[BurningPlatform]

A week or two ago I started seeing much less reviews being shown in the BB World client for every app, than the number of existing reviews indicated for that app on top. For example, the title says that there are 8 reviews but only 2 are shown. I thought it was a bug so I reported it to BlackBerry. Today I got an answer. Guess what....

It turns out that it is a result of BlackBerry's recent "great idea" that reviews are now shown only to those whose phones have the same device ID as that of the reviewer. In other words, if you have e.g. the Z30 then from now on you'll be seeing reviews made by Z30 users only. Forget about being able to read reviews made by e.g. Z10 or Z3 owners.

What an idiotic idea. How does an app differ between e.g. Z30 and Leap, or between Q10 and Q5. It's the very same application running on the same OS on almost identical devices. Why further limit users' access to reviews while there are usually so few of them anyway. If an app has multiple reviews but none of them from e.g. a Z10 user then Z10 users will be seeing NONE.

It is understandable that reviews from other OSes/platforms were not shown for a different OS (e.g. reviews from Playbook were not shown for BB10 phones) but to further limit the visibility of reviews to a specific PHONE MODEL is just insane. No other app store does such a silly thing.

When a new phone model comes out, it means that people who buy it won't actually see ANY reviews of ANY apps until they start posting reviews on that phone model themselves.

[Smiley88]

I'm seeing this on my Passport too. I do not see all the reviews just partial. why would anyone do this?

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

I do see their point...

Some apps might not work well on the older hardware.
Some apps might not work well on the 1x1 resolution of some devices, even if it has been designed too.

This is a good idea in the "long term", just doesn't fit with their current selection on devices.... or with the small users base that BB10 has.

[howarmat]

I like the idea but it should be a choice on how you sort it. Its a big brother move to remove all the other removes with no option to see them.

[AnimalPak200]

I do see their point...

Some apps might not work well on the older hardware.
Some apps might not work well on the 1x1 resolution of some devices, even if it has been designed too.

This is a good idea in the "long term", just doesn't fit with their current selection on devices.... or with the small users base that BB10 has.

They should just add an indicator 'running on a Z30', 'from a Passport'. Just like how they do with the version. "Version <app ver> on a <device> running OS <OS ver>".

Posted via CB10

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

At least they are doing something to improve the sorting of apps in BB World. That all by itself is kinda shocking.

[BurningPlatform]

I do see their point...
Some apps might not work well on the older hardware.
Some apps might not work well on the 1x1 resolution of some devices, even if it has been designed too.

So why not simply add an OPTION (a simple dropdown) to either filter reviews for user's phone model or show all of them, according to one's preference. Or why not simply show (in some clearly legible form) what phone model a review comes from.

Even if it rarely happens that an app does not work correctly on a new device, developers quickly fix it (as it is in their own best interest to do so). Or they just don't enable it for that device until they have it working correctly on it (one can easily select in the Vendor portal which models are supported - it can be changed anytime).

Restricting visibility of reviews to a specific phone model only is the WORST solution because, as I wrote, in case of each new device all the existing tens of thousands of apps need to start collecting all the reviews FROM SCRATCH. A new phone model comes out, someone buys it and sees NO REVIEWS whatsoever, in ANY app. Do you really consider it a reasonable solution?

It's not good for users (who can't read other people's opinions about an app) and it's even worse for developers who even without such "inventions" have to struggle to make their apps discoverable in this Android-cr*p-filled store.

Lastly, if we assume that there are differences between phone models which make reviews irrelevant, same way we could say that there are changes between app versions (new app releases) which make reviews posted for an older version irrelevant. An older version could have been ugly and slow while the new one is beautiful and fast. So now what? Only show reviews of the most recent version? This is crazy. The only reasonable solution is to simply show phone model and app version for each review - people have brains and they can judge it themselves.

[BurningPlatform]

At least they are doing something to improve the sorting of apps in BB World. That all by itself is kinda shocking.

"Someting" does not have to mean the right thing. Despite pre-installing the Amazon store they still allow just infitite amounts of total junk to the store (all these RSS based feeds pretending to be "apps", all that Android cr*p, etc.) which makes one wonder what was the Amazon store integrated for - just take a look at the "New arrivals" list and measure how long it will take you to find the first usable native app in that sea of cr*p, at any randomly selected time. I get an email that my new native app was approved, and 1 minute later it is the 250th on the "New arrivals" list, under 249 such pseudo-apps, where no one has the patience to find it. THAT's what everyone has been waiting for to be taken care of, and not removing reviews so that when each new phone model comes out users of such a new device are shown with an app store WITHOUT ANY REVIEWS.

