Why Microsoft doesn't get it..

[msnawe]

Now both companies have virtually no market share but with a very different ratio of investment..

As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

 

[Kenneth Collins1]

Windows phone will make it. Microsoft is doing things right. They came out with Windows 8.1 and developed Cortana and gave her a personality. Loaded up the phone and sold the lower end phones cheap. I'm on my third Windows phone in less than a year. Went from the 520 to the 635 to the 640. My brother who has a new Apple phone that he paid a lot of money for and finds out his memory is all used up and he can't add anymore. Can't buy another battery and he hasn't learned how to take and send pictures and video. Then looks at mine and says that's the last Apple I buy and pay a high price for and yours can do everything I bought this Apple for. Yours is easier to use. Then Microsoft linked it up with Windows desk top which will help people learn their new phone. Even Consumer Report gives the Lumina 640 high marks and places it ahead of many phones costing 3-4 times as much. Hell you can't buy a GPS for what this phone sells for and it has a GPS also. People are slow to switch, but when they see the value of the Windows phone, they will buy it.

 

[Daniel Ratcliffe]

Microsoft can very well encourage others smartphone vendors to use WP10 while having a reference platform. Now let's flip the point the other way. If blackberry had invested the resources that Microsoft did for WP + had the financial viability of MS+ office suite + here maps + onedrive, and few other key enterprise products, it would have achieved a much higher market share with their bb10 phone. They would probably have 20%/30%.

As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

How can you prove that? In the NA region maybe, but here in Europe there's huge belligerence towards BlackBerry and a warming towards Windows. Similarly if Microsoft had pulled all their money into mobile, what would they have achieved?

 

[msnawe]

With virtually no adverts and no phone in stores, the risk of going bust and ending up with a dead os has hurt sales but blackberry still sold a fair amount of bb10 phones. There is no doubt Microsoft would have sold a lot more bb10 phones then blackberry did. Then bb10 was steadily improved without the need for OS reboots ever. As of now all bb10 phones are on the latest version. Nobody left behind. That's as close as iphone as you can get. Even more, most z30 users are so happy with it they would never trade it for an iPhone. So there is clear reason to think that Microsoft would have had even better success when bb10 than with current w10. Actually Microsoft would have done better porting metro UI concept on meego rather than ditch it for wp7 at the time.

As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

 

[EasilyTheBest]

Microsoft's problem is the U.S. over in Europe they have 10% 12% and even 14% market share in sum countries.
Blackberry is nowhere to be seen. While Windows phones are in all the stores.
In the UK theres a great selection in Carphone Warehouse, EE, Vodafone, O2, Tesco, Asda...
Its way better than a couple of years back, I see ppl using Windows phone every day..

 

[Daniel Ratcliffe]

Yes it may have sold pretty well. But it might just have been BlackBerry fans that were buying the phones. Of course I don't subscribe to the viewpoint that Microsoft would do better on BBOS10. I believe that the universal app model would be impossible to implement without sweeping changes to the code (I've dabbled in Windows Phone development) due to the hugely different code types. Namely Windows Phone is based on the NT kernel and BBOS10 is QNX which is UNIX based. This would make development of apps even less enticing than it already is. Now I do believe Microsoft should have bought BlackBerry but for different reasons to you. You suggested they buy them for the software and OS, I believe they should have bought them for the hardware (keyboard fitted Windows 10 mobile? A man can dream right?). What Microsoft should have done though was less reboots of the OS.

 

[TechFreak1]

To the OP.

Wait, wait you're suggesting that Microsoft should have bought Blackberry over Nokia's D & S division, who held over 90% of the Windows phone 8 market thus basically starting again from scratch?

Parse that for second.

Yes it may have sold pretty well. But it might just have been BlackBerry fans that were buying the phones. Of course I don't subscribe to the viewpoint that Microsoft would do better on BBOS10. I believe that the universal app model would be impossible to implement without sweeping changes to the code (I've dabbled in Windows Phone development) due to the hugely different code types. Namely Windows Phone is based on the NT kernel and BBOS10 is QNX which is UNIX based. This would make development of apps even less enticing than it already is. Now I do believe Microsoft should have bought BlackBerry but for different reasons to you. You suggested they buy them for the software and OS, I believe they should have bought them for the hardware (keyboard fitted Windows 10 mobile? A man can dream right?). What Microsoft should have done though was less reboots of the OS.

