[waxor]

TLDR; Switch to the z10 has made my common tasks hard / impossible and some necessary tasks disappointingly broken.

I talked to some people and they said this was probably the right place to go.

I used to work for RIM, left a little bit before before BB10 was feature complete. I have been using an old iPhone 3GS off-contract waiting to get my hands on a retail Z10 for ~6 months. I knew mostly what I was getting.

At this point I am really happy with the OS but disappointed with a couple major usability issues. I realize some of these open up secure data to a more public viewing, but that is not a deal breaker for everyone. At least give us an option.

1) when my device is asleep (on my desk or in my pocket) and and email comes in, there is no easy way for me to see if I need to answer it.
I have to : pick up device (sometimes put something in my hands down), swipe to unlock, enter password, go to hub and sometimes switch views. This takes ~10 seconds and completely interrupts my activity. It is easier to interrupt my workflow on my laptop to tab over to Outlook.
On my iPhone I could pull the device out of my pocket and glance at the screen. Takes less that 2 seconds. It was far more convenient than Outlook.
It is something that I got VERY used to because it makes my phone experience more powerful. To find that it is significantly harder to stay on top of email on a BB was very surprising and highly disappointing.

2) Alarm. Not everyone has a single alarm. I find it shocking that this got approved. I have a wake up alarm, and two baby bed time alarms. My wife had 2 alarms for pick up / drop off. There is no good solution for this on the z10. I can get an app but it has to stay open, so if I use too many other apps then whoops I am late for work or whoops the school called because its 5 minutes past pickup time. This is such a poor usability decision, it makes it hard to defend the device to my wife.
Sure I could use a calendar event, but all reminders share the same alarm, so if I want a specific sound for baby bed time, I have to use the same thing for my work meetings?
Where is the real world research on this one? Who thought this was a justifiable restriction?

3) Quick Preview. There is no way from the lock screen to see a preview of the hub or calendar events (except the next one).
iOS and Android both give you an easy way to preview things. this means a full trip to the hub every time I want to see if something new pop'd up. Hub trips can take ~10 seconds of time. I can no longer do it politely / discretely when in meeting.
Again, how can it be that it is harder to stay on top on things on my BB?

4) Google Voice - This is not as much of a deal breaker but almost everyone I know uses voice. I can side load the android app but I can no longer make calls using my voice number (without altering every contact in my address book) and I only get messages when the app is open.
This is one service that is a must have for me and BB falls on its face on this one. We got Angry Birds and WhatsApp but not Google Voice. I dont really want to permanently dedicate 1/8th of my apps to google voice

5) Car support - My old phone worked in my car as an audio source, I could control it via the dash. It was really nice having access to all my media. Now all I get is "Unsupported Device"
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That being said I LOVE LOVE LOVE the camera. I took one picture last night and used time lapse to get the perfect shot of my kids. That won me over pretty quick.

There are a ton of apps that I am missing (walgreens for prescription refills, skydrive, etc) but none of them are deal breakers and I am will to wait for companies to come around.

Having a hard time getting to my email and not being able to rely on my device (for alarms) are both HUGE deal breakers. I dont want to return my z10, I suffered through an iPhone for 6 months to get it, but I am not sure I can justify the z10 if it stands in my way so much.

[jdhooghe]

Look into Hub++ it has a preview option like iOS. Unfortunately it does only have one alarm; this is a major oversight.

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[DAY1000]

I use calendar for all my reminder functions. It gives a brief audio alarm plus a vibration alarm if you set it to vibrate. It can be set for recurring functions as well. That works for me. I do use the clock wake up alarm for the initial wake up, but all the rest I just need that short alarm to remind me.

[waxor]

I was using the calendar for my wake up alarm, but it was not loud enough to actually wake me up. So now I am using the alarm for wake up but that leaves me with the "meeting" noise for my kids bed time.

Having a dedicate, long sound for bed time is a HUGE help with little kids. They thrive on consistency.

[o4liberty]

The Z10 is not perfect by far but it will take time to work out the kinks for sure.
I am coming from a Nokia Lucia 823 and comparing the two at this point the 822 is the winner hands down!

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[waxor]

Which Hub++? the Disco Ball edition? can you post a link?

[Gambit11B]

Well, if you want to return, I'd be more than happy to trade you my Lumia 920 for it......

BTW: What is with all the people crying about alarms???? You can pick up an alarm clock at any Wal-Mart for less than $10. Just saying......

[waxor]

I am not always in the same place when playing with the kids, but they know when the phone goes chirp-chirp that it is time for bath and beddy time. It reduces the amount of fussing over bedtime by a HUGE amount.

If your argument for fixing an issue with a 600$ advanced, sophisticated computer is "buy some cheap thing at walmart" then you are missing the point. ( I hope that did not come off as snarky

[Gambit11B]

I am not always in the same place when playing with the kids, but they know when the phone goes chirp-chirp that it is time for bath and beddy time. It reduces the amount of fussing over bedtime by a HUGE amount.

