@BB7: Yes, yes, we're all jealous of your iPhone and your Macbook and your 10-inch penis. Yes, Apple is perfect and good and we all just hate for no raisin.

HeartBurnKid

I had absolutely no idea that a tactile keyboard was such an issue for so many people. Are people typing with one hand while driving or taking baths or something?

I'll admit that the review above was overly glowing -- thus inspiring an equal amount of pushback -- but the keyboard thing has never once bothered me on the iPhone. With the spelling correction, I'm actually pretty darn fast and accuracy gets better when I'm drunk...strangely.

Not wanting a totally synchronized mobile experience with a great UI and, now, fun applications because you can't feel a clickety-clack is like saying you don't want to pick up 100 free gold bars because you might have to lift them.

keithsherwood

You guys are just like my IT roommate:

You know the iPhone is sick, but you won't admit it because of some PC pride or some BS. So you defend the worst designed phones on the planet.

BB7

@jeepingeek: Always the same argument, never a good argument. Certain devices do things that others don't. If a device doesn't have the options you want, then it's not the right choice for you. Both the iPhone and BBs are good devices.

@wesrubix: BB charges a lot for there PUSH service with Exchange. Do you have any idea on the HW and yearly fees over BB user each company has to pay? It's fraking outrageous! $99 for the retail price isn't outrageous even if it did offer only what RiM offers with Push email, and contact and calender syncing.

Besides that MobileMe offers many, many more options that tie your Mac, iPodT, iPhone and PCs together and offer an incredibly useful user account storage o their servers. This has been an incredible saviour, though now with Time Capsule I will surely need it less.

Leonard Nimrod

I love how iPhone haters find the few small things that are keeping them from making the jump.

"It doesn't have MMS", waaah!
"I can't copy and paste", waah!
"I want a querty keyboard", waah!

I've never used a Blackberry before, and then used my fiance's one she got from work, it sucks so bad, worst user experience ever! I can't even describe what it's like to go from iPhone to BB.

I felt like I was forced to watch TV on a black and white set with the tuning knobs after coming from a HD 50" plasma.

BB7

@redman042: BB OS not locked?

Jesus Diaz

Can still hear your GSM buzz though...

NightElfMohawk

@hagrun: It looks pretty reliable to me now. And the enterprise shit is already proven.

This is not new stuff. This is Sun Java messaging servers. This is hard core iron.

Jesus Diaz

Anyone? Anyone?

Is Mobile Me not available to everyone right now?

rochec

the iphone is a worthless brick. its only popular cause apple made the pos. i'd rather hae a clicky keyboard to type on.

And, with the blackberry storm coming soon crapple wont stand a chance

nitefire77

I for one.....

Will it......

Damn, I got nothin' :(

Kaiser-Machead's Chips Ahoy!

@bytepusher: One more word: GroupWise

Not everyone uses Exchange and AT&T.

gotroot801

Nice test, Diaz. The international test was a smart move.

Leonard Nimrod

When the iPhone gets on a reliable service MAYBE it could put a dent in the blackberry... but blackberry fanboys are pretty tenacious.

hagrun

@sdf632: Sorry, but BlackBerry OS is antiquated shit. At the rate the iPhone has been eating marketshare, and now knowing the strength of their push solutions (complete with integration with Exchange,) it's only a matter of time. RIM is a minor player and I'm afraind Apple marketing machine is going to kill it.

As a former crackberry addict, it pains me to say this, but the iPhone is a much superior solution with more power, flair, and functionality. Add the marketing, and RIM is a dead duck.

Jesus Diaz

@jrghoull: Haptic feedback?

I don't think there's any denying that the bb is king of the hill when it comes to email. Apple has created a competitor in the email department, but RIM is obviously king of the hill. From the standpoint of overall device convergence though, the iPhone seems like the best thing out there. There's room for both.

Likewise, from the perspective of user experience, the BB is probably more _efficient_ while the iPhone is more _enjoyable_. Again, there's room for both. I drive an impractical old BMW because the user experience is better than a new car, but I recognize that I'm both paying more in maintenance AND giving up a lot of efficiency for the fun ride.

There's room for both a specialized device (BB) and a swiss army knife device (iphone) in this world of ours. Suits want something specialized for work; everyone else just wants something functional and entertaining.

ppiddy

I don't think that BB is dead, but it certainly won't be able to enjoy the same type of dominance over the market as it has in the past. I predict more of a neck and neck scenario then a full-scale blowout by the iPhone. Which is a good thing for consumers, obviously, because it pushes innovation (If only we had more of that in the PC space).

And that's coming from a fanboy.

ACDlite

Jesus is now officially Apple fanboy numero uno. Congrats.

mobilehavoc

Is this Engadget?

yorktronic

@dondgc:

iPhone has exchange now too. I think he was just referring to the only real 'big' thing the iPhone was lacking for business was true push email.

rochec

@jeepingeek: amen!

AND, why should we have to pay extra for mobile me?

Yes blackberry services usually cost more than data plans (e.g. att charged 30/mo for bb, and 15/mo for mediamax unlim, although now iphone 3g is 30/mo)

so if you want mobile me push email, you have to pay 99/year for the sharleton service of mobile me ON TOP of the 30/month data plan for the iphone 3g

or you can just get bb service for 30/mo

wesrubix

Crackberry guys I own a Blackberry Curve and a Samsung Windows Mobile phone. I have used these for years. There are loads of things the iPhone does easily that BB can only dream about. The tiny little monitor without multi-touch era is over, get over it. As far as your precious BB keyboard, I will take the other advantages over that anytime. If you are a tech user, you might try opening your mind and actually try an iPhone. Then you might actually understand the difference and switch.

digiprod

Mobile Me is only available to .mac users for right now right?

rochec

@jrghoull: That makes sense. But even that...will it be necessary in the long term?

