The estimated reading time for this post is 9 minutes
BlackBerry is back with the Z10, ready to give Android, iPhone and Windows Phone competition. BlackBerry fans who’ve rooted for BlackBerry to make a comeback have been waiting patiently for the Z10, BlackBerry’s first handset using its BlackBerry 10 operating system.
Design
The Z10 has a classic and understated design, similar to an iPhone 5, with a rectangular shape and rounded corners. The back of the phone is a textured, rubberized plastic that feels secure in the hand.
The phone has a 4.2″ LCD screen that’s clear and crisp. The phone weighs 4.93 oz (193.8 grams) and is 0.35 in (8.89 mm) thin. The phone comes with 16 GB of internal storage, which you can increase with a microSD card up to 32GB for total storage of 48 GB. The phone has NFC and Bluetooth 4.0, can connect to 4G/LTE networks and can function as a mobile hotspot.
Using the Phone
A unique physical feature of the front of the Z10 is the lack of a home button. The sleek front face of the phone is unblemished by a button, which may give new users pause. A power button at the top and volume and mute buttons on the right are the only buttons on this phone. The Back button is virtual and resides consistently in the lower left corner of the screen.
The absence of a home button means that the phone isn’t instantly intuitive. BlackBerry guides you through using the phone, with instructional overlays appearing when your first use the phone. You can also access instructional videos on the phone if you need further guidance.
The phone is fast and fluid, you don’t experience lag as you switch from one app to another or swipe through screens. The responsiveness is immediate, this phone can keep up with your navigation in and among apps.
Swiping
Your enjoyment of the Z10 will be partially dependent upon your feelings about swiping. If you have an aversion to swiping, this isn’t the phone for you. But if you like being able to swipe between screens easily, then you may delight in the way you navigate around the Z10.
Learning the swipe motions may require a bit of practice before they become second nature. But others who pick up your phone for the first time may struggle to figure out how to use it. Their search for the home button will be futile. Perhaps this feature is better security than a password?
- Swipe up from the bottom frame of the Lock Screen takes you to the Home Screen, showing you the apps you’ve recently used.
- Swipe down from the top on the Lock Screen to open Bedtime Mode.
- Swipe from the top on the Home Screen to get to Settings.
- Swipe from the top in individual apps to refresh the screen or open menu bars.
- Swipe two fingers from the bottom to open the keyboard.
- Swipe from the bottom and right Γ to open BlackBerry Hub (see below).
You also swipe down to answer a call. I suggest practicing this gesture before you need it, just to be sure that you master the skill before someone important is calling.
Features
BlackBerry Hub
Another navigation issue that may confound people is the lack of an email icon. Accessing your email requires a swipe up and to the right from any screen, Γ, revealing BlackBerry Hub, command central to access your email, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Text Messages, Calendar, Notifications and other accounts.
You can view each of these individually or open Hub which shows you all of these chronologically on one screen. This unified view is very handy to check what’s going on without having to open multiple apps.
BlackBerry Hub goes beyond notifying you, you can post to your accounts, send emails and text messages from Hub without having to navigate to individual apps.
Keyboard
BlackBerry is famous for its keyboards and the Z10 honors its heritage. The keyboard is thoughtfully designed with large keys spaced far apart, making typing on a virtual keyboard less challenging, even for those with large fingers. Rotate the phone 90° to landscape mode and the keyboard becomes downright spacious. Your excuse for typos disappears.
The keyboard uses predictive text to suggest words, even before you start typing them. The predictive text is unusual because the suggested words appear above the next letter you would type. So if you’re typing “and” and have typed the “a” already, the word “and” appears above the “n” key, “are” appears above the “r” key, “as” appears above the “s” key and “all” appears above the “l” key. Corrections for misspelled words appear on the space bar. The keyboard is smart, learning your word patterns to improve its suggestions.
Flick a suggested word up and it appears in the message. While this isn’t very intuitive (your natural inclination is probably to tap the suggested word), once you figure out the flick, your typing speed will increase dramatically.
The keyboard contains handy comma and period keys and emoticons when you’re sending a text message. If you enable voice control in Settings a microphone for dictation will appear on the keyboard.
BlackBerry Link
With BlackBerry Link you can transfer documents, photos, videos and music between your computer and your phone using a cable or Bluetooth connection. Link comes in handy when you want to share files between your computer and your phone, back up files or move files from an old BlackBerry phone to a new one.
