It’s been sad over the last few years watching BlackBerry circle the drain. After over a decade in the limelight, countless smash hits and global recognition, BlackBerry was never meant to go out with a whimper. It was meant to depart this world in a blaze of glory in 10 years or so, rather than sell itself out to Flavor Flav-levels while trying to desperately cling onto its long-forgotten fame.
BlackBerry took over New York today with the launch of BlackBerry 10: the operating system we’ve seen delayed more times than Guns N Roses’ Chinese Democracy. Regardless, it’s here now and whether the suits like it or not, it’s the new sound of BlackBerry.
For a once-famous rock band to get its act together and be successful once more it needs to resurrect the hits and remember where all the power chords go, while throwing together a few new moves to hook other fans in.
While BlackBerry thinks about all that, we need to remember that, despite its demise in Australia and other Western markets, people were still buying BlackBerrys this whole time in developing nations. The company has never stopped selling records as it were, it just hasn’t broken any with the ones it sold since bands like the iPhone and hits like Android came around.
Contrary to popular opinion, RIM doesn’t need to “kill” the iPhone or the Samsung Galaxy sound to get back to its heyday. All it needs to do is remind people the fun they had the first time they picked up a BlackBerry. Phenomenal keyboards, great instant messaging platforms that actually work and secure emails that all combine to make handling your personal and business life a breeze. Add on top of that the inclusion of new sounds like Skype, decent hardware in the Q10 and Z10 as well as a jaw-dropping new look, and BlackBerry is ready for a comeback tour.
Of course, it’s not a successful comeback unless it can bring out several successful follow-ups. Sure it has the limelight back now, but can it hold onto it long enough to be the Rolling Stones, or is it just another Status Quo flash in the pan?
Can BlackBerry make a successful comeback?