Is Blackberry making a slider phone that runs Android?

[WelshBloke]

I'm obviously in the minority though, BBM died and people went back to brutal, primitive SMS. I never thought that would happen.

People use plenty of messenger apps. What they aren't so keen on is proprietary ones, particularly if you have a declining market share. BBM went cross platform way too late, that's why it died. The converse is what's kept SMS alive, it's the ultimate "fire it off and the person will get it" messenger regardless of what phone you or your recipient has.

 

[Artdeco]

I think the Priv will be one of the last BB phones.

Reviews aren't good.

 

[WelshBloke]

I think the Priv will be one of the last BB phones.

Reviews aren't good.

Some are excellent. Android Central has gone positively sticky. :eww:

 

[Artdeco]

Some are excellent. Android Central has gone positively sticky. :eww:

Sorry, should have qualified that, you're right, some are glowing, but it's nothing I'd ever consider. I know some people that are hardcore physical keyboard fans that would buy it, but a hard pass for me.

Heck, Tizen the OS has more market share than BB now.

 

[WelshBloke]

Sorry, should have qualified that, you're right, some are glowing, but it's nothing I'd ever consider. I know some people that are hardcore physical keyboard fans that would buy it, but a hard pass for me.

I agree, there's pretty much nothing in it that I want (apart from the big battery) but there's a bunch of people that like hubs that gather all their accounts, and a few that like physical keyboards. They'll probably pick up a few corporate customers as well.

Heck, Tizen the OS has more market share than BB now.

That's not really a valid comparison.

I think that they still have an uphill struggle to make but they probably at least have a chance now. They need to go all in on Android in my opinion and release a couple more handsets (one without the keyboard).

 

[poofyhairguy]

people went back to brutal, primitive SMS. I never thought that would happen.

It's is called being a green bubble.

(If you didn't get that I implied that iMessage sucked up BBS's purpose)

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

If BBRY gets 1% market share that would be huge
The bar is very low for the Priv to be a smashing success. If they sell $5 million in Priv devices, there will be more.

 

[WelshBloke]

The bar is very low for the Priv to be a smashing success.

Compared to other BB devices or compared to other Android devices?

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Compared to other BB devices or compared to other Android devices?

Compared to all devices. BBRY needs an insanely small percentage of the market to make the hardware business viable. I found it. 10 million units:
http://crackberry.com/says-blackber...million-phones-year-well-be-profitable-phones

There are something like 2 billion smartphone users worldwide.

So, BBRY needs 0.5% of the worldwide market going forward.

They have a small target segment. Governments, regulated industries, fanboys, etc. Maybe we can add a few Android adopters? But you don't need every 14 year old girl wanting one for it to be a success.

 

[WelshBloke]

Compared to all devices. BBRY needs an insanely small percentage of the market to make the hardware business viable. I found it. 10 million units:
http://crackberry.com/says-blackber...million-phones-year-well-be-profitable-phones

There are something like 2 billion smartphone users worldwide.

So, BBRY needs 0.5% of the worldwide market going forward.

They have a small target segment. Governments, regulated industries, fanboys, etc. Maybe we can add a few Android adopters? But you don't need every 14 year old girl wanting one for it to be a success.

There's a big difference between "viable" and "smashing success".

 

[Deeko]

I played with the Priv today. On one hand, I really liked the screen, the build felt good, the camera seemed reasonably good. And it had a keyboard, which I'm obviously a big fan of. That said, the keyboard wasn't great. Too mushy, too flat, to wide. Bring back the smile, and give a little more depth, BB. Also, the device is just too big. It's awkward to hold especially with the keyboard open.

It's not a bad phone by any stretch, but $740 is stupid. It's not going to sell at that price.

 

[pete6032]

I have not read any reviews that discuss security in depth. This phone has two selling features - physical keyboard and enhanced security. Why don't the reviewers try and download malware or otherwise hack the phone to see if anything gets past the security system?

 

[core2slow]

I have not read any reviews that discuss security in depth. This phone has two selling features - physical keyboard and enhanced security. Why don't the reviewers try and download malware or otherwise hack the phone to see if anything gets past the security system?

initial review from tech bloggers is that vertical keyboard is a fail. Awkward to hold and type being that the phone is top-heavy when slide up.

 

[sbpromania]

It's so bad that BB did not release such a device a few years ago, maybe today they would still have a chance.

 

[Deeko]

initial review from tech bloggers is that vertical keyboard is a fail. Awkward to hold and type being that the phone is top-heavy when slide up.

I didn't find that to be the case at all. It just wasn't a great keyboard.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

There's a big difference between "viable" and "smashing success".

From a financial standpoint 1% would be smashing. 0.5% would be viable. I'm talking about the business case and not the tech fan standpoint.

A smashing success for Apple would be to double worldwide market share. Let's be real. Even a 1% increase would be a big deal.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

initial review from tech bloggers is that vertical keyboard is a fail. Awkward to hold and type being that the phone is top-heavy when slide up.

I havn't read one review that said that. Did a google search and this was the review from the first link:


BlackBerry did more than just slap a keyboard under the screen. The whole phone is thoughtfully designed to make the keyboard usable. It's balanced so that it doesn't feel too top-heavy when it's slid open, and it's thin enough that if you didn't even know there was a keyboard under the screen, you wouldn't call it thick. And the back is made of a grippy "glass weave" material that makes it easy to hold without collecting lint and dust.
-theverge

Then I went to an android fan site ... android central:
Under Pros: The best physical keyboard ever
From skimming, couldn't find complaints about balance.

