[delboyca]

For the call saving to the calendar, found this app CallNotes from ToySoft who always have top quality apps. Haven't tried it, but it sounds like the initial limitations of not able to grab the call number/name automatically (API added in 10.3+) and headless support have all been resolved, but the description doesn't clearly state that...





Posted via CB10

[CharlieV]

For the call saving to the calendar, found this app CallNotes from ToySoft who always have top quality apps. Haven't tried it, but it sounds like the initial limitations of not able to grab the call number/name automatically (API added in 10.3+) and headless support have all been resolved, but the description doesn't clearly state that...





Posted via CB10

I hope so. I bought it when it really sucked. It basically knew you had a call and popped up a dialog that gave me to opportunity to enter in the number I'd just talked to and the name of that person (not grabbing that information from the call log and contacts)... It was basically like a little form to make the calendar entry. That was a real let down at the time.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[CharlieV]

Thanks for the amazing, informative, and responsive post. My Passport should arrive today and if it looks good, one of the first things I will do is turn off my Microcell and put it, and my Note 3, side by side and compare the reception. Most people don't know that there is a small but noticeable lag with Microcells, and the conversation can become garbled when heavy internet use from other sources is underway. I have pretty fast internet (about 5Mbs up and 25Mbs down), and this happens frequently. My 9900 and Q10 had better reception than the previous Note 2--I had to get the Microcell specifically for the Note 3--so I am hoping I can take the Passport off the Microcell.

I had no idea that wind could affect eh keyboard. That's a shocker.

I am a technical writer and and, in all humility, a great speller, too (I have participated in an won spelling bees for charity as an adult, for goodness' sake, and I write and speak for a living), and Android makes me look like a moron more than once a day. I would prefer to have a mispelled word from typing errors than the wrong word altogether but I often get the latter when I am in a hurry. I used to keep the same signature on my phone and computer so my operations seemed seamless, but I quickly had to change my phone signature (for emails, i mean) to an APOLOGY along the lines of "Sent from my Phone. Please excuse typographical errors... small screen, distractions." That's just not professional. My last name is Van Cleef and some clients attribute my typos to me speaking "Vancleefanese". So I have high hopes for the keyboard. I think the biggest challenge for me will be the misplaced space bar.

[CharlieV]

It arrived. I charged it up and am updating. Had to run to AT&T to get a smaller SIM card. I put SNAP on it and it is digesting all of the new stuff. I will get it set up this evening and try it out for real tomorrow.

I kept the Note 3 activate but on another, secondary, line.

[CharlieV]

Hopefully this shows an appropriate tagline

Posted via CB10

[aha]

Keep us posted on your new Passport experience please!

Posted via CB10 with PassportSQW100-1/10.3.1.2072

[CharlieV]

Keep us posted on your new Passport experience please!

Posted via CB10 with PassportSQW100-1/10.3.1.2072

Okay here are my very preliminary observations.

First, quick background. I used Blackberries for years and had my own server in my small business. About a year after the iphone came out I went to Apple. Not a business phone, IMHO, and ended up with Android. I always had an extra BB, including my 9900 and a Q10. I had the Q10 a short time and got disgusted; sold it on ebay. I am a very mobile worker and use my phone, a laptop, and a tablet most of the time. A large copier/scanner and some printers round out my suite. I am super proficient with Android.

The unboxing. Wow, nice device. Nice peripherals. The device has gravitas before you turn it on. It looks like a business device. It looks durable. It looks capable.

I had to go to the AT&T store to get a nano SIM and get a new SIM for my Note 3. They had never seen nor heard of a Passport. This is a large corporate store. They got the SIM and two salesmen asked if they could play with it. Irritating because I WANTED TO PLAY WITH IT. But I am a nice guy and sat idle for about 10 minutes. They were impressed. They had no other Blackberries on display. The second salesman asked me what it was. They commented how fluid it was. They asked me if any cases were made for it. Um...

Back to me. I made my first call. The sound was very good on both ends. I made a call using my Samsung and the call quality suddenly sounded hollow--never noticed that before. The Passport sounds like a very good polycom phone. Second call. I set the Passport on my console. I was driving my old Land Rover (15 years old). It is not a quiet car. I had the window open and driving between 35 and 55. I asked my buddy, after 15 minutes talking, how I sounded... he said fine. He was unaware that I was driving and said I sounded like I had the phone to my face. That is VERY impressive. I haven't used BB10 for more than maybe 5 hours in my life. Calls, at least, were very intuitive. I learned the major swipey gestures pretty quick. If the phone volume gets louder when farther from my ear I am not really discerning that. Bluetooth pair with my Plantronics Edge was quick and painless.

Got back home. Had to do an update and figure out activesync settings for my Google Apps domain. No problem.

