We know that the latest earnings call from RIM wasn't the best news. Both Kevin and Chris have already given their thoughts and opinions so I'm not going to bore you with more of the same.

Clearly I wasn't pleased with the announced delay of BlackBerry 10 but who would be. However, one thing crossed my mind last night and that is the developers who would be affected by the setback.

We have seen from the BlackBerry 10 Jam World Tour that devs are extremely keen to work with the forthcoming platform. Not just current BlackBerry developers, but also ones that currently work on other operating systems. Many of these have been working towards getting a BB10 application ready for Q4 this year. Now that the OS will not be available until Q1 2013 this means those devs will not be able to make the money they expected quite so soon.
So I thought I had better have a word with a developer about this and get his views on the matter. And who better than Jerome Carty from Kisai Labs, who developed the amazing Twitter app Blaq for the BlackBerry PlayBook.

You can check out Jerome's thoughts on the latest news below:

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Depressing.  That’s the only word that comes to mind after reading the RIM Q1 financial results press release and listening to the conference call.  

As crappy as the results were, I’m not going to write up a death certificate for RIM here.  Yes, they are in real serious trouble.  No, it won’t be easy to climb back from the position they’re in.  No, they did not inspire any confidence in anybody on that call.  

They need serious help writing conference call scripts and being prepared for obvious questions from analysts.  When the CFO can’t reply to a question without 10 thousand ums and uhs, people assume the worst.  But are they dead?  Let’s discuss it.

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I'm writing this from a hotel room (with crappy internet) in San Francisco, just minutes after the conclusion of RIM's Q1 2013 Earnings Call. We knew the numbers would be depressing, so we were braced for that. What we didn't expect to hear was that the launch of BlackBerry 10 phones is going to be delayed until the first quarter of 2013. Shoot me now. Or at least knock me out and wake me up in 7, 8, 9 months when BlackBerry 10 is here. This news sucks on so many levels, I almost don't know where to begin.

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Where are the apps? When will RIM get Skype and Netflix on the PlayBook, do they care if they're on the platform?

These are two questions that I've heard over and over again, heck there was even a petition going around to get Netflix to build an app for the BlackBerry PlayBook. So the question is, does RIM want these apps on the platform, and if so what are they doing to secure the top apps for the launch of BlackBerry 10?

When on the hunt to see what RIM is doing to close the "app gap" there is one guy to talk to, and that is Adam Stanley. Adam is the Senior Application Development Consultant at Research In Motion, and while not talking about bacon or HTML5, Adam and his team are actively working with developers and helping them to get their apps onto the BlackBerry PlayBook and ready for BlackBerry 10. During my visit to Waterloo and RIM, Adam and I had a one on one discussion on apps for the new platform; specifically those from the high profile developers like Netflix and Skype.

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Time is tight for me today as I'm off to San Francisco tomorrow for the week and have a million things to get done, so I'll go Phil style on this one with a list of what's shaking in the world of CrackBerry, Mobile and my life.

Let's start with the photo above...

• Top Left: There's nothing sexier than a hot girl with pretty hands pounding out a BBM on a white Bold 9900! I spotted her yesterday cheering on Italy in the EURO2012 as I was busy being stupid and having some fun buying an overpriced Vuvuzela app.
• Bottom Left: I'm not cutting my hair until I own a BlackBerry 10 phone. Hurry RIM!
• Bottom Middle: I hit up a Janelle Monae concert this past Wednesday. She's amazing! 
• Right: John Anastiasdis' full qwerty BB10 phone concept has our thumbs twitching, and looking at this newly-leaked document which points to a BB10 qwerty shows we may not even be that far off.

OK, photo collage out of the way, let's talk about some other stuff...

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The rumours are flying today, folks.  Several media outlets are regurgitating a story from British newspaper, The Sunday Times, saying that RIM is considering a split into two business units.

I’d love to read the actual article (and post a link to it here), but it’s behind a paywall, and I’m not a subscriber.  So I’ll make do with the summaries written by Reuters and others.  The problem here, of course, is that summary articles get distorted and I don’t want any part in screwing up whatever the Sunday Times actually wrote.  So, if anyone has the original, please send it in and we’ll have a look.

The crux of the story seems to revolve around the possibility of RIM separating its handset business from everything else.  So let’s talk about this concept, because there are a bunch of fine points to explore.

