RIM CEO Says Company 'Seriously' Considered Switch To Android 283
zacharye writes "RIM CEO Thorsten Heins's interview with the Telegraph on Thursday made headlines for his admission that the company can't keep up with Apple and Samsung without outside help. But there's another interesting nugget buried within the interview that didn't get quite as much attention: Heins says that RIM took a long, hard look at migrating to Android before deciding to plow forward with BlackBerry 10. Heins said, 'We took the conscious decision not to go Android. If you look at other suppliers’ ability to differentiate, there’s very little wiggle room. We looked at it seriously — but if you understand what the promise of BlackBerry is to its user base: it’s all about getting stuff done. Games, media, we have to be good at it, but we have to support those guys who are ahead of the game. Very little time to consume and enjoy content — if you stay true to that purpose you have to build on that basis. And if we want to serve that segment we can’t do it on a me-too approach.'"
Re:And you were wrong and are now changing course? (Score:5, Interesting)
Then new salespeople came on board with their own iPhones and Androids and we resisted... then executives started switching to iPhones/Androids and wanted us to set them up. You don't tell them "no". We just released an official internal how-to for setting up iPhones although it won't be supported for everyone until the Exchange 2010 upgrade is complete.
There are few reasons to consider BlackBerry now. A few things don't work as expected, for instance accepting a meeting request on either iPhone / Android doesn't result in a response to the sender for some reason (using Exchange 2003 anyway). This may all be fixed once Exchange 2010 is in place.
Re:That *niche* market. (Score:2, Interesting)
I will also add:
It was once said, "Nobody ever got fired for choosing IBM".
Today, nobody ever gets fired for choosing Apple.
Translation... (Score:2, Interesting)
Translation: "It's all about checking your email and thinking that no other phone can do that".
Seriously, I've never understood the Blackberry kool-aid. 6-7 years ago, Blackberry people were running around going "Ooh, yeah... I can check my email wherever I am!". Meanwhile, I was on my Palm Treo, checking email, browsing the web, SSH-ing into my servers, playing RPG's, getting turn-by-turn navigation, etc.
Now, granted, I'm sure Blackberry's mail client crashed less-often than the ones for PalmOS... but how did these guys ever convince the business world that, if you want to check your email on the road, the Blackberry is the only device which will do it?
Re:That *niche* market. (Score:5, Interesting)
and iOS was found MORE secure?
Good luck with that...
I believe it. iOS might not be the best, but it's pretty good when you just want to get business done. It's easy to setup, easy to control, and Apple is pretty good at keeping people/Apps/permissions under control. Plus, every iPhone works pretty much the same regardless of model.
Some androids are easy to root, some are hard - some are easy to control, some are not. Some models are good, some aren't.
I personally like Android as a geek and and someone who isn't exactly pro-Apple - but I hated supporting Android and led the push for an easier iPhone/iPad environment. I'd never go back
Re:Seriously (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:That *niche* market. (Score:5, Interesting)
The Blackberry system ranges from not very secure at all to almost as good as you could get making your own.
We talking BES or are we talking BIS?
BES
The base security model is as good as anything you can do rolling your own server using proprietary software. But the handset management and controls are unmatched. iphone or android + some linux server at the backend with SSL enabled isn't even in the same league. Sure they both do end-to-end email encryption, but that's about where the comparison ends. You cannot lock down and manage ios (or android) to anywhere near the same degree, unless your 'make your own' includes providing your own secure managed handset operating system... Android could be the basis for one but to my knowledge the 'community' has so far only focussed more on defeating carrier restrictions to open the platform up, not to deliver enhanced security and IT policy controls. You can't compare BB/BES to a theoretical open source handset OS that doesn't actually exist. Thus: BES is unmatched.
BIS
BIS is better than what you can accomplish with other handsets using a hosted 3rd party solution. The security is just as good as any other hosted solution -- but any two unrelated BIS users can communicate securely with no coordination.
If your a drug dealer, how do you communicate securely with your contacts? Do you setup a linux server with SSL and then setup accounts for all your customers and distributors?... And run a help desk to provide them support when they have trouble sending messages?
BIS gave them all that. Admittedly as a hosted service it was always known that RIM in Canada had the keys... and you had to trust them. And kudos to RIM for holding out as long as it did. And by making this a very public argument, RIM may ultimately have given keys to india, but at least the consumers aren't being decieved. Unlike say the secret NSA closet at your local ISP.