BlackBerry CEO calls out the iPhone's dated interface

Shawn Knight

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In a case of what many might consider the pot calling the kettle black, BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins called out Apple’s iPhone during a recent interview for being outdated. Speaking with the Australian Financial Review, Heins made it clear that he believes Apple is falling behind other handset makers (BlackBerry included) with regards to innovation.

The BlackBerry chief said Apple did a fantastic job in bringing touch devices to the market and did a bang up job with the user interface. He noted that Cupertino is a design icon and there is a reason they are so successful but because the rate of innovation is so high in the industry, you can be replaced pretty quickly.

blackberry ceo iphone outdated apple z10

To that end, Heins said that with all due respect, the interface on the iPhone is now five years old. He likened the recent move of launching BlackBerry 10 to putting the company on the starting grid of the wider mobile computing grand prix. Now, the Canadian firm just needs to win the race – a daunting task when you are already several laps behind the competition.

In related BlackBerry news, Heins believes his company will have 100,000 native apps ready for the Z10 by the time it hits retail in the US later this week. When the first wave of phones launched on the new platform in January, there were only 70,000 apps available. That’s a respectable number and far more than were available when Microsoft launched its Windows Phone OS but it pales in comparison to what’s offered in the App Store and on Google Play.

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Why someone would want to buy a BB is beyond me. Its like downgrading from windows 7 to vista...WHY?
Can BB's now connect to an exchange server without the need of BES?
 
Much like any cellular device, its success will not be based on actual useage, but on how good of a media blitz RIM puts into it. Im sure everyone remembers a few years ago roughly 2010 when the EVO line was the newest hotest toy. Apple has used media to make themselves giants. All it would take is the same level of media investment and the BB10 will skyrocket.
 
Why someone would want to buy a BB is beyond me. Its like downgrading from windows 7 to vista...WHY?
Can BB's now connect to an exchange server without the need of BES?

so you've obviously not used BB10 before then, that's ok though I forgive you for that. All BB's in the last 6 or 7 years have been able to connect to Exchange in one form or another without having to use BES. Blackberry 10 uses Exchange ActiveSync as its primary email protocol.

As to why someone would want to use BB over iPhone, Android, or Windows Mobile OS? The same reason why they would want to use any other device ... because the device/platform provides them the kind of service that they are looking for.
 
I agree with this, iOS interface, althought is fast (on iphone 5) and easy to use, has become old and static. The biggest change I remember having, was the notification center, and that was like many years ago... Apple should revamp the iOS soon if they want to give the customer new and better features, if not, even the iphone 10 is gonna look the same as an iphone 4.
 
Well as long as the iHorde continues buying then they don't really need to bother. In Apple's eyes, the product works because it sells, and that's the end of the story. Why else do you think they are not even trying to innovate? Just make it a bit larger, increase the resolution and voila, your new iPhone :)

BTW I own an iPad and love it (for the most part), so no I'm not a hater ;-)
 
AFAICIAABOBS (as far as I'm concerned, it's all a bunch of bs). I'd like to see Blackberry stand on their own and make something great that is competitive and innovative, and prove it through customer satisfaction and reviews, not by having their CEO stand on stage and blast other products. In the meantime, let's abbreviate the beginning of all of our sentences so I have to decode them before reading :p

JK just poking fun at the internet.
 
"Heins made it clear that he believes Apple is falling behind other handset makers (BlackBerry included) with regards to innovation"

..I thought blackberry is the one most-falling-behind other handset makers?
 
That's what marketing has come to apparently, trying to convince the masses that their product is better than the iPhone in some cases even making fun of the competitors customers. Even trying to fake long lines *opps* I've said to much. LMAO truly pathetic.
 
From the story - "Now, the Canadian firm just needs to win the race ? a daunting task when you are already several laps behind the competition."

That's not true at all. Companies don't follow in each other's footsteps, they leap-frog over one another. When MS came out with the xbox, it didn't matter they were 'a few laps behind the competition' in the console industry. Ask Sega if it mattered that MS was late to the game.
 
"Dated" is an aesthetic argument. Steering wheels and keyboards are dated, but that's because they've reached a sweet spot in functionality.

Dated becomes an issue in a UI if eye candy appeal is a major driving force for consumers. If the question is functionality, then you have to present the argument that the iOS interface is less functional now than it was five years ago for the device's intended audience and how it is currently being used.
 
