BetaBlue: good, not great, needs plugs

I always like to write posts where I get to say, on some level, “I told you so.”

JetBlue recently ran a test flight with Wi-Fi for press types to try out, and they got plenty of buzz because of it. Unforutnately for them, it’s all pretty mediocre as far as I can tell. And the first words out of Cnet’s review are:

The biggest problem with JetBlue’s inaugural “BetaBlue” flight, equipped with Yahoo and BlackBerry e-mail and instant messaging, was the fact that there aren’t power outlets on board the aircraft.

Hmmmm. I told you so.

In-flight Wi-Fi is, like internet access most places, going to happen eventually. If I were running an airline, I’d be approaching my service offerings by asking myself a question: if someone put me in a room for six hours and allowed me to bring only what I could easily carry on my person, what would I want in that room?

The list is pretty short, and in order of importance:

• A bathroom
• A power outlet
• The internet
• Snacks

You got that, I’m happy.

JetBlue tend to be pretty forward thinking though, and I’ll be surprised if they ignore the feedback they’re getting.