Is the Blackberry a Niche Product?
from the i-love-my-blackberry dept
I was first introduced to the Blackberry two years ago, and since then, it's been permanently attached to my hip (much to the chagrin of my girlfriend). Personally, I think the Blackberry is the best thing since sliced bread, and it ended up replacing my PDA and increasingly my productivity enormously. However, the Economist predicts that the Blackberry will continue to be a niche product. I'm a bit confused though. The article states that Blackberry will relegate themselves to a niche player -- I don't understand why Blackberry wouldn't target the mass market. With the introduction of the hiptop, treo and other connected PDA devices, I feel like Blackberry is letting the new, whiz-bang devices steal the PR. Blackberry shouldn't give up without a fight. They have an excellent, proven product.
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Niche, and most probably niche, if not extinct in
My guess is that if people need to choose between a device with messaging and no phone capabilities and a device with phone capabilities and limited (in the sense of missing alpha keyboard) messaging, most people will choose phone-like device. Two devices are too much to carry and too expensive for most people. PDAs or communicator-type devices...? Too big for most people. Most successful communication device for the near future: A small phone (it is amazing how fast you can type with the numeric keypad and even faster with the predictive character entry turned on...)
Or maybe my European background makes it impossible for me to see the beauty of Blackberry.
Hartti
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