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The BlackBerry Z10 has failed to make any kind of a splash in the US, according to a survey of mobile retailers by Goldman Sachs. BlackBerry was pinning much of its hopes on the new phone and a poor reception in its biggest market could be utterly disastrous.
Analysts at Goldman and Citigroup — keen to find out how many units the new smart phone is selling, so they can advise their clients to buy-buy-buy! or drop it like it’s hot — asked phone floggers in America how many Z10s they sold over the weekend. The response wasn’t encouraging, with some retailers selling only a few, and only 5 per cent selling out, according to PC Pro.
BlackBerry’s share price took a dive as a result, falling by more than 11 per cent.
The Z10 suffered a poor UK launch too, with its price cut by as much as £160, just a month after it went on sale here. That followed reports that the phone only costs £99 to make — a third less than the reported bill of materials for Samsung’s new Galaxy S4.
Speaking of which, the Z10’s US launch was delayed by networks testing its new BB10 software, meaning it arrived in shops just after Samsung unveiled its new super phone.
The all-new BB10 had to walk a tightrope between keeping loyal BlackBerry fans happy and providing the total touchscreen interface phone fans have required for years. Its peep feature means you can quickly look at emails without having to open an app, but that was about it for innovation — hardly ground-breaking.
For an in-depth look at what it’s like to use BB10, my colleague Katie Collins — formerly a BlackBerry user for many years — decided to see if the Z10 could tempt her back. Spoiler alert! It didn’t.
If this is a portent of doom and disaster for BlackBerry, it’s genuinely sad that there isn’t room for another mobile system to offer something different to Android and Apple. Windows Phone is trying, and Microsoft has an awful lot more money than the company formerly known as RIM to make it happen, but its market share is minuscule.
Have you bought the Z10? What do you think it needs to be a success? Can BlackBerry turn it round and be a major player again? Cheer or commiserate in the comments, or over on our Facebook page.
