RIM is going to be updating their apps to be more BBM friendly. This is supposed to help social networking integration with the BlackBerry.

Now I think this is a great idea in theory, but once again, this could be too little too late. Both Apple and Android have gained tons of ground at BlackBerry’s expense so we’ll see what happens here.

-RP

I’m not sure how many people took advantage of this offer but I’d love to see the numbers. RIM’s recent quarterly results indicate that things haven’t been going well, and i hope they have more good deals like this in the next quarter to help spur on new business.

The biggest thing will be attracting young mobile phone buyers who are flocking to the iPhone and Android platforms. RIM has to find a way to become relevant again. Here’s hoping they figure this out, as I want to see this company stick around to provide competition to Apple and Android.

-RP

Developers submitting applications to RIM can also get a free PlayBook. This offer was so popular that RIM has extended it to March 2nd, 2012. The PlayBook seems to be making a bit of a comeback in Canada where it’s market share has slightly increased.

It would be nice to see it stay in the competition to give the iPad and Android based tablets a run for their money. Like I always say, competition is great for the consumer!

You can read more here.

-RP

Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis took a step back but still reside on the board. What does this mean for RIM? Apparently nothing if you listen to Thorsten Heins. He feels that there are no changes needed.

This obviously didn’t sit well with investors and the stock price for RIM is a definite indicator of that. Here’s hoping Thorsten changes his tune and starts making the drastic changes necessary to make RIM viable in the market again.

-RP

All I can say, is it’s about flipping time! RIM was on a roller coaster ride into oblivion this past year, and they needed a change and fast!

Now with this announcement, hopefully RIM can begin the healing process and concentrate on churning out good products instead!

You can read more here.

-RP

What is this? It’s their entry into the MDM (mobile device management) market. I think this is a great idea but just a little to late. RIM should have come to the table ages ago, because right now there are a ton of vendors already providing these features for managing multiple OS mobile devices.

However, if they can refine the product to the standards of BES, then maybe they can steal market share away from the existing vendors. However they did themselves no favours by being late to the game. This seems to be RIM’s life story.

Read more here.

-RP

One of those is Citrix as i mentioned. But what can you use to track and wipe devices that are not BlackBerries managed under BES? Well for you managed services folks out there, Kaseya has a great solution. Kaseya now has a Mobile Device Management module you can purchase from them.

This allows you to not only remotely wipe devices, but also geo-locate the devices. Not a bad idea. This is accomplished through the installation of an agent on the mobile device which is downloaded through the various mobile device app stores available.

You can read more here.

-RP

It’s outages like this that are going to cause customers to go in droves over to Android, or iPhone and RIM really needs to give it’s head a shake.

Now there is a Canadian lawsuit which has been filed against RIM for the outage. This does not bode will for the company.

You can read more about it here.

-RP

The biggest thing I have noticed outside of BlackBerries is the huge issue with battery life. I’m never sure what it is exactly that these other phones do that cause them to drain batteries so much more faster than BlackBerry devices but I have to say it’s annoying. Don’t get me wrong, there are a million and one ways to conserve power, but if you actually want to use all the features on your smartphone, it will die quickly.

I think it’s time for the industry to put some effort into research and development for batteries as opposed to the latest new features. Maybe then we can have an iPhone or an Android smartphone with long term battery life!

-RP

Talk about a lame attempt at a comeback. RIM, listen up, you need to do more than what you are doing now! You’re just doing the same things that got you into this mess in the first place. Your archaic operating system isn’t going to save you. It’s time to try something different!

They can start by punting the two head honchos who are obviously seriously out of touch with the rest of the world.

-RP