1. ratfinkstooley's Avatar
    We have all heard ad nauseam what devices like the Passport and other BBOS devices are NOT capable of, so I thought we would turn the tables for a moment...

    Instead of collecting poems or pieces of writing like a true anthology (I hated doing that in English class by the way), I thought it might be helpful to many if those who regularly use the Passport would collect its capabilities in one place and let others know what this device is still able to do in 2020, perhaps even a few surprising functions that some may not be aware of.

    Just add your collections of capabilities of this still brilliant device to my list..

    1. This large, brilliant keyboard makes typing a joy and ease. I have tried typing on screen, even the widest and largest touch screen devices I could find, and nothing matches typing on a spacious physical keyboard like the Passport. It's obvious, but it has to be stated as the #1 capability of this device that far surpasses the competition. I like being accurate in what I type and say, and the Passport helps A LOT.

    2. This BIG, WIDE screen allows for abilities other devices just can't match the experience such as reading, viewing/editing documents, spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, even gaming on games like Alto's Adventure, Leo's Fortune and Badland are so much better on this screen. There are lots of big screens out there, but only one truly wide screen.

    3. The brilliance of BB10 to allow you to swipe and peek at your messages from the HUB to see IF you need to read the message or just save it for later, WITHOUT leaving your current screen. Productivity at its finest.

    4. The actual phone/dialer part of this device too is just so much better than Android or iOS. Subjective, yes, but it's easy, cohesive and crystal clear sound on both sides of the conversation. I haven't been able to find its equal.

    5. The media/music player is so nice. Even if I didn't use this device as a communication device, the way it plays media and connects to my car's bluetooth is just perfect. Sometimes flashier isn't better.

    6. The hardware of the Passport is so innovative and well built. I have dropped mine several times without a case on it, and it still looks "like new". What other device can you say that about? The old adage "They don't make them like they used to" truly defines the experience of trying to leave the Passport for something newer. I always come back.

    7. The native weather app. Yep, lol. I have tried so many weather apps on Android and none of them match the weather app of the Passport. It's the only weather app I use. Simple, but helpful and ad-free. It needed to be stated.

    8. This one is a wild card, but it's fun to play with and see what you can get this device to do. If you're willing to work a little and tinker around, you'll be surprised to know that it can get the Google Play Store on it, and Google Services (thanks to Cobalt) and suddenly you can get some mainstream apps (albeit older versions) like Netflix, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. This of course is also seen as a hindrance to some, but I enjoy toying around to see what I can perform on this device, other than just downloading any new, mainstream, useless app with an Android/iOS device. The reason I think this is an advantage is because it makes me ask the question "Do I actually need this app in my life?" before I download it. Glass half full I guess.

    Honorable mention..., I enjoy NOT being so mainstream with my life, and the Passport scratches that itch. Everywhere I go, people are shocked and surprised in a good way by the Passport and they usually end up saying to me "I love how DIFFERENT it is". Me too

    I could go on, but I'm curious what you guys have found and why this device just won't leave your hands, even after 6 years of existence...

    Cheers!

    Posted via CB10
    01-25-20 10:05 AM
  2. saint300's Avatar
    For me it's everything you said actually.

    First of all, the actual look of the device. There's just nothing like it! And in a sea of look alike mobile phones, it is a joy to have something so different! Yes, I know this does not mean anything to many people, it's just how I feel after having bought many different phones in the past that actually looked the same.

    That keyboard!! I mean, I loved my Classic's keyboard, but after experiencing the capacitive keyboard of PP, I know it wouldn't feel the same going back to a traditional PKB! Scrolling up/down on webpages,or even zooming in/out by just using the keyboard is really something else!

    Battery life. Although I have bought a brand new original Blackberry battery that I intend to install soon, the original one is still in good health, and with 447 cycle counts still delivers on average 30 hours of actual use.

    The OS. Many years ago I used Symbian phones and I was quite happy with what they offered back then. In 2007 my company gave me the first iPhone as my business device; at first I admit I was excited having something totally different, but very soon I grew rather cold with the device itself and the relevant OS, not to mention that I never felt comfortable typing on glass. So, some time later I went to Android and initially I liked the platform just a little more than Apple's. Still, typing on glass did not feel natural, for me at least.....and then here comes BB10, with the friendliest OS ever!! It's sad to say that history is full of excellent "inventions" that go down with a bang! DeLorean was one....Unfortunately BB10 was another. But this does not mean that the actual product was faulty! All BB10 users here know for a fact that the software was and still is the best! Just see what Android does now with gestures, something that came about years ago because of Blackberry! So, the system is quite easy to use as well as fluid, intuitive and inherently secure!!