They wouldn't have need to have bought Blackberry for the hardware, sure some of the keyboards of on some blackberry models are really, really good. However it's just a keyboard, nothing that can't be emulated or improved upon.

For instance the HTC TP7, that failed predominately due to the lack of landscape support. Dell's phone was marred by the same issues as the other other WP7 phones i.e the msd card fiasco (being the most prominent one as that is the only component hot swapped - the SIM not as much).

 

[neo158]

Buying Blackberry would have been a huge disaster for Microsoft, not even the shareholders have confidence in BB any more considering the share price has dropped below ten points. You'll get the die hards who'll buy the Priv but most BB users I've seen have said they'll jump ship to W10M or iOS or even stick with BB10 as long as they can.

 

[msnawe]

Yes I can see bb10 users switching to w10 but because going android is a worse step back. Yes blackberry as a company doesn't seem in good shape and it's what costed bb10 a decent market. Bb10 with the backing of a Microsoft or amazon would have gained more traction than w10 will ever get until it's rebooted or canned.

As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

Mmmm no. I don't like BB10 that much. I love Windows Phone. It could use some improvements but it's constantly getting better.

 

[msnawe]

the tiles look nice but it's clear that using metro UI doesn't flow like bb10. Just the hub can clearly replace a number of wp screens. Bb10 can borrow a couple of things that wp does better, but overall the main thing that would really help bb10 is office + here maps + active tiles. There isn't anything else that Microsoft could offer bb10.

As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

the tiles look nice but it's clear that using metro UI doesn't flow like bb10. Just the hub can clearly replace a number of wp screens. Bb10 can borrow a couple of things that wp does better, but overall the main thing that would really help bb10 is office + here maps + active tiles. There isn't anything else that Microsoft could offer bb10.

As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

There's a lot Microsoft can offer and it is already. Microsoft is already doing far better than BlackBerry (what is it, ten times more market share? I can't remember but I thought BlackBerry had .3% worldwide market share). BlackBerry just isn't suited to the modern world and that's why the Priv is an Android device, not BB10. Yes, BlackBerry has some great ideas but it's already been proven over and over again that those ideas aren't necessary anymore. People don't require them. I'd love for Microsoft to incorporate some of BlackBerry's ideas but in the end I don't think acquiring BlackBerry would help Microsoft at all. Even now BlackBerry would be a ridiculously large acquisition and it's not worth it.

 

[skstrials]

This is a tough call.

I like BlackBerry 10 phones; and I also like Windows 10 tablets and PCs.

BlackBerry and Microsoft could do some collaboration together.

- BlackBerry can bring in their Hub available for Windows Phone, while MS can have their apps available on BlackBerry 10.
- Making the Band work on BlackBerry 10 can also boost some sales for Microsoft.


All in all, BlackBerry users are more open to Microsoft than Google.

Posted via the Windows Central App for Android

 

[msnawe]

@Zachary based on your arguments we could conclude that both bb10 and wp10 are just as unnecessary and it's now a 2 horse race apple vs Google. Wp10 just being used as a way to release frustrations of android users who try a Lumia but then resell it and returns to Android or iPhone.

This dual horse race is indeed becoming a reality as Windows is now following bb towards android.

I would prefer to have a 3rd contender but BlackBerry and Microsoft won't do unless they really step up their game.

They would achieve it quicker if they took the best of it, ie bb10 with metro touches and MS ecosystem.

Now it looks more like WP will end up canned.


As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

 

[ArtificiallyYours]

MS gets it more than the OP does.

 

[EasilyTheBest]

@Zachary based on your arguments we could conclude that both bb10 and wp10 are just as unnecessary and it's now a 2 horse race apple vs Google. Wp10 just being used as a way to release frustrations of android users who try a Lumia but then resell it and returns to Android or iPhone.

This dual horse race is indeed becoming a reality as Windows is now following bb towards android.

I would prefer to have a 3rd contender but BlackBerry and Microsoft won't do unless they really step up their game.

