Score: 7/10 (Average)
Pros Elegant design with textured back, vibrant 720p HD screen with great outdoor visibility, clear call quality, fast LTE data speeds. | Cons Fast-draining battery, barebones camera features, terrible voice assistant, frame rate when playing games, small content offering in BlackBerry World |
In the smartphone world, the three main competitors for mobile operating systems are Apple’s iOS, Google’s Android, and Microsoft’s Windows Phone. The three big dogs now have a new challenger in town, and his name is BlackBerry. BlackBerry (previously known as RIM) have made an attempt to come back fighting into the market they were once they ruler of: Smartphones. BlackBerry is hoping to takeover this market with their brand new mobile operating system, BlackBerry 10. BB10 made it’s first debut in the US with the BlackBerry Z10, a full-touchscreen smartphone, and the company’s latest flagship device. Does the Z10 have enough juice in it to be a true enemy to Apple, Google, and Microsoft’s offerings, or has this berry already been squeezed out of potential? Find out in our full review!
Design/Build Quality
The BlackBerry Z10 measures in at 5.12 x 2.58 x 0.35 in and weighs in at 4.83 oz, making it relatively thin and lightweight. The Z10 feels surprisingly good in the hand, and even though the back is made out of plastic, it offers a nice textured grip and feels surprisingly premium. If you just quickly glanced at the BlackBerry Z10, you might confuse it for an iPhone 5 with a BlackBerry logo on the bottom of it. That would be because the Z10 looks quite similar to Apple’s latest and greatest iPhone. Unlike the iPhone 5 though, the Z10 is packing in a slightly larger, 4.2-inch display. While I prefer smartphones with larger screen sizes, the 4.2-inch form factor worked surprisingly well on the Z10.
One of the biggest surprises on the Z10 for me, was the fact that there are no navigational buttons anywhere to be found on the device. Unlike the iPhone’s physical home button, and Android handsets with a home, back, and menu button,
the Z10 ditches the common use of navigation buttons for on-screen gestures instead. For example, to exit an app you are using on the Z10, you swipe up from the bottom of the screen, rather than hitting a home button. The Z10 also
includes the ability to unlock it by just swiping up from the bottom of the screen, even when the screen is powered off. While it took me a couple days to get used to the absence of any navigational buttons, I actually found that I preferred the gestures instead, after having used to device for a prolonged period of time.
the Z10 ditches the common use of navigation buttons for on-screen gestures instead. For example, to exit an app you are using on the Z10, you swipe up from the bottom of the screen, rather than hitting a home button. The Z10 also
includes the ability to unlock it by just swiping up from the bottom of the screen, even when the screen is powered off. While it took me a couple days to get used to the absence of any navigational buttons, I actually found that I preferred the gestures instead, after having used to device for a prolonged period of time.
Hardware
Although large displays are all the rage nowadays with smartphones, the BlackBerry Z10 features a smaller 4.2-inch screen, with a pixel resolution of 1280 x 720. Although you aren’t getting full 1080p HD on the Z10’s screen, the 720p HD
resolution looks fantastic on the smaller screen size. Colors are extremely vibrant, text is very detailed and crisp, and the Z10’s screen is also quite easy for outdoor use.
resolution looks fantastic on the smaller screen size. Colors are extremely vibrant, text is very detailed and crisp, and the Z10’s screen is also quite easy for outdoor use.
In terms of processing speeds, the Z10 is packing in a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, along with 2GB of RAM. In my time with the Z10, I actually had some mixed results when it came to it’s processing power. While
navigating the Web, streaming videos, listening to music, and multi-tasking is a very smooth experience, I found that I experienced some frame rate issues even when playing lighter games like Jetpack Joyride.
navigating the Web, streaming videos, listening to music, and multi-tasking is a very smooth experience, I found that I experienced some frame rate issues even when playing lighter games like Jetpack Joyride.
For all of your picture taking needs, the Z10 features an 8MP shooter on the back, along with a 2MP camera on the front. While both of the Z10’s cameras take great looking pictures, the rear-facing shooter takes quite a long time to focus on
the subject you are trying to take a shot of, and proved to be quite annoying when trying to snap a picture in a hurry. Thankfully, the Z10’s camera packs in a nifty little feature called Time Shift. Time Shift captures several still images in quick succession, and allows you to choose the best looking image. For example, if you are taking a group photo and somebody blinks during the picture, you can edit the perpetrator’s face to the second where they were not blinking.
Pretty cool huh? Unfortunately, that’s about the only real piece of software packed into the Z10’s camera, making it a lot less feature rich than cameras on phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S4 or LG Optimus G Pro.
the subject you are trying to take a shot of, and proved to be quite annoying when trying to snap a picture in a hurry. Thankfully, the Z10’s camera packs in a nifty little feature called Time Shift. Time Shift captures several still images in quick succession, and allows you to choose the best looking image. For example, if you are taking a group photo and somebody blinks during the picture, you can edit the perpetrator’s face to the second where they were not blinking.
