[JasW]

Can you tell us (and Blackberry) the stuff you cold do on iPad that made you put Z10 down?
For me, major issue was google maps and online banking.

He's saying that there are things he can do on his Note 2 that he couldn't on his Z10, which is why he went back to the Note 2. Frankly, that list of things is endless. Yes, my online banking app (with check photo deposit!) and Google Maps and Navigation isn't available, but we're also talking Netflix, Hulu, Instagram, Roku, Skype, to mention the major ones, and a seemingly endless parade of apps large and small that are only available for iPhone and Android.

[bmercer94]

Well, today was my last day with my BlackBerry Z10. found someone willing to swap for his Note 2, so i went for it. with BBM on the way to the other systems i went for it.

[marvelpym]

I'm finally replacing my archaic 9700 with an iPhone and can't wait. I was holding off until I took a look at the z10, but it's just a Zune HD running Android. Seriously, it looks exactly like Android. There's no shame in the world anymore.

[9lives353]

Just went from SIII to Z10. Went back to do a wipe on my SIII a few hours later and I couldn't stop swiping up from the bottom to get my home screen.

[Miller K]

Went from iPhone 4 to a Q10. I wasn't really disappointed by the iPhone but I wanted something that feels more advanced and android doesn't really appeal to me.
So far, I am still getting used to the Q10 but I got the 1880 build on it and don't have any problems so far. The bug where you accidentally disable certain acounts while scrolling through what to disable and enable in the hub management was weird but that seems to have been fixed with the new build, so that's good.

[ExBB]

I have had a BlackBerry for 8 years.

I have been a BlackBerry supporter and bought into the promise of the Playbook as the answer to my ecosystem dream.

9860, 9900, Desktop Chargers, Playbook Rapid Charger, Otterbox, Mini Keyboard, and 5 or 6 car and wall chargers.

And then one day in 2010 I bought an LG Optimus 7 to replace my personal BlackBerry Pearl.

I liked it, but it was incomplete and not a great device, even though it now belongs to my daughter and with the updates she loves it.

So, I switched back to BlackBerry and the promise of awesomeness that was the 9860.

Yeah, huge disappointment. Buttons not responding, broken charger port, battery cover always popping off...you get the idea. But, I stuck with it.

Work got me a shiny new 9900. Great for email and text, but media? Not so much.

In August 2011, I was in Best Buy because I was frustrated with my 9860, and looking for a replacement.

I played with a Lumia 900 and I was hooked. Paid the early upgrade fees and bought the 900.

I really liked it. Until the body and screen separated in October. I have device protection and got a new Lumia 920.

That is the day my love of BlackBerry ended.

For me, Windows Phone 8 is what I was looking for, and once the Surface PRO arrived, my entire BlackBerry inventory has been dormant.

I have loaded Windows 8 on my Home PC as well, and am a Xbox gamer.

It isn't perfect, but it really is cool to see the same thing on all my devices and I especially love having Office on all of them.

The Playbook was cool, but never finished or supported the way it could have been, the new phones just don't stir me, and the confusion over BB10 on the PlayBook seems like old school RIM.

Still rock my 9860 for Work (9900 died on impact).

So, if anybody is looking for a 64Gb Playbook with armor since day one, Otterbox, Rapid Charger, and Mini Bluetooth Keyboard Case let me know.

No hate, just found what suits me better.

[anon5771888]

I sold my z10 two days ago and went back to my iPhone 5, tired of waiting for 10.1 here in the USA while the rest of the world already has it. When my forth z10 rebooted in the middle of another phone call on Sunday, that was the straw that broke the camels back. This should never happen in 2013 and I really did love the phone and I will miss OS10 and my BBM groups and the great folks I met using BB.

But I need a stable device and say what you want, the iPhone has NEVER rebooted in the middle of a phone call or while sitting idle and I have had the 3, 4 & 5 models. I hope one day to come back, but the way the update system and the warranty issues are being put in the carriers lap, there would have to be some drastic changes to make it happen.

My saving grace is in all of this is BBM is going to be released this summer for IOS so I will be able to reconnect with my BBM groups and friends. I still have the CB app in IOS and I will continue to monitor this site for progress. It's sad, but I just couldn't take the restarts any more.

