Research in Motion boss Thorsten Heins reckons BlackBerry 10 will rescue the ailing company. "We’re here to win," he told Bloomberg, and apparently he wasn't even joking! "We’re not here to fight for third or fourth place," he continued, which is just adorable.
How everyone in the room kept a straight face I'll never know. On a more serious note though, the BlackBerry boss also dropped more hints about the possibility of licensing BlackBerry 10 software to other manufacturers.
BlackBerry 10 is based on the company's QNX operating system, which it licenses to companies such as General Electrics, Cisco and Caterpillar and powers kit including cars, nuclear plants and military drones. Whoa there -- the folks at BlackBerry can't make email work on their own tablet, I'd rather they weren't allowed anywhere near nuclear stations or stuff with missiles, if it's all the same to you.
Whether it'll happen remains to be seen, but it's in RIM's interest to keep talking about licensing. BlackBerry software certainly looks like RIM's biggest asset -- when reports emerged earlier this month Samsung was considering a licensing deal, RIM stock leaped 13 per cent.
Long known for its business-friendly kit, RIM has been left behind by the rise of the consumer smart phone. But as more and more people use their own phone for work, the security of BlackBerry software is in demand -- and licensing would mean you could have that security without having to endure a BlackBerry phone.
BlackBerry 10 is in the final testing stages, but the first BlackBerry 10 phone isn't expected early next year. C'mon guys, Google and Asus knocked the Nexus 7 out in four months! Meanwhile, RIM is also planning a 4G version of the failed PlayBook tablet, but we won't see that here as we don't have a working 4G network yet.
Should RIM license its software? Do other manufacturers need BlackBerry know-how, or is RIM clutching at straws? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.
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professerclever 14 August, 2012 10:41
Well, there's a shocker! Who would have thought that Thorstein Heins, the boss of Blackberry, would say that? I would have expected something like "We're DOOMED!" Maybe Olympic Athletes should not be the only ones to take a dope test. I own a Blackberry but they closed their eyes to the competition and now they are playing 'Catch up!'
shauney3 14 August, 2012 10:54
"We’re not here to fight for third or fourth place," he continued, which is just adorable.
- Brilliant!
anonymous 14 August, 2012 11:12
They are here to fight for 5th place against the might of open webOS (and lose)
anonymous 14 August, 2012 11:14
1.Android
2.iOS
3.Windows 8
4.Symbian
5.Open webOS
6.BBX
anonymous 14 August, 2012 11:15
This article is written like a true Apple fanboy.
damien2501 14 August, 2012 11:34
How can people accuse this article of being written by an apple fanboy. Some people are paranoid like there's no tomorrow.
anonymous 14 August, 2012 11:42
To be fairr to blackberry they are having a hard time, but the community doesn't help itself, if you look at crackberry there are people comparing the playbook to the nexus 7, and saying it's better, and then dismiss anything that iOS or Android does better (or an exclusive feature) as fluff that is unneccessary. Apps, who needs 'em. Siri, I've got a PA!! etc.
If it wasn't for that sort of behaviour I would have got the playbook last year
FXD 14 August, 2012 12:07
"Google and Asus knocked the Nexus 7 out in four months! "
Google keeps making stuff which are like prototypes all the tech junkies buy and buy. Every few weeks there is something better than the other in terms of hardware and every few months Android upgrades. Thats non stability there. Androids really good as its flexible but still does do justice for the massive RAM and Processor upgrades. Its like having a car with a good engine but the fuel is impure to make the engine work at its full potential.
atleast RIM is trying to make sure to roll out the right stuff before making a commotion. In a business perspective its 'matured'. Its ok if they have failed every business does one point or the other thats what drives the market - COMPETITION.
I have used all three OS, iOS, Android and Blackberry. So I am neural on my grounds to who is better than who.
anonymous 14 August, 2012 12:07
So the community put you off buying a product?!
I think the article is okay but the 4G playbook is hardly in planning stages when it's already been released and reviewed (by engadget). It's a bit difficult to release a LTE product in the UK when there is not network for it...
FXD 14 August, 2012 12:08
Androids really good as its flexible but still DOES NOT do justice for the massive RAM and Processor upgrades.
anonymous 14 August, 2012 12:26
BlackBerrys r THE WORST phones ever!! My family had them and got SOOOO fed up of that stupid piece of crap ! 'Smart'phone isn't a suitable name for BlackBs... it shud be 'dumb'phones or 'irritating' phones!!!
iPhones R THE BEST!! ask anyone! my family replaced all the damn BBs with iPhones!
anonymous 14 August, 2012 12:27
To be fair, Google banged out the nexus 7 but already had a mature OS that was several versions deep. The nexus 7 is an awesome device and destroys the playbook in every way.
anonymous 14 August, 2012 12:28
@anonymous 12:07
In short, yes.
Mainly because in webOS, the only support you get is from the community, and RIM is looking to go the same way of Palm, and I wouldn't have much hope with them
Rich Trenholm 14 August, 2012 12:28
To clarify, the 4G PlayBook is out in Canada but is still in the planning stages for the UK and Europe
falo 14 August, 2012 13:01
"This article is written like a true Apple fanboy."
