Gartner's crackBerry solution... just say NO

Along those lines... There has been some interesting comments on a previous BlackBerry post about . And I certainly agree with the comments that there are some people who enjoy feeling important by having a BlackBerry, but there are also certain organizations that depend on their BlackBerries. At the Capitol, I believe it is one of the ways that people are notified of evacations. And post-September 11, then Defense Department CIO John Stenbit told me that the only way he was able to remain in touch was by using his BlackBerry.One person also commented that they prefer their Treo to the BlackBerry, to which I have to ask: WHAT? How is that possible? But you could be the token person who is actually happy their their crash-all-the-time, can't-hear-on-the-phone, OS-is-much-worse, layout-is-much-worse Treo... In my humble opinion, of course. I have really been thrilled with the two BlackBerries I have had -- and completely dissatisified with the two Palm Treo 650s that I have had.

From Good Morning Silicon Valley...

Gartner slaps RIM with BlackBerry injunction [GMSV, 12.7.2005]
With a court order banning sales of Research In Motion's BlackBerry devices and services in the U.S. a real possibility (see "Betty Ford Center braces for wave of CrackBerry withdrawal cases"), Gartner has advised its clients to halt all BlackBerry deployments until the patent dispute over the device is resolved. "[Enterprises should] stop or delay all mission-critical BlackBerry deployments and investments in the platform until RIM's legal position is clarified," Gartner said in a research note, noting there's a chance that "BlackBerry users would lose messaging services ... and international users would lose message service while traveling in the U.S." Worth noting here as well is Gartner's suggestion that a workaround that would keep RIM's service running without relying on the disputed technology may not be as easy a solution to the problem as RIM would like us to believe. "RIM claims its workaround is legally sound, but its history in the courts does not inspire confidence," Gartner said. "Moreover, end-user validation and implementation would take time, resulting in a temporary loss of service."


whether the devices are mission critical for government