[ajst222]

I sold my z10 two days ago and went back to my iPhone 5, tired of waiting for 10.1 here in the USA while the rest of the world already has it. When my forth z10 rebooted in the middle of another phone call on Sunday, that was the straw that broke the camels back. This should never happen in 2013 and I really did love the phone and I will miss OS10 and my BBM groups and the great folks I met using BB.

But I need a stable device and say what you want, the iPhone has NEVER rebooted in the middle of a phone call or while sitting idle and I have had the 3, 4 & 5 models. I hope one day to come back, but the way the update system and the warranty issues are being put in the carriers lap, there would have to be some drastic changes to make it happen.

My saving grace is in all of this is BBM is going to be released this summer for IOS so I will be able to reconnect with my BBM groups and friends. I still have the CB app in IOS and I will continue to monitor this site for progress. It's sad, but I just couldn't take the restarts any more.

Cmon Ron! Take a walk back when 10.1 gets here haha we miss you in our group!

[bakron1]

Cmon Ron! Take a walk back when 10.1 gets here haha we miss you in our group!

Aaron, I really do miss the group and I was hoping to get the update which might help out with restart issues I was having.

I do hate being on the iPhone 5 and if things work out this weekend, I may have a red developers z10 and be back online shortly.

[ajst222]

Aaron, I really do miss the group and I was hoping to get the update which might help out with restart issues I was having.

I do hate being on the iPhone 5 and if things work out this weekend, I may have a red developers z10 and be back online shortly.

That would be great. I know how much you don't like the iPhone lol. But I don't know if you read on CB that the reboots are only from select OS versions. It's in the link below.

CrackBerry Asks: Have you experienced random reboots on your BlackBerry Z10? | CrackBerry.com

[bakron1]

That would be great. I know how much you don't like the iPhone lol. But I don't know if you read on CB that the reboots are only from select OS versions. It's in the link below.

CrackBerry Asks: Have you experienced random reboots on your BlackBerry Z10? | CrackBerry.com

I live on the CB website and I know about the carrier specific restart issues. I going to try an unbranded z10 even though I know T Mobile will download their software to it anyways, want to try something different.

[iN8ter]

My wife has been messing with her new Note II all day, and it does cheetah flips around her old iPhone 4S (sold that overhyped device on eBay).

Anything her iPhone could do, the Note II does ten times better and much faster. And it can do a great deal more.

You do realize the 4S is more comparable to the S2 and Note I, right? And that the Note II is more comparable to the iPhone 5 which has considerably higher specs than the 4S (Twice the RAM, for starters, better CPU, way better GPU, Better Camera, LTE connectivity, etc.)?

I don't think even Apple cares if the Note II outclasses their now budget iPhone model... Which will be free on contract in some months (and probably sell a ton when that happens, since it still has one of the best smartphone cameras in it).

[baptistan]

There should be a topic with the title : "I left blackberry and i really don't like what i've found".
Owned, a Bold 9000 / 9700 and 9900, also had an I4 and Samsung Galaxy S.

I had to change recently for a S3 (wanted bigger screen, games, VPN capabilities and also great apps like Skype etc)

I'm with the S3 since a few weeks now.

Too much apps and widgets makes my phone unresponsive. I spend my time deleting the apps running in the background and trying to make my user experience smoother.
I just miss the way Blackberry work and gives you the ability to go straight to where you want to be. We can compare all the different aspects of each phone and their qualities. But at the end of the day, which one you are happy to have in your hand and which one helped you the most along your path ? I believe that in my case, Blackberry wins.
I'm definitely coming back on BB as soon as the successor of the Q10 is out... so like next year .

If some guys who read my post are thinking about going to the Galaxy... do not make this mistake and keep your good ol BB!

Have a great day everybody.

[Nicholas Kathrein]

Do you want to make your S3 fast as a jet plane. Get that crappy Samsung touchwiz off your S3 and put on Stock Google Andriod. Smooth as butter.



This is what Android really is. Every phone my family and friends buy I put cyanogenmod on it. Takes away all the stuff that slows the phone down.

[baptistan]

Thanks Nicholas for the tip !

I guess I Might very well go on that. Just sad, you can't just use the phone you buy normally.

For people who don't want to get their hands durty with all the process of installing Cyanogenmod... they stay with this bulky, laggy thing... and Samsung is still having a good product image ? crazy

[evanhanson]

Awesome tips

[heading4tomorrow]

Thanks Nicholas for the tip !

