Hotmail's a bad comparison, because they're two products in the same market with similar features. What if Google tried to make a product that was competing wit

Hotmail's a bad comparison, because they're two products in the same market with similar features. What if Google tried to make a product that was competing with something like MobileMe, which has less features but works much nicer - and at a cost? I think Blackberry's trying to compete with Apple was inevitable, and I think they've got some good ideas. But they're dealing with a much higher-quality competitor, in a different field. Phone manufacturers are trying to make a competing phone. They need to work on making competing mini-computers. RIM is the top smart-phone maker, but they're competing in a different (albeit overlapping) field now, and their first attempt was a dud. I think if they didn't try, that Apple would (and still very well may) swamp them within a few years. So they're responding. But their first foray has been a dud.