[Marcin Dabrowsky]

So I thought the K1 Black was a pretty great phone.

I received my silver K2 yesterday in the afternoon and used it for about 4 hours last night as well as some hours this morning.

Here are just my initial impressions about it vs the K1.

When I unboxed, I thought the phone presented very well. It looks amazing, very much like the Passport SE, just narrower. Until I picked it up.

There is no weight to it, unlike the great feeling heft of the K1. It feels, dare I say, cheap compared to the K1?

The keyboard, while WAYYY better typing experience without any squeaking etc, feels toyish to me. It just feels plastic and without substance. Something just feels off.

After a few minutes actually holding the phone, it feels less expensive than the K1 did.

The capacitive buttons of the K2 are a lot more sensitive, even with a full tempered screen protector over them, no issues with registering touches. That's a big plus.

Flip side, the recents (square) button of the capacitive row is dimmer by about 40-50% than re back and home buttons which to me just says wtf really? This is something I am looking at constantly and it just feels like something isn't right right out of the box.

The screen is much dimmer on auto settings, so now I have to have adaptive display completely off. The sharpness and saturation and quality otherwise is on par with the K1 but not better.

The fingerprint sensor is exponentially worse than the one on my K1. Yes I did register properly from all angles. It is slower and misses 1 to 2 out of every 5 tries. Very annoying.

Software wise, the ram bump and cpu bump definitely help. I was able to install all my apps from the play store about 50% faster than the K1.

Multi tasking with the speed key is great. I do like that option a lot, but it is not in itself a selling point for me.

The camera seemed ok to me in both light and dim situations, about on par with the K1.

The sound volume is louder on the K2, however it seems muffled compared to the K1... almost as if though it is coming out of a hollow box... strange.

Here is my final thought:

If the K1 was using the 660, even with the 4gb or ram on the black model, it would be a superior phone to this one in many aspects.

At this point, I will be returning this K2. There is no "substance" to it. All the hype and all my waiting, and finally receiving it has left me with a very underwhelmed feeling.

I may go back to a K1 Black, or just stick with my Huawei Mate 10 running the Blackberry suite of apps.

If you are on the fence about getting this phone, I would personally recommend holding on to your K1, especially if you have the black version. Until, at least, the prices go down for the K2.

*** This post is not to troll or to argue, simply state my finding and feelings about the new device. I am sure some are in love with it, but I do not see enough of an improvement to recommend an upgrade at this price point. I personally feel disappointed with too many parts of the whole to keep it. ***

[RK_BB]

Now that you say that and I read some other similar findings I am considering canceling my "pre-order" that never arrived when it should have...

Like you say, all that waiting and excitement....

[Tim-ANC]

Thank you for the post. I wasn't planning on getting one until (if) AT&T offered it. Perhaps they'll have an exclusive version

[conite]

You had me at "waaaay better typing experience".

One of the complaints regarding the KEYᵒⁿᵉ was its heft. Switching to series 7000 aluminum makes it both stronger and lighter. I, for one, am glad they did it, as I'm on my phone for 7+ hours a day.

[MB64]

Thanks for your review.

[bqik]

thanks for sharing your pov.

Best and refined K2 will appear in 2-3 months.

all that qc problems and small issues are going to be solved.

[anon(4297019)]

Here are just my initial impressions about it vs the K1.

When I unboxed, I thought the phone presented very well. It looks amazing, very much like the Passport SE, just narrower. Until I picked it up.

There is no weight to it, unlike the great feeling heft of the K1. It feels, dare I say, cheap compared to the K1?

The keyboard, while WAYYY better typing experience without any squeaking etc, feels toyish to me. It just feels plastic and without substance. Something just feels off.

After a few minutes actually holding the phone, it feels less expensive than the K1 did.

That is a horrible review. Reviews are not supposed to be based on feelings.

Most of the negatives that you bring up are all your personal feelings and not based on function.

