[omniusovermind]

If this were the only source talking about the quality of the look and feel of BB10 apps I wouldn't pay much heed to it, but I've seen this mentioned several times so far this week. Here's an example I linked in a review starting at the part where he talks about Blackberry World's apps. Main things I'm unhappy about are a) So many apps aren't developed using the better looking native SDK's, and b) The app world is looking more and more like a repository of Android ports rather than native apps.

NOTE: Forward the Video to 6:20
There's also a not very impressive overview of Blackberry Maps and Navigation on this phone at 5:15.

[Homo Erectus]

If this were the only source talking about the quality of the look and feel of BB10 apps I wouldn't pay much heed to it, but I've seen this mentioned several times so far this week. Here's an example I linked in a review starting at the part where he talks about Blackberry World's apps. Main things I'm unhappy about are a) So many apps aren't developed using the better looking native SDK's, and b) The app world is looking more and more like a repository of Android ports rather than native apps.

NOTE: Forward the Video to 6:20
There's also a not very impressive overview of Blackberry Maps and Navigation on this phone at 5:15.

I totally agree

[Techno-Emigre]

I agree but .... I see BlackBerry's move into BB10 in developmental phases. For this first phase there was SO much to do, and a critical piece was getting apps at launch from deveopers who had no faith, weren't BB fans and probably thought the company was DOA. BlackBerry did the right thing by spoon feeding and making it such a no-brainer to port over apps that even someone who didn't care would do it. They even sweetened the pot with a promise of profits. Second phase comes as BlackBerry regains traction and can start being pickier and increasing expectations. Plus they know users will put pressure on developers to get their act together and create the native version. Anyway, this is my hope.

[InvalidUser0510]

Okay, to be honest, the word "Android port" is kind of stupid. What's actually happening is that BB10 has a Java emulator. That's exactly how Android runs most of its own apps, thought the Dalvik Java emulator. Yes, on BB10 it is mostly there as a temporary way to get apps into the store, but I really don't think its that bad. The apps run pretty well. Some lag is not that big of a deal if you consider that the alternative would be not having the app at all. Most people only check if the phone has the app, not how well it runs (for example, people would ask if it has Instagram, Whatsapp, Skype, etc.). Once more people have the phone, the developer's reputation will go down significantly (obviously, if the phone sells well), and they would have to make a native app or risk losing customers.

[ubizmo]

I don't think it's too much to expect updates and fixes from developers who rushed apps into BBW and now need to polish them. BB Maps is a more serious concern, though. The bar has been set pretty high, and if people can't download Google Maps or something nearly as good from BBW it's going to be a problem. Sideloading isn't an option for the vast majority of users.

[randall2580]

I don't think it's too much to expect updates and fixes from developers who rushed apps into BBW and now need to polish them. BB Maps is a more serious concern, though. The bar has been set pretty high, and if people can't download Google Maps or something nearly as good from BBW it's going to be a problem. Sideloading isn't an option for the vast majority of users.

We who have the PlayBook have been waiting on the same. Seems it will be ever thus. What we have to hope in the end is that BB10 becomes so popular it encourages Devs to write Native apps. We live in hope

[ubizmo]

We who have the PlayBook have been waiting on the same. Seems it will be ever thus. What we have to hope in the end is that BB10 becomes so popular it encourages Devs to write Native apps. We live in hope

Yes, I have the PlayBook too, and I know exactly what you mean. I think--maybe without much basis--that BB10 as a smartphone OS inherently has more prospective users than PBOS ever had. I'm hoping that gives it a bit more momentum, but as you say, we live in hope. I can't get a Z10 yet but I hope that by the time I can, the decision to do so will be easier.

[Fatz_z]

Has anyone tried this map app yet?

[lnichols]

BlackBerry didn't even get all their own apps ported to BB10. Where's Protect and Travel? Why does the Bridge suck compared to BBOS? Why aren't the notifications great? I think we should be hold BlackBerry to a higher standard than independent developers, especially when BlackBerry kept pushing B10 availability back on the devs!

[ubizmo]

Has anyone tried this map app yet?

No reviews there yet, but it looks promising for everything but spoken turn-by-turn, which is probably the feature that most people want.

[InvalidUser0510]

BlackBerry didn't even get all their own apps ported to BB10. Where's Protect and Travel? Why does the Bridge suck compared to BBOS? Why aren't the notifications great? I think we should be hold BlackBerry to a higher standard than independent developers, especially when BlackBerry kept pushing B10 availability back on the devs!