Whoa, big problem. It is mangling my contacts--all 1400 of them. For some reason some are not showing mobile numbers and work email addresses are gone. It is picking up other numbers and using home email addresses. Have to look into that. BIG problem. I am not finding and retyping all of that. I have a paid service (EVERCONTACT) that contantly monitors my stuff for new names and addresses, and adds them to my Google Apps contacts, finds more info on them, and adds that. It is getting a little mangled. Maybe the activesyn setup is the wrong way to go; I'm not sure.

So now I am thinking about apps. This is where it got really interesting. Biggest things for me are calendar, email, text, logging texts and calls, and call recording. Most of that is built in and I'd bought the rest when i had my Q10. Just put my Blackberry ID in, and then tested. Everything worked. NICE. Now to Android Apps. Figured out how to install Snap. Done. Downloaded several Android Apps, most paid, and THEY ALL WORK. Billing software, encrypted instant messenger, podcast app, scanner with PDF/OCR... I mean everything works. Everything. I am astounded. Now, I haven't gotten everything yet, but I have all of the essentials, and they work flawlessly. I was even able to access my OneDrive and edit Word documents. Very slick.

The keyboard is a little stiff. I know that it will loosen up.

The correction is good. I figured out how to flick though I sometimes accidentally stipe the screen. My thunb sometimes looks for the spacebar lower than it is.

Roku works for my TV. That's nice. I haven't put many optional apps on it yet, but I was impressed that Roku worked right out of the box.

Only quibbles so far are that I get bigger screens for vision purposes (I need reading glasses), and the browser is VERY slick, but it is in desktop mode and I haven't figured out how to get something more readable yet.The Crackberry App, I am sorry to say, has been my only disappointment because loggin in with facebook credentials doesn't work (apparently the fields are somewhere off the screen), and I don't see an easy way to find the forum threads that I am participating in.

I haven't tried Blackberry Blend yet; about to install it. I think it is like Pushbullet, which I use alot.

Sorry for the typos; it is late so please just muscle through.

Best,

Charlie V

[CharlieV]

Okay I found out how to find my posts on the crackberry app,

Signal shows the same or one bar higher than the Note 3, but it actually has data and voice service at one bar.

I forgot to mention that I received a call at Sams. Three people asked me what it was. Could I have the only Passport in East Texas?

The screen is very readable in full daylight, unlike the Note 3.

With the keyboard up on the Note 3, which is the normal mode for me, I have much more viewable area on my BlackBerry. This is a much more readable device.

I deleted the activesync setup and set up as Gmail. I will report on the syncing later.

The voice recognition on the Passport has a longer starup but is far more accurate t:han Google Now and t:he voice keyboard. Integration with the calendar is better. Notifications make more sense.

Far fewer steps to make a call or find a contact.

Posted via CB10

[andre3030]

Hook up a docking station in your office and download Blend on you Pc Mac. I figure that your battery life would be good for the rest of your day if travelling.

Posted via CB10

[CharlieV]

The only things that don't seem to work on the Passport that I have on the Note 3 are things I don't use anyway, Amazon Instant Video and Chrome cast.

I deleted my accounts and started over, and the calendar and contacts issue sorted out. I'm really pleased with that. I am using activesync settings for my Google Apps domain. Works fine.

I am really shocked at how well android apps work. Of course I would rather have native apps, but that's okay.

For anyone interested, Call Notes logs my calls and texts, and Call Recorder Pro is recording calls. The only catch is that Call Recorder Pro has to be open on the main screen to use it and it doesn't start when the phone starts.

I'm really pleased so far. I am definitely going to keep it. Would someone please recommend a case that I can find on Amazon?

My sole unresolved disappointment has been that I cannot open my favorite site without changing to desktop mode in the developer options of the browser. Land Rover Forums. For some reason, when I try to open it, the address changes at the bottom of the screen very quickly, again and again. And it never opens.

I am looking forward to programming the speed dial keys. Haha.

My pin is 2BEA9DA6

[CharlieV]

I guess I will keep posting until someone tells me to shut up or I run out of steam.

I've been on the blackberry since 6am and had the Note 3 open as well. The Note has great battery life but I've noticed that having the screens on, the blackberry holds up much better with battery life.

The hub is very, very nice, but it is already overwhelming me with notifications. I see that I can customize that. I'm getting Facebook, LinkedIn, and maybe 40 emails so far. Deleting trash messages is super easy. Wow! Yes, on Android all I have to do it swipe to delete but on blackberry I just poke the trash can. When you get alot of email and have a big phone, poke beats swipe.

I checked some of my old faxes (aforementioned TIF attachments) and I see a nice thumbnail of the first page, but I don't see how to open the fax to look at the rest of the pages. Have to figure that out. Seeing the cover page and not being able to access the rest could induce stress... Depending on who it is from.