There is a secondary question for me, I guess.

Is the tactile keyboard an inherently "lesser" technology for some reason, yet many users are comfortable with it? (Is it just the inability to use the entire space when the keyboard isn't needed?) If so, eventually, as people start with touchscreens they won't ever have the adjustment period? In other words, is this merely a matter of transitioning?

Or, is it something that some people would always prefer, regardless of what they are used to? Is the touch screen the "lesser" technology, but we like it because it allows us to do other better things, even if the input itself is not as useful.

Honestly, I don't know the answer.

92BuickLeSabre

So, does the iphone still require a third party service to get Exchange email pushed to it?
I can't just put in my exchange's address in the phone and have it register with exchange to receive my email, calendar and contacts?

Razta

Other than the physical keyboad, there are MANY other reasons why BB is not at all dead. I'll just name a few: ALL bluetooth profiles included, MMS included, OS not locked down, removable and long lasting battery, much more flexible and customizable contacts and calendar options, cut and paste. For power users, the iPhone is way too dumbed down and locked down.

redman042

I myself prefer the iPhone over BB, but MobileMe is an extra $100 and BB push email is free.

OGHowie

Until the iPhone is on CDMA carriers in the US, RIM is not dead in any amount.

smcallah

This post is just stupid. Thanks for letting us know that the iPhone now has push mail, but the rest of your ridiculously over the top assertions are just patently stupid.

makanai

Dead dead dead? Jumping the gun a little bit there arent we? The Iphone, like most have said, has finally caught up with a feature that most smart phones have had for quite some time now.

I had a choice between an Iphone and a BB and I went for the BB. I'm a big fan of the keyboard and it works well for me.

It's a little presumtious for Jesus to declair RIM dead because the Iphone finally got with the times. lol.

MerlynNY

@ matronix - I was wondering the same thing - how does this push email "kill" the BB if it only works with an Apple email account or Exchange? I'm not a hater (in fact I think the iphone is pretty cool), but there's a world of difference between what the Blackberry BIS offers in terms of push vs. only getting push to a mobileme account.

dondgc

Blackberry and other phones that have email support won't die until the 3G iPhone isn't required to be tethered to the shitfest that is AT&T.

DashTheHand

I have a Motorola RAZR. It has speaker phone. And it has a front-facing camera... as long as I keep it closed.

Rabid Penguin

@phi: Are you Vietnamese by any chance? My boyfriend is and has the same name. Don't think he'd be on this blog, though. LOL

Sean Robertson

Yikes... the wonder sounds of the clicking beeping 2G network phones and video recording equipment. Stay classy 2G!

BurntToast

where did you guys download/make mobile me work? i keep on clicking "software update" but nothing shows up. maybe because i'm still using OS 10.4.11? i need.... i need.... mobile me now. so anxious to try. !

ProtoDAda

With the title of the story, it appears gizmodo is flamebaiting.... itself?? bwhaaaa??

I'll wait for the dust to settle before I weigh in, but personally, if they made mobileme free...then yeah, call the hearse. Otherwise, its a might bit premature, methinks.

lpranal

@CarsonB: very well put lol

Jkuhn

@rahilmehta: Oops, should have refreshed before I posted. I'll look into Emoze.

itchytooth

@phi: exactly. The keyboard is where RIM could stay viable.

GiantEnemyCrab

iPhone - > AT&T exclusive.

Blackberry -> AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, and ever other carrier.

Blackberry FTW.

(and btw, I'm an iphone owner. I just think there's NO WAY most businesses are going to switch their entire corporate carrier contract.)

AaronZ

Like RIM is dead...whatever. Eventually, RIM will come out with a device very similar to the iPhone with a touchscreen keyboard. That being said, I could see RIM losing out if the enterprises start switching from their Blackberry Enterprise Server to MS Exchange ActiveSync. But it wouldn't die because the iPhone supports push email...

anti-hello-kitty

And we all get to enjoy the Morsecodeesque noise his unshielded iphone makes while he records the video. I thought, at first, that I must have accidently got my headphone cable wrapped around my iphone -- then I realized it was part of the recording.

Faxmonkey

I think I've got this straight, but...
I can't get push with my Gmail account, MobileMe or otherwise, correct?

itchytooth

@friedgold: I was going to say the same thing. I mostly text, type, e-mail w/e it may be without looking. I know my t-mo wing by heart and i dont have to look to open 95% of the app's.
IDK about a crackberry but if i'm like that with a WM6 phone they should be even more of a fiend with a CrackBerry.
RIM isnt dead its just going to be getting its ass kicked pretty well for the next couple of months till they man up and start serving some serious updates.
That being said i dont see myself buying an iphone just because of the touchscreen keyboard. I love the phone itself and besides more than 10 million people having it (when its released worldwide) id rather have a full qwerty keyboard.

SneakerFiend

Two words ignored in all the iPhone is now enterprise ready furor:

Lotus Notes

bytepusher

@92BuickLeSabre:

"I keep trying to think of a comparable shift in technology that will help me figure out what the result will be, but I'm struggling."

my money says at some point we'll get a special type of screen that can form little bumps on them for the keys. there seems to be a gradual shift from the regular keyboards to these screen keyboards, and obviously the word around the cooler is that in about 2 years it'll be pretty standard for laptops to be set up in a similar fashion to the XO-2. however, there are so many people (myself included) that prefer (or need however you want to view it) a regular tacticle keyboard that gives feedback whenever you hit a key, that they'll have to develop SOME sort of solution if they plan on making the switch.

jrghoull

Is there a way to make it work with MS live yet?

