[Searchy]

Blackberry OS 10.3 is a good update and also a horrible one at the same time. The functions that are brought in 10.3 are amazing. I love the BlackBerry voice assistant, which I am using to dictate this right now. I also like all the new updated core apps that provide increased functionality. The pictures app is much improved, as is the video app. The story maker functionality is amazing and will be one I use often to share stories on the go. The video app now has further customization and sorting options which is always good. I love the new quick actions in the BlackBerry hub. They speed up productivity greatly. The android run time has also been improved and its compatibility greatly increased. I extremely appreciate the fact that BlackBerry Link can now restore android apps as part of a back up in 10.3. This means Android apps installed using APKs remain on your device after a backup and restore. There is no need to reinstall android apps anymore, which saves great amount of time. Those are just a few of the highlighted features that are amazing to use.

Now onto the horrible parts of the update. First off, 10.3 update changed the entire layout on my phone. All the old icons are now replaced by dots and boxes that have no meaning and are barely recognizable. Also, there are now five rows of apps on each home screen. This might be a great addition to some, but it makes recognizing and selecting each app icon so much harder. I have big fingers which means precisely hitting an app icon has become very difficult now that each app icon is smaller. Also, BlackBerry got rid of UI elements such as dividers between the top bar and the bottom bar. This removal of vital features completely destroys the flow of the UI. There is now nothing to prevent the eye from looking at the top bar and then merging the top bar with the apps and merging those two with the bottom phone search and camera icons. It has now become very visually confusing to look at the app screen. In addition without the black boxes to divide the apps, all the apps merge together, causing a very cluttered and claustrophobic inducing layout. This removal of vital visual cues permeates through the entire system update. The lines and grids in the menu structure and app settings have now been removed, causing further confusion.

One of the worst aspects of the update is the revamped overflow and settings menu. Before, one could partially slide out the settings or overflow menu and see only the icons. Now pressing the settings menu button or the overflow menu button displays the entire menu and covers three fourths of the screen. This makes productivity decreased greatly as it takes up valuable screen estate. One has to make a menu selection in order to dismiss the menu. This means that to delete a message one would have to press three buttons when before it was only two. This extra step is horribly inconvenient when one has to delete hundreds of emails per day. The problem described in the previous paragraph, UI elements not been clearly defined and being too small, extends to this menus aspect as well. The menus are very difficult use to select the correct options because the icons are so small and there is no clear delineation between selections. Overall, the graphical updates in the new 10.3 OS are absolutely horrible and make the phone painful to use.

Another issue I have discovered is the overall performance hits from the new OS. I am on the BlackBerry Z 10 and running the leaked version of 10.3 from Rogers. In BlackBerry's efforts to use speed up loading times between screens and screen transition times, it has made lag very prominent on my device. Switching between windows often times results in the window switching stuttering. Most prominently I have discovered is that the BlackBerry keyboard lags and has horrible UI that make it almost impossible to use. BlackBerry got rid of the divots in the keyboard and the clearly defined keys which makes it near impossible to hit the correct letters that I want to type. Also flicking words up onto the screen often results in the the wrong words being flicked. I would attempt to flick one word, and then the keyboard will decide to randomly flick another word. This has made it very frustrating to type what I want to write.

I wish BlackBerry would bring back the UI and functionality of OS 10.2 but keep the new improvements and features of 10.3. One can always hope for 10.4 being the perfect blackberry OS!
Carbon Fiber Z10 w/Leather Holster

[jaydee5799]

I don't get the horrible and "hurts" part of your story. You didn't say why

[Searchy]

I don't get the horrible and "hurts" part of your story. You didn't say why

Sorry, I did not finish dictating the entire post. I had to perform certain vital functions which lead me to save my post so it didn't get cleared. Then I went back to edit and have now posted a completed post. The new blackberry OS 10.3 hurts to use because the icons and words are very small and also there are no clear visual cues in order to tell my brain how to process information and how to use the phone. In addition, the "system improvements" are not actually improvements and make the phone more sluggish.

Carbon Fiber Z10 w/Leather Holster

[jm7000]

I installed 10.3 on my z30 and I feel the icon size is just fine. Perhaps it's because the z10 is smaller that everything feels too crowded. However, you need to remember that 10.3 isn't designed to be used on either of these devices. The layouts may change when 10.3.1 is officially released.

I didn't notice the overflow menu change until you brought it up, but I agree. I liked being able to only view the icons instead of bringing out the entire menu.