I can see that having my email folders set up better would be a major boon because it is easy to file emails in a folder on blackberry. That's worth the price of admission alone.

Not having Google services. Okay, an admission here. . I use Google Apps domain for my work email and calendaring, but I do not like Google. This isn't some general paranoia, either. I know a little more about it than the average bear. I pay for Google Apps domain. But for the rest? The old saying is true: if you don't pay for the product, you are the product.

Since I have tethering and a nexus tablet, the few Google services that I use can be accessed when necessary.

[CharlieV]

I will look at print hand... but I just installed my paid Printershare App (Android) and it seems to be working.

[CharlieV]

Per previous suggestions, I did a little research and got a dock. I also got a screen protector and slim case. I am disappointed that there isn't an otterbox case for the passport so I got a cheapie (but with good reviews). The dock is not the Blackberry dock. Same price but it accommodates cases. If anyone is interested I read a lot and here is what I got:

Monoy� 9H Hardness Tempered Glass Front Screen Protectors for Blackberry Passport (Blackberry Passport)
TUDIA Ultra Slim LITE TPU Bumper Protective Case for BlackBerry Passport (Black)
KDG-LCC-TAB (dock)

Total cost less than 50 dollars shipped.

[ALToronto]

The great thing about BB10 is that you can silence notifications from each account. I have only my main email account, texts and BBM with audible notifications, my secondary email, FB and LinkedIn are silent.

With phone calls, I get a lot of spam robocalls, and if the number is displayed, I save it under 'Ignore' and give it a silent ringtone.

For file attachments, did you try scrolling horizontally? Pdf files scroll vertically, but other types can be horizontal. If that still doesn't work for your faxes, long press on the attachment and save it. Then open the file separately from email by tapping on it.

Posted via CB10 from my awesome Passport

[Z_Tasreen]

I guess I will keep posting until someone tells me to shut up or I run out of steam..

Hey, keep your observations coming! And welcome to the club — so pleased to hear you’re enjoying it. Have you tried the camera yet? Okay, the slow focus takes a little getting used to (but it has been fixed with the 10.3.1 update, which is just round the corner), but once it does the pics come out so, so good! So much crisper and livelier than most phone cameras.

As for the keyboard, very soon you’ll prefer to compose all your long e-mails on the Passport than anywhere else… ;-)

[aha]

Yeah keep it coming, makes awesome light reading.

Posted via CB10 with PassportSQW100-1/10.3.1.2072

[CharlieV]

I didn't try scrolling horizontally! Dang. But I will.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[CharlieV]

Hey, keep your observations coming! And welcome to the club � so pleased to hear you�re enjoying it. Have you tried the camera yet? Okay, the slow focus takes a little getting used to (but it has been fixed with the 10.3.1 update, which is just round the corner), but once it does the pics come out so, so good! So much crisper and livelier than most phone cameras.

As for the keyboard, very soon you�ll prefer to compose all your long e-mails on the Passport than anywhere else� ;-)

The camera is slow. No doubt. However, the camera icon is right up front and when you consider how long it takes for me to get to the icon and everything to be ready on my Note 3, I'd say it is a tie.

They keyboard is amazing. Since I learned how to flick the suggestions I have been a happy camper.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[CharlieV]

Had a slight issue this evening. As you may recall my initial question was whether the passport would handle the heavy workload (for my phone, anyway). Fridays are light for me unless I am traveling and I am not today. When I shut it down at 6 I still had 40 percent left! That's perfect. I went to dinner and the next time I pulled my phone out, it was at 10 percent and warm. 30 percent loss in an hour?! I had several android apps open and I suspect one of them was abusing my cpu. I'm not sure how to tell which one it was except by trial and error, so I reset the phone and stuck it on a charger and am timing it to a full charge, while on (using the stock charger).

That's why I am posting with my Android right now.

I got Blend installed and working today. Very nice. Since I was at a computer most of the day I was able to respond to maybe 20 text messages with the laptop keyboard. Very nice experience and no hiccups.

The hub is pure genius. I can check and very quickly delete or dismiss emails. I got on Gmail and spent about an hour cleaning up my mail folder structure. In about 10 minutes they synced on my Passport and I started filing email. This is a major time and worry saver for me and whole Android works for filing in folders, it is much easier (fewer steps) on the Passport.

I don't care about wallpapers and it strikes me that the main screen could be better used. Are there widgets or apps that will put something I can use there?

Finally, I decided to actually read what I can do with the voice assistant and made some calendar entries and calls using it. I didn't remember to Google the difference between a reminder and a calendar entry. I always want calendar entries because they make a trail for me and pop up on all of my devices. I'm going to have to practice that to be sure that I am making the right kinds of entries. The recognition for voice typing is much better than Google's.