I guess I Might very well go on that. Just sad, you can't just use the phone you buy normally.

For people who don't want to get their hands durty with all the process of installing Cyanogenmod... they stay with this bulky, laggy thing... and Samsung is still having a good product image ? crazy

Don't worry, samsung's own launcher is just fine, it's the pickyness and having to have all the ram available for other apps that's driving people to CM and others. Have you seen S4's performance? So what if some apps take a few miliseconds longer to start up. If you want instant operation especially with emails, stay with blackberry. No matter which device, which version OS, which email app including touchdown, i could never get the emails working as fast as I did with BB when I had Nexus (returned and got 9900).
There is a reason those mods are so light and fast, they are not %100 complete, there is always something missing with them, it's 911, then it's fixed, it's bluetooth, than that's fixed, it's camera upside down, etc.. Sometimes everything seems to be complete, but there are other stuff missing (maybe behind the scenes) if possible you can just try to load plain version of OS, I believe they also posted that on xda forums, not CM but just vanilla jelly bean, nexus' version I believe.. Anyway, I don't mess with Android much, wife has T679 and all I did was install unbloated version of stock T-Mobile rom, and it's pretty good, and I can still use all apps, including wifi calling.

[1kcdo]

Been waiting for apps to be available on BB10 OS. For now, I upgraded to Galaxy S3. Will wait until November for my upgrade & hope by that time BB10 have tons of apps.

Sent from a SmartPhone

[khanig]

After a year of self-debate, exploring phones including the Z10, and seeing what AT&T had to offer as well (my carrier), I finally had to get a new phone. I had my BB Torch 9800 for almost 3 years and the trackball was starting to go, and in general, I felt that the OS was deteriorating . It was just getting old, that's all. The 9800 was the best phone I ever had and any other phone I looked at I painstakingly made comparisons to what I thought was the best, the BB. I had a BB Curve before the 9800.

What it came down to was the apps. I thought the Z10 was great when I tried it out, but I use my phone for personal and business and I have got to have reliable apps that I frequently use, and figurine out how to "side-load" apps, with the possibility that they may not work was not attractive. I hated to leave BB. It felt like a divorce! (Ok, maybe a little melodramatic there!). My thinking is that I'd go with another phone, wait 2 years, and see what happens with apps and BB. After all, look how long BB made US wait!!

So, I got an LG Optimus G. Android. And, this is an honest review from someone who is not remotely a phone "geek!" The LG I have is as good as the Torch. Some things I miss. It seems to me at times I do two "entries" when BB would do the task "behind the scenes" and required fewer steps. For example, the Android calendar. It does a good job of syncing with Google calendar etc..., but so did my BB. But it's a little thing like I go to delete an entry and it takes two, maybe three more steps. Not a big deal, and if you were a regular user and never had a BB you'ed not notice. The apps download smoothly and with few exceptions work very well. I had difficulty with BB App World. A lot of time the apps did not load t all and were very limited in what they could do. I also thought BB had WAY too many modals. Way too many. Yeah, there are a lot of Androids too, but the apps work with them all. With BB, some did with the 9800 and if one was available that looked good, well, if it didn't work with a 9800, you were out of luck. I have to say, the app issue is a big one that BB better really seriously consider getting "on the stick" about.

If you went to an Android, one of the things you'd notice as a former BB user is how easy an Android is to use. I kept reading how difficult an Android was to set up, with one reviewer saying "it takes days." Really? How about... an hour at most? If you can work a BB, an Android is a slam dunk. "Fixing" issues ? If you've ever had a problem with your BB and had to go to this site for assistance, you'll be fine. You know what you're doing because of the good people on this BB site. The LG Optimus G is a good phone, as good as the 9800. I suspect as good as the Z10 as well, though I'd still rather have my BB. We'll see what happens in 2 years when my contract is up.

So, if you were thinking of jumping "ship," you'll be fine with an Android. But do your homework. Really look carefully at reviews from a number of sources, like PC World, TechnoBuffalo and the like. Choose carefully and whatever BB your using now, print off the specs and match it to an Android if that's what you'll do. Also, it's only temporary! I'm sure BB will get things together app wise and things will be fine and I'll be first in line for the new upgraded BB Z10 in 2 years.