Here’s a video showing you how BlackBerry Link works:
http://youtu.be/V04zE6wVU4A
Media Sharing
You can share your music, pictures and video from your phone to your TV using Media Sharing. You can share media wirelessly or with a cable by using the HDMI out connection on your Z10. The Z10 can also share with set-top boxes using DLNA.
Browser
BlackBerry’s browser is fast and delivers clear images and text on the screen. The address bar is at the bottom of the screen for easy typing. You can enable the Reader option on websites to strip away everything but the text for easier reading.
BBM Video Chat with Screen Share
BlackBerry has added a video chat feature to its BlackBerry Messenger service that allows you to have video chats with others who have a BlackBerry 10 phone. The Video Chat feature allows you to sort your contacts, showing you only the ones who have BBM Video Chat. Video Chat works over Wi-Fi as well as 4G networks.
The killer feature of BBM Video Chat is Screen Share. By pressing the Screen Share icon when you’re in a Video Chat, you can display your phone’s screen on your friend’s phone. This nifty trick can come in handy for sharing photos or documents or troubleshooting any issues you may be having.
Bedside Mode
BlackBerry brings a favorite feature from its ancestors, Bedside Mode. On your lock screen swipe down from the top to put the phone in Bedside Mode and set your alarm. This mode silences the ringer and notifications, dims the clock and disables the notification light. You can also access this feature from the Clock app by swiping down and choosing Bedside Mode from the menu.
Lock Screen
The Lock Screen functions as a notification hub, displaying the number of new Facebook notices, Twitter mentions, new text messages, unread emails and upcoming calendar events. You can access the camera instantly by pressing the camera icon on the Lock Screen. To exit the Lock Screen and open the Home Screen, swipe up from the bottom of the screen.
Apps
Apps are the Achilles’ Heel of a new smartphone operating system – any new app store will launch with fewer apps than is ideal. The question then becomes when and if you can get the full roster of apps you want. BlackBerry World is fairly well stocked for a budding app store with over 100,000 apps currently available, but you may be frustrated if the apps you need on your phone just aren’t there.
You may be able to get by with Web Apps for sites such as Pinterest and Instagram, but the absence of apps such as Netflix, Hulu Plus and Zite may prove problematic.
It’s probably only a matter of time before app developers turn their attention to BlackBerry World, but are you willing and able to wait?
The Z10 comes pre-loaded with native mobile apps for:
- Foursquare
- Dropbox
- Docs to Go
- YouTube
- Print to Go
- Box
- Slacker Radio
BlackBerry World has apps such as Angry Birds Star Wars, Skype (Preview version), The Weather Channel, GasBuddy, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and more. Explore to see whether the apps you need are in BlackBerry World.
Battery Life
The stated battery life of the Z10 is 12 days of standby and 15.4 hours of talk time. If you’re a heavy user of the phone, you may want to keep a charge cord or spare battery handy. If you leave the phone in standby mode most of the day and turn off Bluetooth, you should be able to get through several days without recharging.
Camera
The BlackBerry Z10 comes with an 8 MP camera in the back and a 2 MP camera on the front of the phone. The rear camera comes with LED flash and a 5X optical zoom. The rear camera has 1080p HD video recording while the front camera has 720p HD video recording.
Here are some pictures I took with the Z10 camera:
The camera is accessible from the lock screen, the camera app, as well as the bottom tool bar of the home screen. You can edit the pictures with filters on the phone and use the Time Shift Mode to make sure you get the shot right.
Availability
The BlackBerry Z10 is available in black or white from Verizon for $199 with a two-year contract or $599.99 without a contract.
Bottom Line
The BlackBerry Z10 is a phone built for elegance and efficiency. The phone is well-designed with a view towards executing tasks with minimal effort. Think of the Z10 as a tool for productivity rather than a gadget for entertainment. If you’re looking for a phone that will get the job done, you don’t mind a learning curve and you’re satisfied with the BlackBerry World app selection, then the BlackBerry Z10 is worthy of your consideration.
Are you excited about the new era for BlackBerry? Have you been looking forward to the launch of the Z10? Which features are most appealing to you? Let us know in the Comments section below!
