, although it makes me feel that we have come full circle from the day when AIM was the cross-platform, device-neutral messaging leader. AIM is still out there. Why doesn't anybody use it anymore?

 

[mikeo007]

In all fairness, BlackBerry is showing signs of life. The results are promising. Will they ever regain their prominence in handsets? Unlikely. But they will succeed primarily as a software and services company (unless they make a huge blunder in that area, too). And if they can keep selling a few hundred thousand handsets here and there to enterprise and government customers, then they'd probably be fine with that.

They're not competing with Apple and Android in the overall handset market. They haven't even tried since Chen took the reigns.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

10 million BB10 phones per year was their break even point. They haven't even come close in 2 years. Handset sales continue to drop every quarter as well. Chen's statements today indicate that while the hardware itself isn't losing money, the R&D costs result in a loss. New devices are going to be less and less viable for them as marketshare and mindshare continue to evaporate.

Blackberry phones won't exist for much longer.

As a company, they will probably survive, although they will hardly be recognizable in their new form. They will never be a smartphone player again and revenues will be very small due to their new business model. Blackberry's transformation is about the equivalent of Barnes and Noble turning into a small-time grocery wholesaler.

 

[qbnkelt]

They need a flagship that can go against what's out there. The Passport and the Classic aren't cutting it. Sell through numbers tanked.

They are a software and services company now with a side of hardware.

Personally.....pppppfffftttt.....BlackBerry free and loving it.

 

[mikeo007]

They need a flagship that can go against what's out there. The Passport and the Classic aren't cutting it. Sell through numbers tanked.

They are a software and services company now with a side of hardware.

Personally.....pppppfffftttt.....BlackBerry free and loving it.

They'll never be able to produce a competitive flagship. The faithful believed that Chen would save their hardware, but the guy despises the hardware business. He's a software guy and he's got BB hardware on the short track to obsolescence.

A flagship BB would not sell, as evidenced by the Passport and every other "flagship" that came before it. Every time, the faithful said "they got it right this time!" And every time, sales numbers were even more disappointing. Businesses don't buy in high enough volume and don't buy high margin devices, so they won't make any money selling there either.

BB hardware is dead.

Software numbers are small, and shrinking, but they'll stabilize as long as they don't have any more major screw-ups (a tall order for Blackberry). In the end they'll be a tiny company providing obscure solutions and very few people will even realize they exist anymore.

 

[qbnkelt]

You're right. Every so called flagship has failed to regain users lost.

And the numbers of us that leave continue to increase.

 

[zerog46]

Funny seeing some twitter activity and the BB Elite still think they are going to make it big...

 

[mikeo007]

Funny seeing some twitter activity and the BB Elite still think they are going to make it big...

It's all denial now with those folks.
They hope that shouting loud will somehow reverse BB's fortunes.

The blackberry camp is so divided right now.

There are the few who swear by their BB devices but know they won't be seeing them for much longer, making some of them sad or even angry.
There are those who appreciate the software side of the company and realize that this will soon be all that's left of blackberry, and they're ok with it.
And there are the acolytes, who believe everything is a big smoke screen, even John Chen's own words. They're the loudest bunch and the ones that are least grounded in reality. They attempt to drown out facts through sheer force of will (and loud noises) and are actually detrimental to the brand. Heck, even John Chen knows this, which is why he doesn't play to them anymore. Heck, he even admitted that Blackberry is stealing ideas from others and he doesn't care; he's just doing what it takes to survive. That's got to be a shot through the heart of the cheer leaders.

There is so much infighting even among these fans of the same company, it's a real train wreck to watch.

 

[qbnkelt]

There is so much infighting even among these fans of the same company, it's a real train wreck to watch.

So glad I'm missing it. There was a day not so long ago that I was in on the ride. Glad I got to my station in time.

 

[anon(6038817)]

10 million BB10 phones per year was their break even point. They haven't even come close in 2 years. Handset sales continue to drop every quarter as well. Chen's statements today indicate that while the hardware itself isn't losing money, the R&D costs result in a loss. New devices are going to be less and less viable for them as marketshare and mindshare continue to evaporate.

Blackberry phones won't exist for much longer.

