RIM Chief Chastises Apple

Research in Motion's co-CEO Mike Lazaridis in an interview today shot down claims by Apple about push data and background apps on mobile devices. The executive argues to Laptop that RIM is more experienced at sending live updates through the 15 years of BlackBerries and that Apple's claims of severe battery life hits with background apps aren't well-founded. To Lazaridis, true background apps are feasible as long as the software is properly optimized.

"[They drain battery] if you don’t do it right," he says. "If you don’t make the right trade-offs, you have what we call a catastrophic effect on battery life... so all the optimizations and conservation techniques we have developed for the BlackBerry system over the years [are] now paying huge dividends to our subscribers and carrier partners. The fact is that the BlackBerry was designed to multitask from day one."

He explains by noting that BlackBerries don't need to poll frequently, such as with operating systems like Windows Mobile or Symbian. BlackBerry apps therefore spend more of their time idling and don't use as much power to keep updated as other mobile operating systems.

Lazaridis also partly defends RIM against criticisms of its own experience. While acknowledging that the web browser can improve, the official maintains that basing the BlackBerry OS web browser on Java has been useful as a security measure for business by allowing the device equal access to internal and external information.

The Storm's unique touchscreen and interface are subject to the same scrutiny, though the RIM head is more defensive here and infers that second-wave and beyond touchscreen BlackBerries will improve on the formula. "It’s unfair," Lazaridis says. "That’s our first touch product, and you know nobody gets it perfect out the door. You know other companies were having problems with their first releases."

Market pressure from Apple isn't considered a factor. Although Apple has sold 30 million iPhone OS devices in about 1.5 years on the market, the RIM chief notes that almost half of the 50 million BlackBerries shipped since the line began were shipped in 2008, indicating faster growth. Research data from Gartner has shown RIM nearly doubling its smartphone share from 2007 to 2008 even with the iPhone growing at a similar rate.

The success is mostly attributed to the company's reputation as a business smartphone developer. "When the economy is challenged, people flee to trusted brands," he states.

RIM has been one of the few electronics firms to actively defy the world economic downturn and, in its latest quarter, shipped a record 7.8 million BlackBerries where Apple and other companies have seen their unit shipments drop due either to regular seasonal shifts or reduced public spending.

By Electronista Staff