According to Engadget, RIM will be releasing BlackBerry OS 6 in Q3 2010. Although RIM’s BlackBerry phones are still the kings of the business world, they’ve been losing market share in the consumer smartphone space, where Apple’s iPhone and various Google Android devices are dominating. One of the biggest deficiencies in BlackBerry OS is its web browser, which is primitive and clunky compared to the WebKit browsers on Android and iPhone. OS 6 will address the browser issue and more. Here’s more from RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridis courtesy of Engadget:
Lazaridis said that the company’s all-new WebKit-based browser is part and parcel with 6, pointing out that the rendering engine will have implications throughout the platform and the apps that run on it, not just on the browser alone; in other words, we wouldn’t expect a release of a WebKit browser from these guys for OS 5.0-based devices. Speaking of OS 5.0, the intention is that every device in RIM’s portfolio will eventually run 6, but not everything in the market today will necessarily be upgradeable — Lazaridis says that they’ll “do [their] best,” but he’s not making any guarantees.
If the site’s release date is accurate then RIM will still be in trouble in the consumer market. The company’s OS updates have been rolled out at a glacial pace, while Apple and Google have been rapidly improving their respective operating systems. I still expect RIM to dominate the enterprise market for a few years, but I doubt it can take market share back in the consumer space.
Any thoughts on the release of BlackBerry OS 6?
Won't this be close to the release of Windows Phones?
Like I've said before I just want my current phone to at least run 5.0.
But I'd buy a BB with a brand new OS over and of the other new OSs. We'll see if that holds true when this is actually released though
Which carrier "allows" you to upgrade your BB?
@smartguy All four majors offer OS updates, but some are faster than others. I thought I saw a blurb that said Sprint's 9650 will be upgradeable to 6.
I am still gonna have to lean towards Apple or Microsoft for my next phone hopefully. My fiance will probably be getting a blackberry curve later this summer, which I really don't like because I feel that it is too small for me to use on a constant basis. I am just hoping that the next iphone gen. will be available with verizon and/or that the Microsoft mobile 7 phones don't actually suck, because I think I will really like the interface on them. My problem with most phones is that the actual phone is uncomfortable to hold or use, not so much the interface all the time (although that is extremely important as well).
@bsukenyan Why no interest in Android? Don't you have like 12 Gmail accounts?
I've never liked BB. I just never like the interface or the browser. The only smartphone i've had before my iphone is the cingular 3125, which ran windows mobile. My gf has an android mytouch3g and i've played with it for a bit. The only thing i like about it is that you don't have to have your apps on the desktop or springboard. My friends like to use my iphone when we hang out and i like that option because it hides some apps that i'm ashamed of. oh and no i won't mention the apps.
@tokz_21 The interface is definitely archaic. What I like about BlackBerry phones in general is that they're designed to work well as phones (a novel idea) and have long battery life. T-Mobile uses UMA, which has been amazingly useful for me. BlackBerry will soon offer enterprise VoIP for its BlackBerries.
I would love an Android 2.1 phone with UMA…but I doubt that will happen.
@rpad
what a novel concept right? A phone that works like a phone? I think Apple sees that now and realizes that at&t partnership might've not been a good idea. It seems very one-sided where at&t reaped all the benefits. I live in Chicago and my iphone works 95% of the time on 3g, I already know which areas to put in Edge but i shouldn't have to do this. I can't imagine how the SF or NYC crowd do it. If and when the iphone releases on other networks. I'll still stick with at&t because everyone that's not happy with them will leave to get them on the network they prefer.
@Ray
AT&T never pushed an update to my old curve. Guess it fell in the same line as iPhone tethering. Lol
@Ray
I have never seen AT&T offer an update for any of their phones.
My WinMo 6.0 phones couldn't go to 6.1 and 6.1s couldn't go to 6.5.
Now they are not updating my Blackberry so I have little faith that they actually allow any updates.
I Just downloaded Bell Mobilities OS 5.0 for BB Bold 9000. I am going to install it as soon as I get home tomorrow.
@Ray
You are so right about BBs being great phones. That was a major reason for my switch to BB. I wanted something that was a phone before it was anything else. I have noticed 1 major phone issue with my Bold though, dialing any number that is a word. Its tough to figure out what letters correspond to without a number pad to look at.
@smartguy Updates aren't pushed. You have to download them.
@SlickyFats I've seen a few, but they don't happen very often. The CrackBerry forums are a good resource to keep up with the latest firmware updates.
@Ray
I was interested in android, until a lot of people I know started getting it and have had nothing but problems with it. The only people I have met that have good things to say about android, and I should say more specifically with the Droid, are sales people trying to get my money.
I will have to look in to other phones that run the android OS, but so far it has been a bust. Partially that comes from an iphone having already captivated me because of my ipod touch, or the windows mobile 7 having cool capabilities to go along with my 360 (I thought they should use something like that to market the Zune, but apparently they felt the phone is the way to go).
But yeah I do have 6 gmail accounts plus my school email account (which does just get forwarded to the same email just a gmail.com instead of bsu.edu) so there would be advantages to a google produced phone OS I'm sure.
@bsukenyan A lot of it depends on what phones and what version of Android the people you talked to used. Phones like the Droid, Nexus One, and HTC Incredible are pretty excellent. Android has come a long, long way in the last year.
@Ray
I will have to take a closer look at a couple of those phones, but I also did not really like the feel of the droid while trying it out.
Apple and Microsoft are already vying for my attention when I get my new phone later this year, and honestly I would like to compare all three OS's, but so far I'm not sure if Google is really able to hang with either of the other companies yet. Time will tell, and I do hope that they keep getting better.
I installed Bell Mobility's OS 5.0 for my Bold last night. I LOVE IT. Its like a new phone. Its much faster and has lots more free space.
Also found out Gmail reads your e-mails. I wrote a message to a friend explaining how to install it and at one point I wrote "make sure your phone is attached" when I hit send, gmail puts a pop-up up saying "you wrote "is attached" but there are no attachments, send anyway?"
Kinda cool I guess.