Expansys issues apology for BlackBerry Thunder pre-sale after RIM cries foul
Remember that BlackBerry Thunder pre-sale we told you about a couple of days ago? Expansys, the site that had the Thunder up for pre-order, has issued a formal apology for the listing on its blog. Apparently, someone over at RIM got wind of the listing, (we wonder how) and ordered the company to take it down. Check the full text of the apology here:
“I have just received a call from a very irate PR guy at Blackberry to complain that we were breaking the embargo on the new Blackberry 9500 Thunder by listing it on the site for pre-order.
It was a big mistake on our part – sorry to RIM and sorry to anyone who got excited to think it was coming out soon – it’s still slated to come out towards the end of the year.”
What’s the matter RIM, feeling a little sensitive after a hard year of product leaks? We’re guessing this was a PR stunt, but that’s just our take on it.
[Thanks Bryan!]
Tags: blackberry thunder, expansys, RIM
You would think that more companies would do this.. . . . . . . . . Put up a site to gauge interest in new products/handsets etc. by taking preorders. Let it run over the weekend or so. Then issue the big “My bad” on the blog when somebody cries foul. Then you can get a quick idea of how many people would be even remotely interested.
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i guess we need to wait.. again..
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Yep…wake me up in November…
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What’s the big deal? In other “fake iPhone” news, I head the Meizu 8 is coming out, might as well scoop that up as that thing is probably on par with the Thunder.
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Not for nothing, but I’m pretty sure I saw this pre-order thing posted on RIMarkable before it appeared here.
I’m not sure how RIM got tipped off (assuming they didn’t plant this themselves), but I’d like to give Robb his due if he beat BGR to the punch, y’know?
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…HA!(…awwwwwwwww)
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Wow. . .so did they cancel all three of the pre-orders?
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What do you mean, “we’ll have to wait… again…”
RIM hasn’t even announced the device, let alone issued a release date. These are all leaked. You act as if they pushed the release date on us or something.
This device will sell just fine. RIM may not have crazy, flashy opening weekends but their sales remain steady throughout the year.
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when exicitly is the phone coming out?????
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Oh you’re so clever. I bet you have a Moto Razr don’t you? So technological, are we?
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^ @Perspective
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Here’s my take on “Thunder”.
Blackberry was originally a pager - which added email - which then added a phone and is now trying to add a computer and elegant software to its new device.
Apple was originally a computer with elegant soft ware - then shrunk the computer and the elegant software and added a phone.
There is NO WAY blackberry catches up in a few months what Apple has been doing for decades. Blackberry may want/need such a device but as anyone who owns a BB now (including myself) will tell you, its like typing in “DOS”. there is nothing elegant or exciting about BB software or operating system. They have a LOOOONG way to go.
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BlackBerry have been in the wireless/smartphone business for years. Apple, 12 months.
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Wrong - Blackberry has long been in the pager business and lately the phone business. They have only recently entered the smartphone business and they have never been in the computer business. The new smartphones (iphone, Diamond, etc) are more computer and great software than they are “phones” and Blackberry has never been in the computer business and their experience with software is very limited.
That is why they have so far to catch up. Even Microsoft - in the software business for decades - cannot come close to the elegance of Apples’ software - what chance does Blackberry have to do so?
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BlackBerry smart phones have been around since 2002, that’s a good chunk of time in the cell business, and especially the smart phone sector.
I’m not dogging the iPhone, but you can’t say RIM doesn’t know what they’re doing is just silly.
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Actually I didn’t say they don’t know what they are doing - I said they simply don’t do it as well as Apple - or Microsoft for that matter. Please try an iphone out at the store to see what I mean. I have a BB Curve and am very disappointed with the block letter “Dos” feel of the device - no graphics allowed apparently. It simply lacks the finesse and elegance of the iphone and of my previous Treo. I would still be using Treo actually, but the os is so old and unstable that it was resetting two or three times per day. Even so it had a much, much better user-interface than Blackberry.
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I heard that blackberry and apple teamed up together so it will be interesting to see exactly what it will be capable of doing.
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BB has been making mobile devices since 99, weather they had an actual phone in them is irrelevant. Oh and BTW, Thunder has a new UI that is much streamlined compared to the regular BB OS.
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Apple did not partner with RIM. RIM Hired away a bunch of iPhone developers. And RIM is using HAPTIC/ZTouch Technology
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I don’t think the Thunder is going to come even close to the iPhone. The iPhone is like OS X. It is perfect, like everything fits together. the design is simple, elegant, and easy. The UI is so simple yet powerful… Blackberry’s new touch phone won’t come close to that. It’s just going to join the family of Verizons many iPhone knock offs. RIM: Stick to the keyboards, and don’t try to make stupid copys of other phones. I like RIM, and I like apple. But if RIM starts to copy apple with poorer designs and OS, they will become like Microsoft, and I hate Microsoft.
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