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images/news/hardware.jpgNew data from NPD Group suggests that RIM may have caught up with some of the iPhone marketing hype, taking the top spot in US smartphones for Q1 2009. The Blackberry Curve (of which there are several models across multiple carriers) bested the iPhone for the first quarter of the year with RIM taking 3 of the top 5 spots.
We get a lot of Apple fanboy grief here in the CNet blog network, but I'm a Blackberry user. Personally I prefer the Blackberry keyboard and form factor, but the iPhone interface and applications are superior.
But more important than the applications or the interface, I need my phone to work. I want it to be able to make calls, receive calls, send email etc. The iPhone for all its glorious features is at best a mediocre phone with occasionally terrible coverage. AT&T, the lone iPhone carrier has be slow to fix network issues, slow to respond to customer complaints and lacks a certain amount of customer service social grace. Most of the gadgety/techie types that I know who don't use the iPhone avoid it entirely because of AT&T.
Realistically, there should always be more Blackberries sold than iPhones simply because of network diversity. While the iPhone may be acceptable--even good as a business smartphone, the spotty coverage and weak customer service makes the device a questionable choice for on-the-go business users.
Cnet News
We get a lot of Apple fanboy grief here in the CNet blog network, but I'm a Blackberry user. Personally I prefer the Blackberry keyboard and form factor, but the iPhone interface and applications are superior.
But more important than the applications or the interface, I need my phone to work. I want it to be able to make calls, receive calls, send email etc. The iPhone for all its glorious features is at best a mediocre phone with occasionally terrible coverage. AT&T, the lone iPhone carrier has be slow to fix network issues, slow to respond to customer complaints and lacks a certain amount of customer service social grace. Most of the gadgety/techie types that I know who don't use the iPhone avoid it entirely because of AT&T.
Realistically, there should always be more Blackberries sold than iPhones simply because of network diversity. While the iPhone may be acceptable--even good as a business smartphone, the spotty coverage and weak customer service makes the device a questionable choice for on-the-go business users.
Cnet News
