Brad Stone of the New York Times reported today about Tuesday’s Blackberry blackout. Approximately 5 million Blackberry users were affected, not 8 million as I had estimated yesterday. However, the article notes that 3 million new users had signed up in the last 12 months. Perhaps RIM’s systems were running beyond their capacity.
Some users thought their Blackberry devices were broken. The article describes one user who field stripped and cleaned his Blackberry.
Of course, how could RIM or the mobile carriers notify Blackberry subscribers of an unscheduled mass outage? Voice mail was one option, of course, as Blackberries are mobile phones. Some users learned about the outage through TV and radio reports, or notices posted on the web and blogs.
A few users enjoyed their impromptu Blackberry vacation, including Congressional staffers.
I almost always turn off my Sidekick and computer in the evening. I check my messages in the morning.
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