The phone has no heft... 12 grams lighter than the KEYᵒⁿᵉ and basically the same dimensions? FEELS cheaper though?

The new keyboard performs way better than the KEYᵒⁿᵉ but FEELS cheaper?

And so on and on.

I hope that the next time you buy a car they let you test drive it for a week and then let you return it because the rear view mirror is a little too light in FEELING when adjusting it.

Personal Impressions are one thing but to trash a phone because of your personal feelings (even though you say that it performs better at what is supposed to do) seems a little off to me as you would say.

[Tim-ANC]

Well sure, feeling has a lot to do with personal preference. The OP simply stated his reasons for not liking it. I don't like Chevy pickups because they don't feel durable. Don't like Glock pistols because they feel like a toy. Both are fine products, just not for me.

[Emaderton3]

Well sure, feeling has a lot to do with personal preference. The OP simply stated his reasons for not liking it. I don't like Chevy pickups because they don't feel durable. Don't like Glock pistols because they feel like a toy. Both are fine products, just not for me.

Exactly. If we weren't basing any choices on feelings, then everybody should move to all the cheaper priced phones with better specs.

It is a fair review. The phone won't be for everyone. So what.

[Marcin Dabrowsky]

That is a horrible review. Reviews are not supposed to be based on feelings.

Most of the negatives that you bring up are all your personal feelings and not based on function.

The phone has no heft... 12 grams lighter than the KEYᵒⁿᵉ and basically the same dimensions? FEELS cheaper though?

The new keyboard performs way better than the KEYᵒⁿᵉ but FEELS cheaper?

And so on and on.

I hope that the next time you buy a car they let you test drive it for a week and then let you return it because the rear view mirror is a little too light in FEELING when adjusting it.

Personal Impressions are one thing but to trash a phone because of your personal feelings (even though you say that it performs better at what is supposed to do) seems a little off to me as you would say.

I never said this was a professional review, or even a review. Just shared my personal OBSERVATIONS.

I don't go around screaming at people who absolutely LOVE everything about the phone, I simply read them, take in their findings and move on.

I understand you feel the need to defend a product for some reason, but let me just have my personal opinions and move on. If you love it, by all means go out and get 10 of them. I will be returning mine. I'd be willing to sell it to you at a premium while they're hard to get

Oh and PS, I don't need to test drive a car for a week before I get one. I run a large car dealership

[Tim-ANC]

I'd be willing to sell it to you at a premium while they're hard to get

Oh and PS, I don't need to test drive a car for a week before I get one. I run a large car dealership

I'll pay you $1000 USD for the phone if you throw in a new F350 diesel

[Marcin Dabrowsky]

love the 350 diesel. would do well pulling my camper vs my f150.

[psychofox13]

Possibly the most important question:

Does 5GHz WiFi stay connected and actually work? :P

[Marcin Dabrowsky]

haven't tried the 5g. I connect at 2.whatever for longer distance. I almost never use wifi though due to my lte signal being excellent everywhere.

[anon(4297019)]

I never said this was a professional review, or even a review. Just shared my personal OBSERVATIONS.

I don't go around screaming at people who absolutely LOVE everything about the phone, I simply read them, take in their findings and move on.

I understand you feel the need to defend a product for some reason, but let me just have my personal opinions and move on. If you love it, by all means go out and get 10 of them. I will be returning mine. I'd be willing to sell it to you at a premium while they're hard to get

Oh and PS, I don't need to test drive a car for a week before I get one. I run a large car dealership

I didn't defend the product. What I read was contradictory and I pointed that out.

BTW, can I come over to your dealership and buy a brand new car and then return it after the weekend because it feels cheap?

[MB64]

.....as long as it’s before the 2 weeks return policy......lmao

[Marcin Dabrowsky]

I didn't defend the product. What I read was contradictory and I pointed that out.