    The apps "issue". The lack of millions,mostly useless apps, is not really a problem. I think most apps that an average user needs can be found and work well on the device. Some people have said that the lack of working banking devices is a problem, but while I wouldn't personally use my phone for this, and I understand that there's a whole crowd of people that do need to do so, I still think that accessing your bank's website from a "modern" browser, can do the job required.

    I could also go on and on, and maybe I will, but let's see what other people want to say here.
    01-25-20 10:49 AM
  3. conite's Avatar
    The BB10 keyboard software is still second to none.

    The Passport's 801 SoC makes it powerful enough to decently run a modern Android browser like Fennec or Kiwi - thus opening the doors to a larger number of mobile websites.
    01-25-20 11:04 AM
  4. saint300's Avatar
    Here's a screenshot showing my battery's usage currently. The Passport Anthology-img_20200125_204134.jpeg
    01-25-20 12:45 PM
  5. saint300's Avatar
    It basically says that since last charge 14 hours and 18 minutes have passed and remaining time left is approximately 17 hours. Not that bad.
    01-25-20 12:49 PM
  6. royalblack's Avatar
    nearly all is said .... all arguments are right.

    To add one more argument :-)

    I write in three languages.
    German, Dutch and English.

    I don't have to switch manually. I can write if I want to in all languages instantly. The keyboard follows at once :-)

    I like my passport.
    I like OS10 and its system.
    I like the keyboard.
    I like this WIDE screen.
    I like the design.
    I like it's buildquality.

    I don't like ... well
    it's EOL status.

    Posted via CB10
    01-25-20 03:43 PM
  7. Chuck Finley69's Avatar
    Wireless charging on the AT&T version seemed cool for BlackBerry at time
    01-25-20 03:51 PM
  8. Radoslav Valkov's Avatar
    - Using it as a Bluetooth trackpad / multimedia remote;

    - A good quality compact camera substitute (and fantastic for macro photography);

    - Speech-to-text works incredibly well.
    ratfinkstooley likes this.
    01-26-20 12:55 PM
  9. Umang Maurya's Avatar
    BB Passport is very unique in shape as well as software. It often happens where ever I go people ask about this phone and are shock to see a BB in 21st century.
    The way this phone feels in hand is good.
    Build up quality very good.
    Never hangs.
    Never got heated up.
    Battery back up is very good.
    Software is unique and you will definitely get addicted to the BB10 OS.
    BB Hub is the most useful part.
    During browsing the websites never open unwanted page without permission.

    This phone is not build for masses or for people who wants to waste time on instagram and snapchat.
    This phone will go on and on without any problem, thats the quality of BB.
    01-27-20 09:38 AM
  10. sorinv's Avatar
    The calendar app also much better than iphone 11 pro.
    The multitasking much better than iphone 11 pro.
    Indeed typyng in two or more languages on the iphone is impossible complicated having to manually change the language and not being able to mix two different languages in the same text...

    Posted via CB10
    01-28-20 08:08 AM
  11. Radoslav Valkov's Avatar
    We rarely mention the integrated office suite. I quite often type on it end exchange documents between the PP and laptop. When I need the convenience to edit on the go, I do it with ease on the Passport and level of compatibility suits me well.
    ratfinkstooley and truth4u like this.
    02-07-20 12:14 AM
  12. EFats's Avatar
    The calendar app also much better than iphone 11 pro.
    The multitasking much better than iphone 11 pro.
    Indeed typyng in two or more languages on the iphone is impossible complicated having to manually change the language and not being able to mix two different languages in the same text...
    Oh yes, agree on all of the above!
    I almost forgot about the language bit too, though it only works for mixing same alphabet languages. I was pleasantly surprised how seamless I could switch from English to French without doing anything and despite not using it much, the word prediction and conjugation was spot on!
    elfabio80 and truth4u like this.
    02-07-20 06:33 PM
  13. S1lv1o's Avatar
    I agree with many of these points, I've been carrying the Passport with a Moto G7 Power. The phone is decent, the Android experience is still mediocre, from all I see with friends who have iPhones, that can be even worse (and has some advantages): batteries that last a few hours, services Android has long had which they are just getting; typing is a joke, the system tries to be helpful but fails miserably; example: a friend was travelling to Switzerland, I checked out the weather with Chrome in Zürich once... From then on I kept receiving weather alerts from Zürich, until I was fed up and had to turn off all Chrome notifications.

