4 ms·

Oddly, Blackberry is insanely cool amoung the teen crowd in the UK (well, London anyway). Not sure why, since they have no need for business class email. BBM s

Oddly, Blackberry is insanely cool amoung the teen crowd in the UK (well, London anyway). Not sure why, since they have no need for business class email. BBM seems to be the main driver, even though there are plenty of altenatives on other platforms.

togasystems 16y ago
I have always been fascinated by BBM's popularity. Whenever somebody told me that BBM was their reason for buying a Blackberry, I always countered with text messaging is available on ALL phones. They counter with that you have to pay for text messaging and my final counter is that you already have a $60/month plan to support your Blackberry, why didn't you ask your phone company to throw in free text-messaging? They usually lower their head and buy an iPhone within three months.
- tlear 16y ago
  People who use BB for BBM do not get $60 plans.. they get $25 plans that have unlimited bis traffic and very low normal data traffic. Not to mention you can pump media through it for free
  - bruceboughton 16y ago
    Every iPhone tariff in the UK has unlimited texts. Most non-iPhone tariffs as well...
    - tlear 16y ago
      Lucky you, here they skin you alive with the fees
- andyana 16y ago
  It's not so much that BBM is cheaper than texting, but rather that BBM is the best messaging client I've used. Sure, there are alternatives, but they don't work as well. Yes, BBM is the reason I stay with blackberry, and unless my friends ditch it, I will continue to use it.
JonnieCache 16y ago
>Blackberry is insanely cool amoung the teen crowd in the UK It's definitely a London thing. They became hugely popular in the summer of 2009, rapidly making their way into the constantly shifting memepool that is the grime scene. Witness "Maxwell D - Blackberry Hype": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qtShEs5LQs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qtShEs5LQs Believe it or not this isn't paid product placement. Hence he lists RIM's competitors in the intro. They probably still sent maxwell some units though. EDIT: BBM was also heavily used as a way of sending shouts to pirate radio stations. You couldn't really ask for better marketing. It's very much waned now though.
- andyking 16y ago
  Kiss 100's breakfast show in London is sponsored by RIM - and they give out their BBM PIN as a way of contacting the studio. Other stations I've heard, outside London, also give out BBM PINs - Radio City 96.7's dance music programming in Liverpool is one I've noticed.
- dotBen 16y ago
  Those of us outside the UK can't see the video above, so here is another version of it on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8OhnyziTPE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8OhnyziTPE If you've not seen it, it really is an example of how deep the Blackberry runs in street culture - both back home in the UK and even here in the US (take a trip through Daly City or East Bay and check out the BB's).
  - msh 16y ago
    That one doesnt work either (at least in denmark)
    - JonnieCache 16y ago
      Here's a link to just the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFIgs8WkTSY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFIgs8WkTSY There was another tune called "Blackberry Swipe" about mugging people for their mobile phones. Can't remember who did it though. The grime scene really is like a musical version of 4chan when it comes to memetics. They take it seriously too, people have been hospitalised over meme ownership: http://njaithewriter.wordpress.com/2009/04/15/itsalot-gate-griminal-and-tempa-t/ http://njaithewriter.wordpress.com/2009/04/15/itsalot-gate-g...
VB6_Foreverr 16y ago
It's not just London or not just UK either, the teens love Blackberry where I live too
cpeterso 16y ago
I see plenty of teens in San Francisco using Blackberries. From what I understand, the Blackberry hardware keyboard and scrollwheel are popular with speed texters.
danudey 16y ago
> even though there are plenty of altenatives on other platforms. I would argue that this is a problem, not a solution. Plenty of alternatives, all incompatible, none of which are bundled with any phone, and none of which work (or work well) on Blackberry.
raarky 16y ago
cheap phones and plans which are good for messaging each other.
yurisagalov 16y ago
I've seen a similar phenomenon in Canada. My sister (who is 17 now) and many of her friends traded in their iPhones two years ago for a Blackberry and you could not pay her enough money to switch back to an iPhone. I think it's a combination of the keyboard + BBM...

togasystems 16y ago

I have always been fascinated by BBM's popularity. Whenever somebody told me that BBM was their reason for buying a Blackberry, I always countered with text messaging is available on ALL phones. They counter with that you have to pay for text messaging and my final counter is that you already have a $60/month plan to support your Blackberry, why didn't you ask your phone company to throw in free text-messaging? They usually lower their head and buy an iPhone within three months.

tlear 16y ago
People who use BB for BBM do not get $60 plans.. they get $25 plans that have unlimited bis traffic and very low normal data traffic. Not to mention you can pump media through it for free
- bruceboughton 16y ago
  Every iPhone tariff in the UK has unlimited texts. Most non-iPhone tariffs as well...
  - tlear 16y ago
    Lucky you, here they skin you alive with the fees
andyana 16y ago
It's not so much that BBM is cheaper than texting, but rather that BBM is the best messaging client I've used. Sure, there are alternatives, but they don't work as well. Yes, BBM is the reason I stay with blackberry, and unless my friends ditch it, I will continue to use it.

JonnieCache 16y ago

>Blackberry is insanely cool amoung the teen crowd in the UK It's definitely a London thing. They became hugely popular in the summer of 2009, rapidly making their way into the constantly shifting memepool that is the grime scene. Witness "Maxwell D - Blackberry Hype": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qtShEs5LQs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qtShEs5LQs Believe it or not this isn't paid product placement. Hence he lists RIM's competitors in the intro. They probably still sent maxwell some units though. EDIT: BBM was also heavily used as a way of sending shouts to pirate radio stations. You couldn't really ask for better marketing. It's very much waned now though.

andyking 16y ago
Kiss 100's breakfast show in London is sponsored by RIM - and they give out their BBM PIN as a way of contacting the studio. Other stations I've heard, outside London, also give out BBM PINs - Radio City 96.7's dance music programming in Liverpool is one I've noticed.
dotBen 16y ago
Those of us outside the UK can't see the video above, so here is another version of it on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8OhnyziTPE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8OhnyziTPE If you've not seen it, it really is an example of how deep the Blackberry runs in street culture - both back home in the UK and even here in the US (take a trip through Daly City or East Bay and check out the BB's).
- msh 16y ago
  That one doesnt work either (at least in denmark)
  - JonnieCache 16y ago
    Here's a link to just the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFIgs8WkTSY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFIgs8WkTSY There was another tune called "Blackberry Swipe" about mugging people for their mobile phones. Can't remember who did it though. The grime scene really is like a musical version of 4chan when it comes to memetics. They take it seriously too, people have been hospitalised over meme ownership: http://njaithewriter.wordpress.com/2009/04/15/itsalot-gate-griminal-and-tempa-t/ http://njaithewriter.wordpress.com/2009/04/15/itsalot-gate-g...

VB6_Foreverr 16y ago

It's not just London or not just UK either, the teens love Blackberry where I live too

cpeterso 16y ago

I see plenty of teens in San Francisco using Blackberries. From what I understand, the Blackberry hardware keyboard and scrollwheel are popular with speed texters.

danudey 16y ago

> even though there are plenty of altenatives on other platforms. I would argue that this is a problem, not a solution. Plenty of alternatives, all incompatible, none of which are bundled with any phone, and none of which work (or work well) on Blackberry.

raarky 16y ago

cheap phones and plans which are good for messaging each other.

yurisagalov 16y ago

I've seen a similar phenomenon in Canada. My sister (who is 17 now) and many of her friends traded in their iPhones two years ago for a Blackberry and you could not pay her enough money to switch back to an iPhone. I think it's a combination of the keyboard + BBM...