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Many thanks to Verizon for lending me a BlackBerry Z10 for review. No compensation was received for the review of this phone.
Oh Lordy, the crackberry lives….
Actually, it looks pretty cool. I don’t think you could go wrong with many of the products that are available today. I really haven’t heard of any stinkers, have you?
Hi Bill, Oh, yes, there are some clunkers out there, but I avoid those at The Wonder of Tech. You’re busy so you don’t want to waste your time reading about bad tech. Only the best tech here at The Wonder of Tech!
Yes, BlackBerry is back and it will be very interesting to see how the BlackBerry 10 phones will do and whether BlackBerry can survive against iPhone and Android. As cool as this phone is, with plenty of admirable features, the Z10 is playing catch up, which is a tough game to play.
Thanks for stopping by and starting off your weekend here, Bill! :-bd
Hi Carolyn,
I have a doubt about BBM service in BlackBerry. Does BBM work without internet data plan or WiFi network. I also tried searching on net but couldn’t find an appropriate answer.
Hi Naser, You need an Internet connection for BBM to work. I hope this helps!
I was expecting a quick overview of the new Z10 but instead you delivered an extremely in-depth article. I am still pretty skeptical as to how this new blackberry is going to be received in the market. I can only assume that it might convince die-hard blackberry fans to stay with the brand, but not sway iPhone and Samsung Galaxy owners to switch. Pretty cool phone though!
Hi Jason, Thanks, I try to give readers a lot of information in my reviews. Buying a new smartphone is a big decision, one you may be living with for two years, so getting as much information as possible is advisable. This phone has so many cool features, I wanted to cover the key ones to help readers find which phone is the best fit for them.
Phones aren’t one-size-fits-all, people should find the phone that works best for them.
I don’t know whether BlackBerry is too late to the market, but this phone is a valiant effort to compete with the iPhone and Android.
Hi Caroline,
You certainly do give your readers a lot of information and I am impressed that you answer all of your comments too. You’re right, one size does not fit all and for some the new Galaxy S4 is perfect, while others do not like the size of the phone. I guess it depends on how much time you actually talk on your cell phone and what you would like to get out of it.
I’ll look forward to more of your upcoming reviews!
Cheers,
Jason
You’re right, Jason. I don’t think many people only will use an S4 as a phone so the increased screen size may come in very handy. I personally am a fan of bigger phones such as the Note 2, but that doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone.
Wow…I didnt know blackberry is still in the market and that too for smartphones!!!!
I have never owned any of their earlier gadgets, but I do know that they had several loyal customers who wouldnt want to switch over to iphone or other later devices.
This one does look great and the features are all covered to make it “smart”, but am not sure if I would really switch over 🙂
Thanks for a detailed description of the features.
Hi Praveen, Since you’re so very happy with your S3, you should probably stick with that. No need to spend money on a new phone if you’re satisfied with what you have already.
When people get smartphones, they tend to invest in apps so making a switch is a big deal. Switching should be reserved for people who are dissatisfied with their phones.
Time will tell whether the Z10 is enough to make a dent in the marketshare of the iPhone and Android. BlackBerry fans may come back in droves or stay with the phones they have now. This phone is quite different from Android and iPhone though.
I think it’s going to be a bit of an uphill battle for Blackberry in the smartphone market. Phones like the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 seem to be dominating all the headlines now so Blackberry is playing catch up for sure. On the plus side however, is that there are still die hard Blackberry fans around, so you never know what the future will hold.
Hi Frank, Yes, this is an interesting time for the smartphone market. BlackBerry fans are thrilled to have a new entry into the field. Some people have to use BlackBerry phones for work so now they have a choice that brings them into the true world of apps.
Hi Carolyn,
Thanks for this information and keep up the good work in this website. Cheers!
Hi Juliet, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! I’m glad you found this information helpful to you.
My only friends left who were using the old blackberry phones claimed they preferred it over iphone or android for the tactile touch of the keys. Now they have nothing.
It looks great, but you can’t win market share by copying competition when you’re trailing, you’ll never catch up.
I think they need a much larger differentiation point in the product and marketing.
Hi Marcus, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! You may very well be right, the Z10 may be too little too late, even though this phone has a lot of appealing features. Time will tell whether this is enough to win over BlackBerry fans.