As a company, they will probably survive, although they will hardly be recognizable in their new form. They will never be a smartphone player again and revenues will be very small due to their new business model. Blackberry's transformation is about the equivalent of Barnes and Noble turning into a small-time grocery wholesaler.

I agree with your first statement about the hardware. I disagree about your assessment of their future revenues. I think their software and services strategy will eventually be very lucrative for them. It's not just about smartphone software. Don't forget, they own QNX, which is the embedded OS that runs everything from car infotainment systems to nuclear plants. They are positioning themselves to be a major player in running the secure infrastructure of the Internet of Things, and I think they have tremendous potential in that area.

 

[Ledsteplin]

And I think that has nothing to do with iMessage just scammers have your phone number.

Most likely random calling. My Wife seems to get more of it. But no ad spam.


Sent from my ancient but trustworthy iPhone 5. ☮

 

[anon(6038817)]

It's all denial now with those folks.
They hope that shouting loud will somehow reverse BB's fortunes.

The blackberry camp is so divided right now.

There are the few who swear by their BB devices but know they won't be seeing them for much longer, making some of them sad or even angry.
There are those who appreciate the software side of the company and realize that this will soon be all that's left of blackberry, and they're ok with it.
And there are the acolytes, who believe everything is a big smoke screen, even John Chen's own words. They're the loudest bunch and the ones that are least grounded in reality. They attempt to drown out facts through sheer force of will (and loud noises) and are actually detrimental to the brand. Heck, even John Chen knows this, which is why he doesn't play to them anymore. Heck, he even admitted that Blackberry is stealing ideas from others and he doesn't care; he's just doing what it takes to survive. That's got to be a shot through the heart of the cheer leaders.

There is so much infighting even among these fans of the same company, it's a real train wreck to watch.

Until a week ago when I switched to iPhone, I was in the camp of BB fans who know their hardware business days are numbered, but are ok with their transition to software/services.

I've always taken a platform/brand agnostic approach to the personal tech I use. The past couple years, BB was my preferred device. But I've seen the writing on the wall for some time, and knew that BB has been following a different path than my own. Those paths have gotten so far apart that it was time to switch. And I'm glad I did.

I'm asking myself why I didn't make the switch sooner. I've tried several different Android, Windows phone, BlackBerry, and iPhone devices over the past couple years, and the iPhone has finallywon out for me.

And it's amazing how some of the BB "acolytes" will turn on you when you stop using a BB as your daily driver, or even if you do use a BB but simply offer well-reasoned, legitimate criticisms. They're obviously engaging in self-deception. And when BlackBerry finally does pull the plug on the hardware business, it will be interesting to see their reactions.

 

[ubizmo]

Until a week ago when I switched to iPhone, I was in the camp of BB fans who know their hardware business days are numbered, but are ok with their transition to software/services.

I'm in the same group. I still use my Passport, and truly enjoy the wide screen experience. BlackBerry may continue to do limited runs of keyboard phones, as long as the market niche holds. But they'll probably outsource that to a company, if possible. That's my guess, anyway.

The faithful believed that Chen would save their hardware, but the guy despises the hardware business. He's a software guy and he's got BB hardware on the short track to obsolescence.

He may be a software guy, but he scrupulously avoids mentioning BB10 at all. In the ER he said that hardware revenues were from "recently produced devices like Passport and Classic" -- he could have just said BB10, but avoided doing so. I suspect he sees BB10 as dead weight. His plan to export the BB10 "experience" to other platforms says as much.

I'd at least experiment with a "BB10 experience" suite on my OnePlus One.

On the plus side, if any phone was ever destined to become a collector's item, it's the Passport.

And those of us who enjoy the angst of feeling snubbed can always switch to WP. I think there's promise there, but it's going to be a rough road.

 

[qbnkelt]

I've got to say my Lumia 1520 is brilliant.

 

[Laura Knotek]

The BBM experience has gone to a very hot place without a basket since they've started spamming you. Get this app. Join this channel. ugh.....

Frankly I hate it. It was great once.

Also in groups you could not see pics within the chat. You had to go to a separate section within the group for the pics. Pain in the neck. Don't know if that's changed. The groups I belonged to left BBM once it became the spamming messenger par excellence.

I don't know about iOS but pictures in group chats appear inline on BBM for Android. That isn't the case with Windows Phone BBM.

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