Considering the Priv but have questions or hesitations about Android? Ask away!

Long time Android user here. I just picked up the Priv, wrote a mini review loving on the Priv. One thing that I think everyone is seeing is that Android users love the Priv and BB10 users can't stand it. Whether it's the transition or the capabilities of the OS, I'm not sure. But I'm thinking I (and other Android users who have come over) can help. Here's the idea:

If you're considering the Priv, but want to see if you'll still have the capabilities you have on BB10, ask away. Describe what your phone does and I'll either tell you how to do it in the Android system, or that it can't be done.

It's be really neat if we could keep this thread a simple Question and Answer thread and put OS opinions elsewhere, but I guess that's up to those who post.

Hopefully I can be helpful to users who are actually planning on switching either make the transition smoother or understand that maybe it's not the device for them - so if you have questions, ask away!

Good idea! I am an Android user after years on BBs. Be glad to help.

OK here we go: HOW THE HELL DO I GET RID OF THAT ANNOYING GOOGLE SEARCH BAR?lol .....sorry for the caps but that's how I feel about that,it makes the phone look cheap in my opinion.

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Question:

Can I still limit the mobile signal technology? In BB10 I would always disable LTE because I was in a weak signal area to save battery. I would just set it to max out at HSPA (which signal was abundant).

Can this be done?, I am pretty sure my batt will be crap if not.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

Originally Posted by mania626

OK here we go: HOW THE HELL DO I GET RID OF THAT ANNOYING GOOGLE SEARCH BAR?lol .....sorry for the caps but that's how I feel about that,it makes the phone look cheap in my opinion.

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Press and hold on it and a remove option will drop down from the top of the screen...drag and drop it.

How do you delete screen shots?

Also whats a good app or way to block text messages/calls? Thanks in advance

Is there BlackBerry Protect on Priv?


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Originally Posted by DetritalGeo

Question:

Can I still limit the mobile signal technology? In BB10 I would always disable LTE because I was in a weak signal area to save battery. I would just set it to max out at HSPA (which signal was abundant).

Can this be done?, I am pretty sure my batt will be crap if not.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

Yes. Under Settings you will find More followed by Cellular Networks followed by Preferred Network Type.

BlackBerry Priv with CrackBerry App for Android

Originally Posted by jsanakonda

Is there BlackBerry Protect on Priv?


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Google offers a similar service to safeguard your BlackBerry Priv. The service is called Android Device Manager and can be accessed via Google Settings.

BlackBerry Priv with CrackBerry App for Android

Originally Posted by Livermore

How do you delete screen shots?

Also whats a good app or way to block text messages/calls? Thanks in advance

You can block a person within contacts. Just go to their conversation, click the little the dots in the upper upper right hand corner, click People and Options, and Block.

Delete screenshots by going to Photos, then open up the menu on the side, go to device folders, and you should see screenshots in that menu.

Hope that helps.

Great post
My question is. I have the passport. What's the best way to transfer all my info including contacts apps files and side loaded apps. Thanks

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Originally Posted by mstrblueskys

You can block a person within contacts. Just go to their conversation, click the little the dots in the upper upper right hand corner, click People and Options, and Block.

Delete screenshots by going to Photos, then open up the menu on the side, go to device folders, and you should see screenshots in that menu.

Hope that helps.

Thank you!

Originally Posted by mstrblueskys

You can block a person within contacts. Just go to their conversation, click the little the dots in the upper upper right hand corner, click People and Options, and Block.

Delete screenshots by going to Photos, then open up the menu on the side, go to device folders, and you should see screenshots in that menu.

Hope that helps.

For a little more functionality that isn't included natively, try MrNumber. It's free, you can add telemarketers and spam calls to the list. You can handle what type of action happens per number such as put this one to VM, directly hang up on that one and I think you can have auto reply messages for texts too.

Edit: it looks like some of the functionality had been taken away since I last used it (due to limitations in android 4.4 and later). It can still block and blacklist spam though.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

First of all, thank you for this thread. Very considerate.

On BlackBerry 10 Youtube plays in the background when you turn off the screen, go to another app, or go to another Web browser tab. How can you keep Youtube playing in the background on Android?

Also, we have Bedtime mode. When activated it kills all message notifications (sound and led), puts a night clock on the screen, and you can choose whether to allow phone calls to come in or not. This is all done by one app. Does Android have something similar?

The Priv unit I had drove me nuts about these features. But also not having BBM Video. And the speakers on my unit where useless. Quiet and muffled. Like unusually quiet. But in video reviews the speakers seem much louder. So maybe I had a defective unit. That unit also had a line of dead pixels.

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This would be very helpful for BlackBerry natives. Thank you.

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How about an app like BeBuzz 10 Led Notification Customization here is the description. Do you recommend something that comes close to the app or is there a large range of customization already on the Priv natively? Thanks

Free version of BeBuzz now available for BlackBerry 10 devices | CrackBerry.com

Originally Posted by SPNKr

How about an app like BeBuzz 10 Led Notification Customization here is the description. Do you recommend something that comes close to the app or is there a large range of customization already on the Priv natively? Thanks

Free version of BeBuzz now available for BlackBerry 10 devices | CrackBerry.com

Check this thread for info on Light Flow: http://forums.crackberry.com/showthread.php?t=1049073

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

Originally Posted by mstrblueskys

Long time Android user here. I just picked up the Priv, wrote a mini review loving on the Priv. One thing that I think everyone is seeing is that Android users love the Priv and BB10 users can't stand it. Whether it's the transition or the capabilities of the OS, I'm not sure. But I'm thinking I (and other Android users who have come over) can help. Here's the idea:

If you're considering the Priv, but want to see if you'll still have the capabilities you have on BB10, ask away. Describe what your phone does and I'll either tell you how to do it in the Android system, or that it can't be done.