Totalfixation

i have mobileme and the email is working but the contacts and calendar isn't, is there going to be an OS update to leopard to enable it?

Late_Night

Blackberry makes you professional...iPhone makes you smug.

CarsonB

Hey guys; Ars Technica has some pretty nice coverage of the OpenMoko Freerunner, which dropped last week. Think you can get over your sweaty Apple orgy long enough to at least post a few words about it?

HeartBurnKid

@Matronix: ...And Enterprise. I found something interesting...Emoze...Lets you push GMail too. I have yet to try it, though.

rahilmehta

This might be a dumb question, but does Push email only work with a MobileMe email account?

Matronix

Seriously, this is almost fanboy-ism to the point where it looks like Apple is paying Gizmodo to advertise...

Why is BlackBerry dead just because iPhone has finally caught up? If anything, now the real competition can begin since iPhone is *almost* up to the BlackBerry in terms of functionality. And besides, I would personally have a reliable device with MMS and battery options and an actual keyboard + iPod than one device that still suffers from the drawbacks of a convergence device.

Now, when iPhone gets an actual keyboard as well as basics, like MMS and tethering, then we can let the dogs out. Although this further assumes that RIM will stand still and let Apple takeover, which is blantantly WRONG.

And in case anyone wonders, I have a mac and love the experience, thank you; I just don't buy into the cult of the iPhone.

sdf632

What-Evar!

Fountainhead

Iphone to kill the Blackberry? I doubt it. Any smartphone worth its salt has push email technology. RIM has their well known service and Windows Mobile has had direct push, which works flawlessly, for a while now. Apple has just been late to the game. I have been syncing my calendar, contacts, email, etc... to exchange for a while now. I have doubts that apple's new mobileme is just going to waltz in and slay the mighty Blackberry. Nice try but this is apple fanboy posting at its finest.

spimoles

lol i dont know enough about the iphone to really be able to talk about the pros and cons of things like its touch screen (and thats surprising considering how often i read gizmodo) but a fully featured "smart phone" made by a well respected company that sells for 50 bucks will easily do well.

iphone killer? nah. is blackberry dead though? (falls to the ground laughing) oh like hell it is.

jrghoull

dead... no... being given a run for its money yes. There will always be apple zealots that run towards anything Apple and anti-apple zealots that run away from anything Apple.

I hope that this increases awareness of both products and spurs innovation. I am so sick and tired of reading about how this or that is dead. Gimme a break it is so rare that something actually dies (except in one on one format wars).

Canuck.Viking

iPhone supports only 1 push email account though, correct? I can't have both exchange and multiple gmail accounts pushed into a unified inbox can I? That was something I always hated about the iPhone, is sifting through inboxes.

787style

Umm, why would companies need to revamp their communications systems or switch to apple?

iPhone works more seamlessly with Microsoft Exchange server than does RIM Blackberry Phones, so "switching to" (read supporting) Apple iPhones will actually require less work not more.

A BB acct requires IT approximately an additional 1-3 manhours to activate a Blackberry account through additional server side settings. The iPhone requires none, uses only a proxy user acct.- meaning if you have an account on the MS exchange server then the setup is solely on the user end- not the IT support side.

Myth officially debunked.

barkolounger

@Lego Addict:

I thought that was the case as well, but I'm typing as fast if not a little more quickly with the iPhone than with a tactile keyboard now.

In the end it's whether or not the person is willing to take on the learning curve that comes with something like this. I can't help but feeling as though it's the future (not Apple, per say, but the virtual keyboard set-up). Time will tell.

jhcovert

@Lego Addict: I also agree. No physical keyboard is what is keeping my firm from ordering iPhones for all of our execs. Until that happens, there is no chance.

SpitfireM1

Will this MobileMe work on a good old jailbroke/unlocked IPhone or will I have to upgrade above 1.1.3...

sfokevin

@Boatski: he cracked his iphone a few days ago. keep up, will ya?

phi

@Lego Addict: Agreed. I hate carrying two devices most places. Why can't we have a removable physical keyboard for the iPhone that plugs into the dock slot in the bottom? (I mean, except for the fact that then it wouldn't be one-size-fits-all in a Jobsian fashion.)

rb1971

I have a BB, and I can not wait for my 3g. Will not miss it.

theshortguy

I don't think the Blackberry is dead and I have the iPhone.

Dead in the average apple fanboys heart probably but thats not reality.

Kraftwerker

@Boatski: How do you expect us to be able to see your screen?

92BuickLeSabre

Ummm call me a blackberry fanboy but there are still a few tricks my BB can do that the iPhone can't. They seem to be the same things that keep coming up here over and over.
1. Tethering so i dont have to pay two data plans for an air card
2. A2DP, you would think for a multimedia phone as great as the iPhone is they would have done this already
3. MMS how hard is that really?

There may be others but those are the only three that really prevent me from looking at the iPhone as anything i may want.

jeepingeek

@phi and friedgold: I think that's right, that the physical keyboard v. touchscreen is going to be the biggest difference for the average user.

I keep trying to think of a comparable shift in technology that will help me figure out what the result will be, but I'm struggling.

92BuickLeSabre

For me, until the iPhone has a tactile keyboard... I'm not buying into it. Also, I don't think it is possible (at least for me) to tpye as fast on an iPhone as I can on my BlackBerry.

