Will the iPhone Be Taken by Storm?

by: Compete November 26, 2008 | about stocks: AAPL / RIMM    
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Compete

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On Friday, the much-anticipated Blackberry Storm went on sale. Like many other recent Smartphone releases, the touchscreen, media player, and web-browsing features led to comparisons with the iPhone 3G.

Sales figures were not available at the time of this post, but we did get a sense of the online interest for the Storm versus the iPhone by looking at the number of people who researched the devices on the carrier and/or the manufacturer’s site in the weeks before the release.

The Storm may have started with less momentum than the iPhone 3G did, but it made significant gains in the weeks before it went on sale.


Note: Data shown for the iPhone is from June 8 to July 12th, 2008. Data shown for the Storm is from October 19th to November 15th.

Although data for the Storm release week of November 16th was not available at the time this post was written, we can see in the the chart that the Storm actually attracted more online interest the week before its release on the carrier and manufacturer’s site.

Of course, it would be difficult for any device to generate the same sustained interest that the iPhone 3G has enjoyed over the past several months. However, this data does suggest that it is possible rival interest in the iPhone 3G and for a significant lift in interest to happen the week before release.

Next week, we’ll have the data to see how much interest the Storm generated at release. Even if it doesn’t match iPhone interest, RIM’s first touchscreen device caught consumers’ attention in a significant way. Now let’s see how that interest translates to sales.

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This article has 25 comments:

  •  
    Nov 26 03:10 PM
    i have used the storm. What a piece of crap. I love the screen click , it does nothing! I think this will only boast iphone sales. If you like keys get the bold but dont waste your time on the storm. lk
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 03:29 PM
    If I were to write, let alone post, such a profoundly meaningless article supported by "...the number of people who researched the devices on the carrier and/or the manufacturer’s site in the weeks before the release." I would make sure my name was not on it either.

    This part is full of insight: "Like many other recent Smartphone releases, the touchscreen, media player, and web-browsing features led to comparisons with the iPhone 3G." It led to comparisons because RIM decidedly monkey see monkey do the iphone. Are you retarded?

    Here's one of your typo's at § 5, line 3 you wrote; "this data does suggest that it is possible rival..." but it's just the letter a and it was such a long article, you probably were overwhelmed.

    Move along - nothing to see here.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 03:33 PM
    I love the Storm. It crushes my brother's Iphone and the network is much faster. No dropped calls like my brother. Typing is much easier.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 04:12 PM
    Saw the Storm. What a turd.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 04:37 PM
    Storm is more like a wet drizzle
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 04:37 PM
    I love my Storm. I'm buying Storms for everyone at my company because we are enterprise Blackberry so it's only natural we go enterprise smartphone with the same familiar face we know and are addicted to, and always look cool using (not like a nerd with the iPhones), that would be Blackberry.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 04:54 PM
    The Storm has been panned by ALL the critics. Its a counter-intuitive piece of 'iPhone paranoia' junk.

    Its impossible to beat the iPhone - RIMM should stick to what they know best - boring phones that do secure email from a server farm in Canada.

