I stepped into a time machine this week, reliving history by seeing several Washington D.C. exhibits and more BlackBerry devices in hands than iPhones or Androids.
Because you come to this blog for mobile insights rather than my take on the political contributions of our forefathers, let me offer some thoughts on RIM’s continued large presence in our Nation’s Capital:
Seemingly most in DC wield power or are wannabes. There is no better device to bang out power emails than a BlackBerry. In other cities, we want to be cool. In Washington, power wins out.
No one does push email better than BlackBerry. In Washington, time is critical. What better device to keep track of the political flip-flops?
Long ago, the BlackBerry proved to the IT departments that it provided secure communications. There is no city in America with more need than DC for protected emails.
I had a long love-hate relationship with my BlackBerry that I wrote about here http://technorati.com/business/article/an-open-letter-to-blackberry/ and elsewhere.
For several years, I carried an iPhone and BlackBerry. Price finally drove me away from RIM. Despite the fact that I’ve been a customer for about 15 years, AT&T demanded for $50 more a month when some of my emails were switched over to Microsoft Exchange. These are the same emails that my iPhone delivers for no extra charge.
I miss the keyboard and the push capability that RIM gave me.
I don’t miss having to defend carrying what has become a dinosaur outside of DC.