Pretty cool huh? Unfortunately, that’s about the only real piece of software packed into the Z10’s camera, making it a lot less feature rich than cameras on phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S4 or LG Optimus G Pro.
The model of the Z10 that we reviewed is running on Verizon Wireless, which means that you have access to Verizon’s fantastic 4G LTE data support. We’ve raved about how crazy fast Verizon’s LTE is before, and the story remains the same
here on the Z10. The Z10 also provides great call quality, with great sounding audio on both ends of the device when making a call.
here on the Z10. The Z10 also provides great call quality, with great sounding audio on both ends of the device when making a call.
One area where the BlackBerry Z10 isn’t that strong in is it’s battery life. The 1,800 mAh battery on the Z10 just doesn’t provide enough juice, especially when compared to the battery offerings in the latest flagship smartphones. Even with
low to moderate use of texting, game playing, making calls, and streaming music/video, I was barely able to get through the end of the day with the Z10. On the bright side, the battery is removable, so you have the option to pop in a
secondary battery when you run out of juice on your first one. The Z10 also packs in 16GB of internal storage, with the ability to expand it up to 64GB via micoSD card.
low to moderate use of texting, game playing, making calls, and streaming music/video, I was barely able to get through the end of the day with the Z10. On the bright side, the battery is removable, so you have the option to pop in a
secondary battery when you run out of juice on your first one. The Z10 also packs in 16GB of internal storage, with the ability to expand it up to 64GB via micoSD card.
Software
The BlackBerry Z10 is the first device to run on BlackBerry 10. BB10 is the newest mobile operating system on the market, and while it will require a bit of a learning curve to get used to, it is an extremely enjoyable experience once you
learn your way around.
Anyone who has used iOS before may feel at home when first glancing at a device running on BlackBerry 10. Your home screens on BB10 consist of a row of icons for all of your applications, similar to iOS. Each home screen on BB10 can hold
up to 16 applications, with shortcuts to your dialer, search, and camera below you list of apps. Swiping your home screens all the way to the right will reveal your BlackBerry Hub. You BlackBerry Hub is your central location for anything and everything that is going on in your life. Any texts or emails you receive, phone calls you miss, or notifications in your social networks are all centralized in your Hub. Once you are at the Hub, you can swipe over to the right once again to narrow down your notifications to display just your texts, emails, Facebook updates, etc.
learn your way around.
Anyone who has used iOS before may feel at home when first glancing at a device running on BlackBerry 10. Your home screens on BB10 consist of a row of icons for all of your applications, similar to iOS. Each home screen on BB10 can hold
up to 16 applications, with shortcuts to your dialer, search, and camera below you list of apps. Swiping your home screens all the way to the right will reveal your BlackBerry Hub. You BlackBerry Hub is your central location for anything and everything that is going on in your life. Any texts or emails you receive, phone calls you miss, or notifications in your social networks are all centralized in your Hub. Once you are at the Hub, you can swipe over to the right once again to narrow down your notifications to display just your texts, emails, Facebook updates, etc.
Swiping down from the top of your screen will give you access to a handful of quick settings. From here, you can easily turn your alarm on or off, connect to your Wi-Fi or Bluetooth device, lock or unlock your screen rotation, and adjust the
volume for your notifications. You can also choose to tap on the Settings icon to be transported to your full system settings. While it would have been nice to be able to customize what settings you have access to from this menu, it’s still
a welcome touch to the operating system.
volume for your notifications. You can also choose to tap on the Settings icon to be transported to your full system settings. While it would have been nice to be able to customize what settings you have access to from this menu, it’s still
a welcome touch to the operating system.
One of my personal highpoints of BlackBerry 10, is how it handles multitasking. When you have multiple applications open at once, a separate home screen will open up in front of your BlackBerry Hub. From here, all of your open apps are listed as 4 x 4 icons with an image of the open app. To close an app that is open from the screen, all you have to do is tap on the little “X” in the bottom right-hand corner of the icon. This makes multi-tasking on BB10 extremely fast, fluid,
easy, and fun.
easy, and fun.
If BlackBerry is known for anything, it’s their crazy accurate QWERTY keyboard. With the BlackBerry Z10 being an all-touchscreen device with no physical keyboard, BlackBerry created a brand new virtual QWERTY keyboard that works
surprisingly well. Letters on the keyboard are spaced out nicely, and provided a great feedback sound when touched. The most impressive thing about the virtual QWERTY, is the fact that it learns your typing style as you use the device. As
you use the keyboard on Z10, word suggestions will appear over certain letters on the keyboard. By simply swiping over the suggested word, it will be added to the body of your message that you are typing. Although it took me a few days to
really get used to the new typing style, BlackBerry really did a fantastic job with the keyboard on the Z10, and made something as tedious as typing, a fun activity.
