Feature
Send Fruity Messages
Despite the apparent flop of the PlayBook (we don't see RIM crowing about big sales numbers) and the recent round of redundancies, RIM is still plugging away at doing the best for its still sizable mobile user base. BlackBerry Messenger 6 is now out, as a free download, and allows users to connect with friends anywhere, anytime.
It allows users to post quick messages, chat and or share content including stories, pictures, videos and more with individual contacts or groups of friends. Working with the Social Platform, there are social features including location sending, events that can be stored in calendars, draft messages and support for sending links, location messages to groups.
Location-usage is improved in the new version
Looking to the Future
The social and integrated features go some way to getting what Apple will introduce with its upcoming iOS 5, but with its share in the smartphone market falling -- RIM is down to 24.7% share, behind Apple's 26.6% and Android's 38% -- surely it is radically new hardware that the company needs to invest in. The BlackBerry Bold 9900 might be super thin and smart, but will it attract consumer attention?
On the positive side, RIM's Playbook tablet has recently been certified for U.S. government use, and is launching in more territories, but outside of the enterprise its phones seems to have little in the way of increasing mindshare or sales.
And with Windows Phones finally getting going via the Mango update, and Apple launching its next phone in September, it could face even more competition in the near future.