This will surely be another competitor of the Samsung’s and Apple’s latest. Blackberry fanatics will definitely be thrilled to get hold of this.
Hi Jeremy, Yes it will be interesting to see whether BlackBerry fans who have left will return for the Z10. I know at least two die-hard BlackBerry fans who switched to the iPhone last year and have no intention of returning. But let’s keep an open mind and see what the future holds!
The Z10 along with the htc one are the best looking phones out right now. Still trying to decide between the two but I’m leaning towards the htc one. Thanks for the review!
Hi BRWD, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Stay tuned to The Wonder of Tech for an upcoming review of the HTC One. 🙂
Business people are going to love it more than iPhone again, because of new overhaul of OS, Android and iPhone user interfaces have lost uniqueness.
Hi Joshua, Yes, you do get the feeling that the Z10 was made for business. The phone is very efficient so you can get things done while spending minimal time on the phone.
Blackberry kept me waiting for a while. With all companies launching smart phones, I waited for Blackberry to launch their smartphone; and I must say they did a wonderful job. I mean the convenience of so many native apps is simply tempting.
Hi Jannet, Yes, BlackBerry fans such as you have been very patient. I’m so glad you are pleased that your patience has paid off!
Hey Carolyn,
So the Black Berry survived the battle for smartphones eh? Well, I’m not usually a fan neither a user of Black Berry but I was always been fascinated with their QWERTY style phone before the touch screen even popped out in the market. Glad to know that they’ve managed their way to survive. They came out with their comfort zone (which is the QWERTY style phone) and build its ever touch screen phone to make the world believe that they are not yet ready to give up with the latest in trends and technology. I like how you dissected the pro’s and con’s of the Black Berry Z10. I am very curios of it’s swipe combination to open or use the screen.
Hey Ferrell, Yes, the swipe motions aren’t necessarily intuitive, but I found them easy to learn. While the phone may not overtake Android and the iPhone immediately or ever, BlackBerry may be content to be a strong third place contender. Let’s see how this pans out in the long run. Competition is good so I’m rooting for them!
nice review. i might make this my future phone thanks to you.
Hi Daniel, I’m glad you enjoyed the review. If you have a friend who has one of these phones, you should try it out to see if you enjoy using the phone with the gestures and without a home button. Enjoy!
It sure does great but i think is launched a bit late. Already Iphone and Samsung are the titans and it will be really hard to beat them. But the phone looks great and i see it’s quite performant.
Hi Radu, Yes, it’s interesting to see what it takes for a phone to succeed. The Palm Pre wasn’t late, it was a great phone launched in 2009 with a strong operating system. But it couldn’t compete against the iPhone so it died after Palm was taken over by HP.
If BlackBerry is content with third place for a while, then perhaps it will enjoy a slow growth. But if all BlackBerry is doing is competing against Windows for a distant third, then it may not want to continue competing. Time will tell…
Its a great Phone, i loved it features
Nice review, may this phone from blackberry proves to be as efficient as it is being talked about.
Hi Piyush, Yes, this phone is definitely efficient. People who want information quickly will enjoy using BlackBerry Hub.
Hi Carolyn,
BlackBerry keeps a very special place in the lives of people who really like it. I personally love the BlackBerry OS its hardware and features. Though it is very different than Android, iOS but it is very unique and performance oriented. The Z10 is one of the most anticipated launch of recent time. Thanks for the review.
Hi Suhas, Yes, it’s great to hear from a BlackBerry fan who is excited about the return of BlackBerry. The question becomes whether people who weren’t BlackBerry fans will be enticed to become BlackBerry fans.
This phone will have appeal to those who want to use their phone efficiently. But BlackBerry has an uphill battle against the iPhone and Android competition.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts, Suhas!
Hey Carolyn
What a great post you have written. You cover all the detailed information of ” BLACKBERRY Z10 “. Its real amazing handset. I liked its Hub feature.
Hi Chetan, Yes, I am a big fan of the Hub as well. It’s very handy to have all that information at your fingertips without having to open each app to check on email, Twitter, Facebook, etc.
It’s good to see that finally BlackBerry has started catching up. BlackBerry Z10 is a true high end smart phone with a new OS and beautiful design.
Hi Plaban, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Well said, BlackBerry paid attention to details both with this phone and its operating system. I hope that they are very successful with their relaunch.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts, Plaban.