The new BlackBerry 10; the new Z10. It’s not out in many countries, and even the Alpha Dev version looks too much of a Lego box rather than a BlackBerry Device. I got myself the White one, and after a week of using the Z10, all I can say is, not bad for BlackBerry to come back with a new and brave OS on a smaller phone platform. I was already impressed with the Playbook, but the OS integrated into a smaller phone platform is quiet impressive for me coming from iOS, previous Android 4.2 owner and previous BlackBerry OS 7.1 owner. Here’s my version of BlackBerry Z10 Review:
This one is a leap forward, not only that it can be up to par with iOS and Android, but I believe it can do more, especially with the integrated messaging software built-in such as BBM Voice Call and BBM Video Call. The only thing that is lacking for me is the apps availability. Side loading apps from Android might be another way to install apps, but it is tedious to do so. The average joe will not do it especially those who previously used BlackBerry 7.1.
OS 10 will get used to operating it, especially on the Z10 where it has no button whatsoever. Everything is done by a swipe from either bottom, or from the left. The screen is nice and big, and I’m sure you’ve read all the reviews from other sites.
Let me just get straight to the point. If you are moving from 7.1 to 10, it won’t be an easy task. One of the drawback for me is reading email. In 7.1, I can just use two fingers to multi-select emails and mark them read. Even though my previous BlackBerry was also touch screen, there is at least 3 buttons to use. The Z10 has no need for buttons, but sometimes, getting to options within an app could be confusing.
The camera could use some updating on the software side. Especially in low lighting, it is good, but I think it should know I’m inside a building rather than selecting an option for low light. I’ll be waiting for that update from BlackBerry for model 100-2.
If you are in need of apps that is not available in the BlackBerry App World, you can go to this site http://apps.goodereader.com/playbook/playbook-android-apps/ to install apps. But you have to do a lot of mumbo jumbo stuff, like putting your Z10 in Development mode. Reminds me of the Alpha Dev device; picture below compared from the Production level Z10 and the Alpha Dev BlackBerry Z10:
One thing that I use my BlackBerry Z10 for now more often than my iPhone 5 is the browser. It is significantly faster on the Z10 than on the iPhone 5. It seems to be more optimized for browsing over the 3G/4G/LTE network rather than on Wi-Fi. So I take out my Z10 over my iPhone 5 when it comes to browsing. Did I mention it can do Flash too? It renders Flash pretty darn fast too. I haven’t played Facebook games, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to play Facebook games with a touch screen that is only 4.2 inch in size. You might harass a neighbors farm or something.
Navigating around the Home Menu and switching from one app to another is actually quiet fast. I don’t feel like I’m being bothered by lag. Everything is just a breeze. If the BlackBerry App World got some big names apps in it, I would leave my iPhone 5 behind and switch permanently to the Z10. But for now, I’ll keep my iPhone 5.
Voice and Video Calling from another Z10 users from Australia to the states of California, USA to Singapore and Indonesia, even though I’m not on Wi-Fi, I was able to do it without a lag. Initially it would be a little pixelated for about 10 seconds or so, but the voice will still be clear from the beginning to the end. The video feed would render nicely after 10 seconds of adjusting it’s quality from the available bandwidth. Voice Calling don’t fail unless if you are in a rural area where GPRS is the only data bandwidth you got. But it works on EDGE for Voice Calling. It will fail on EDGE for Video Calling.
The front camera is not bad for what it is. Video calling with the front camera is actually not bad, it is pretty clear, even in low light, especially if I’m calling with a big 13 hours time difference.
The HUB for Social life is pretty cool. Facebook, Twitter, BBM, LinkedIn, and Email will go to the HUB area. It’s a one stop HUB for you to look at whats going on in one space. If you have mail, it will have a red icon and the same for other social network.
BBM interface has changed as well. You can see thumbnails of your friends contacts if you are in the Contacts section. So it looks lively and happy. If you want to change your profile, you can see your Avatar and your name, then your status. There is an easy access to get to Barcode so anyone of your friends can just scan your barcode to add you. There is also history of your updates and recent apps that uses your BBM to update status.
The Home Screen makes BlackBerry Home very lively. It’s not static and if you have a lot of previously opened apps, you can scroll down to see what’s going on in a glimpse.
This isn’t an extensive review as all other sites have done a good job of reviewing the Z10. One of them is ZDNet from this link.
source: powercx