[HaberNik]

"Someting" does not have to mean the right thing. Despite pre-installing the Amazon store they still allow just infitite amounts of total junk to the store (all these RSS based feeds pretending to be "apps", all that Android cr*p, etc.) which makes one wonder what was the Amazon store integrated for - just take a look at the "New arrivals" list and measure how long it will take you to find the first usable native app in that sea of cr*p, at any randomly selected time. I get an email that my new native app was approved, and 1 minute later it is the 250th on the "New arrivals" list, under 249 such pseudo-apps, where no one has the patience to find it. THAT's what everyone has been waiting for to be taken care of, and not removing reviews so that when each new phone model comes out users of such a new device are shown with an app store WITHOUT ANY REVIEWS.

Well said. I can't stand the level of crap in BlackBerry World. They really should clean it up before they look at phone based reviews. The ability to show all reviews and sort by device at the choice of the reader is an excellent idea and the best way to do it.

Posted via CB10

[anon(5594800)]

I agree with BurningPlatform. I'd add, but lately things that makes the BlackBerry is often the completely idiotic and incompetence. I think BlackBerry specially mades it so that the users of them are gone. It's a shame.

[mad_mdx]

Who cares? Almost all native app d�velopp�es are amateur hour making terrible apps and attempting to make a few bucks on your back. Just don't buy apps.

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

Numbers is what they were after... so they let all kinds of JUNK in. If you didn't get featured in CrackBerry most likely no one could find you. And sadly I think CrackBerry reaches only a small percentage of BB10 users.

[paulwallace1234]

Personally they should use the old System but it should show which device and OS Version like Nokia Store on Symbian did.

@OP, your username rings a bell, did you develop for Symbian^3 in the past?

[paulwallace1234]

Who cares? Almost all native app d�velopp�es are amateur hour making terrible apps and attempting to make a few bucks on your back. Just don't buy apps.

And people wonder where there are no native Apps, if you think most are so bad get coding and show us how it's done..

[KemKev]

Does it really matter? I have seen reviews that are absolutely meaningless to me in helping me decide whether to buy the app or not. The same app can receive a 5-star rating followed immediately by 1-star rating. Comments like "Great app", "This app sucks" are hardly useful. So while I respect the OP's feelings, seem this is much ado about nothing.

[anon(5594800)]

Lol )

[paulwallace1234]

Does it really matter? I have seen reviews that are absolutely meaningless to me in helping me decide whether to buy the app or not. The same app can receive a 5-star rating followed immediately by 1-star rating. Comments like "Great app", "This app sucks" are hardly useful. So while I respect the OP's feelings, seem this is much ado about nothing.

It does matter,
Granted some reviews are a complete waste of sql space, but it's not a good way to do things, Imagine if you released an update which had received great reviews on other devices and would work identical on yours but no-one with your device has reviewed, you would only see old review which could be damaging.

Then there the fact the client says there are reviews then displays none in the list (you know what BlackBerry users are like they get suspicious over anything)

[BurningPlatform]

Who cares? Almost all native app d�velopp�es are amateur hour making terrible apps and attempting to make a few bucks on your back. Just don't buy apps.

Really funny. Or maybe not, it's actually pathetic.

Are you stating that native BB10 developers are a different species compared to Android developers (who are all knowledgeable, skilled and produce high quality apps only, and surely not for money but purely for users' pleasure), while all BB10 developers are lousy, uneducated and greedy?

Be sure that the proportions between good and bad developers are identical on all platforms, and so are the proportions between good and bad apps. If you have never seen any good native apps, then perhaps it is so because you are too stingy to pay for apps, and this way you haven't had a chance to try any of them? Yes, it is a fact that on BB10 more apps (relatively) are paid ones, but it is so mainly because there is no good advertising platform to use (unlike on Android) which doesn't allow BB10 developers make any revenue from 'lite' (i.e. free with ads) software. But it definitely isn't something to blame BB10 developers for.

Anyway, why don't you learn how to code, make some good native apps, release them all for free and impress us all?

Does it really matter? I have seen reviews that are absolutely meaningless to me in helping me decide whether to buy the app or not. The same app can receive a 5-star rating followed immediately by 1-star rating. Comments like "Great app", "This app sucks" are hardly useful. So while I respect the OP's feelings, seem this is much ado about nothing.

Same thing can be said about e.g. lots of people's posts on this (or any other) forum. Does it mean that they should be closed? People post silly things everywhere, but at the same time other people post many useful and informative things. Why filter out the good stuff because of the bad stuff?

BTW. Every developer can take care to only have meaningful and correct reviews. There is a function in the vendor portal to request removal of incorrect or silly reviews, one click (and a couple of days of waiting) is enough for BlackBerry to remove it. That some developers don't mind having silly and misleading reviews is their own choice, and for the user it is also an indication of how much that developer cares about his apps.

Anyway, when a brand new BB10 phone model comes out, you buy it and go to the store to find some new apps for it, I am sure you won't like it that there are ABSOLUTELY NO REVIEWS of any apps there because all of the existing ones were submitted from older models and are filtered out. Maybe for you as a long-time user it won't be a huge problem as you already know many apps, but imagine a person for who such a new model will be his/her first BB10 phone ever.

Personally they should use the old System but it should show which device and OS Version like Nokia Store on Symbian did.

