I believe it is time for it to all come out. I sit here quietly with my laptop and I type these words because I believe it is time for it to all come out. Let's start with the basics. BlackBerry is a line of smartphones developed, designed, and maintained by Research In Motion, or RIM, that was released in 1999 -- twelve years ago. I would have to say that around the time of the iPhone's release in 2007, the popularity of the BlackBerry peaked to its very highest. It managed to stay fairly popular into 2008 and maybe into the beginning of 2009. That's when things started to spiral downward, yet it was spiraling downward at a very slow pace.

I'm not the biggest fan of Android, but it's actually when Android really became successful in late 2009 with the Motorola Droid that people, including myself, began to realize how much the BlackBerry really does suck. The only thing that BlackBerry has going for it over Android is the sleek design for both hardware and software (granted, software is still pretty mediocre). Seriously, the Android OS is like a puzzle that seems to fit together, but the result is nothing like the image on the box.

The latest attempt from RIM to stay ahead of the game was the BlackBerry Torch, which was released in August 2010. In short, it's a pretty shitty attempt. Even worse, I'm pretty sure RIM knows that. The specifications on this thing are ridiculous. Engadget came to a pretty accurate conclusion:

The Torch seems sluggish, underpowered, and dated from a hardware design standpoint, and BlackBerry [OS] 6, despite its new features and polish, still feels woefully behind the curve. To call the Torch the "best BlackBerry ever" wouldn't be an understatement, but unfortunately for RIM and the faithful, their best isn't nearly good enough.

Seems right to me. Of course it's underpowered. It has a 624 MHz processor in it, which is similar in speed to that of the iPhone 3GS -- a smartphone released by Apple in August of 2009. A year later, RIM is coming out with phones with the same speed and it begs the question: why? Oh and don't get too excited over the Torch's spacious 3.2-inch display (see what I did there?) because it has a 360x480 resolution which is 188 pixels per inch. Android phones have been shipping since 2009 with resolutions well above 200ppi. The iPhone 4 was out before the BlackBerry Torch in 2010 and features the retina display with an astounding 326ppi. And RIM is shipping phones that same year with 3.2-inch displays and 188ppi. Why? Smartphones started coming out in early 2010 that were capable of filming in HD, which is a 1280x720 resolution. In August of 2010, RIM launches a phone that films in VGA 640x480 quality. Why? Aside from specs, I haven't even mentioned the experience iPhone and even Android give that is unmatched by BlackBerry in almost every possible way.

How the hell is this a phone that was supposed to actually compete with other smartphones? Was RIM serious? How do they expect people to not laugh at this? Even worse, the BlackBerry Torch is actually RIM's best offering right now. It's their flagship device. Even worse than that, people are actually still buying these unbelievably crappy phones. Even other lines of the BlackBerry like the Bold or Curve that have even worse specs than the Torch. Why?

BlackBerry is a name that seems to stick with most. When BlackBerry was popular, boy was it popular. It really was the first modern smartphone that caught on with consumers and so people did not refer to a smartphone as a "smartphone", instead they just referred to it as their BlackBerry. I think that's a large contributing factor as to why the BlackBerry is still even remotely popular today. People remember that BlackBerry has an old reputation of being good. Unfortunately, that reputation is no longer valid with today's modern, more powerful smartphones -- and that's a fact that has yet to catch on with people.


Back in January, RIM's BlackBerry Roadmap was leaked out. It showed RIM's plans to really get back in the game, with smartphone releases planned up until Q1 2012 as well as the PlayBook tablet release in Q2 2011. I'm happy to report that the specs on these phones are actually great. The Bold Touch, due later this year, features a 287ppi display, HD video recording, and a 1.2GHz Qualcomm CPU. The only thing that concerns me is the 2.8-inch screen, which is going to be pretty hard to navigate using fingers, although the trackpad is included as usual in BlackBerry's extremely familiar design. The real problem is it could very well be too little too late for RIM. Innovation in the smartphone market moves at an extremely fast pace, and who's to say that if RIM finally does catch up with a good BlackBerry model in late 2011, that someone won't quickly steal the spotlight and make that model look outdated just a few months after its release? What is RIM going to do then? Should I assume they will have a new competing model out in 2014?

And so now, I believe it is the time for this to all come out. We need to tell RIM that we will no longer settle for these mediocre specifications and poor user experiences. We need to rid of this stereotype that a BlackBerry is still actually relevant. We must stand up; we must fight; we must win! There can be nothing to get in our way -- no new seemingly triumphant smartphone names (Torch, Bold, etc.), no charismatic keynote speeches. None of that! Our drive and our focus must come from a single goal. BlackBerry must die!