Another highlight of BB10 is it’s Web Browser. All BlackBerry 10-powered devices use the BlackBerry Browser as their main way to browse the Web, and it’s actually pretty incredible. Web browsing on BB10 is ridiculously smooth and fluid, provides quick access to share Web pages with friends, view Web pages in a Reader mode, and even supports Adobe Flash! If you are looking for a phone with a powerhouse of a Web browser, any device running on BB10 has you covered.
BB10 devices also come equipped with a voice assistant of their own, called Voice Control. Although you can use Voice Control to send texts to people, make calls, and search the Web with your voice, it is extremely clunky and cumbersome. The voice recognition is pretty inaccurate, and the female voice that responds back to you doesn’t come anywhere close to the quality of Google Now’s female voice. While it was nice to see BlackBerry make an attempt at creating their own
voice assistant, it is best that you don’t even both with the feature if you decide to get a BB10 device.
surprisingly well. Letters on the keyboard are spaced out nicely, and provided a great feedback sound when touched. The most impressive thing about the virtual QWERTY, is the fact that it learns your typing style as you use the device. As
you use the keyboard on Z10, word suggestions will appear over certain letters on the keyboard. By simply swiping over the suggested word, it will be added to the body of your message that you are typing. Although it took me a few days to
really get used to the new typing style, BlackBerry really did a fantastic job with the keyboard on the Z10, and made something as tedious as typing, a fun activity.
Another highlight of BB10 is it’s Web Browser. All BlackBerry 10-powered devices use the BlackBerry Browser as their main way to browse the Web, and it’s actually pretty incredible. Web browsing on BB10 is ridiculously smooth and fluid, provides quick access to share Web pages with friends, view Web pages in a Reader mode, and even supports Adobe Flash! If you are looking for a phone with a powerhouse of a Web browser, any device running on BB10 has you covered.
BB10 devices also come equipped with a voice assistant of their own, called Voice Control. Although you can use Voice Control to send texts to people, make calls, and search the Web with your voice, it is extremely clunky and cumbersome. The voice recognition is pretty inaccurate, and the female voice that responds back to you doesn’t come anywhere close to the quality of Google Now’s female voice. While it was nice to see BlackBerry make an attempt at creating their own
voice assistant, it is best that you don’t even both with the feature if you decide to get a BB10 device.
Another downside of BB10 is it’s app store. Previously known as the BlackBerry App World, BlackBerry World is your destination on BlackBerry 10 for all of your app, music, and video needs. While it’s nice to see that BlackBerry finally
expanded their app store to offer other content aside from just applications, they still have a lot of work to do before they are anywhere near competing with content stores like Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store.
expanded their app store to offer other content aside from just applications, they still have a lot of work to do before they are anywhere near competing with content stores like Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store.
Final Verdict
Even though it may not be perfect, the Z10 is not a bad attempt for BlackBerry’s comeback into the smartphone market. While the phone most likely won’t draw Apple or Android fans away from their iPhones and Galaxy S4s, the Z10 is still a
compelling offering if you are looking for your next smartphone. Even though the Z10 is hampered by a fast-draining battery, barebones camera, terrible voice assistant, and has some frame rate issues when playing games, it still offers a
sexy design, great looking screen, expandable storage, fluid Web browser, and an intuitive operating system. BlackBerry 10 will require some learning before you truly master all of it’s features, but if you’re savvy with technology, you
shouldn’t have that hard of a time to figure it out. The BlackBerry Z10 is a really good device. While it would have been nice to see BlackBerry spend a little more time to make the Z10 a true masterpiece, BlackBerry fans should look
no further than the Z10 if they’re tired of the taste of mealy apples, and are longing for the fresh taste of a delicious blackberry.
DISCLAIMER: Joseph Maring used the BlackBerry Z10 for 9 days before beginning to write his review of the device. Verizon Wireless sent us the Z10 to review, but in no way affected our final score of the handset.
Author: Joseph Maring
compelling offering if you are looking for your next smartphone. Even though the Z10 is hampered by a fast-draining battery, barebones camera, terrible voice assistant, and has some frame rate issues when playing games, it still offers a
sexy design, great looking screen, expandable storage, fluid Web browser, and an intuitive operating system. BlackBerry 10 will require some learning before you truly master all of it’s features, but if you’re savvy with technology, you
shouldn’t have that hard of a time to figure it out. The BlackBerry Z10 is a really good device. While it would have been nice to see BlackBerry spend a little more time to make the Z10 a true masterpiece, BlackBerry fans should look
no further than the Z10 if they’re tired of the taste of mealy apples, and are longing for the fresh taste of a delicious blackberry.
DISCLAIMER: Joseph Maring used the BlackBerry Z10 for 9 days before beginning to write his review of the device. Verizon Wireless sent us the Z10 to review, but in no way affected our final score of the handset.
Author: Joseph Maring
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