Exactly! In the Nokia Store it was simply clearly shown on top of the review which phone model it came from, e.g. the N8 or the 808 PureView, and absolutely no one ever had any problems with that, even though differences between some Symbian phones were actually bigger than between BB10 phones.

@OP, your username rings a bell, did you develop for Symbian^3 in the past?

Yes, under the same name.

[mad_mdx]

And people wonder where there are no native Apps, if you think most are so bad get coding and show us how it's done..

If you want an example go look at ios appstore to see how it's done, and most of them for free lol.

****ty developers charging $$$ for something they made over a weekend that does next to nothing. That's not hard to beat.

[mad_mdx]

Really funny. Or maybe not, it's actually pathetic.

Are you stating that native BB10 developers are a different species compared to Android developers (who are all knowledgeable, skilled and produce high quality apps only, and surely not for money but purely for users' pleasure), while all BB10 developers are lousy, uneducated and greedy?

Be sure that the proportions between good and bad developers are identical on all platforms, and so are the proportions between good and bad apps. If you have never seen any good native apps, then perhaps it is so because you are too stingy to pay for apps, and this way you haven't had a chance to try any of them? Yes, it is a fact that on BB10 more apps (relatively) are paid ones, but it is so mainly because there is no good advertising platform to use (unlike on Android) which doesn't allow BB10 developers make any revenue from 'lite' (i.e. free with ads) software. But it definitely isn't something to blame BB10 developers for.

Anyway, why don't you learn how to code, make some good native apps, release them all for free and impress us all?



Same thing can be said about e.g. lots of people's posts on this (or any other) forum. Does it mean that they should be closed? People post silly things everywhere, but at the same time other people post many useful and informative things. Why filter out the good stuff because of the bad stuff?

BTW. Every developer can take care to only have meaningful and correct reviews. There is a function in the vendor portal to request removal of incorrect or silly reviews, one click (and a couple of days of waiting) is enough for BlackBerry to remove it. That some developers don't mind having silly and misleading reviews is their own choice, and for the user it is also an indication of how much that developer cares about his apps.

Anyway, when a brand new BB10 phone model comes out, you buy it and go to the store to find some new apps for it, I am sure you won't like it that there are ABSOLUTELY NO REVIEWS of any apps there because all of the existing ones were submitted from older models and are filtered out. Maybe for you as a long-time user it won't be a huge problem as you already know many apps, but imagine a person for who such a new model will be his/her first BB10 phone ever.


Exactly! In the Nokia Store it was simply clearly shown on top of the review which phone model it came from, e.g. the N8 or the 808 PureView, and absolutely no one ever had any problems with that, even though differences between some Symbian phones were actually bigger than between BB10 phones.


Yes, under the same name.

Android developers are also terrible, though since the lollipop update a lot of apps are starting to behave better. I don't know why but that's how it is.

I was mostly referring to ios, which all apps follow some uniformity.
At least the made for BlackBerry apps are half decent but still, why would anyone pay for an app that does almost nothing?
I remember when bebuzz could barely change the colors of notifications and it was selling for like $5. What a joke.

It seems ironic, most BlackBerry native apps are paid, very little people want to spend money on apps, you end up with very little reviews, people who want to buy the app check reviews, find none and assume it's just a bad app and won't give their $1 for it.

Developers who expect to make actual money on BlackBerry need to release a truly great app and manage to market it to all BlackBerry users. Unfortunately the 'app studios' are usually a kid learning to code like nemory.

So that's why you're complaining, because you don't see enough reviews. I don't care what a z30 user has to say about WorkWide because I know it won't be the same for me.

For the record I've bought a few apps that I found interesting enough and didn't usually regret, though I am not stingy, I'll say that a foo'l and his money are quickly parted.

[paulwallace1234]

If you want an example go look at ios appstore to see how it's done, and most of them for free lol.

****ty developers charging $$$ for something they made over a weekend that does next to nothing. That's not hard to beat.

You really have no clue do you

[mad_mdx]

You really have no clue do you

I have the same 'clue' as you
Please point me to the direction of GREAT BlackBerry apps that are worth spending money on?
There must be a handful at most.

[AnimalPak200]

I have the same 'clue' as you
Please point me to the direction of GREAT BlackBerry apps that are worth spending money on?
There must be a handful at most.

You do know he makes some right? Lol.

Posted via CB10

[paulwallace1234]

I have the same 'clue' as you
Please point me to the direction of GREAT BlackBerry apps that are worth spending money on?
There must be a handful at most.

Actually I do have more of a clue been a dev myself, you really think Apps are coded over a weekend?


http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/53620887

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/59348437

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/30305887

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/20356803

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/59933954

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/59958198

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/59952700

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/20079866

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/59950807

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/59945495

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/59952550

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/59962662

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webst...ntent/20353035


I'll go on if you want

[paulwallace1234]

Well, I posted that many links for Quality paid Native Apps the Forums spam filter sent it for moderation, how ironic