Lego Addict

@targatop: No, I'm sorry, you're incorrect. It's working perfectly. It just works. Didn't you hear?

bobman1235

@phi:

pretty much...

striggity

Is there a crack in the screen or is it just me?

Boatski

wow, thats a lot of apple loving.
it's probably a bit premature to declare RIM dead, they still have a huge lead in the corporate sector, and i doubt most businesses will want to completely revamp their communications systems and switch to apple. then, of course, there's the whole virtual vs. physical keyboards argument. i don't think RIM is dead in the water, but they definitely have a strong competitor in apple now.

that said, i will be picking up a 3g iphone tomorrow.

friedgold

I'm not sure that it will pull all current crackberry addicts, but it will make a lot of people (and companies) think twice about which phone they choose.

I cannot wait to get my iPhone tomorrow!

11hawkinst

Let the flames begin...

Drew P Draws

Sweet, but mine isn't working yet. It keeps giving me server errors, and has completely bonked my iDisk.

targatop

I'm not sure crackberry addicts will readily let go of their clickity tactile QWERTY keyboards for a touchscreen keyboard.

phi

The MMS functionality on my blackberry is pretty terrible. It strips away any sounds, and to view video, I have to forward them to my email. So i wouldn't really count that as a plus for Blackberry.

However, in the review, you didn't mention access to the corporate address book. does the IPhone adaptation of push email have this? if not, that's a major sticking point.

drewheyman

lol, good one Jesus

werk

That is a little more than just premature. There are so many people in the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" category that will just stick with RIM because they already have it and it works, or that they are just used to it and don't want to switch or (gasp) they just don't like Apple. I think the iPhone is very very cool and I wouldn't mind having one, but there a A LOT of people who don't live in the big city that won't get AT&T and also are afraid to hack a $500 phone to use a different carrier. So RIM isn't going anywhere soon.

maven2k

@barkolounger:

Actually, it takes 1 IT person and 10 seconds to activate Blackberry service on a BES. All that needs to be done is enter the PIN to the BES and set an activation code for the user. The user then just has to type in their email address and the activation code. It may take some time to sync all of the messages, contacts, calendar items, notes and tasks, but setting up a BB for use is extremely simple and quick.

Another reason why many companies will be reluctant to support the iPhone is the lack of granular control. Yes, there are a lot of security settings and configuration items you can manipulate using the iPhone admin tools, but on a BES, you can control and set permissions for every single item on any BB connected to the BES.

seizure

@snitch29: How many times has my PC been hit with a bug wiping everything out? Try never. And even if it were it's all on the Exchange server anyway.

Push email means blackberry is dead? Hilarious. This article is one big troll.

The keyboard is still a major point of contention, not to mention one handed operation.

Something nobody else has mentioned is that is critical to business is the remote kill feature; something even Windows Mobile doesn't have.

BaseVilliN

@barkolounger: Wha....?

What are you talking about?? I won't venture into what your saying about setting up the iPhone on Exchange as I've never done it, but as a BES admin, if it takes you more than 15 minutes to set up a BB you really don't know what your doing!!

Epaminondas

sorry about all the typos :$

keysereble

No IM (must have XMPP + AIM always running)
No choice of carrier
No replaceable battery

I'll be ready for the iPhone when they fix those deal-breaker defects.

mathew

@Leonard Nimrod: that's exactly what I was saying. The iPhone is not for me because of those things. The same things others have agreed are missing. It only further proves that the BB is not going anywhere. I have nothing against the iPhone it just doesn't suit my needs... for now.

jeepingeek

people... until you sync your corporate email to the iphone please do not allow others to taint your views. for me, the iphone cannot cut it. i have and for an email power user, the iphone does not cut it.

the fact that it relies on activesync for mail delivery makes it subpar to bes. yes bes does have its cost (biggest disadvantage) but this offeres so much more than mail delivery. additional investment will also required for this to run on apple devices.

now i admit that there are tosn of folks who will be happy to get their work email on the iphone but those are the folks who would like to have it there, not folks who need it there. when you approach 100+ emails a day, and you will have your iphone tethered to the wall socket while you respond to emails on your pc.

also, can someone test sending a meeting invite? i did, and when people respond, it appears as if they are sending your a meeting invite to you - maybe this was fixed in teh final release.

i like the idea of competition, but rim is not dead. consumers ftw!

keysereble

RIP RIM

IVPPITER

hmmm i guess i've never used my blackberry on a business exchange server, it's always pop3 gmail or blackberry vzw email account. There is usuallya 2 second delay in getting my email.

the jesus phones are nice, and im a anti-apple kinda guy, but there are just too many features that i feel as though are not needed for me to switch to a iphone. I'm satisfied with my brother getting an iphone (man i wish i was that spoiled in highschool, i had the hard as a brick nokia everyone in the world had) i'll inherit his itouch and that should suit my needs..

especially with lifehacker.com's tips to make it into a cheaper jesus phone.

looking good though guys, happy all the apple dreams are coming true =p i wouldn't say RIM is dead though, far from dead and i've never seen any problem with any kind of blackberry.

Zaos

No doubt Mobile Me will be big especially with Windows users, just watch & see, i don't see it hurting the crackberry until the 4th quarter though but it will. I say it will be big with windows users cause how many times has your PC been hit with a bug making people lose all calendar events & contact's, this thing is in the cloud so you can access it from anyway with any platform

snitch29

@HeartBurnKid: you hate raisins?

jonroach13

Actually, it costs your company money to use the Blackberry's BES service...

jonroach13

It is nice to see more people getting what BB users have been enjoying and vouching for years now :) Plus BB can add other email accounts (like gmail/msn/etc) with no mobileme in between and same push functionality.