BTW, can I come over to your dealership and buy a brand new car and then return it after the weekend because it feels cheap?

Actually, yes you can. We have a 3 day exchange policy for that reason exactly. But you'll have to exchange for a pricier vehicle due to the taxes already being submitted electronically based on the value of the first car.

Some of my highest gross deals are on exchange vehicles

But after spending another day with this phone I'll mostly be returning it not due to feeling cheap but the inconsistent lighting and double typing issue I've been experiencing a lot.

[conite]

But after spending another day with this phone I'll mostly be returning it not due to feeling cheap but the inconsistent lighting and double typing issue I've been experiencing a lot.

Both of which are software issues. You haven't even waited for a single update yet.

[anon(4297019)]

Actually, yes you can. We have a 3 day exchange policy for that reason exactly. But you'll have to exchange for a pricier vehicle due to the taxes already being submitted electronically based on the value of the first car.

Some of my highest gross deals are on exchange vehicles

But after spending another day with this phone I'll mostly be returning it not due to feeling cheap but the inconsistent lighting and double typing issue I've been experiencing a lot.

There in one paragraph you made more sense than in the original post.

P.S. My dad told me two things. Never buy snake oil and never trust a car dealer... ok it's a joke!

[anon(10387168)]

OP, all the power to you! We may differ, it's subjective. To all the folks on here who don't believe that purchases are comprised of 90% emotions and 10% spec on big boys toys! Well, you definitely have some homework to do and maturity to achieve! I fully understand the fanning of the product, that too is an emotional response to a great extent, and I at times do the same! But to discount a review based on emotional content, is truly laughable! Keep it real my friends! Cheers,

[Marcin Dabrowsky]

Both of which are software issues. You haven't even waited for a single update yet.

Capacitive light inconsistency is a hardware issue my friend. Double typing is a hardware issue. Unless they do a quickfix where the software will automatically delete an extra character if it is depressed within a certain millisecond interval.

[Moon_Man]

double typing is actually both an hardware and software issue. double typing is a normal thing. When you press a button, it actually doesn't press only once, but the button bounces very slightly in micrometers up and down, because of your finger isn't perfectly steady while pressing, or the mechanism just works that way.

the only way to fix this is to bypass it with optimized software specific for that issue.
That's what I've read about mechanical and tactile keyboards

[meattray]

I appreciate the review. I know a lot of people want to quickly defend the product in any way but it's nice to see the issues people have as well. It's unfortunate that there's a few things that need to be fixed with some software updates as a lot of these first impressions are where they'll lose the regular Joe.

I'm interested in the feel of the keyboard. Are you able to elaborate more on that at all?

[anon(4297019)]

double typing is actually both an hardware and software issue. double typing is a normal thing. When you press a button, it actually doesn't press only once, but the button bounces very slightly in micrometers up and down, because of your finger isn't perfectly steady while pressing, or the mechanism just works that way.

the only way to fix this is to bypass it with optimized software specific for that issue.
That's what I've read about mechanical and tactile keyboards

Actually the BlackBerry keyboards are capacitive. Unlike mechanical keyboards changes in capacitance are recognized when a key is pressed or touched for swiping.

The double typing is a software issue that will no doubt be corrected.

[Marcin Dabrowsky]

I appreciate the review. I know a lot of people want to quickly defend the product in any way but it's nice to see the issues people have as well. It's unfortunate that there's a few things that need to be fixed with some software updates as a lot of these first impressions are where they'll lose the regular Joe.

I'm interested in the feel of the keyboard. Are you able to elaborate more on that at all?

The keyboard itself feels way better than the k1. It is much clicker but also very plasticky feeling. To me it feels cheaper to the touch on the surface but feels better to the press if that makes sense.

Overall typing is much easier and more efficient over the k1.

I don't like the difference in paint type between the letters and symbols which are very difficult to see at night. It was easier to see those on the k1.

Overall the typing is better. More efficient.