I discovered a bug. When my phone is attached to a microcell/femotocell, it thinks all data is passing on a mobile network, even if I am separately connected to the local WiFi for data. It refuses to update, etc. To update, I had to put it in airplane mode and update via Link. Just putting that out there in case someone does a search thinking they can't update their phone.

Tomorrow I have some other projects but I want to find out how to secure the phone and my communications. With BBOS 7 I had a BBM add on called Ekboo for additional encryption, but that was never updated for BB10. And, in any case it won't work for non BB BBM implementations. Have to come up with something else. I'm pretty sure that my typical encrypted IM program was making by battery hot, so, well, I don't know where to turn. For years when I have read about poeple on different platforms wanting to secure their phone or communications there are always responses like "what do you have to hide," so, to stave that off, I have client confidences to hide and my own personal thoughts which I think I have a right to keep to myself and any intended recipients. In fact that is one of the things that I like about getting off of Google's ecosystem, for the most part. I miss my BB enterprise server because of that. I always tell people with Android phones to Google "Google location history," log in, and see where they have been, how fast they were traveling, what time of day and night it was... Every minute for however many years they have had Google phones and the same Google account. It is creepy and it is on a map. I imagine that can be accomplished with any mobile operating system and phone service provider, but I doubt blackberry makes it that easy.

Is there a way to use shortcut keys to open programs or are they limited to speed dial?

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[robsteve]

The App manager utility in settings should probably show you which app was burning through your battery .

In regards to BES, I think BlackBerry is going to offer it as a cloud service on a monthly fee. They used to do that with the BBOS phones and MS office365.

Posted via CB10

[CharlieV]

The App manager utility in settings should probably show you which app was burning through your battery .

In regards to BES, I think BlackBerry is going to offer it as a cloud service on a monthly fee. They used to do that with the BBOS phones and MS office365.

Posted via CB10

That's good. I have a server, but is simply a file server and has some other functions for accessing outside the office... I converted it to Linux a couple of years ago and I probably can't find my old Windows server disks (which would probably be required for whatever passes for a BES these days). I've been evaluating cloud storage for a couple of months, have already uploaded all of my files, and I think my once amazing dell server may be shut off next month for good because mirroring everything is a constant PITA.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[CharlieV]

Charge from 9 percent to full took 2 hours and twenty minutes using the included charger. I haven't found something to magnify and determine the amperage but I bet it is 2.0 amps.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[Z_Tasreen]

Had a slight issue this evening. As you may recall my initial question was whether the passport would handle the heavy workload (for my phone, anyway). Fridays are light for me unless I am traveling and I am not today. When I shut it down at 6 I still had 40 percent left! That's perfect. I went to dinner and the next time I pulled my phone out, it was at 10 percent and warm. 30 percent loss in an hour?! I had several android apps open and I suspect one of them was abusing my cpu. I'm not sure how to tell which one it was except by trial and error, so I reset the phone and stuck it on a charger and am timing it to a full charge, while on (using the stock charger).

That's why I am posting with my Android right now.

I got Blend installed and working today. Very nice. Since I was at a computer most of the day I was able to respond to maybe 20 text messages with the laptop keyboard. Very nice experience and no hiccups.

The hub is pure genius. I can check and very quickly delete or dismiss emails. I got on Gmail and spent about an hour cleaning up my mail folder structure. In about 10 minutes they synced on my Passport and I started filing email. This is a major time and worry saver for me and whole Android works for filing in folders, it is much easier (fewer steps) on the Passport.

I don't care about wallpapers and it strikes me that the main screen could be better used. Are there widgets or apps that will put something I can use there?

Finally, I decided to actually read what I can do with the voice assistant and made some calendar entries and calls using it. I didn't remember to Google the difference between a reminder and a calendar entry. I always want calendar entries because they make a trail for me and pop up on all of my devices. I'm going to have to practice that to be sure that I am making the right kinds of entries. The recognition for voice typing is much better than Google's.

Is there a way to use shortcut keys to open programs or are they limited to speed dial?

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

It is definitely an Android app. Also, if you’ve left a bunch of Android apps open they’ll burn through your battery — my advice to you would be to close them down as soon as you’re done.

As for the home screen, you can actually get rid of it — go to settings, then display, then toggle off ‘show wallpaper when all apps are closed’.

[CharlieV]

As for the home screen, you can actually get rid of it � go to settings, then display, then toggle off �show wallpaper when all apps are closed�.

Oh that's cool and a great tip. Thanks! Just got rid of wallpaper.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[will308]

I use onedrive and have had no problems at all............and its in blackberrys app store