Now, anyone cares to talk about the security comparisons of the two solutions, like remote wiping of data, encryption, etc

BTW: how is the battery life?

kanenas

I want Push Gmail.

Matronix

I agree with the comments about the lack of tactile keys being a big reason some individual users won't want to switch.

One important thing left unsaid is that many IT managers who will make at least the recommendation, if not the decision, view Apple as a toy company not a business system (and certainly not on an Enterprise level) company.

bishop093

@N@tedog iiinnnnn spaaaaaaace!:

Exchange Activesync needs to be enabled on your Exchange server by your company's IT department. The good news is it's enabled by default. The bad news is a lot of companies disable it if they have a BES set up.

Here's Microsoft's FAQ about Activesync.
[technet.microsoft.com]

seizure

Following the acquisition of the will to brave the agony that is AT&T, this is precisely the commentary I was looking for in finalizing my decision to move away from Blackberry.

Now all I have to do is find $199 + tax, license, activation, and jerk-ass fees.

Gilbert

Until the iPhone gets MMS, and some decent features that are in STANDARD phones, like video recording, it isn't beating anything.

CutePuppyz

I only own a BB because my company pays for it. Somebody post a link as to how I can get my work emails on the iPhone with out going through our IT dept. They wont do it for us.

N@tedog iiinnnnn spaaaaaaace!

@keysereble:

And how many banks or traditional corporations do you know that will allow any kind of desktop managers to be installed? Again, my point was that many companies won't switch over to the iPhone because of the control a BB provides.

I'm an iPhone user, but I'm also a BES admin at a bank. All of our Blackberries sync OTA and the BB Desktop Manager isn't allowed to be installed on any user machines. This is not a unique situation, either. It's pretty common for anyone in the financial industry. I know for a fact my bank will never switch over to the iPhone because there simply isn't enough control.

seizure

Ok, in my BB I have full push sync of corporate account (calendar, contacts and e-mail), google ((calendar, contacts and e-mail) and facebook events. Pretty shure Iphone can not do that. And it is very nice to have.

chr71

@BaseVilliN: "Something nobody else has mentioned is that is critical to business is the remote kill feature; something even Windows Mobile doesn't have. "

Actually Windows Mobile has supported this feature since Exchange 2003 SP2. Like I've said before. A lot of the features the blackberry supports, Windows Mobile also supports. Apple is just late to the party.

spimoles

@seizure:

an even easier way is to just create the profile and have the user install the desktop manager and sync when they want. you dont even have to configure the pin or ent activation pw.

just two clicks to add from the user directory and assign a group policy. not even 1 minute.

keysereble

WAHHHHH!! WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN!!!??

bryanarr

It seems like many of the articles like this on Giz are just meant to start stupid flame wars. The iPhone is still a toy, nowhere near blackberry in terms of corporate IT manageability and security, and still lacks basic features, the most obvious for corporate road warriors being the (DUH!) swappable battery. RIM is still king in the datacenter, where apple is normally not even allowed in.

wills916

@seizure: Why thank you. I shall research.

N@tedog iiinnnnn spaaaaaaace!

just like openoffice was going to kill office......

Sorry, this is the corporate real world.

they dont care about the latest tech as much as they care about being able to CONTROL things.

remote kill is crucial in the real corporate world where devices get lost that contain data which is sensitive.

just like being able to ENSURE that everything you do in an office product will look EXACTLY the same when you make it and your customer opens that multi-million dollar proposal.

"almost" doesn't work in the real corporate world.

mikeg916

@Ken_Darrow:

They'll just have to switch from their current provider to AT&T and deal with their outrageously overpriced corporate plans.

seizure

RIM is a one trick pony. It's king of the mobile e-mail dung heap right now but that is a mole hill compared to the mobile computing poop pile that Apple is lording over. After all is said and done the mobile computing market will be waaaaay bigger than mobile e-mail.

Apple has proved it can conquer new markets. What has RIM done besides mobile e-mail?

tundraboy

Companies will save tons of money not having to pay for RIM extra hardware and software fees. Just go iPhone and your good to go.

Ken_Darrow

@jeepingeek: My apologies, I thought you were ragging on it. I see the BB going no where either. Especially with their charge into China this year.

Leonard Nimrod

@keysereble:

I'm a lazy one as well, which is why I usually leave the activation to the user. I just up the activation time period.

One thing that must be made clear, iPhone 2.0 does have remote kill, but it does not have remote disable. If I have read correctly, iPhone's remote kill just wipes the Exchange information on the device. This, however, does not prevent the user from still making use of all the other services. Remote disable on a BES renders the device completely unusable until it is activated again by an admin.

seizure

I can't wait until the Iphone has a vagina, and then we can pronounce "sex is DEAD DEAD DEAD...the iPhone has a vagina."

My god, it's full of Apple Poo.

ecypher

"One more word: GroupWise. Not everyone uses Exchange and AT&T. "

Or 2: Lotus Notes. Still used by as many organizations as the POS known as Exchange. But those organizations tend to be large companies.

Last I heard it was 40/40 Notes and Exchange with 20% by Groupwise and others.

Exchange is not the be all, end all, just the crummiest server platform for e-mail.

itguy08

@seizure:

i was agreeing with you - i am a bes admin, but a lazy one at that who hates to be chasing travelling execs who forget to activate within our 24hr time period.

i just email a link to the download the DTM with instructions and say do this within the next 30 days.
ent activation is usually used in repair scenarios.

keysereble

Jesus Diaz is a huge jerk, and every article he writes belies a total lack of journalistic integrity or objectivity.