It's be really neat if we could keep this thread a simple Question and Answer thread and put OS opinions elsewhere, but I guess that's up to those who post.

Hopefully I can be helpful to users who are actually planning on switching either make the transition smoother or understand that maybe it's not the device for them - so if you have questions, ask away!

How the he'll do you sync outlook calendar contacts tasks and notes with android devices!? That's the main one for me. What are the best solutions for sync based on your experience.

вιaсĸвεггч� ᕵяiv (STV100-3 Rogers Wireless)via CB for Android 5.1.1

Originally Posted by cellphonejunkey

How the he'll do you sync outlook calendar contacts tasks and notes with android devices!? That's the main one for me. What are the best solutions for sync based on your experience.

вιaсĸвεггч� ᕵяiv (STV100-3 Rogers Wireless)via CB for Android 5.1.1

Download the Outlook app! Seriously, it's brilliant. Microsoft is doing a great job with Android apps.

Great thread, this is the kind of information and useful conversations that a forum should be all about... I don't have a Priv, holding on my passport for a little bit to see how it works out... funny thing is, it has only 20 posts with mine after being posted for 5 days... but in the threads to complain you see hundreds of posts in minutes... human beings are weird hahaha... I hope many people take advantage of this thread, thanks again!

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Originally Posted by europolska00

First of all, thank you for this thread. Very considerate.

On BlackBerry 10 Youtube plays in the background when you turn off the screen, go to another app, or go to another Web browser tab. How can you keep Youtube playing in the background on Android?

Also, we have Bedtime mode. When activated it kills all message notifications (sound and led), puts a night clock on the screen, and you can choose whether to allow phone calls to come in or not. This is all done by one app. Does Android have something similar?

The Priv unit I had drove me nuts about these features. But also not having BBM Video. And the speakers on my unit where useless. Quiet and muffled. Like unusually quiet. But in video reviews the speakers seem much louder. So maybe I had a defective unit. That unit also had a line of dead pixels.

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Okay, youtube in the background? The youtube app started doing that itself this year. You should be able to go into youtube, go to settings, click on Backgroun and offline, and under "Background Play" click Always On.

You can set "downtime" in device settings under notifications.

Were you covering the speaker? It's on the bottom left of the device. It's only about a cm long, and you can easily muffle the noise by putting a finger over it.

In BB10 sent emails, received emails and drafts are all in one folder. Do these all populate in the same folder in android, or would I have to switch folders to view sent items and received items? I really like the way BB10 handles it. I find it to be a hassle to have to keep switching folders to look at different emails on my company iphone. Thanks for any input.

Originally Posted by mstrblueskys

Okay, youtube in the background? The youtube app started doing that itself this year. You should be able to go into youtube, go to settings, click on Backgroun and offline, and under "Background Play" click Always On.

You can set "downtime" in device settings under notifications.

Were you covering the speaker? It's on the bottom left of the device. It's only about a cm long, and you can easily muffle the noise by putting a finger over it.

That's awesome about YouTube. On my Priv it wouldn't play in background, but I didn't know you could turn that on in settings.

I will look into downtime settings too!

My speakers unfortunately just seemed crappy. I wasn't covering the corner. But I did realize it was coming from the left corner. I am coming from a Passport, but even my buddies Leap was WAY louder. I'll check out the speakers again.

I did notice something weird. Holding down a key on the physical keyboard doesn't make the letter capital like it does on all other BlackBerry physical keyboards. Kind of a weird thing for BlackBerry to overlook. Was this just my unit?


I hope BBM Video comes in 2016 to Android!

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Originally Posted by Grelda1975

In BB10 sent emails, received emails and drafts are all in one folder. Do these all populate in the same folder in android, or would I have to switch folders to view sent items and received items? I really like the way BB10 handles it. I find it to be a hassle to have to keep switching folders to look at different emails on my company iphone. Thanks for any input.

I'm a little confused by this question, though I think I have the answer.

I'm in the Blackberry Hub - which you can tell by the title is a Blackberry specific creation. This is an AMAZING app! They really knocked it out of the park. But enough about how much I like Hub.

If I'm in my email account within Hub, I can see conversation threads. For instance, I got an email about flights from my sister this morning. I responded. The thread is bumped up to the position of the sent message and when I click on it, it's the threaded conversation, so my sent email is there.

I just tested a draft (in response to a hulu junk email) and as soon as I hit the save button after backing out of the email, it jumped to the top and gave me a new icon to show I had a draft in that conversation. So I think the answer is that it should. It does what you seem to be describing more obviously than any other android email app I have used.

Let me know if I missed the mark entirely! Otherwise, I hope I helped.

Originally Posted by mstrblueskys

Download the Outlook app! Seriously, it's brilliant. Microsoft is doing a great job with Android apps.

You must have a different Outlook app!
That app almost singlehandedly drove me back to BB10 hahaha