1. draculito01's Avatar
    After playing with my unit for a couple of hours:

    — wobbly/creaky space bar
    — scratchy noise when starting/stopping the audio playback
    — phone loses connection with Bluetooth headset very easily
    — crappy camera, also froze on me once
    — typing is a pleasure (space bar excluded)
    — signal strength seems better
    — bad LCD calibration distorts greys and whites
    — the phone hit the shelves, WTF are the official cases?

    Bittersweet feeling overall, feels like I paid TCL to be its beta tester once again.
    Last edited by draculito01; 06-29-18 at 02:45 PM.
    06-29-18 02:33 PM
  2. anon(10465884)'s Avatar
    After playing with my unit for a couple of hours:

    — wobbly/creaky space bar
    — scratchy noise when starting/stopping the audio playback
    — phone loses connection with Bluetooth headset very easily
    — crappy camera, also froze on me once
    — typing is a pleasure (space bar excluded)
    — signal strength seems better
    — bad LCD calibration distorts greys and whites

    Bittersweet feeling overall, feels like I paid TCL to be its beta tester once again.
    And you will do the same next year when the key3 is released lol
    06-29-18 02:36 PM
  3. draculito01's Avatar
    While most of these issues seem to be easily fixed by the software update, my question is how the TCL’s (seemingly nonexistent) QC overlooked these things? TCL must address this as soon as possible, but not sooner than they fire their camera guy.
    Slapping a keyboard on a budget Chinese noname and asking $650 for it requires a lot of chutzpah.
    Qorax, katxeus, ron_jeremy and 1 others like this.
    06-29-18 02:43 PM
  4. nbaliga's Avatar
    Curious if the space bar or any of the hardware issues reported are specific to Black or Silver.
    06-29-18 03:37 PM
  5. draculito01's Avatar
    Curious if the space bar or any of the hardware issues reported are specific to Black or Silver.
    Mine is silver.
    06-29-18 04:01 PM
  6. Aneres11's Avatar
    While most of these issues seem to be easily fixed by the software update, my question is how the TCL’s (seemingly nonexistent) QC overlooked these things? TCL must address this as soon as possible, but not sooner than they fire their camera guy.
    Slapping a keyboard on a budget Chinese noname and asking $650 for it requires a lot of chutzpah.
    I have to agree with the majority of this.
    The space bar is a real issue although I actually am getting used to it now.

    The screen is a disappointment if I'm honest as is the space bar. I feel like the space bar ruins an otherwise amazing keyboard.

    The camera froze on me today too which was strange and annoying.
    In bright sunshine, the phone takes good photos. In anything other than good light it becomes very poor.

    I wonder if side loading the Pixel camera would make a difference.
    06-29-18 04:14 PM
  7. draculito01's Avatar
    I tried to side load Pixel camera app but failed. I don’t think it’d help much since there’s no OIS
    Aneres11 likes this.
    06-29-18 04:24 PM
  8. Aneres11's Avatar
    I'm a little on the fence with the phone in general. I wish it was slightly better. In many ways.
    I know it's a mid tier device and I don't even really care about the price (not in a arrogant 'I have money way' coz I don't lol) but because I really want them to make a phone with a keyboard that is truly fantastic.

    And while the KEY2 will surely be fantastic for lots of people, it just misses the mark for me.
    06-29-18 04:45 PM
  9. Mercuryuser's Avatar
    I have to agree with the majority of this.
    The space bar is a real issue although I actually am getting used to it now.

    The screen is a disappointment if I'm honest as is the space bar. I feel like the space bar ruins an otherwise amazing keyboard.

    The camera froze on me today too which was strange and annoying.
    In bright sunshine, the phone takes good photos. In anything other than good light it becomes very poor.

    I wonder if side loading the Pixel camera would make a difference.
    agreed, spacebar is annoying. it does work though so just a case of me getting used to it
    06-29-18 05:49 PM
  10. melhiore's Avatar
    And while the KEY2 will surely be fantastic for lots of people, it just misses the mark for me.
    That makes two of us...
    Aneres11 and xxjavaxx2001 like this.
    06-29-18 06:06 PM
  11. bb10adopter111's Avatar
    It seems to me that TCL can't win with the camera, as anything that isn't as good as the iPhone or Pixel will get trashed by reviewers and users.

    Personally, I find the camera to be about the 57th most important feature on a phone, so I'm just tired of seeing it mentioned constantly! LOL


    Posted with my trusty Z10
    06-29-18 06:17 PM
  12. melhiore's Avatar
    It seems to me that TCL can't win with the camera, as anything that isn't as good as the iPhone or Pixel will get trashed by reviewers and users.

    Personally, I find the camera to be about the 57th most important feature on a phone, so I'm just tired of seeing it mentioned constantly! LOL


    Posted with my trusty Z10
    In my line of work camera happened to be important, low light shots as well. I do a lot of surveys (networking) that require taking the snaps of ducts, risers, suspended ceilings etc - you get the gist. Light in those places is never good... So one of the most important elements of the phone is camera and possibility of making quick notes, emails etc. Key2 was my weapon of choice but now I am not sure anymore...
    06-29-18 06:34 PM
  13. bb10adopter111's Avatar
    In my line of work camera happened to be important, low light shots as well. I do a lot of surveys (networking) that require taking the snaps of ducts, risers, suspended ceilings etc - you get the gist. Light in those places is never good... So one of the most important elements of the phone is camera and possibility of making quick notes, emails etc. Key2 was my weapon of choice but now I am not sure anymore...
    I understand that a camera is genuinely important to many people. It's just that no BlackBerry has ever had a great camera so I don't know why they would start now.