SIXGUNNER

yeah fucking right! blackberry stays champ n ipoof will always be third after windows mobile....hahahaha..sorry..hahaha

tsatsut

What about blackberry connect?

bobbyn01

nice.. push email is awesome

chopstickhero

@bytepusher: agreed. news flash apple and at&t and media and blogosphere, we don't all use microsoft or apple email clients/servers at work.

stre

@Lego Addict: well if you havnt tried it you cant say much can you? since theres no buttons to click its much faster

Hamburger-helper

Gotta have tethering, bluetooth stereo headphones, bluetooth keyboard/iPad mobile dock.

whootowl

@92BuickLeSabre: LOL!!! Thanks for the laugh. Folks are taking their fanboi/haterboi -isms a bit too seriously.

misterwho

Blackberry for work, iPhone for fun...

anyone that prefers the blackberry/iphone is clearly attracted more to the business/consumer aspects of the phones...

freelunch

Wow, someone got a nice kickback from Apple. Anyhow, how does the iPhone fair in pushing down any emails/appointments not from Exchange or MobileMe? I've heard that it won't push Gmail, Yahoo, etc. Not mentioning the differences between BIS and Exchange/ActiveSync, It seems that Apple is really leveraging this to sell more MobileMe accounts. At $99 per year ($150 for a family), why would I do this? Gmail seems to already sync all of my Calenders, mail, etc. for free.

Anyhow, I think saying that BB is dead is rather presumptuous and obvious flaimbait.

newgalactic

It's slower and works the same as my BB, amazing!

unleashed

@misterwho: If this article was presented just as a simple review of the service, as opposed to declaring a company that has been doing the exact same thing for years dead, then this would be a civilized forum.

Jesus really needs to work down his erection before making a post about an Apple product. I think at the last sentence, he reached climax.

This was an absolutely awful read. Even iPhone fanbois wouldnt go as far as to say a prominent business device like BlackBerry is dead just because the iPhone caught up. So what does that make Jesus?

diabolusunknown

LOL. I had no idea anyone cared this much. I just chose the iPhone because it best matched up with the things I wanted to sync up and do on a daily basis...and I really hated carrying a phone AND an iPod.

Keep your Blackberry! Keep your iPhone! Yay! Choice!

Maybe I've been commenting over at Gawker and Jezebel too long to realize everyone was being serious over here. =)

Now, if they only had pics of an iPhone vomiting outside Scores onto a seedy-looking boyfriend, I might get more interested...

keithsherwood

@spimoles: Apple may be (fashionably?) late to the party, but it sure has arrived better dressed and with infinitely more style.

Concrete_Particulars

Wow incredible, I've been pushing mail to WM for a few years now. Glad to see the iphone is getting over it's handicaps. I'll still be waiting for the iphone to be available on any other network besides At&t.

It seems that Palm and MS just stopped development. Now maybe MS will get off it's a** and do something with WM. I've played with a ported version of Android on my Touch, cool but still has a long way to go.

gedster314

Headlines like that just render the article useless.

ogman

sweet, good news

zed0

I'm at home and finally able to watch the video and you think Blackberry is dead because your iPhone can receive email? I don't get it?

Rabid Penguin

Until you see a choice of carrier, real 3G coverage, a real keyboard, better battery life, better reception (Mossberg reported it dropped a call 3 times and he was 'saved by a 'regular' 3G phone' in Manhattan), and most of all USER REPLACEABLE BATTERIES, I don't know of many 'enterprises' which would be interested in swapping out their Blackberrys for iPhones.

Exchange Support!= Enterprise Support.

Especially since compared to RIM and Microsoft, Apple doesn't have a good track history with enterprise relationships. Even Jobs admits its what Apple is worst at.

brundlefly76

@tundraboy: Awesome qwerty KBDs!!!!

ThatsMrOffDutyNinja

@Jesus Diaz: His entire comment and that is what you got Jesus? iphone sure does look pretty though. Need to check craigslist now.

ThatsMrOffDutyNinja

Jesus, I'm a little surprised by your post, certainly not consistent with your style.

Keep in mind MobileMe is being billed as "Exchange for the rest of us...". The "rest" being those who don't have the benefit of Blackberry business e-mail accounts served up on a device bred specifically for that purpose. Apple certainly makes a compelling product, but certainly no Blackberry killer.

Yznel

Can your blackberry play a motion-sensitive version of super monkey ball???? didnt think so. And if anyone says anything about brickbreaker i will laugh.

tkohrs2002

I like both phones, might switch from my BB to an iPhone in a month or so, or might wait out for the BB Bold. But this article vastly dissapointed me. For years I have turned to Gizmodo first and foremost for my gadgets coverage, rejecting the bigger companies or Engadget because I have always thought the coverage and levity was among the best. Really it isn't that serious, this is just a blog about gadgets, no life or death situations, but stories like this make me rethink about what site I will be reading in the future.

jordo37

this could kill the personal blackberry user, but won't kill the corporate user.

few benefits of corporate I haven't seen explained by Apple:
-remote initiation on corporate account via email & password w/ new/blank unit
-sync notes, calendar, contacts remotely
-lookup users from corporate address book, which aren't stored in contacts
-lock/force functions on unit
-remotely wipe unit

needcaffeine

I work for a company that for better or for worse (actually it's worse, but what can you do) uses Lotus Notes for everything (yeow, 1980's email). Has anyone figured out how to use Notes and Mobile Me? If it works, I may be able to make a case to our IT folks.

rjbbrooks

Woah...Not so fast...

