Android and iOS are still on their upward trajectory and for the other competing mobile operating systems, the scenario looks bleak.
The biggest casualty so far had been Research in Motion's BlackBerry platform. Once a darling of corporate world, the phone not only failed to stimulate consumer market, but is now on the verge of getting divorce papers from the corporate world as well.
The last quarter saw iOS increasing its market share to 26 percent, whereas Android maintained is lead with 36.4 percent share. This also means that RIM is no longer holds the second position behind Android as the place has now been snapped up by Apple.
But is there any recourse for the Canadian company? The company is losing its traditional stronghold. Even, the US government seems to be moving away from RIM, in favor of Android. Major companies have already started making a move towards Apple, ditching RIM. And the consumer market was never a strong point for the phone.
It has tried to remain relevant by launching a new tablet PlayBook, but the tablet is likely to appeal to only die-hard BlackBerry fans. Though PlayBook has decent hardware specs, it comes without any dedicated email client. The same story goes for Calendar and Contact feature. If you have to use these features, then the tablet needs to be tethered to BlackBerry. So overall, the tablet comes across as the one with really bad co-dependency issues.
The company is also very slow in introducing new technology. It still has to master the art and science of Touch Screen. Its first venture in the field was in the form of BlackBerry Storm, which came with unique clickable touchscreen. Unfortunately, the technology seemed outdated and clunky in comparison to the smooth UI provided by Apple. The company is now looking to launch BlackBerry Bold, but the phone is not likely to hit the market before September. By that time, it will a case of "too little too late".
One thought on “Apple Keeps Gobbling Up BlackBerry's Market share: Will PlayBook Save the Company?”
The playbook has, and will continue to bomb.
If you compare the number of available devices with iOS on (3, ipad, iphone and touch) against the number of devices running android (thousands). Percentage wise, Apple is winning this race and will continue to do so until one of these companies has a good idea of their own and has the balls to follow it.