    The Storm doesnt even have wifi.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 05:00 PM
    Everybody is making big thing out of this. The interest is from those who would buy an iphone except they won't leave verizon for att.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 05:03 PM
    No wifi, no deal. Simple.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 05:03 PM
    No wifi, no deal. Simple.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 05:14 PM
    It's only b/c people like me who have an iphone check out the storm to see how much of a better product i have....
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 05:18 PM
    I agree 100% the only reason for the hype is to have a touch or just a new style blackberry on vz network. no matter the phone you have if the network stinks and further more the customer service stinks no phone is going to make many switch to ATT. sorry i phoners just a cool toy to carry in your pocket. I'll stick with my bb that I can always talk on and get my e mail.Not an I pod that somtimes works as a phone or browser.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 05:56 PM
    Wish I hadn't looked up about the Storm as I'm obviously included in statistics about being interested in a Storm when I don't think it is a patch on the iPhone..
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 06:24 PM
    obviously most here are plugging for the stock they own. of course they are each better at certain things, in certain areas. both are very intelligent pieces of electronics. the iphone and storm are the next generation of smart phones and each will expand and improve as opportunities and advancements permit. but if this is about stock favorites, write the today's prices of each down in your calendars on 11-26-2009. Both will be up very significantly in a year. study the markets they are going into here and abroad. growth has slowed but the prices of each more than reflect that fact. most people who buy phones read these blogs so plugging your stock here is a waste of time.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 06:53 PM
    iphone??crappy battery that needs re-charging everyday and u cant even replace it? the thing crahes all the time....phone that dosnt support multiple apps running at the same time or basic push mail....im glad i went for the storm... being a first release the bugs will be worked out... im happy so far.. ditched the crappy iphone gave it to the kids
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 07:11 PM
    Good One lcpcp - you'll need that removable battery for when your BlackBerry running multiple applications freezes and that's the only way to restart it. Our neighbors to the north, they thought of everything with BlackBerry. Awesome, you'll have that early edition Storm to put next to your StarTac in the mobile phone museum you have in your basement. I can donate a RAZR for the Motorola section as well. Now all you need is one of those shoebox-size car phones

    Meanwhile your kids will still be using iPhone.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 26 08:13 PM

    On Nov 26 07:11 PM TimboM wrote:

    > Good One lcpcp - you'll need that removable battery for when your
    > BlackBerry running multiple applications freezes and that's the only
    > way to restart it. ..........

    Timbo- LOL- exactly! I remember having to do that.

    A lot! It's similar to when I have to rip the power cord out of the wall to reboot my PC after it freezes up so hard that hitting cmd-alt-del or holding the power button in does nothing.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 27 08:11 AM
    no wifi. nuff said.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 27 08:14 AM

    The Blackberry Storm is stillborn. David Pogue of the NY Times is someone who tells it as it is, a dud:

    www.nytimes.com/2008/1...
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 27 12:55 PM
    paidContent.org by apple, give me a break this "David Pogue" douche bag is definately paid off.... i got the phone in my hands right now,, so far i am pleased, bugs get fixed....the first iphone wasnt perfect either, and the latest still crashes on me.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 27 08:40 PM
    Bought an I-Phone last night. Im happy with it, I'm also assuming "most" will say they like one or the other better. My money is on them liking the phone they have. Just like the Chevy or Ford arguement, well not really Chevy is better. No GM comments needed unless your going to point out how its the Unions and the Government standards fault (hybrid, mpg, cafe, "pollution") Lets mandate Mcdonalds has to sell sweet potato fries, and selling them tanks the business. But the govt mandates they have to keep selling them "because its the right thing to do" just like, mpg or emissions. If people want gas hogs and bulldozers let people make them, they dont sell, well than thats their fault.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 28 09:32 AM
    You can't make any conclusions on the device yet. VZ pushed RIM to release it and the software was not quite ready. VERY DUMB as the first impressions are very important and all the reviewers were using devices with the "beta" OS and not a final version, which will be updated in the next few weeks. Maybe wait until this the software gets tuned and then decide. And yes, this article says nothing.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 28 01:34 PM
    crazy legs - exactly --- its always like that if u look at anything like iphone/vista/ etc first releases are like that although vista is an exemption you could not pay me to upgrade to it, however at least rim got it out the door otherwise you'd have a pack of analysts down grading left to right and shorting.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Nov 30 02:40 AM
    Storm is such an obvious rip-off. No applications for it, either. And I guess if you don't like music, don't care about movies, don't care about applications, then you wouldn't miss iTunes.

    And don't worry, no one will ask you if it's an iPhone, it's way too ugly to be an iPhone.
    Reply | Link to Comment
  •  
    Dec 01 01:08 PM
    I think it may be hard, however, for the Storm to maintain such gains when RIMM can't even deliver. Most Verizon stores out of Storm models until December 15. Not to mention, more and more bad reviews keep coming out about he Storm that is sure to hurt sales. Furthermore, sentiment this week has currently dropped to become bearish (predictwallstreet.com/...) as consumers pull back spending despite postive Black Friday sales. Investors remain cautious in this tumultuous market.
    Reply | Link to Comment
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