This crackberrian asks "where is the COPY/CUT & PASTE"??? Is that so hard?? I am reserving my ITOUCH for the games and other goodies. I still can't set up my POP e-mails when I am at a "hot spot".. I hate ITunes, it SUCKS computer resources... The next blackberry touch phone will more than satisfy the "touchy feely" crowd...

waderx

@rjbbrooks:
MobileMe only works with me.com. And the iPhone only supports Exchange push.

*cough*BES*cough*

ConstyXIV

@Matronix:
Buy a BlackBerry. We have push GMail. And Yahoo. And WinLive.

ConstyXIV

SpitfireM1: I imagine you also have to give your execs rubber forks, and have their assistants wipe their bottoms for them.

Probably takes a 4-hour meeting just to get the executives to understand that the blackberry is not actually a type of edible berry. Followed by a 3-hour-4-martini lunch, a round of golf, and another meeting to discuss how many employees they'll have to lay off to make their six-figure bonuses this quarter.

Having vented, I will agree that Blackberry is probably long from dead, some people do prefer tactile keyboards (which is OK, because it's a personal choice), and the iPhone is still a pretty cool tool.

Thank god I work for myself, and don't have to/want to have my email pushed to me when I'm not at my desk.

guruscotty

Go iPhanboy. Fix your screen it looks like crap. Better headline, iPhone finally has 1st generation push email and capability of external apps.

No corporations are going to rip out BES without certifying the data path security of apple push email. And no large corporations are going to allow a desktop app to connect to external information leak devices.

Might work for me though. But I still need a keyboard.

Kevin O

Blackberry's dead! LOL, you fanboys crack me up. Yeah, I really see all those corporations spending millions of dollars to replace their employees phones with iphones. LOL, that's a good one.

RobotVampire

I'm with @seizure: Companies will stick with the BB because of its control features. No desktop software required and full accountability available meaning all data can be controlled and tracked via the BES. This allows for full business standards compliance (like SOX and ISO), lots of security options, and full tracking and retention policy enforcement.

For consumers, I can see RIM and iPhone battling it out - but for anything other than small businesses the BB will win.

Insomnic

If the iPhone didn't cost double what my Curve does, I would be inclined to agree. Too bad the cheapest plan available for my company is $115/mo with NO test messaging.

Screw that.

switchxfactor

Lack of carriers, lack of security/control, lack of swappable battery. As someone who makes these types of corporate decisions, I can assure you, as other have, that any one of those issues is a deal killer. All three together, and the iphone is not even on the map. Keyboard type is a minor issue. GAN/UMA is a hot topic since many businesses, especially manufacturing, often have large areas in the physical plant where cell signals fail.

As a consumer, I see no reason to get an iphone unless you're an itunes customer. The whole itunes/ipod/iphone thing reminds me of the heyday of AOL. People in a playpen, but it's such a big, shiny, gaudy playpen the vast majority have no idea that they're in one.

skimps

Oh my. I actually just had to register to comment on this very misleading post. How much did Apple pay to make this post happen?!

1. This post has Apple fanboyism all over it. I see the stains everywhere.
2. Very biased. Very.
3. I don't think the poster has used a BES system yet. Nor has he tried to "jailbreak" a BlackBerry. LoL
4. The BlackBerry still supports more CODECS than the iPhone could ever wish for. Fact.
5. Typing faster on an iPhone? Um, no. All of my colleagues state this and whoever says otherwise isn't using the keyboard more often to know the difference. Let's see you go do a typing contest with one hand.
6. MMS is crap. But multiple mailboxes is way easier to use and manage on a BlackBerry.
7. MULTI-TASKING.
8. the iPhone ain't a smartphone. It's trying to be one, and we can commend it on that. But IT IS NOT. :D
9. This post puts Gizmodo several notches down a lot of people's books. "Dead, dead, dead". Wha?? Too much Red Bull I see.
10. You can get the BlackBerry on any network that supports it, which is probably way than a lot more compared to AT&T/O2.

I love the iPhone, and I love my BlackBerry. I'm enough of a gadget freak to know that the iPhone is one sweet piece of kit. But saying the BlackBerry is dead JUST BECAUSE IT FINALLY CAN DO WHAT A BLACKBERRY DOES is.... well you have a wide vocabulary, go figure.

The BlackBerry is eating a bigger slice of the consumer market pie every day. The iPhone is eating a small slice of the corporate pie every day. Which pie is bigger?

The.Opethian

One word...BOLD.

Why? because it will have all the multimedia features of the iphone PLUS the following items I-phone is missing

MMS - I have a 4 year old samsung that can do that.

A2DP..uhm hello? Isn't Iphone a music/media player first? Just a little important no?

Iphone is sexy, and I have been courting it for a long time, but those two reasons kept me from lining up this morning! RIM is alive and well.

tedesco

As a Blackberry BES admin, I will add also, that this post shows an utter lack of understand about how Blackberry works.

I would say most of the people buying iPhones do not understand how RIM push technology works.

cpk3

Thats great and all...

So lets say the iPhone that has all your data and attachments falls into the wrong hands....Can you remotely disable it from Mobile Mail like you can Blackberry? Is the data AES encrypted on transfer? 2 big things that corporations want to know before allowing data to go mobile on a device.

Blackberry is far far from dead.

cpk3

I think this post was merely to push BB fanboys buttons, but I will play into his ploy...