    In the end the limited Android experience made me use my laptop more, the phone is used for Whatsapp (only because some contacts can't be arsed to move to Signal), Uber, Maps, Google drive, period. Dropbox and Uber are surprisingly bad on Android. Still not gone back to the laptop for email, I hope the Weather app keeps on trucking. On the other hand google drive works by some miracle thanks to Cobalt, it's a little ridiculous to have a phone that's disconnected from cloud services.

    With hindsight, which RIM obviously couldn't have, it wouldn't have been so hard or expensive for them to pull it off: we don't need phones that potentially do everything poorly, we need phones that do a few things well. I don't expect Blackberry to get into this again but there is a huge unattended market between low expectation Android phones that only make sense at $200 - $300 and luxury accessory iPhones at $800 - $1,000. I find the whole notion of expensive phones with a gazillion lenses, no headphone jack and super specced displays hilarious.
    Radoslav Valkov and truth4u like this.
    02-16-20 07:49 PM
  14. Chuck Finley69's Avatar
    I agree with many of these points, I've been carrying the Passport with a Moto G7 Power. The phone is decent, the Android experience is still mediocre, from all I see with friends who have iPhones, that can be even worse (and has some advantages): batteries that last a few hours, services Android has long had which they are just getting; typing is a joke, the system tries to be helpful but fails miserably; example: a friend was travelling to Switzerland, I checked out the weather with Chrome in Zürich once... From then on I kept receiving weather alerts from Zürich, until I was fed up and had to turn off all Chrome notifications.

    In the end the limited Android experience made me use my laptop more, the phone is used for Whatsapp (only because some contacts can't be arsed to move to Signal), Uber, Maps, Google drive, period. Dropbox and Uber are surprisingly bad on Android. Still not gone back to the laptop for email, I hope the Weather app keeps on trucking. On the other hand google drive works by some miracle thanks to Cobalt, it's a little ridiculous to have a phone that's disconnected from cloud services.

    With hindsight, which RIM obviously couldn't have, it wouldn't have been so hard or expensive for them to pull it off: we don't need phones that potentially do everything poorly, we need phones that do a few things well. I don't expect Blackberry to get into this again but there is a huge unattended market between low expectation Android phones that only make sense at $200 - $300 and luxury accessory iPhones at $800 - $1,000. I find the whole notion of expensive phones with a gazillion lenses, no headphone jack and super specced displays hilarious.
    What you’ve described is the BB10 market as we know it with it’s used devices. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough BB10 ecosystem of things done well that could have been supported anyways.
    02-16-20 08:06 PM
  15. the_boon's Avatar
    I find the whole notion of expensive phones with a gazillion lenses, no headphone jack and super specced displays hilarious.
    So do I, but to the eyes of most people, we're the aliens because we don't buy into that mainstream hype
    02-16-20 08:25 PM
  16. conite's Avatar
    So do I, but to the eyes of most people, we're the aliens because we don't buy into that mainstream hype
    What I don't get is why we need to discredit what other people seem to enjoy because it doesn't fit with our own choices.
    Rallyfia likes this.
    02-16-20 08:29 PM
  17. Nathan Snyder's Avatar
    What I don't get is why we need to discredit what other people seem to enjoy because it doesn't fit with our own choices.
    THIS. If people want to use tools that meet the type of experience they're looking for or managing the type of work they're doing, why is it necessary to make disparaging remarks? I never cared for android because it reminds me of a poor man's Symbian, but if it's someone else's cuppa, then hats off!

    For me the Passport is the pinnacle of mini computing achievement even if it's from a bygone era. This shouldn't take away the glory of anyone's experience on any other platform.

    Posted via Passport SE & CB10
    dmlis likes this.
    11-01-20 12:43 AM

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