In an interview with All Things D, Research in Motion Ltd. CEO Thorsten Heins revealed the company will release six BlackBerry 10-based phones in Q1 of next year: three each of touchscreen and QWERTY models, at three different price points.
Hines makes several interesting points: He’s not worried about missing the back-to-school and holiday seasons (carriers say that’s largely prepaid product), RIM will agressively target the ye-of-little-faith market that switched to Android-based phones, and the phones will feature technology that allows them to work on several frequencies through a single antenna.
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We recently ran a slide show called Six ways to save RIM, which compiled pundits’ opinioons on what the company should do to recapture its market. How does Heins’s preview stck up against that?
Reduce the number of product offerings and clearly delineate the consumer and business markets, à la Apple in 1996? Check. Go back to the company’s roots? Heins did say the company is focusing on serving its loyal customers first, so a hesistant check there. Focus on the hardware and ditch the OS for Windows/Android? Not so much.
Still, if Heins is right about the disenchantment of those who switched to Android, there might be a fighting chance to claw back some market share. At least Heins seems to be listening to the market.