BlackBerry's best chance may be fighting for third - CNET

Is this all you've got, BlackBerry? (Credit: Jacqueline Seng/CNET Asia) Having had the chance to play around with the BlackBerry Z10 briefly, I would compare the feeling to waiting all year for Christmas morning, only to find that your favorite grandmother knitted you a horrendous sweater. You're still fond of her to bits, but secretly think to yourself, "Meh. I'm not sure I'll be using that often." Okay, maybe I'm being a bit too harsh using the word, "horrendous". The Z10 does have its saving graces, such as the much-vaunted predictive keyboard. It is able to predict pretty accurately what word you're trying to type, unless that word is "awesome"--the keyboard offers "awesomeness" instead. Again, I may be a bit hard on the keyboard, which is supposed to adapt to your typing style over time. In my experience reviewing (and owning) a few BlackBerries, which have typically had bad-to-average cameras, the Z10 is actually pretty decent in terms of imaging features. TimeShift is amazing--it's kind of like having the ability to travel through time to select the best shot. I also liked the built-in photo editor, which almost eases the sting of not having a BB10-compatible Instagram app (among many other commonly used apps). BlackBerry claims that its app store will have 70,000 apps at launch, which is very high, considering Android had a little more than 50 at launch and Apple, hundreds (of course that was before the explosion of app development). However, if you scrutinize the numbers a little closer, some 40 percent of those 70,000 apps are merely repackaged Android versions, according to PCMag. Actually, the most important figure will be the number of units BlackBerry moves out the door. According to Informa's principal analyst Malik Saadi, BlackBerry needs to sell at least 1 million units of the new device in the first quarter after its launch. He states, "Anything below this would call into question the company's ability to execute its marketing strategy." Saadi attributes this to the fact that shipments of iPhone, Android and Windows Phone devices reached 1.1 million, 0.8 million and 0.9 million, respectively, in the first three months after they were launched. BlackBerry's best shot at that magic sales figure is to target its loyal fans in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. However, with no word on availability and pricing for the Z10 in Asia--particularly Indonesia, where BlackBerry has done well--it feels like we're getting the cold shoulder. So, the million-dollar question is, "Will BlackBerry 10 OS and the Z10 save the company?" Being a self-professed "CrackBerry" addict, I'm definitely rooting for the Z10 to be the panacea to all of BlackBerry's current troubles. However, if I were to face facts, the BB 10 OS-powered Z10 alone is definitely not going to turn around the company's fortunes. After all, both iOS and Android are already so far ahead of the game, with devices in the hands of so many consumers--which in turn leads to developers concentrating on the two dominating platforms. So, at this juncture, it's really a fight between BlackBerry and Windows Phone for third place. About the author Jacqueline Seng is a presenter/writer for CNET Asia, focusing on mobile phones. Her induction into the world of IT involved typing out stories on a computer in kindergarten--not that much has changed. The only girl on the editorial team (for now), she is also an avid potato chip connoisseur, heist movie enthusiast and indie/hiphop music aficionado. Jacqueline Seng, Presenter/Writer via Technology - Google News http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNHBsm5JC3mR6ZwM4qjcKSBvUaxk-Q&url=http://asia.cnet.com/blackberrys-best-chance-may-be-fighting-for-third-62220353.htm

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