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As we clarified again this week, we know the first BlackBerry 10 phone will be a full touchscreen design with touchscreen keyboard, while the second BlackBerry 10 phone will feature a physical keyboard. Reading through the comments and watching the discussion in the CrackBerry forums, I know *a lot of you* are waiting and dreaming for that second phone - a BlackBerry that combines the amazing keyboard of the Bold 9900 with the QNX platform power of BlackBerry 10.

So to tease and torture and get all of us thinking what that second BlackBerry 10 phone with a physical keyboard might look like, our friend John Anastasiadis worked up the beautiful concept design you see above. John notes:

Above is my vision for the next full keyboard BB10 phone. In white just for you, Kevin!

I designed around the 9900 keyboard and kept to the most likely scenario regarding height, width and depth of the device. BlackBerry's have traditionally been organic with soft edges but I believe the new BB10 devices will be more angular with crisp surface transitions. This will allow RIM to break from the past and reinvent the brand with a new aesthetic. Think P'9981 crossed with 9900.

You will notice that the front and side profiles are slightly tapered toward the bottom. This allows the keyboard area to be a comfortable gripping size while maximizing screen size. Also, the black rubberized sides help the user hold and grip the device securely. The reflection of the side view on the back of the device shows how thin it really is.

It's important to note that this concept is an attempt to capture what the next phone will most likely be. A realistic approach in the sense that it could be introduced today.

Thanks for doing this one up in white John... so hawt!! One of the things I think we can definitely expect from a physical keyboard BlackBerry 10 phone is a taller display than we have see on models like the Bold 9900. With BlackBerry 10 you lose the need for the row between the display and keyboard which has the trackpad and menu / back / call buttons, so losing this should open up more room for a taller display (you'll still need to save some empty space for gestures as John did here).

Be sure to click on the image above for a larger version, then drool, then sound off in the comments with your reactions!

Yesterday when I was at the BlackBerry 10 Jam in Toronto, a couple of us were chatting at the back of the room when a reporter from the legacy news world came up to us asking our opinion of BlackBerry and the situation they are in.

He was a nice enough fellow, although I'm pretty sure he was recording the group's entire conversation without permission. Whatever.

Because I talk too much, as CrackBerry Adam would agree, I volunteered my opinion to this reported. I said something along the lines of how RIM is in a tough position, but they're doing the right things and BlackBerry 10 looks really promising. I pointed towards the middle of the packed room and said, "Just look at all these people who have come here because they see a future for RIM."

He came back with a very specific question, and one that I think is interesting. "Do you think it's do or die for RIM?"

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Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the Toronto edition of the BlackBerry 10 Jam World Tour.  It was a packed house at the Westin Harbor Castle in downtown Toronto. 

Normally I'd bike downtown since it's only a 25 minute ride from my house.  But it was 35 frikkin' degrees Celcius outside.  That's 95 F for the rest of you.  Crazy hot.  So I took the subway which I don't do much these days.  Nice to see so many Torontonians still sportin' a Bold or a Curve on their commute to work.  Canada is still holding strong as a CrackBerry Nation.  

So I spent the day listening to RIM talk about BlackBerry 10, and talking to developers.  Whenever I'd be talking to a developer I would just ask one simple question.  

"Why BlackBerry?"  

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There are lot of headlines going around today both on the web and off the web (tv, radio), many of which are botching the story, so here's some clarification:

1. The first BlackBerry 10 phone coming out later this year will be a full touchscreen phone.

2. The next BlackBerry 10 phone to hit the market will feature a full physical keyboard. We don't have a time frame on this, but realistically it will be as soon as possible after the first.

This is already confirmed and has been confirmed since BlackBerry World last month. This is not new news as it is being reported today.

At BlackBerry World, RIM gave developers the all-touchscreen BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha Device. They showed us BlackBerry 10 running on the Dev Alpha with its new touchscreen keyboard. They confirmed the first BlackBerry 10 phone will be an all touchscreen phone.

Also at BlackBerry World, RIM's CEO confirmed in a press session that a BlackBerry 10 phone with a full physical keyboard is in the pipeline. If you don't believe this, you can listen to the audio from that event here to hear it directly from the mouth of CEO Thorsten Heins (if that's not confirmation, I don't know what is). Jump to 22m40s for the first clip where Heins talks about physical keyboards on BlackBerry 10, and then jump to 33m35s where he confirms this is again when questioned during Q&A.