[khanig]

And one other thing. Don't get an iPhone. My son's a lawyer in Chicago and his works 1/2 the time. Some here have also said that they are going to another phone because they are tired of waiting for a 10.1 upgrade. That should not happen in 2013. And BB needs to address that one. To give you an example, my LG came with Ice Cream Sandwich and was "upgradable" to Jelly Bean. I thought like we do with BB's that when the new upgrade came out, you went to the site, downloaded it, etc... Well, one evening I turned on my phone and it had been automatically upgraded. I have a feeling that BB may be paying attetnion though to these posts and may change. If they don't, it will be their loss. Good luck out there. And, I do miss my 9800!

[calicocat2010]

Well it seems that I might very well be joining this forum. I'm on my 3rd BlackBerry Z10, and it stopped working Again last night. Third time was the charm, and I just can't wait for BlackBerry to get their crap together to fix specific issues so I am trying to decide if I want to become a slave to Apple and cough up a Lot of money just to break my contract for a new phone OR I call up BlackBerry Tech Support and see if they will actually Keep their word and send me a Different Model Phone of my choice.

*edit* well I have crossed over to the dark side and am now sporting an iPhone 5 . I will come back to blackberry when the reboots and blue screen of death stop completely .

*edit again* I exchanged the Iphone 5 and got the S4 instead. Still miss my Z10, BUT i will Not miss the issues I was having with that phone.

[austerus]

I've already moved from a Bold 9790 to a Note 2, but I'm not leaving the Blackberry boat entirely. I still hang on to said Bold as a backup device and I still hope to get a Z10 (or Q10) in the future (extremely expensive, where I'm at the Note 2 stands at 400 eur, while the Z10 can be had for 510 eur - either case without subscription).

[pantlesspenguin]

After some very careful deliberation, I have decided to go back to Android after 3 months with the Z10.

First, the Z10 impressed me more than I thought it would. I went in to AT&T on the launch date (I was waiting for T-Mo's to pick mine up, but their launch date was a week later), and they didn't have a demo set up yet. They brought one from the back and let me play around with it. I was immediately struck by the look and feel. It just FELT like a premium device. I played around with gestures, delved into maps a bit, played with the keyboard, etc. By the time I left, I was STOKED to get mine. I picked mine up on T-Mo launch, and I was the first to pick one up at that location. I showed the reps how the phone worked (surprised they didn't really know much about it ahead of time!) and they were genuinely intrigued. I immediately logged onto all of my accounts and started working the hub. LOVED IT!

I went through some "growing pains" for a couple weeks after. I was getting poor battery life, I couldn't find adequate apps to replace the ones I frequently used on Android, and not all were available to sideload, although sideloading did save me from further grief. The maps app wasn't as robust as I first thought. I had a lot of trouble getting the search function to pull up correct listings. I noticed if I made a typo, or accidentally misspelled something it would show me completely irrelevant listings from hundereds of miles away. I was used to Google maps, which had the ability to "guess" what you meant in the event of a typo or misspelling. I also didn't like how the navigation app only displayed in portrait mode or have the ability to pan around the map. The only other thing that really bothered me was accessing incoming notifications when I was using the device. I know "peek" was supposed to be a major feature of BB10, but to me it wasn't as intuitive or convenient as Android's way. With BB10 you have to do a two-part gesture to see the sender and either the subject or first few words of the notification, depending on what it was. With Android, all you have to do is divert your eyes to see the sender, subject, and first couple LINES of the message. Swipe down on the notification bar and you can see even more, and some apps allow for replying/archiving options in the notification tray as well.

I got over the learning curve and pretty much forgot about my initial gripes. I invested in some decent apps that bridged some of the gaps that I was missing on Android. The phone was fun to use, but I'd still get kind of aggrivated whenever I'd have to check an incoming message by peeking. I thought the hub feature of keeping all messages together AFTER they were checked made up for it, though. I got aggrivated at other things, like when a couple of my sideloaded apps just stopped working for some reason and when I couldn't find a restaurant that was fairly new via maps.