Posted via CB10

[altaf.s]

10.3 OS is build for Passport only, for first generation of bb10 devices, we are getting 10.3.1 which is much refined in many ways than 10.3. Please wait for official 10.3.1 release for more pros than cons.

[S180]

You are basing your review on an OS that we know won't be released for the device you are testing with?

[si001]

You are basing your review on an OS that we know won't be released for the device you are testing with?

It will be released for the Z10, in a month or so.

Sent from my Passport using Tapatalk

[S180]

But not 10.3, it will be 10.3.1

[Thud Hardsmack]

Not sure about the visual cues you mention Searchy, but as far as the overflow flyout goes I know what you mean. That can go back to being a single icon column that peeps out at long press again, or full menu if lifting a finger (and you can dismiss it by tapping outside the menu). I don't have the performance hits you do though, but then again I'm running a Z10 -4 with 10.3.1.632. Not the Passport's 10.3.0.

Posted via CB10

[si001]

But not 10.3, it will be 10.3.1

Right!

Sent from my Passport using Tapatalk

[alaviss]

This OS is designed for the Passport so the full overflow menu isn't a problem for them. If you want to talk about pros and cons of 10.3, then consider get yourself an BlackBerry Passport first before reviewing. Please don't complain about a leaked os that isn't designed for older BlackBerry device

Z10 - 10.3 - STL 100-1

[ev44]

TL ; DR

Posted via CB10

[davinci4real]

Os 10.3 is not for your Z10.
Wait for 10.3.1

From Zarafet my Z30.

[Searchy]

Okay guys, thanks. It didn't occur to me that the OS 10.3 leak was only for the passport and not for other devices like my Z 10. Because Rogers had issued the update and the leak has been released, I thought it was available for all devices. Also, there was a recent CrackBerry post that linked to a forum post and was titled 10.3 OS out for all devices. That was what I based my assumptions upon, I now know that I should not have expected 10.3 to work on my Z10. However, I have to conclude that temp .3, despite all its flaws, has provided me with great functionality. I am a bit less productive do to the lag and unfamiliar visual layout, but I M utilizing blackberry assistant and the new dictation capabilities to their full advantage. Before, I would never have been able to write such a full and lengthy blog post such as this. My ADHD would have kicked in long before then and I would not have been able to finish. But now, thanks to dictation technology, I can transcribe all my thoughts into words. I have tried a variety of voice to text software over the years, such as Dragon Naturally Speaking but they have all failed. If I had this technology back then, I would have got much better grades in high school and be in a better situation then I am now. Seeing all the technological improvements makes me very jealous of today's young people and also makes me hopeful for this nation's future. Not just this nation's future I should add, the world's future as well.

Carbon Fiber Z10 w/Leather Holster

[itzJustMeh]

To be honest though, I don't think 10.3 leak (and dev OS) work as well on Q10 as 10.2.1, however 10.3.1 is waaaaaaaay better. Trust me, I'm a random guy on the internet.

[anon721037]

I don't get the horrible and "hurts" part of your story. You didn't say why

It comes after reading this.

Official pain in the **** of the peevishlicious crew.

[Adif_70]

10.3 works great on my phone. Why not just wait for 10.3.1 which come out in a month or so.

Posted with my awesome Blackberry Passport

[DocDRM]

OP - in your last post above, it appears you listened to those who commented, pointing out some issues that affected your expectations and experiences, and you calmly thanked them and sort of of accepted your "error" (saying error as I can't come up with a better word).

I want you to know this is outrageous and unexpected! When people come on CrackBerry with BlackBerry / device / OS / BB10 issues, and are shown the light, it is the norm to strike back, go farther (further? ) on a rant and claim those who helped you are just BlackBerry fan-bois.

Please refrain from future sensible responses as you've shown here or you may be reported to management or asked to join a certain subversive element known as the P-Crew.

Posted via CB10, now from a Z30

[anon721037]

OP - in your last post above, it appears you listened to those who commented, pointing out some issues that affected your expectations and experiences, and you calmly thanked them and sort of of accepted your "error" (saying error as I can't come up with a better word).

I want you to know this is outrageous and unexpected! When people come on CrackBerry with BlackBerry / device / OS / BB10 issues, and are shown the light, it is the norm to strike back, go farther (further? ) on a rant and claim those who helped you are just BlackBerry fan-bois.

Please refrain from future sensible responses as you've shown here or you may be reported to management or asked to join a certain subversive element known as the P-Crew.