Thing is, everything I have heard about hte balance of hte phone states that it balances well in the hands.

 

[blackdogdeek]

Gizmodo's (scathing) review:

http://gizmodo.com/blackberry-priv-review-nope-not-for-me-not-even-for-m-1740822511

Ouch:

I wouldn’t, for myself, my friends, or even my worst enemy. I suppose there is a kind of person who might want a flagship quality phone that has a keyboard, even if the keyboard isn’t totally useful.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Gizmodo's (scathing) review:

http://gizmodo.com/blackberry-priv-review-nope-not-for-me-not-even-for-m-1740822511

Ouch:

Wow, that is a horrible review. Some things that are said in the review make me wonder if this was an iPhone fanboy writing the article.

I guess by their own admission, they are biased.
http://www.theverge.com/reviews/score

 

[3chordcharlie]

Gizmodo's (scathing) review:

http://gizmodo.com/blackberry-priv-review-nope-not-for-me-not-even-for-m-1740822511

Ouch:

The only conclusion I get from this article is that Mario Aguilar is a fscking idiot.

Note that I don't think this about everyone who doesn't like Blackberry.

This review is beyond horseshit.

 

[darkswordsman17]

The only conclusion I get from this article is that Mario Aguilar is a fscking idiot.

Note that I don't think this about everyone who doesn't like Blackberry.

This review is beyond horseshit.

Are there any blog sites that don't give half-assed stupidly ignorant "reviews"?

Ars' review wasn't glowing, but the reviewer seemed to think the phone was mostly good, just the software wasn't quite fully baked (camera for instance hopefully could be improved via software since the hardware seems to be capable).

Wow, that is a horrible review. Some things that are said in the review make me wonder if this was an iPhone fanboy writing the article.

I guess by their own admission, they are biased.
http://www.theverge.com/reviews/score

Er, why'd you link to Verge when it was a Gizmodo review? Or was that the guy that wrote the article defending Apple bias and he changed employers?

 

[Capt Caveman]

Ars Technica is not a fan - BlackBerry Priv review: Android fixes the OS, but the hardware can’t compete
$700 for a bad keyboard, poor camera, iffy build quality, and old software? No thanks.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Ars Technica is not a fan - BlackBerry Priv review: Android fixes the OS, but the hardware can’t compete
$700 for a bad keyboard, poor camera, iffy build quality, and old software? No thanks.

Yeah saw that. The person that did the preview felt similar but seemed cautiously optimistic that it might've been just pre-release hardware to blame but then the retail unit the other person got showed the same issues. Keyboard seems to be a mixed bag to say the least, Ars seems to think it was awful. Camera might would hopefully be able to be improved on with software update.

Not sure why they bothered with the curved screen either, I originally thought it was just kinda curved glass over it (like the iPhone) but they used an actual curved display which causes other problems (like the color issues mentioned in the Ars review).

 

[Deeko]

I found a deal on eBay for new Privs for $380 so I picked one up last week - disappointed so far.

The good:

1) Curved screen is nice, the fact that there's a little flat under the curve for the keyboard portion makes it a bit easier to pick up than, say, a Galaxy S Edge.

2) I like that it has a keyboard

3) The UI / launcher is reasonably snappy without too many over the top customizations. Mostly left Android alone.

4) Screen is reasonably bright and sharp

5) Despite the size, it's well balanced from a weight perspective

The bad:

1) The keyboard just isn't that good. It's too wide and flat, without enough clickyness. They opted for the odd flat keyboard the Passport uses, and it's not good. I know they brought over the Passport's keyboard gesture control, but that's useless, I turned it off quickly. Give us the Classic keyboard, or better yet, the curved keyboard from the Bold 9900, which has to be considered their best work.

2) The screen colores are a bit dull. Usually AMOLED colors are over the top / oversaturated - even my LCD-based Z5 Compact has more vibrant colors than this.

3) Too big for a slider. It's just unwieldy, typing with one hand is all but impossible.

4) Battery life is abysmal. This thing has a huge battery, there's no excuse for that

5) Camera is too slow. In terms of both picture-taking-speed, and shutter speed. Even in sunlight, moving pictures come out blurry. Considering most of my pictures are of my toddler or my dogs, neither of which stay still for long, it's useless. It takes good enough pictures of completely still, bright object, but that's it.

6) No wireless charging, no fast charging, no fingerprint sensor. This phone came out in late 2015, come on, get with the times.

7) Outside of the launcher, it's just a bit sluggish. My Lumia 950 has the exact same SoC and it screams at most every task. No excuse to be so slow.

8) It's creaky. Aren't devices without a removable battery supposed to be rock solid? Everywhere I grip this phone, there's a little give, and that's not just the slider portion - it's the actual base itself that's creaking.

At $380, it's a much better deal, and it's not a terrible phone...there's just too much wrong with it for it to be the phone that saves BlackBerry. The original price of $740 was laughable. Supposedly they have two more devices coming out this year, we'll see if they can correct these wrongs, but on the whole I am not impressed with their first foray into Android.