Last month we blogged about Peek an email only device that was to be launched for India after a launching in the US. Its seems peek has found a partner in the newbie telecom player Aircel. Aircel has partnered Peek to launch the same for the Indian markets.
Pricing & Plan Details For Peek
As blogged earlier Peek is available for a reasonable price of Rs.2999 only and is available with both Pre-paid and Post-paid plans. On prepaid one can get unlimited email service for Rs. 897 for 90 days. After the initial 90 days, subscriber can recharge with Rs. 89 for 7 days validity or with Rs. 299 for 30 days validity.
On postpaid, pay Rs. 897 for three months of unlimited email service, after three months rental of Rs. 299 per month will be charged
Will People Take A Second Peek At Peek?
What Im wondering is why buy an email only device when a Blackberry or a any qwerty phone can do the same thing? Agreed cost is low i.e. just 3000 rupees but it still has a recurring cost which isnt cheaper than what my phone company charges me for GPRS? The problem peek has today is that most business users would have their Blackberry and would find no real use for an email only device.
Would love to know our readers take on this?
My view on the Peek was pretty similar to yours when I first heard about it, but thinking about it a little longer got me to see some of the possible scenarios and advantages of the device and service.
First the Price. The buy in price for the device at Rs 3000 is very low, allowing someone to get the device without the Multiple Thousands you’ll need for a blackberry or Nokia E series device with Keyboard. At a Third or fourth of the price of most competing entry level models, it has a much wider appeal.
Also, while geeks like us prefer an all in one device, or at at least a multifunctional device, many general users prefer to have separate devices for different tasks. As such the device can serve more like an email appliance then a smart phone replacement with the user using his normal phone for everything else.
Another possible scenario could be a company wanting its workers to be available by email all the time but not wanting the cost or risk of handing out smartphones which could be misused. The Peek is very locked down, and with no support Text, calls, surfing etc its a very safe device with very limited options for misuse outide using a work email address for personal stuff, which can be dealt in other ways.
Also, at the price, which its not cheap, I’m betting the company is probably going to offer the option to pay for six months or a years service in one go in the near future, making it a fire and forget purchase for most users.
Also while the cost is similar to what many carriers charge for GPRS service, setting up and getting support for GPRS is apain especially if something goes wrong. I’ve had run ins with Customer service at both Airtel and Vodafone to get issues with GPRS and mobile email sorted, and even in cases where I’ve known the source of the problem and talked the CS rep through the solution they’ve not been able to sort it. And that was dealing with a Business account with a slightly higher trained rep then normal.
Forget about a normal non techy customer getting it diagnosed and sorted, the key market the peek is aimed at. With a compleatly locked down, preprogrammed device with all configuration through a Browser, the Peek should be much easier to troubleshoot and repair or replace if need be.
It would be a great devices for those who want email on the go but doesnt want to use a blackberry..because blackberry is like addiction. It would be of great use for companies who provide blackberry to its employees, they can save alot on the cost of buying the smartphone. there is a good scalable market for a device like peek..if marketed properly..can be HIT among corporates.
Not sure about the appelation of ‘newbie’ for Aircel. I have been using its services for 8 years now. Yes, they have added some new circles.
I would say that once they get you hooked with the introductory “low” price, then, as time ticks by, they will nickel and dime you with new “partner” fees, VAT taxes, and other sublime nuisance “up” charges, so as to make it unbearably expensive. Later on , you will see the activation fees, rollback of customer care availability, and perhaps charges to upgrade the device to a “newer, better” firmware. I’ll keep the time-tested Blackberry, thank you.