Eh? While I agree that Crave often has fruity bias I couldn't see evidence of it here.
theshark 14 August, 2012 13:28
It was certainly biased, hardly neutral reporting, but more Android than Apple bias.
Sure RIM are currently out of the game, but if Apple and Google can come from nowhere in the mobile game 5 years ago (think about that) then why cannot RIM turn the tables with QNX that looks to be a capable and modern OS. They have a decent user base, unparalleled experience in making phones and still are the business phone of choice (although most people are content with iPhones, their companies aren't always).
I reckon it'll be a three-way market between Apple, Android and Microsoft this time next year, but there's always a chance RIM can make a decent business out of 4th place. Then again Apple & MS might screw over Google with patent wars and Android will die.
And that jibe about the Nexus in 4 months, that was a customisation of an existing piece of hardware. Like Samsung bringing out different Galaxy S's for different carriers, hardly a big job. RIM have still been dreadfully slow with BB10, but still the Android bias was sickening (and this from an Android user).
anonymous 14 August, 2012 14:22
jesus this article is a bit harsh on rim, the main reason Blackberry is considered to have gone down hill is probably the 8520 handset, which gave them such a bad name. If a couple of bad phones got released by android (a lot more than a couple have been released, IE xperia x8 and others), I'm not personally a blackberry fan, but that OS looks very slick and I may give it a chance.
damien2501 14 August, 2012 14:57
iOS all the way for me. Not a fan of apple macs but iOS is the cleanest most efficient OS
anonymous 14 August, 2012 15:07
damien2501
You forgot webOS and windows phone 7.5.
webOS is the cleanest OS (but that's personal opinion)
windows phone 7.5 is THE most efficient OS on phones at the moment, it runs well on a measly single core processor.
anonymous 14 August, 2012 15:48
Who wrote this? They aren't planning a 4G tablet... They already have it out and available lmao HEY RICH, put your damn iPhone away and try writing a real article based on some research...
Rich Trenholm 14 August, 2012 17:22
lmao I don't have an iPhone, I have a Windows Phone. And as I already mentioned, I was talking about the 4G PlayBook in Europe
anonymous 14 August, 2012 17:54
So far what I seen from BB10 from rumors, it looks pretty good. I have tested the Playbook and the gestures on it were amazing. It beat the gestures on the ipad and android. Though the gestures are amazing, the playbook lacks additional apps and games. Don't misunderstand. It has all the standard apps that define a tablet. It just missing additional features.
anonymous 14 August, 2012 18:44
I'm amazed by how few people seem to understand that Google don't make the phones. Other than the Nexus devices, Google have nothing to do with the manufacture of the handsets, and very little to do with the final OS, other than providing developers at the phone companies.
People really need to understand that there is a distinction between the Nexus phones and anything else running Android. In my opinion, having used both, you cannot make judgments on Google or Android based on non Nexus phones.
anonymous 14 August, 2012 19:58
Can't believe the sheer level of ignorance and bias in this piece. Sure, it's an opinion piece, but I miss when opinion pieces used to be places of levelled debate, not of perpetuating your own beliefs through hyperbole and mockery. This guy has no place writing for a publication like CNET which I once respected. I have the Bold 9900 and the PlayBook and I'm very happy with both -- and I'm eager to see what comes of BB10 next year, particularly the keyboard iterations. I'm sorry that you're disappointed by RIM's inability to put together an entire smartphone platform in the same time it took the huge corporation that is Google to plan a tablet running on an existing operating system.
Mark Anderson 14 August, 2012 20:11
Oh dear. Those words are going to come back to haunt him I think.
musicman96 14 August, 2012 20:35
Trolololololololololololololololololololol What a joke RIM have no way of competing with the might of Google and Apple
anonymous 14 August, 2012 22:16
"...Meanwhile, RIM is also planning a 4G version of the failed PlayBook tablet..."
It's already out, dimwit
anonymous 14 August, 2012 22:20
RIM would have these phones out already but since you guys made such a big deal about no email app, they've decided to wait until there is nothing you can complain about.
Thanks for making me wait
anonymous 14 August, 2012 22:23
How long do you think it took Apple to write its first iteration of iOS? I hear 4 or 5 years.
So stop criticizing RIM. They have been writing this OS for a much shorter period of time.
anonymous 14 August, 2012 23:06
symbian ftw.....
anonymous 14 August, 2012 23:07
In Terms of a business market RIM still has a leg up on all smartphone companies there just are not enough enterprise level apps for either iOS or Android that rival the BES System. That being said, with the release of the Windows 8 Phone and the ability to have native Exchange connectivity behind the security of a domain that might change. I think RIM is making a wise move porting their software to other manufacturers.
anonymous 15 August, 2012 01:41
My biggest problem isn't the phone or the software. I've loved both my BB's and the security is great. It's the apps ... they're terrible! Try downloading the PNC app and all you get is and icon that loads the mobile webpage. I can do that all on my own, thanks. Everything about the BB apps are seriously inferior to anything that iphone and Android users have. It's pathetic.