If your argument for fixing an issue with a 600$ advanced, sophisticated computer is "buy some cheap thing at walmart" then you are missing the point. ( I hope that did not come off as snarky

Not at all. I was referring to purchasing an alarm clock for your bedside to wake up to..... Perhaps BB thought most people had bedside alarm clocks when they forgot to include multiple alarms in the new OS?????

[jdhooghe]

Yep, the disco led edition. Not sure if any other app allows for that iOS functionality

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[NickA]

Well, if you want to return, I'd be more than happy to trade you my Lumia 920 for it......

BTW: What is with all the people crying about alarms???? You can pick up an alarm clock at any Wal-Mart for less than $10. Just saying......

Alarm clock? I haven't used one of those in years. I've been relying on a phone to wake me for the last 5 years.

Multiple alarms are a nice feature. Not everyone needs it, but how hard would it really have been to include it in the OS? It's little things like this that could really sway someone's decision one way or another.

[twstd.reality]

1. always leave your phone in hub default view. when you slide to unlock you can see a preview of your hub and contents. not ideal but it's a workaround.
2. create those alarms as "events" in your calendar. set the events to remind you "at start time". this works as a multiple device alarm if you've got everything synced to that calendar. and i believe, if you've shared your calendar as well.
3. see #1
4. blackberry voice control? does the same thing somewhat. hold the middle hard key in between the volume up and down keys. the voice prompt will appear. you can say "call bob" and it calls. you can say "text bob: this" and it sends a text". tap the "i" in the top right corner for help with more commands.
5. ask your car manufacturer.

[jdhooghe]

You have to unlock the phone though, I just realized.

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[webbert]

i use a holster this one:
--ttp://www.telefon.de/produkt.asp?gruppe=110_102023_1002117&products_id= 225743&insearch=1 so the device is not only saving power.
I let open the hub, so if you pull the device you see at once your calls, emails, etc. and with a little pull you will see the next calendar entrys. I know the prewiew functions from iphone and android, but it's to limited for me, a lot of new objekts will not shown because to much new objekts. If i pull my device out of the holster, i can easyly filter the hub and see all necessary objects.
I think z10 is better for power users.

[_X_]

Sounds like you want an Android device it fulfills all those requirements and has the Walgreen prescription app.

I don't there is any need for a user to settle on substandard devices. get an IOS phone or Android that meets your current needs then reevaluate once BB gets better.

[waxor]

1. always leave your phone in hub default view. when you slide to unlock you can see a preview of your hub and contents. not ideal but it's a workaround.

Thats what I do, but ugh. Having a feature that i have to baby sit it a poorly designed feature. I was there for the design so I understand the corner they are backed into, but still...

[waxor]

Sounds like you want an Android device it fulfills all those requirements and has the Walgreen prescription app.

I don't there is any need for a user to settle on substandard devices. get an IOS phone or Android that meets your current needs then reevaluate once BB gets better.

Thats what I am trying to avoid. I worked at BB, I really liked every device I used, from the Gemini through the Lisbon. I want my new BB to be everything I want it to be, but these things are second guess the choice to get a z10.

[OneofLittleHarmony]

Not at all. I was referring to purchasing an alarm clock for your bedside to wake up to..... Perhaps BB thought most people had bedside alarm clocks when they forgot to include multiple alarms in the new OS?????

Yeah, well some of us have sleeping disorders and need multiple alarms to interact with normal people.

[jhnptrlimo1]

I really wish there was an email (button) or folder or whatever instead of having to go to hub each time. Hub is great for peaking and what not, but an actual email button or folder would seem a lot easier.

[Dgree03]

I am surprised you only found those issues as major usability problems...

[TheRizzo41]

It's a brand new OS, and its going to take time and reports from real world users about missed features to get them added into the updates. Tweet them your concerns. So far they seem pretty pro active at making fixes, whether to the OS or to certain apps when they hear the feedback.

[LordCrankypants]

The lack of a pop-up notification is a security feature so that random Joe blow sitting next to you on the bus can't read a new message as it comes in, or so that you don't get interrupted when in the middle of something. It'd be nice to be able to have the option, but the rationale makes sense. I prefer it this way to be honest. I'll take security over convenience any day. It's the same reason I encrypt my device and lock it with a password.

As for multiple alarms, with the release of this phone, it's the first I've seen complaints about it. Every single legacy device has only had the single alarm option, so I think it was put into this one as a matter of consistency as opposed to an oversight. Again, for the older BlackBerry phones. I never really saw a lot of complaining about this issue. It was only with the release of the Z10 that I've been seeing an insane amount of complaints about it. It will likely be changed in a future update based on the demand for it.

Be patient, the things you want will come.

JB

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[FrankIAm]

Previews are a privacy thing, and they suck battery.
Set up more alarms on the calendar.

[w0lfgang]

I don't like the fact that you can't change individual notifications...you know for each contact? but I don't think that is a deal killer...I guess we could all find something we miss about legacy devices

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[twstd.reality]

I don't like the fact that you can't change individual notifications...you know for each contact? but I don't think that is a deal killer...I guess we could all find something we miss about legacy devices

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Says who?



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