BlackBerry: Another look

In SA Vodacom, MTN and Cell C have already handed over the keys to government some time back. Some time ago it was reported (here also) that the SA Gov demanded equipment and rights from the local network operators to "listen in". What's different here?
 
I don't understand why this article is gunning rim and the blackberry service. It is a fantastic service and hardware that they produce and offer. Instead of gunning the service, gun the governments that's banning it and demanding that they be given access to users personel infomation.

Besides, don't think for one second the governments aint interedted in u cause u use a non blackberry phone. They obviously wanting to listen in on everyone. The fact that blackberry uses security features to protect its users wasa plus....something that the nokia users etc did not have. Rim will have to comply with the relevant laws that applies country by country.
 
How is this different to Google allowing US government access to gmail under patriot act? And how would totally disabling BB mail and forcing them onto another mail service which the government can snoop on be "protecting their privacy"? BB's server model is simply the now common "cloud" client-server model, everyone's going that way, is Ben arguing against all cloud-based solutions, that they're fundamentally flawed on a number of levels, or saying that BB's is different in some way that makes it inferior?
 
I think the BB model of BES and BIS is becoming unacceptable to people on the basis that why must you invest in RIM environment or additionally to yours to get reliable and secure email when you can get it standard on many many environments nowadays. Their model is getting old and they need to come up with something better but there is nothing new coming out of BB that is significant to beat competition. Email and IM just aint cutting it anymore.
 
@ freematrix.

U must remember a big plus with the BIS service is that it gives u unlimited usage on not just email, I'm (bbm and msn) but also unlimited interwebz browsing. U don't get that on nokia etc.
 
ocleroux said:
@ freematrix.

U must remember a big plus with the BIS service is that it gives u unlimited usage on not just email, I'm (bbm and msn) but also unlimited interwebz browsing. U don't get that on nokia etc.
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I here what you are saying but for me, email on a mobile does not use much traffic anyway and msn even uses less. Bandwidth prices will drop again. I use over 30 apps, email, msn, facebook, web browsing and 3G navigation at its costing me about R80 a month on average which for me using a smartphone with all that is not expensive. Unlimited email and msn is far to limit functionality for me on a phone now. I am expecting more even from a so called business phone. Smart phone is evolving and BB needs to catch up.
 
The problem here: BlackBerry with their BIS runs a secure network over the local networks in each country. The local networks are all already accesable by governments but not the BlackBerry one that piggy-backs on the local network. Some governments now wants access to this secure BB network also. This just means that BlackBerry owners to date have enjoyed a level of privacy that non-BB users haven't had for a long time already. How I see it.
 
That other manufacturers would catch up with the BlackBerry model was always expected ... and RIM saw them coming with its patents in place, ready to make money from them. As I see it RIM will have to make a substantial effort to get their app store sorted and get quality apps on there asap. That's where they need to jack things up now, or get left behind.
 
freematrix said:
I here what you are saying but for me, email on a mobile does not use much traffic anyway and msn even uses less. Bandwidth prices will drop again. I use over 30 apps, email, msn, facebook, web browsing and 3G navigation at its costing me about R80 a month on average which for me using a smartphone with all that is not expensive. Unlimited email and msn is far to limit functionality for me on a phone now. I am expecting more even from a so called business phone. Smart phone is evolving and BB needs to catch up.
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I run android and let me tell you that thing is hungry...did 600 MB last month :)
 
I am confused? so everyone is saying a BB is better as email & internet is "free" what about the rest of what a phone needs to do? & I must be honest I do not want email on a small screen. I had an Iphone & now an HTC & email to phone is great for text & a quick reply but it's not a laptop & can you use this "free" internet to connect your Laptop to? I don't need another device & or modem I can use my HTC to connect my laptop to the internet does BB offer this?

I think the BB craze is "over"
 
1. If you really want to keep information private, there are better ways of doing it than keeping the info on your phone, server or on the web for that matter. You only need to spend 30 minutes reading about encryption techniques to get hold of tools the South African government will not want to spend any amount of effort on even trying to decrypt... Governments should always be affraid of their citizens... the fact that ours is so uncomfortable with media access to government information should tell us something about what is going on in our government and the calibre of people in it...

The intelligence services should have protocols in place that would make the stuff worth keeping secret really secret... :)
 
antowan said:
The intelligence services should have protocols in place that would make the stuff worth keeping secret really secret... :)
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Sometimes a judge decides after the horse has already bolted, whether or not to allow the horse to make a more public appearance disguised as a Shetland Pony.

The only way to keep something really secret, is not to keep any record of it, anywhere - think brainwashing...
 
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Meh the cost of mobile internet is dropping all the time. I would rather have fast reliable internet on a device that doesnt take 2 minutes just to turn on.
I have wifi at home and at work so I hardly even use 3G as it is.
Im sure all the fanbois have their reasons for loving BB same as the iphone fanbois but the real love is with android :p
 
This whole issue with BB is all about the "privacy" , which no one else had to begin with. I wonder how many BB users even knew or even bought BB based on this in the first place.The "package" deal that BB offers has nothing to do with privacy [or at least was not a selling point as much as the convenience and cost of the package] , yet why is everyone mixing this up? I don't see how removing the privacy will change the "package" deal.

And saying how cheap bandwidth will become, yadah yadah , and how the "package" will suddenly appear less good because the govt. can tap into your data [like ANY OTHER SERVICE] , it's again -nothing- to do with the issue?! If i bought a Blackberry in the past , i sure as heck did not have a "my data must be private and encrypted from govt. spying" on my list of requirements.

In short: I don't think BB's claim to fame is this privacy thing of theirs, and clearly they think so too [hence why they will most likely comply with govt. regulation] . It's like saying Apple is going to lose market share because the govt said they must have 2 buttons at the bottom and not 1 button on the iphone......huh? If you bought the iphone based on the button at the bottom then you were missing the point....
 
Fark I hate BlackBerries. Probably the worst platform to code for.

The Nokias just work. The BlackBerries you have to trick to get them working.
 
R75 is probably not that cheap considering you can only use it for browsing and email. When BB figure out that some businesses are running their own Linux SIP servers and using the BB 'package' to make free voice calls to all their BB users, they will drop the 'package' like a hot cake.
 
I apologise to Justin if that is not exactly what he said, but it was tweeted by enough people that it should be close enough.
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Since when can a journalist comment on "it was in that line but can't be 100% sure", please get your facts straight before running to the printing press.
 
Android

a bit early to tell, but maybe if RIM is willing to embrace the new android on the block soon enough, the berries' future might not be too black at all?
 
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