"Dated" is an aesthetic argument. Steering wheels and keyboards are dated, but that's because they've reached a sweet spot in functionality.

Dated becomes an issue in a UI if eye candy appeal is a major driving force for consumers. If the question is functionality, then you have to present the argument that the iOS interface is less functional now than it was five years ago for the device's intended audience and how it is currently being used.

I agree fully, however, I am also of the opinion that while the current iOS UI is functional it has become a little long in the tooth and I think most iOS users would agree. The UI needs a face lift or at least some kind of aesthetic modification to breath some life into it. If not, they should start packing more features into iOS. I think that Samsung as realized that they cannot depend mainly on hardware specs to gain customers, and have set their sights on the average Joe by focusing now on software and creating a feature rich device.
 
This is a nice upgrade for BB, but a bit too late in my opinion. I was reading reviews about the BB10 and people say its OS is bad.
 
Well, someone in an official position had to do it. When is the last time those icons got updated anyways?
 
"Dated" is an aesthetic argument. Steering wheels and keyboards are dated, but that's because they've reached a sweet spot in functionality.

Dated becomes an issue in a UI if eye candy appeal is a major driving force for consumers. If the question is functionality, then you have to present the argument that the iOS interface is less functional now than it was five years ago for the device's intended audience and how it is currently being used.

It's functionally dated too. Everything in iOS takes forever to do: menus are all hidden, navigation is clunky and all over the place, animations take forever.
 
It's functionally dated too. Everything in iOS takes forever to do: menus are all hidden, navigation is clunky and all over the place, animations take forever.
Well not really, but you have a point there, they could improve that.
 
Of course armchair blog-reviewers are saying BB10 is a bad OS. Anytime any company releases something that isn't Apple, a bunch of reviewers come out of the woodwork saying how awful it is. It's like Apple has a bunch of snipers hiding in the brush, just waiting to pop a cap in anything that could put a dent in it.

BB10 is amazing.

All RIM needs to compete (and this is the sad truth) is a media machine chugging along at ludicrous speed. Apple is 75% hype, and their users are conformists. Only a powerful media train can turn them away at this point, but RIM can't just dump all funding into marketing. They have to be smart about things at this stage. They're on life support.
 
Of course armchair blog-reviewers are saying BB10 is a bad OS. Anytime any company releases something that isn't Apple, a bunch of reviewers come out of the woodwork saying how awful it is. It's like Apple has a bunch of snipers hiding in the brush, just waiting to pop a cap in anything that could put a dent in it.

BB10 is amazing.

All RIM needs to compete (and this is the sad truth) is a media machine chugging along at ludicrous speed. Apple is 75% hype, and their users are conformists. Only a powerful media train can turn them away at this point, but RIM can't just dump all funding into marketing. They have to be smart about things at this stage. They're on life support.
True. I feel like they are a bit too later in the game though, that is what I mainly agree with. BB has to prove themselves by making large corporate deals. They may not succeed in the consumer sector, but in the corporate sector they rock. They gained 1 million orders for the BB10. But losing the US defense department to Apple must have been hard. They just need to advertise like Samsung (maybe not $400 million) to gain market share.
 
True. I feel like they are a bit too later in the game though, that is what I mainly agree with. BB has to prove themselves by making large corporate deals. They may not succeed in the consumer sector, but in the corporate sector they rock. They gained 1 million orders for the BB10. But losing the US defense department to Apple must have been hard. They just need to advertise like Samsung (maybe not $400 million) to gain market share.

I didn't know US defense was using iPhones. That's kinda scary.
 
Wow I think Thorsten Heins, before opened his big mouth, he need think and asking to himself why Apple is Apple and their stocks cost around USD $500 each one and why each ex-blackberry users choose a iPhone and not a "NEW" blackberry after 2007.

this is a funny guy. another gag?
 
I have a 4s and I say the OS is way long in the tooth. A sabre tooth. The iOS is nearly faultless in its stability and simplicity but, I find that a blessing and a curse. I find myself wishing for widgets all the time. I miss the ability to be able to get to the weather, alarm clock and power settings from the home screen. Doesn't get more simple than that. No, Im not willing to jailbreak my phone for it either. I have a Nexus 7 and it resolves all the complaints I had from my previous android phones. It is stable and smooth. I wonder if the Nexus phones are as stable? Anyway, your right, its time for an overhaul of iOS.
 
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