    Posted with my trusty Z10
    06-29-18 06:36 PM
  14. melhiore's Avatar
    I understand that a camera is genuinely important to many people. It's just that no BlackBerry has ever had a great camera so I don't know why they would start now.

    Posted with my trusty Z10
    Because they hyped double lens, made a big fuss about it, because it is 2018 and lets say business people also like taking snaps... But hey, we have PKB...
    markf4130 and hjc73734 like this.
    06-29-18 06:38 PM
  15. nucks26's Avatar
    I understand that a camera is genuinely important to many people. It's just that no BlackBerry has ever had a great camera so I don't know why they would start now.

    Posted with my trusty Z10
    Just because their cameras have sucked in the past doesn't mean we should all just accept that yet another device will have a lackluster camera. I mean, the KEYone didn't take bad shots at all in my opinion, and I have yet to get my hands on a KEY2. But just because their previous cameras have sucked doesn't mean they shouldn't improve them.
    06-29-18 06:41 PM
  16. hjc73734's Avatar
    Thanks for the heads up. I feel better about not pre-ordering from Amazon. They offer 12 months no interest if paid with their store card too. Was tempting!

    I'll keep looking for a good deal on a Black Edition or just keep fine tuning my Silver.
    skinnymike1 likes this.
    06-29-18 06:41 PM
  17. nucks26's Avatar
    In my line of work camera happened to be important, low light shots as well. I do a lot of surveys (networking) that require taking the snaps of ducts, risers, suspended ceilings etc - you get the gist. Light in those places is never good... So one of the most important elements of the phone is camera and possibility of making quick notes, emails etc. Key2 was my weapon of choice but now I am not sure anymore...
    Interesting take!
    06-29-18 06:42 PM
  18. bb10adopter111's Avatar
    Just because their cameras have sucked in the past doesn't mean we should all just accept that yet another device will have a lackluster camera. I mean, the KEYone didn't take bad shots at all in my opinion, and I have yet to get my hands on a KEY2. But just because their previous cameras have sucked doesn't mean they shouldn't improve them.
    I think the BlackBerry cameras have gotten a lot better, but they are not likely to catch up to Google and Apple. Optimizing digital cameras is a complex art, and BlackBerry doesn't have access to the patents or the teams to do it. It's a big boys game.

    It's the same with DSLRs. A couple of big players, like Nixon and Canon, completely outclass all the 2nd tier players.

    In think expecting a best-in-class camera and software on a BlackBerry is just begging for disappointment.

    Posted with my trusty Z10
    06-29-18 06:47 PM
  19. Resilience's Avatar
    if they enable ap2, it would be a bit better
    06-29-18 06:51 PM
  20. Kraeutermann's Avatar
    I think the BlackBerry cameras have gotten a lot better, but they are not likely to catch up to Google and Apple. Optimizing digital cameras is a complex art, and BlackBerry doesn't have access to the patents or the teams to do it. It's a big boys game.

    It's the same with DSLRs. A couple of big players, like Nixon and Canon, completely outclass all the 2nd tier players.

    In think expecting a best-in-class camera and software on a BlackBerry is just begging for disappointment.

    Posted with my trusty Z10
    Well put!

    Posted via CB10
    skinnymike1 likes this.
    06-29-18 07:12 PM
  21. BerryRipe's Avatar
    Thank you for your feedback, I wasn't necessarily going to order a Key2 as I'm still using my BB10 phones but I do keep up with the latest and greatest. Here's to hoping the Key3 will be a much better phone than the KeyOne and Key2. I want a slightly wider and not so tall phone with stereo speakers, the camera doesn't have to be the best but it needs to function flawlessly.

    Posted via CB10
    Qorax, anon(9175377) and elfabio80 like this.
    06-29-18 07:15 PM
  22. supertom's Avatar
    In my line of work camera happened to be important, low light shots as well. I do a lot of surveys (networking) that require taking the snaps of ducts, risers, suspended ceilings etc - you get the gist. Light in those places is never good... So one of the most important elements of the phone is camera and possibility of making quick notes, emails etc. Key2 was my weapon of choice but now I am not sure anymore...
    well the good and convenient thing that i like about the KEYone camera app is, although the low-light may not be very good, you can still adjust the exposure of the shot by swiping on the keyboard to make it bright enough to see everything. The quality of the photo won't be there, but at least you'll be able to see everything .. i take it how nice the photo looks is less important for your job, and more so the ability to see everything to make an accurate assessment

    I, myself, use my phone for instagram at times.. lol
    skinnymike1 likes this.
    06-29-18 07:17 PM
  23. j21jam6's Avatar
    I must say that it's a bit disheartening to read about four different people complain about the same couple of issues here on CrackBerry. Conversely I haven't seen a thread with four different people complimenting one or two things.
    I'm still a first day buyer but the space bar mentions are eye opening.
    skinnymike1 and velkod like this.
    06-29-18 08:25 PM
  24. krazyatom's Avatar
    It bothers me that space bar clicking sound is different from other keyboards.
    anon(4295315) likes this.
    06-29-18 08:33 PM
  25. bendiep1991's Avatar
    After playing with my unit for a couple of hours:

    — wobbly/creaky space bar
    — scratchy noise when starting/stopping the audio playback
    — phone loses connection with Bluetooth headset very easily
    — crappy camera, also froze on me once
    — typing is a pleasure (space bar excluded)
    — signal strength seems better
    — bad LCD calibration distorts greys and whites
    — the phone hit the shelves, WTF are the official cases?

    Bittersweet feeling overall, feels like I paid TCL to be its beta tester once again.
    Great post OP. Please keep this list updated as more people report issues.

    Need blaze and kevin to report back on these issues
    skinnymike1 and Jrox74 like this.
    06-29-18 08:42 PM
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