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I get lambasted for this opinion all the time, but I am still holding it... The Blackberry was the peak of efficient, minimal phone usage: * It optimized for

I get lambasted for this opinion all the time, but I am still holding it... The Blackberry was the peak of efficient, minimal phone usage: * It optimized for doing things like short letter and message writing well through the keyboard. * Blackberry messenger still leads in terms of features that can reduce noise: appear offline and availability settings, friends lists. * It focused on productivity applications, screen size kept browsing to "as needed". As a Canadian, I remember when the iPhone started to take over. My friends were sitting around playing Paper Toss, meanwhile my berry sat quietly in my pocket.

badwolf 8y ago
The Pearl was my favorite phone I've ever had. I will always miss those simpler times.
wenc 8y ago
I own an iPhone now but had a BlackBerry for a few years. I still miss the keyboard. I miss being able to write longer emails on the bus/subway without stumbling on predictive text. I miss that the little flashing indicator light on the device that told me that I have mail. The BlackBerry was good at the things it was good at, but that was also the reason it couldn't grow beyond that. It was a specialist, and specialists by definition have more limited appeal than generalists. The keyboard was pleasure to use but it also halved the screen real estate and had to be customized to each geography (e.g. non-QWERTY keyboard layouts).
doublepg23 8y ago
I used a blackberry as my first smartphone. It did a lot of things amazingly well that I still crave today. However the lackluster and slow web browser kept it from being "Smart" - especially with poor app support.
Yetanfou 8y ago
Yet that same Blackberry was also nicknamed 'Crackberry' due to the seemingly addictive nature of the device which had some users glued to its screen just as much as current devices do. The conclusion to draw from this is probably that some people will get addicted to anything and everything which gives them the semblance of 'connectivity'.

badwolf 8y ago

The Pearl was my favorite phone I've ever had. I will always miss those simpler times.

wenc 8y ago

I own an iPhone now but had a BlackBerry for a few years. I still miss the keyboard. I miss being able to write longer emails on the bus/subway without stumbling on predictive text. I miss that the little flashing indicator light on the device that told me that I have mail. The BlackBerry was good at the things it was good at, but that was also the reason it couldn't grow beyond that. It was a specialist, and specialists by definition have more limited appeal than generalists. The keyboard was pleasure to use but it also halved the screen real estate and had to be customized to each geography (e.g. non-QWERTY keyboard layouts).

doublepg23 8y ago

I used a blackberry as my first smartphone. It did a lot of things amazingly well that I still crave today. However the lackluster and slow web browser kept it from being "Smart" - especially with poor app support.

Yetanfou 8y ago

Yet that same Blackberry was also nicknamed 'Crackberry' due to the seemingly addictive nature of the device which had some users glued to its screen just as much as current devices do. The conclusion to draw from this is probably that some people will get addicted to anything and everything which gives them the semblance of 'connectivity'.