They would achieve it quicker if they took the best of it, ie bb10 with metro touches and MS ecosystem.

Now it looks more like WP will end up canned.


As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

Unnecessary?
Like I posted earlier, Microsoft is doing just fine in Europe. They are right behind IOS in a couple of countries.
I love Windows Phones and yes I have tried Android.
I think your taking your view on things as if its everyone else's and is a fact that its a two horse race and WP will be canned.
Theres no chance of that.
Microsoft are in this for the long term. With universal apps and a rumoured Surface Phone to come theres no way MS is giving up.
Google will have to make apps for Windows 10 eventually even tho they really don't want Windows 10 to succeed for obvious reasons..

 

[msnawe]

This was in 2013 to 2014, now the 'growth' is much slowed and even reversing in some countries.

Not surprising, Microsoft went for the low and mid end market to avoid competing with iPhone and galaxy s5/s6, Nexus 6. There are many curious who probably tried a cheap Lumia out of frustration from Android.

And the parents who buy Lumia for their kids because they are cheap. Now with Xiaomi and Oppo, even asus, they can go android for very cheap. We will see what happens..

I bought the lumia 640xl because I needed a dual SIM and didn't want android. I loved how beautiful the tiles but I got frustrated going in and out of apps, I got frustrated at the inferior mail client of WP.

What is effortless on bb10 is just annoying on wp. But I loved the Microsoft office, the maps... I had to return my 640 after 2 days though.

Now I have a ZenFone 2, it's much better than the 640 for mails and just about everything except the home screen.

But ZenFone is frustrating too, it just flows on bb10. The closest to this user experience is Jolla OS.

That's when I realized that a Microsoft bb10 ecosystem would just be the best solution to date.


As soon as there is a BlackBerry 10 dual SIM, I fully quit Android.

 

[rmeigs]

Microsoft's problem is the U.S. over in Europe they have 10% 12% and even 14% market share in sum countries.
Blackberry is nowhere to be seen. While Windows phones are in all the stores.
In the UK theres a great selection in Carphone Warehouse, EE, Vodafone, O2, Tesco, Asda...
Its way better than a couple of years back, I see ppl using Windows phone every day..

Exactly. Too many here in North America see WP with only a 3% share in the USA and assume that is what they are doing everywhere. As you point out, not so.

 

[StevoPhilo]

There really is little to no reason for Microsoft to ACQUIRE Blackberry. I'm really curious what features of BB10 that you like to see on a WP. Honestly if that's the only reason then I guess Microsoft could get a license agreement on those designs, but to outright BUY them would be ridiculous.

BB isn't a threat to literally anyone at the moment. It'd be easier for them to die and then have Microsoft take their UI design for Hub

 

[Zachary Boddy]

I do not agree that the way to go is BB10. As I said, BB10 is in no way built for the modern world! It worked on feature phones. It worked on BlackBerry's! It does not work on smartphones. BlackBerry has gone the way of Android because finally they realize this. Maybe with their high quality hardware and security running Android they have a chance to be a manufacturer but BlackBerry as an operating system is hanging by a thread and with the way the market is going it won't last long. BB10 isn't fluid enough, and by that I mean it doesn't change enough.
Microsoft is invested in Windows 10 Mobile and there's no way they're giving up yet. Universal Apps, Continuum, all new core apps, a new camera, an entirely new operating system, Windows Design Language, everything is there. It's not a two-horse race. There's a lot of horses there, just all but three are so far back in the distance you can't even see them. Windows Phone is right there and Microsoft is pumping so much energy into it that as long as they don't stumble they have a chance of being a contender again. If Microsoft worked with BlackBerry to use some of their ideas, get that infamous security and maybe a hand on the BlackBerry Hub, that would be great. But Microsoft doesn't need it, and it may actually weaken them.
The worst thing Microsoft can do is spend their precious funds on acquiring BlackBerry as a whole. That would be a foolhardy decision. Acquiring Nokia was likely a mistake but Nadella at least rolled with it and is using it to his full advantage. Nothing can be gained from buying a dying company that's sinking the last of its energy into Android, Microsoft's mobile competitor.