After the earnings call, I thought hard about the Z10. I realized I had made a mistake that I had sworn not to do after the whole Samsung Vibrant debachle nearly 3 years ago. I swore that I would always buy devices for what they did CURRENTLY, rather than what it was promised to do in the future. For months I've been making the excuse that the Z10 might not be much now, but that it had great potential as long as app developers got onboard and if BB kept on adding the native features that people coming from other platforms (including BBOS) were accustomed to. The earnings call showed how poorly the BB10 devices were selling, and that made me wonder how many app developers would be turned off at this news. I also wondered if perhaps the Z10 would fall the way of the Playbook regarding continuous updates once the Aristo and refreshed OS7 device were released. I decided I couldn't take that chance, especially since resale value of the Z10 was falling WAY down. Which might be good news for me if I ever want to pick one up again in the future.

So, I'm selling my Z10 and have gone back to my Nexus. It honestly feels like I've fired an inadequate personal assistant and hired soemone who had thoroughly researched me and knows what I need when I need it, whether it's flight info, traffic info, Royals scores, nearby attractions I might be interested in, etc. With Google Now all that is available to me with a swipe, and some things even appear in my notification tray. It's nice to have peace of mind that I can tap the google button on my home screen and speak "navigate to Kansas City airport" and have this pop up:




If I hit that little direction arrow it'll take me into turn by turn navigation.

Whenever I search for BBRY stock price on the Z10 using voice it always asks me if I want to search the internet for the stock price. On Google Now, I searched once for it, and now it's always in my Google Now cards:



I don't really miss the swipe to home multitasking on the Z10 because the multitasking button on the Nexus that's on the bottom of every screen works just fine. I press it and it gives me a scrollable view of all of my open apps where I can tap one to go back into the app or the option to flick to close them.



I wish BlackBerry all the luck in this trying time. I REALLY hope they pull out of this slump, but right now I just need more from my devices. The Z10 is a great start, and I hope they can "keep moving" in the right direction to right their list of wrongs.

[Rooster99]

Am now on my 6th day fully live with a Nexus 4 after a Storm, Storm 2, Torch slider and 9860. Overall I'm beginning to love this phone, and not once did I feel that way about any of the Blackberry devices I owned. One non-device-specific advantage I've found is the time I save not having to check Crackberry every day to see if the key apps I want/need have been (or even will be) released - they're already here with Android. Here are a few key points of difference :

Pros :
- Buttery smooth to use - fast, very smooth, a pure joy (apparently this is true of stock Android devices, so stick with a Nexus model)
- Keyboard word prediction is fast, accurate, very nice; As for the "new, OMG so great" word prediction in BB10 - what's the big deal? The only "new" thing about it is that you flick the words up rather than tapping on them. Big freaking deal. If that's a key selling point for the Z10 no wonder demand is weak
- TONS of apps, and so far the tech support for them has been great; Mostly via email, but they answer within a day and for both apps I had trouble with they actually developed new versions that adressed the bugs I uncovered within 1-5 days of my reporting them; Support has been way better than my experience with ANY of the 3rd party Blackberry apps I used - perhaps because with the larger user base the developers have larger customer bases and so have more resources
- Beautiful screen
- UI on the apps is great - visually appealing, simple to navigate, etc.; I haven't used a ton of them yet, but as an example the music player is way easier to use than BB7's, and overall everything seems simpler to use even when there may be a couple of extra keystrokes
- For the average, not-too-concerned-about-privacy consumer, plugging into the Google ecosystem is very, very simple and easy
- The Google app store is really fast and easy to use, and installing apps is WAY simpler than with BB7 (can't speak to BB10)
- Device management (settings, etc.) is very simple and straightforward

Cons :
- Email is flakier; They can take longer to arrive from my POP3 account, sometimes clicking on an email header won't open it up for a while (it just sits with the progress circle spinning), and I can't seem to download/save attachments from the stock email client (but there are multiple other email clients available); So far nothing terminal, but Blackberry users have it good on this point
- Google is VERY intrusive; You can't set up a new Calendar without linking it to a Google account, you can't review an App in the Google Play store without having a Google+ account, when you set up a Google account you have to give it your phone number so they can "verify" the account, etc.; I have to admit, this I absolutely HATE - but I can work around it

If you're thinking of switching to Android, though, I'd highly recommend going Nexus to stay with stock Android.

That's it - I'm off to play with my new phone! (it's been a long time since I've said that about a Berry)

- R.

[reeneebob]

I can honestly say that after about a day of getting used to iOS again I remembered why I liked it so much. It's true. It just...works. It does. I forgot how much I appreciate Apples design aesthetic.

Now hurry up, OS7.