- First, corporations are not going to switch to the iPhone because of one simple word: security. Apple has yet to prove that the iPhone can be stable enough to enforce IT policies (For instance one that would render the camera useless), or that it can encrypt data enough to keep messages and sensitive information private. Lets face it, hackers had their way with the iPhone so far. BlackBerry has a reputation of being stable and secure.

- Second, so far the iPhone is strictly being sold and subsided for At&t and other exclusive carriers. The last time I checked I could walk into any cell phone store in the world and buy a BlackBerry.

- Third, I can have PUSH email on any email account, any address (except .me). Actually, I can have it on 11 different email accounts without paying anything more ( albeit unnecessary for most people). Also push html email is already out in most countries not ending in a (works great, looks great).

- Lastly, frack off. This post made me so mad I created an account. Its a really outlandish claim... so I figure I played right into Jesus' hands. Now make me some wine I'm thirsty.

zzip

The apps... you're forgetting about the apps...

gizmoko05

On the following:
"Knowing that Apple is using Sun Java Messaging Servers, probably paired with Synchronica or Consilient's over-the-air synchronization modules, I'm not surprised."

This is done using just the Sun Messaging Server. There are no over-the-air sync modules required. Don't ask me how I know, I am not allowed to say but I know this for certain.

LeBull

*yawn* call blackberry dead when mobile me is not 99$+ extra ontop of the data plan.

ilama

I think you're analysis of RIM's downfall is quite premature. Please give your Mobile Me push service, oh i don't know.... a few hours, days, weeks, months to see if it still works perfectly. Glad you're not testing these things for a living. And don't forget you have to pay a yearly fee for the service, ON TOP OF your unlimited data service - it's not free. I agree that this was a HUGE hurdle for Apple to overcome for the personal user accustomed to BB push email (I'm talking about myself). But again, there are plenty of things to iron out before we declare BB death . Geez, make Apple work for it, why don't ya?

GregBee

Until the iPhone can cut, copy, and paste and allow me to search my e-mails, I will not part with my Blackberry. No matter what BB7 thinks, both of these features are crucial for a business user.

Yes, neither of these features are a technological advance by any stretch of the imagination... that's why their absence on the iPhone is disgraceful.

Also, I haven't seen any mention yet of whether mobile me will sync Notes from MS Outlook. My BB does that no problem, and I use the feature all the time so I can remind myself of stuff I see when I'm out in the world.

Mpls_Mikey

Doesn't work with gmail? Oh well, useless to thousands then.

Fluxcap

@tkohrs2002 Since Blackberry's are a business tool who's target market is business users, can you please help me understand why the ability to play super monkey ball is even remotely relevant?

Do you think IT departments care if the laptops that they give their users are capable of playing Doom? Do you think that's one of the purchase criteria that businesses evaluate when making laptop decisions? Didn't think so. So if they don't care about what games their laptops can play, why would they care about what games their phones can play?

Again, this article is comparing apples to oranges (no pun intended). The iPhone and the BB have DIFFERENT core target markets, and most of the posts here are completely missing that fact. You guys are going to completely go round and round and get nowhere.

Can the Blackberry compete with the iPhone for the requirements of your average consumer? Absolutely not, the iPhone would kill it.

Can the iPhone compete with the Blackberry for the requirements of your average business? Absolute not, the Blackberry would kill it.

End of story.

JClishe

Let me first say I own neither a BB nor an iPhone, and quite honestly I couldn't care less about either.

But the overwhelming majority of BB purchases are made by employers, not consumers. What do you think RIM cares more about: selling a few BB's at retail Verizon outlet, or locking an enterprise customer into a licensing agreement with 5000 handsets?

That said, the ONLY way that the iPhone could be a BB killer is if takes market share away from the corporations that purchase and support BB's for their users (since that is RIM's core market).

Corporations couldn't care less about how sexy the iPhone is or that it can strem YouTube videos and play MP3's better than any other phone on the market. Corporations care about their ability to manage their fleet of devices remotely, to apply security policies to the devices (remotely), to ENFORCE those polices so that they are not modifiable by the end user, to deploy line of business applications to the devices, search the corporate address book, create / accept / reject meeting requests, enforce mandatory PIN locks for devices that may contain sensitive data, remotely wipe the devices, etc.

Yes, enterprises are evaluating iPhones. And it's a very short evaluation process because the iPhone is far from being ready for the enterprise.

A BB is a business tool that's sole purpose is employee productivity. An iPhone is a consumer gadget. There is some feature overlap (they both make and receive calls and emails) but beyond that the 2 devices head in completely different directions for different target markets. Even to suggest that the iPhone is a BB killer is as absurd as suggesting that corporations should replace their PC's with XBox's.

You don't have a BlackBerry killer until you have a device that wil displace Blackberry's from the enterprise. It's laughable, and quite frankly, embarrasing, to suggest that the iPhone 2.0 is capable of doing this.

JClishe

Hey! I just had 10 minutes with this new OS X operating system and it is the sh*t! Totally awesome. Microsoft is Dead. Dead I tell ya. Dead, Dead, Dead!

stebejods

The problem I have with the iPhone in Europe is the data plans. I travel all the time, so I am roaming a lot, if I spend a week in Israel or Italy, I can expect a phone bill of €1000 or more at then end of the month, and that is with the Blackberry whose email is relatively cheap because they compress everything and send only what is necessary. The iPhone..... well, I used a Windows Mobile device for a bit and my costs went up €500 a month and I was right back to the Blackberry. Until Apple does something about the money hungry telecoms and their roaming in Europe, I can't get one..... although I am envious of people who stay in one country and can justify it. Does anyone know if the iPhone has rSAP?

swaggoner

Will it push mail from another account such as gmail?

Mikestan