We've observed some reports today saying BlackBerry 10 phones won't have a physical keyboard, which is just flat out wrong. The first one will be a full touchscreen, but there definitely will be physical keyboard BlackBerry 10 phones.

As for those who think RIM's first phone should have a full physical keyboard instead of going all touchscreen, I think that would be a mistake. READ THIS EDITORIAL for my reasoning. I do think they need to have a BlackBerry 10 physical keyboard on the market as soon as possible, but the first BB10 phone does need to be full touch for several compelling reasons.

Do CrackBerry Nation a favor. If you hear or see any misreports on this -- people saying no BlackBerry 10 phones will have a physical keyboard -- please correct them. It drives me cracky.

/ end rant

 

With most of the headlines surrounding BlackBerry less than positive these days, it almost feels in vogue to give us loyal BlackBerry users a hard time. It's even to the point where I get ridiculed by my iOS and Android using friends for sticking with my BlackBerry. Sure, I have tried and own other devices as well, but they rarely leave the house with me and quite often if I am out and about you may well find me carrying two BlackBerry smartphones. I like a back up, just in case of an emergency!

Here in the UK things are a little different to in North America as the BlackBerry has been the best selling smartphone for the last couple of years and long may that continue. This is partly due to price. You can pick up a BlackBerry Curve here for £130 and BIS is only £5 per month which can't really be beaten in terms of value for money. BBM is obviously what gets the youngsters addicted.

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There was a story published by Reuters today talking about a former AT&T executive who has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire and securities fraud.  Alnoor Ebrahim, 57, apparently got himself involved in a highly enticing and all-too-common illegal practice over the last few years.

Besides poor ethics, this boils down to heavy use of expert networks by hedge funds, and high compensation for experts who provide information to these hedge funds.

What is an expert network?  It's an organization consisting of hundreds or thousands of industry experts who offer their consulting services in return for pay.  Over the last decade the use of expert networks grew widely, and it became an easy way for experts (who already had a day job) to consult to Wall Street on topics that money managers wanted to learn more about.

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For many years now, Celestica, the Canadian contract manufacturer (CM) with operations all over the world, has been a manufacturing partner with Research In Motion.  For a few years Celestica wouldn't actually make hardware for RIM, but they'd act as a fulfillment center by loading in the carrier-specific OS, packaging up everything into the right box and shipping it off to retail locations in the USA.  

Then, as RIM grew, it expanded its base of contract manufacturers to include Celestica.  For a while, RIM manufacturing made up a significant chunk of Celestica's revenue.  

Today Celestica announced that it will be winding down BlackBerry manufacturing over the next few months.  This is a clear sign that RIM's operational team has decided to consolidate its manufacturing under fewer CMs.  

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Yes, I'm using an Android phone for the month of June as part of the Mobile Nations World Tour, so
don't act all surprised if you see me tweet from an Android client. 

Happy Father's Day to all the CrackBerry dads out there!! I have to give a special shout out to my pops who I didn't get a chance to see today (I ran in a half marathon and couldn't make the trip out of the city). He reads CrackBerry daily though, so I know he'll see this. Thanks for being the bestest dad ever!

To all the fathers, I hope you've enjoyed your special day of honor and that your kids showed you some extra love. And if you received socks and ties today but next year are hoping for a little something something that caters to the techie in you, be sure to leave your web browser open to this page for your kids to stumble upon or accidentally forward them an email with the link. Father's Day Tech Gift guides only work when they're read by the kids ;)

Looking back at the week that was, it's been a busy one, so let's get to it!

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June 14th 2012, London. I had the pleasure of attending the London stop of the BlackBerry 10 Jam World Tour. It did take me an overnight journey of about 9 hours to get there but it was worth it. The BlackBerry 10 Jam event was held in Vinopolis in South London. I arrived at the venue around 8:45am and there was already a queue to get in for badge pick-up, which began at 8:30am. With my badge picked up I was directed upstairs for some tea, or in my case coffee, lots of it. Finally met up with James, who was very lucky to get some hands-on time with BlackBerry 10, before it was time to mingle with other developers. You could definitely feel there was a positive feel in the air, even before the keynote started. Developers were chatting away with each other, talking about their apps, catching up with folks they haven't seen for a while, it was nice soaking up the love for BlackBerry. 

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