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mgmueller · 09-27-2014, 12:52 PM

I just was in German Saturn Markt.
I didn't really hope for it, but of course I still had to check out whether they've got BlackBerry Passport (at least some demo unit) on display.
Their brief response:
"We're not selling BlackBerrys anymore in-store. Only through the website".
To me, that's a clear indicator about the target group for smartphones: BlackBerrys mainly appeal for business clients. Those definitely aren't in focus in their shops...
And Saturn Markt and their brother company Media Markt are huge in Europe, some 250 huge stores in Germany, another 100 in Italy and so on...

I've read some reviews about BlackBerry Passport.
Vast majority has been crushing.
But I'm not quite sure, what to make of this kind of "professional" reviews.
Example:
"The square format isn't practical for watching movies".
Wow! What an insight.
That's like stating "a Porsche isn't practical for bringing 3 children to Kindergarten".
Both statements obviously are correct.
But they are quite irrelevant for the respective target groups.
A Porsche isn't a (sole) family car.
A BlackBerry isn't targeting for media consumption.

But what I really don't understand and what puts BlackBerry in 2nd league (at best):
Why can't I find any release date?
The BlackBerry website and Amazon both state "available for pre-order".
The link to Vodafone even ends in Limbo.
Microsoft stated right ahead the shipping date. And then the positive surprise: The date they gave was the day I actually held it in hands, not the day it had been shipped.
Apple for years sticks to a perfect schedule.
Dear BlackBerrys: Make it conservative then. Add 5 days to the planned shipping date. But you can't just state "available for pre-order". I'll pre-order right ahead, if I can have it in the next 10 days. If it will be November or something like that, I might not even be interested at all anymore...

If you're on the loosing track already, your marketing should be benchmark, not "invisible"...

EDIT:
200.000 units sold in 4 days. Not iPhone-material, but good enough, I guess: http://www.nbcnews.com/tech/mobile/b...o-days-n212631

09-27-2014, 12:52 PM	#8
mgmueller Member Retired Posts: 3,308 Karma: 13024950 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Augsburg (near Munich), Germany Device: 26 Readers, 44 Tablets	BlackBerry Passport I just was in German Saturn Markt. I didn't really hope for it, but of course I still had to check out whether they've got BlackBerry Passport (at least some demo unit) on display. Their brief response: "We're not selling BlackBerrys anymore in-store. Only through the website". To me, that's a clear indicator about the target group for smartphones: BlackBerrys mainly appeal for business clients. Those definitely aren't in focus in their shops... And Saturn Markt and their brother company Media Markt are huge in Europe, some 250 huge stores in Germany, another 100 in Italy and so on... I've read some reviews about BlackBerry Passport. Vast majority has been crushing. But I'm not quite sure, what to make of this kind of "professional" reviews. Example: "The square format isn't practical for watching movies". Wow! What an insight. That's like stating "a Porsche isn't practical for bringing 3 children to Kindergarten". Both statements obviously are correct. But they are quite irrelevant for the respective target groups. A Porsche isn't a (sole) family car. A BlackBerry isn't targeting for media consumption. But what I really don't understand and what puts BlackBerry in 2nd league (at best): Why can't I find any release date? The BlackBerry website and Amazon both state "available for pre-order". The link to Vodafone even ends in Limbo. Microsoft stated right ahead the shipping date. And then the positive surprise: The date they gave was the day I actually held it in hands, not the day it had been shipped. Apple for years sticks to a perfect schedule. Dear BlackBerrys: Make it conservative then. Add 5 days to the planned shipping date. But you can't just state "available for pre-order". I'll pre-order right ahead, if I can have it in the next 10 days. If it will be November or something like that, I might not even be interested at all anymore... If you're on the loosing track already, your marketing should be benchmark, not "invisible"... EDIT: 200.000 units sold in 4 days. Not iPhone-material, but good enough, I guess: http://www.nbcnews.com/tech/mobile/b...o-days-n212631 Last edited by mgmueller; 09-27-2014 at 04:28 PM.