Uhhh...Protect is on there, and screenshots of Travel have been leaked. Can you blame BB for wanting to devote more resources into polishing the OS than to bringing every single feature right away? Look what we ended up with...an OS that even the biggest BB critics couldn't call sluggish/slow, because it is actually much more fluid (and in my testing, stable) than Android...and this is coming from a Nexus 4 user that got the Z10.

Look, in order to build something that will handle future development, you need a strong base. That's exactly what BB did; they built a strong base, and now all their attention can be diverted to adding features (and obviously fixing the few bugs in the OS)...

[ubizmo]

BlackBerry didn't even get all their own apps ported to BB10. Where's Protect and Travel? Why does the Bridge suck compared to BBOS? Why aren't the notifications great? I think we should be hold BlackBerry to a higher standard than independent developers, especially when BlackBerry kept pushing B10 availability back on the devs!

I think the answer can only be: They ran out of time. Why was the launch pushed back to 2013? Because it was harder than they thought to get it all working. I think this story gets played out over and over in the tech world. Engineers are pressured to work to deadlines, but things end up taking longer. That leaves the CEO having to make the call whether to delay launch again or launch "thin". In this case, the latter course was chosen. It's risky, but maybe not as risky at the moment as delaying the launch again. At least what they have to show looks good and has promise; delays have neither virtue.

My opinion is that, with limited resources, BBRY is working feverishly to get Protect and Travel up to speed, but the need to fix OS bugs and add missing features is stretching everybody to the breaking point. I can only imagine what the atmosphere in development at BBRY is like right now.

[Fatz_z]

No reviews there yet, but it looks promising for everything but spoken turn-by-turn, which is probably the feature that most people want.

I'd agree, that's about the only thing that's missing. Still, it looks allot more feature rich otherwise when compared to the current Blackberry Maps solution.

[njblackberry]

Especially in the conference room where they are discussing "I though YOU were responsible for Skype"...
Yeah, lots of compromises made as they ran out of time. Q1, 2013 was the date and they couldn't afford another delay.
So they shipped what they had. Never heard of Six Sigma apparently.


In any event, it is a 1.0 release and can be fixed.

[Whitecaps]

BB10 is still young

[Blue Shift]

I see the "android ports" as being a huge plus for BlackBerry, as we can run "our" apps along with "theirs." It was actually a big selling point for me.

[Whitecaps]

I see the "android ports" as being a huge plus for BlackBerry, as we can run "our" apps along with "theirs." It was actually a big selling point for me.

yeah but does this make many developers lazy to develop native apps for bb10???

[Blue Shift]

yeah but does this make many developers lazy to develop native apps for bb10???

Some lazy, some cautiously waiting to see if it's worth the investment of porting an app over natively.

[b320]

Especially in the conference room where they are discussing "I though YOU were responsible for Skype"...
Yeah, lots of compromises made as they ran out of time. Q1, 2013 was the date and they couldn't afford another delay.
So they shipped what they had. Never heard of Six Sigma apparently..

Specifically, regarding Skype, Microsoft is the issue here, not BlackBerry. Microsoft has very little reason to have BlackBerry succeed and they don't *need* BlackBerry. Skype would be noncompetitive if it wasn't available for Android or iOS. BlackBerry at this time, not so much.

I am positive that BlackBerry did whatever smoked-filled room deal that Microsoft bargained for to get Microsoft to allow Skype to be offered on BlackBerry 10 without it being crippled by shady carrier deals like the current version of Skype on BlackBerry 7.x and lower.

[Whitecaps]

I dont really think that the Z10 is a half-baked product tho

[b320]

I dont really think that the Z10 is a half-baked product tho

*Anyone* even reasonably rational who has used a BlackBerry Z10 and has used an actual half-baked mobile device simply *cannot* say that the Z10 is half-baked. I will try to give some examples:

Dell Streak
Samsung Blackjack (hmm)
Samsung Galaxy Tab (the original and "2" both 7-inch)
HTC HD2

All these devices had features that tried to innovate on the market, had "potential" in theory and could have been huge successes but were essentially sunk as soon as they launched because they were actually half-baked to the point that of no recovery and made worse by (eventual) utter abandonment by their manufacturers. This is simply not the case for the Z10.