Posted via CB10, now from a Z30

Oh wow look at you go, now we have nothing to discuss. Get lost.

[higherdestiny]

As others have said.

You're running a leaked OS (10.3) on a device (Z10) which this OS was never designed for.

You speak of cramped OS elements - yet 10.3 was made for a device with twice the screen width (in pixels).
You speak of lag on an OS which has been hard-wired for hardware acceleration which is completely missing on the Z10.

So enjoy the preview of 10.3, but don't judge it when you're using a device it's not designed for.

When 10.3.1 is officially released for your Z10, you may then critique.

[unholyelite]

This post and many like this should be erased due to ignorance. Brings bad light when non - blackberry users read stuff like this and automatically assume that OS 10 sucks or blackberry sucks. Please do your homework before posting in the future.

Posted via CB10

[akhilvarma7575]

If we install 10.3.1 OS by autoloaders... we can go to official OS afterwards or it stays in dat leaked OS only??


Posted via CB10

[WGn199]

All the old icons are now replaced by dots and boxes that have no meaning and are barely recognizable. Also, there are now five rows of apps on each home screen. This might be a great addition to some, but it makes recognizing and selecting each app icon so much harder.

As with anything new there is an adjustment period. I have been using 10.3 for awhile now and find after a short period the new icons become just as recognizable as the old ones. Although I will admit some of the old icons did stand out a little more (example: browser and remember) However, i am sure after using 10.3 a bit longer I will find the same if I tried to go back to 10.2.

In addition without the black boxes to divide the apps, all the apps merge together, causing a very cluttered and claustrophobic inducing layout... The lines and grids in the menu structure and app settings have now been removed, causing further confusion.

I would like to hear how they "merge" together as I don't see this at all. Can you clarify what you mean by menu structure? From what I see in settings and app menus all the grid lines are the same if not more prominent in 10.3.

One of the worst aspects of the update is the revamped overflow and settings menu. Before, one could partially slide out the settings or overflow menu and see only the icons. Now pressing the settings menu button or the overflow menu button displays the entire menu and covers three fourths of the screen. This makes productivity decreased greatly as it takes up valuable screen estate. One has to make a menu selection in order to dismiss the menu. This means that to delete a message one would have to press three buttons when before it was only two. This extra step is horribly inconvenient when one has to delete hundreds of emails per day... Overall, the graphical updates in the new 10.3 OS are absolutely horrible and make the phone painful to use.

In one of your above statements you claim "the old icons are now replaced by dots and boxes that have no meaning and are barely recognizable." if this is the case why would you prefer overflow menus that do not have text explain what the icons are for? As before you can still close the overflow menu by clicking outside the menu or on a black space inside the menu.

In addition, to use the menu items now takes at most 2 clicks whereas before it could take up to 3. I do not see how less steps hurts productivity. Could you clarify how you are clicking 3 instead of 2 to delete message?

When would you open a menu and not want to use one of the options (i.e.: click on an action and menu closes)? If not see above where it only takes 2 clicks now instead of 3.

Another issue I have discovered is the overall performance hits from the new OS. I am on the BlackBerry Z 10 and running the leaked version of 10.3 from Rogers. In BlackBerry's efforts to use speed up loading times between screens and screen transition times, it has made lag very prominent on my device. Switching between windows often times results in the window switching stuttering. Most prominently I have discovered is that the BlackBerry keyboard lags and has horrible UI that make it almost impossible to use. BlackBerry got rid of the divots in the keyboard and the clearly defined keys which makes it near impossible to hit the correct letters that I want to type. Also flicking words up onto the screen often results in the the wrong words being flicked. I would attempt to flick one word, and then the keyboard will decide to randomly flick another word. This has made it very frustrating to type what I want to write.

My experience I have seen no issues with lag, keyboard issues, or stuttering. this may be due to fact you are running leaked OS not designed for your specific phone. I am doing the same and have not come across these issues and I hope they resolve for you.

Perhaps waiting for 10.3.1 optimized for your phone would be your best bet.

Posted via CB10

[yhamaie]

Future device software (10.3.x.x) may be tuned to newer devices with larger screens, I suppose.

Successor to Z10 has not yet been announced while Classic will probably take over the position of Q10. I hope that the manufacturer will continue to make future device software available to old devices even after they are discontinued.

http://blackberryempire.com/unannoun...sport-classic/



Posted via CB10

[djdragon]

Dear OP.


TL;DR

Z10 10.3.0.1052 via CB10