RIM Exec: Software Bugs On Smartphones The ‘New Reality’
I hate bugs. I also hate patches, fixes and ‘title updates’ on XBox Live that are compulsory, yet tell me nothing about what is being fixed. I hate glitches on mobile phones, where little features like making and receiving calls or using the web make it break.
So when an executive of RIM, co-CEO Jim Balsillie in fact, mentions in a Wall Street Journal article that glitches and bugs on smartphone firmware are ‘the new reality,’ I become upset.
RIM, the makers of the BlackBerry Storm, a handset with a reputation as being a bit buggy from early adopters and a raft of fixes and updates to make it slick and functional, should not be perpetuating this mentality.
The “push it out the door, we’ll patch it later” mentality is the worst affliction to hit the games industry now that consoles have hard drives and internet access to accommodate updates. Some publishers pressed for time to meet deadlines and quarterly shedules release sub-standard product, in the knowledge they can plug gaps in quality later on. To see the same happen to mobile phones is a travesty, one which consumers should not be asked to put up with.
After missing the original October launch date, the BlackBerry Storm was launched on November 21st, just in time for the highly popular ‘Black Friday’ shopping period in the US.
Despite over half a million sold in that first month, issues with the handset are almost certainly indicative of a rushed release, with a lot of disgruntled owners as a result. Updates are often bundled in with new features, like a virtual touch screen keyboard on the fabled T-Mobile G1 ‘Cupcake’ fix, but is little solace for those lumbered with a brick until the manufacturers see fit to release an update.
Unofficial leaked ROMs and homebrew fixes may placate the very vocal tech-savvy crowd, but what of the casual consumer waiting patiently for an over the air update for their shiny new phone?
One that has every chance of not coming out at all if the LG Viewty or Sony Ericsson P990 are any indication…
Tags: 9500, BlackBerry, cupcake, glitches, LG, Sony Ericsson, storm, t-mobile g1, viewty