I saw this article not too long ago talking about how it's shameful these days having a BlackBerry. When I first got my BlackBerry, I knew I was giving up a lot of the nice functionality that comes with other smartphones, but I did it because (a) I already had my Galaxy Tab that I could do my web surfing on and (b) my company did not support Android devices at the time. I therefore only needed a phone that could make calls, send/receive text messages, and send/receive work email. Lately though, my relationship with my BlackBerry has taken a negative turn, largely because I will run out of battery before the work day is over if I make a call. Seriously?
Early on, BlackBerries were THE smartphone to have. Mostly because they were the ONLY smartphone to have if you wanted to get work email on it. What's more a shame than being a BlackBerry owner is that RIM has squandered it's once huge market share by its lack of innovation and responsiveness to the features and experience that customers are willing to pay for. Have you ever tried to surf the Internet on a BlackBerry? Hor. Ren. Dous. It'd be faster for me to phone a friend. Assuming I still had battery left.
Greg mentioned to me last week that Samsung just came out with their Galaxy Note II. I've heard it called a "phablet" because of how big it is. We went and looked at it in person over the weekend, and it is indeed a big phone. To the point where it's almost comical imagining someone holding it up to their ear and talking into it.
But so far, the reviews appear to be pretty good and it's got some nice features, such as:
- It's not a BlackBerry.
- It's not an iPhone (and therefore integrates better with other Google products).
- 5.5 inch screen.
- Supposedly 15 hours of talk time.