Jay Khan 15 August, 2012 02:55
Blackberry's are truly awful. Even the teenagers have gotten bored of them.
Loving the adorable comment
Rule Britannia!
anonymous 15 August, 2012 08:05
To be fair, the Galaxy S 3 has opened a huge door for Samsung, no one really wants to know about any other company right now. The S3 could just be Samsung's iPhone, getting people to desire the brand to the point that they'll buy the lower down, inferior products in the line just to get on board the eco-system/band wagon.
Whatever advantage RIM may have had was blown away when the hype for the S3 started.
Rich Trenholm 16 August, 2012 15:13
"It's already out, dimwit"
Charming. As I've said twice already, not in Europe it ain't.
anonymous 17 August, 2012 11:27
Tooooooooooooo late I think. Unless they can get this out to a worldwide release before the Note 2 and i5 they might stave off complete collapse for another year or two, but it's going to have to be a staggeringly good phone even to keep them going that long.
Oh, and Apps? Are they going to have a boatload of Apps ready at the launch? If not, forget it.
anonymous 17 August, 2012 23:59
Hahaha I dont know what all the fuss is about personally..... I have a blackberry 9800 torch which I bought March 2010 as the new Blackberry "Big Thing" and it is the worst phone Ive ever owned. Including BIS which was mostly near dead slow....Few months after I got it, a new BB operating system was launched and I was just told my phone was outdated....My phone was probably 3 months old at the time.... worst phone, worst service.....I had to live out a 24 month contract which finally comes to an end soon and Im able to upgrade to anything else!!!!!
anonymous 18 August, 2012 12:38
Mr Trenholm,
I have a Playbook and evidently you don't or you would know that email not only works on it but it will handle a multitude of accounts at the same time.
Not being in the US of A but in the UK I see Apple and Android users over here who also have Blackberry phones as a tool and not a toy. The surprising thing from your point of view would be most have bought their Blackberrys since getting one of the other two.
The real problem for Blackberry is needing their own data plan which is more expensive in some countries than the normal internet plans but not so in the UK.
Loadit 19 August, 2012 09:35
with all these review sites giving out Doom and Doom signals without ever trying the new OS or phones its no wonder RIM is having a hard time. Just like the unfair reviews of Motorola Razr / maxx phones their reviews do not match the reality.
I love my razr Maxx. Even my brother who has the new Samsung S3 keeps borrowing my phone as his battery has run out. He says he will be getting a Maxx as soon as his contract runs out.
What ever happened to giving a manufacturer a fair chance to compete instead of killing his market before it is even launched.
anonymous 20 August, 2012 14:52
It seems no one has anything positive to writ about RIM and Blackberry 10. Its all getting boring, all the articles are so predictable. Why not wait until Blackberry 10 launches, then see if you were right or wrong. There are alot of people who really want blackberry to succeed because it will determine the future of their everyday lives. I dont know about anyone but i think it will succeed.
anonymous 24 August, 2012 11:22
Don't forget boot to geko...
Naeem Uddin 5 September, 2012 14:49
android will win bit ios NOT ganna win.
android jelly bean is the best and ics (ice cream sandwich) is best too.
when i first touched the google nexus it was so powerful
anonymous 8 September, 2012 13:28
When I look at the smartphone industry I see this :
ANDROID; I think this is the most advanced of the OSes. Few will disagree. But, it has a high level of instability because in its rush to develop it is not well polished.
IOS; A very stable OS. It will, most of the time, work flawlessly. But it lacks the ambition of Android hence it will be forced to play catch up to android.
WP ; Most say this is the compromise of Android and is, kind of like a polished android and a more open ios. That being said it has its own uniqueness. Also a state ios.
BB ; Slow development has hurt this OS. It concentrated on the business sector forgetting that most consumers wanted to have fun on their mobile devices.
anonymous 13 January, 2013 03:46
"BlackBerrys r THE WORST phones ever!! My family had them and got SOOOO fed up of that stupid piece of crap ! 'Smart'phone isn't a suitable name for BlackBs... it shud be 'dumb'phones or 'irritating' phones!!!
iPhones R THE BEST!! ask anyone! my family replaced all the damn BBs with iPhones!"
This comment was written by a true Apple fanboy. Poor grammar, poor spelling, and stating the original smartphone as a dumbphone. Blackberrys are for intelligent people. If your family was expecting phones with games and apps for every little thing, then yeah, a BlackBerry is not for you. You want a toy, go ahead and get an iPhone so you can play AngryBirds and what ever other time wasters you want. I have nothing against iOS, but for a communications device (duh, it is still a "phone"), BlackBerry is FAR superior. Being able to simply start typing the name of a contact, hit BB menu button, and select if I want to email, text, call ANY number or email I have for them is amazing. I personally cannot wait for BB10 since RIM has to move from a business oriented product to both general consumer and business, BB10 will deliver on this need. Nay sayers can say nay all you want, go look at video demos of the BB10 alpha software, I have shown it to people who wanted to "upgrade" to an iPhone when their BB contract is up and even just the short demos have made them decide to wait to get a hands on look before signing their life away to the Apple regime.