4 ms·

Is there a name for the formula that blackberry and others follow? 1) successful consumer business 2) lose in the market so pivot to b2b 3) slow long decline

by xt00 6y ago

Is there a name for the formula that blackberry and others follow? 1) successful consumer business 2) lose in the market so pivot to b2b 3) slow long decline 4) sell brand / assets to somebody else 5) new money results in a “hey we are going back to our roots” and launch products they originally were known for 6) finally go out of business for real, or sell remaining IP to a troll

mothsonasloth 6y ago
I don't know if there is a such a term or concept but I would put these companies or products in the same category: Motorola, IBM Thinkpad, Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Fujitsu computers
- OlderWhiskey 6y ago
  Lenovo has done a decent job with ThinkPad. I'm running an X1 Carbon and love it.
  - as1mov 6y ago
    Eh, they've butchered the T and X series. Aping the Macbooks will be their downfall.
    - gburdell3 6y ago
      What did they do to butcher them in your opinion? I just recently picked up a new X390 and it's a great machine for the price, with better specs in just about every area than a Macbook for half the price. Only thing I would improve is the screen, 1080p doesn't cut it these days.
      - as1mov 6y ago
        I've used the older T420/30/X220/30 series laptops, and they are generally regarded to be well built modular machines that can last for a long time and can be upgraded with minimal fuss. They had 2 non-soldered RAM slots, removable storage, easily swappable batteries. If anyone is looking for cheap refurbished laptops, these are usually the go to suggestions for them. I think the among the newer Thinkpads, only T480 has these capabilities, except the swappable batteries.
  - derrick_jensen 6y ago
    I have had nothing but bad experiences with Lenovo ThinkPads, and refuse to buy anything else of theirs (especially in the wake of Superfish). I had a T60 that had the both hinges snap in the case in normal operation, x230 screen broke and it refuses to start without reinserting the battery. I had similar screen issues with an x100e but at least that didn't have a quality persona around it, so I can't say I'm surprised. I gave up a while ago and just use an iPad for everything (currently a student so I use the pencil heavily). If something warrants me using a keyboard then I just do at home with a tiny NUC I bought for cheap (HP EliteDesk 705 G2 Mini).
    - OlderWhiskey 6y ago
      I can't speak for anything but the X1 Carbon series. I will say when this thing arrived it had a battery issue, but Lenovo overnighted a box and turned around a fixed machine in less than a week.
      - debian3 6y ago
        I see that they haven’t improved their QC. Why can they test their computer before shipping them to us, consumer? By the end before i switched to Mac, i was simply ordering 2 and keeping the one with the less issues.
- robotnikman 6y ago
  IBM still seems to be doing well. Many businesses still rely on their products, such as AS/400
  - ta17711771 6y ago
    Not by choice.
taylorwc 6y ago
It's not 1:1 with the narrative you lay out, but there are tons of parallels with Clay Christensen's Disruption Theory[0] ... basically that a successful business misses a new technology that cannibalizes them from the bottom up and they go into a slow death spiral because of their inability and unwillingness to adapt along the innovative axis. [0] https://www.christenseninstitute.org/disruptive-innovations/ https://www.christenseninstitute.org/disruptive-innovations/
- ajflores1604 6y ago
  Oh man Thank You. I came across this video (https://youtu.be/rpkoCZ4vBSI https://youtu.be/rpkoCZ4vBSI) years ago and I've haven't been able to find it again since. Your comment gave me enough of a breadcrumb to finally track it down
joemazerino 6y ago
Essential Phone?
rcfox 6y ago
Blackberry was initially B2B. You could technically get your own personal Blackberry device, but you pretty much needed needed a business server to get the full experience. They were starting to lean more towards consumer features in 2006 (reluctantly adding a media player!) but the iPhone forced them into the consumer market.

by xt00 6y ago

mothsonasloth 6y ago

I don't know if there is a such a term or concept but I would put these companies or products in the same category: Motorola, IBM Thinkpad, Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Fujitsu computers

OlderWhiskey 6y ago
Lenovo has done a decent job with ThinkPad. I'm running an X1 Carbon and love it.
- as1mov 6y ago
  Eh, they've butchered the T and X series. Aping the Macbooks will be their downfall.
  - gburdell3 6y ago
    What did they do to butcher them in your opinion? I just recently picked up a new X390 and it's a great machine for the price, with better specs in just about every area than a Macbook for half the price. Only thing I would improve is the screen, 1080p doesn't cut it these days.
    - as1mov 6y ago
      I've used the older T420/30/X220/30 series laptops, and they are generally regarded to be well built modular machines that can last for a long time and can be upgraded with minimal fuss. They had 2 non-soldered RAM slots, removable storage, easily swappable batteries. If anyone is looking for cheap refurbished laptops, these are usually the go to suggestions for them. I think the among the newer Thinkpads, only T480 has these capabilities, except the swappable batteries.
- derrick_jensen 6y ago
  I have had nothing but bad experiences with Lenovo ThinkPads, and refuse to buy anything else of theirs (especially in the wake of Superfish). I had a T60 that had the both hinges snap in the case in normal operation, x230 screen broke and it refuses to start without reinserting the battery. I had similar screen issues with an x100e but at least that didn't have a quality persona around it, so I can't say I'm surprised. I gave up a while ago and just use an iPad for everything (currently a student so I use the pencil heavily). If something warrants me using a keyboard then I just do at home with a tiny NUC I bought for cheap (HP EliteDesk 705 G2 Mini).
  - OlderWhiskey 6y ago
    I can't speak for anything but the X1 Carbon series. I will say when this thing arrived it had a battery issue, but Lenovo overnighted a box and turned around a fixed machine in less than a week.
    - debian3 6y ago
      I see that they haven’t improved their QC. Why can they test their computer before shipping them to us, consumer? By the end before i switched to Mac, i was simply ordering 2 and keeping the one with the less issues.
robotnikman 6y ago
IBM still seems to be doing well. Many businesses still rely on their products, such as AS/400
- ta17711771 6y ago
  Not by choice.

taylorwc 6y ago

It's not 1:1 with the narrative you lay out, but there are tons of parallels with Clay Christensen's Disruption Theory[0] ... basically that a successful business misses a new technology that cannibalizes them from the bottom up and they go into a slow death spiral because of their inability and unwillingness to adapt along the innovative axis. [0] https://www.christenseninstitute.org/disruptive-innovations/ https://www.christenseninstitute.org/disruptive-innovations/

ajflores1604 6y ago
Oh man Thank You. I came across this video (https://youtu.be/rpkoCZ4vBSI https://youtu.be/rpkoCZ4vBSI) years ago and I've haven't been able to find it again since. Your comment gave me enough of a breadcrumb to finally track it down

joemazerino 6y ago

Essential Phone?

rcfox 6y ago

Blackberry was initially B2B. You could technically get your own personal Blackberry device, but you pretty much needed needed a business server to get the full experience. They were starting to lean more towards consumer features in 2006 (reluctantly adding a media player!) but the iPhone forced them into the consumer market.