BlackBerry 10 delay casts doubt on RIM recovery

Research in Motion is delaying BlackBerry 10 phones due to delays in the development of its new operating system, casting further doubt on beleaguered company's chances of a recovery. According to BGR, RIM is holding off releasing BlackBerry 10 phones until late 2012 because it has failed to incorporate native e-mail and BlackBerry Messenger functions from older BlackBerry versions in its next-generation OS. BGR claimed RIM CEO Mike Lazaridis was "lying" when he said last week the company was delaying the BlackBerry 10 release until dual-core, LTE chips become available. "RIM is simply pushing this out as long as they can for one reason, they don't have a working product yet," the tech blog said, citing an anonymous source. RIM denies the allegations, sticking with its assertion it made a strategic decision to delay BlackBerry 10 devices until new, LTE-based dual-core chipsets are available to go in them. "We will not launch BlackBerry 10 devices until we know they are ready and we believe this new chipset architecture is required to deliver the world-class user experience that our customers will expect," RIM said in a statement. "Any suggestion to the contrary is simply false." Whatever its reasons, any delay is not good news for RIM, which is counting on its next-generation OS and new product line to revive its struggling brand. Android handset makers like Samsung and HTC are expected to release new, high-end devices running Ice Cream Sandwich next year and Apple will likely release a 4G LTE iPhone. If RIM hopes to use its updated OS to compete against these rivals and hang onto its customer base, the earlier it releases new products to market, the better. The speculation also spells more bad news for RIM's already struggling reputation. The company is fighting to recover from worldwide outages, PR scandals, theft and negative financial reports. As a new year dawns, the company must put bad press behind it and turn its image around if it hopes to regain both consumer and investor trust. But, reports persist the new OS isn't up to the task. It isn't "even as good as iPhone OS 1.0 or Android 2.0," BGR's anonymous source said. Reportedly, prototypes of the BlackBerry 10 phones use an OS that isn't optimized for a smaller screen size, effectively running the PlayBook tablet OS on a smartphone. If these allegations are even partly true, RIM has more hard times and work ahead as it struggles to rebuild its company and its reputation next year.