1. Omato's Avatar
    Hi folks,
    I have a Blackberry Priv and managed to smash the screen. The battery is near death anyway so I'm planning to buy a new Priv to hold me over until a Key <next> is released (maybe 2020??)

    A seller on Kijiji is claiming he has a "new" Priv for sale without the box... I'm sceptical. How can I determine if the device is new - not refurbished, not stolen, not franken-parted?

    I believe this guy has (had?) a store that is going out of business and he has a number of devices listed to sell. The address is a legitimate store front, but the the actual store is also posted for sale elsewhere. I don't know if he's clearing out returned/broken product or if it's legit that he's getting rid of inventory.

    Any ideas?
    01-21-20 06:10 PM
  2. conite's Avatar
    Hi folks,
    I have a Blackberry Priv and managed to smash the screen. The battery is near death anyway so I'm planning to buy a new Priv to hold me over until a Key is released (maybe 2020??)

    A seller on Kijiji is claiming he has a "new" Priv for sale without the box... I'm sceptical. How can I determine if the device is new - not refurbished, not stolen, not franken-parted?

    I believe this guy has (had?) a store that is going out of business and he has a number of devices listed to sell. The address is a legitimate store front, but the the actual store is also posted for sale elsewhere. I don't know if he's clearing out returned/broken product or if it's legit that he's getting rid of inventory.

    Any ideas?
    Not really much you can do.

    Once running you could check to see which OS build it's on. It should be on something from the first 6 months of release, and not have any updates since.

    The more important question is which model and variant is it?
    01-21-20 06:32 PM
  3. Omato's Avatar
    He has an STV100-1 (which is the same as what I have) and claims to have 4x STV100-4's which are not relevant for me.

    I guess it's a gamble.
    01-21-20 06:41 PM
  4. falbo's Avatar
    Maybe he means in New condition, as it's in no original box.


    Posted via my beautiful priv
    01-22-20 07:33 AM
  5. the_boon's Avatar
    I would take the opportunity to buy a KEY2 LE from Best Buy.
    01-22-20 09:20 AM
  6. Omato's Avatar
    I would take the opportunity to buy a KEY2 LE from Best Buy.
    The thought has crossed my mind; They KEY2 LE is long in the tooth as well, it doesn't have the features I want and explicitly some things I don't like. I want a Key[next] whatever the next gen will be. The Priv has every feature I want, except the OS is old. It has some bugs that I'm ok living with.

    So my options are (prices in CAD)
    a. Buy a Priv to hold me over until something new is released ($150+/- for "new" Kijiji or "refurbished" $160 @ BestBuy)
    b. Buy a New Priv from a legitimate vendor ($460+/-)
    c. Buy a Key2 ($870 unlocked from my service provider)
    d. Buy a Google Pixel something or other and add Hub+ (ugh. Who knows? maybe $1,000 + monthly for Hub+?)
    e. Continue to use my crack[screen]berry until it disintegrates in my hands ($0)

    If I only need to limp through until May or July 2020 for a new Blackberry, I only want to spend a few $. If the new Blackberry doesn't arrive until 2021, then I need something to last only 1.5 years. That being said, I'm not interest in budget functionality. I would rather have an older, fully featured Priv than a newer, light edition Key2. And Hub+ and a physical keyboard are must-haves for work functionality.
    01-22-20 10:01 AM
  7. PantherBlitz's Avatar
    If I only need to limp through until May or July 2020 for a new Blackberry, I only want to spend a few $. If the new Blackberry doesn't arrive until 2021, then I need something to last only 1.5 years. That being said, I'm not interest in budget functionality. I would rather have an older, fully featured Priv than a newer, light edition Key2. And Hub+ and a physical keyboard are must-haves for work functionality.
    It would take a miracle for another BlackBerry device to be released, so really your choices are either to stick with BlackBerry for 1.5 years or to pull the bandaid off now and get that Pixel.

    If you want to stick with BlackBerry, then you would want to get a K2 or LE in order to have Oreo. Marshmallow on a Priv is already running into app EOL issues with some enterprise apps and you may be looking at another device change within your 1.5 year window.
    01-22-20 12:16 PM
  8. howarmat's Avatar
    There is no way i would pay that much for a Priv that doesnt get any security updates nor OS updates. The Key2 series atleast has some security updates coming still.

    99.9% chance there is no next key device.
    01-22-20 12:21 PM
  9. the_boon's Avatar
    The thought has crossed my mind; They KEY2 LE is long in the tooth as well, it doesn't have the features I want and explicitly some things I don't like. I want a Key[next] whatever the next gen will be. The Priv has every feature I want, except the OS is old. It has some bugs that I'm ok living with.

    So my options are (prices in CAD)
    a. Buy a Priv to hold me over until something new is released ($150+/- for "new" Kijiji or "refurbished" $160 @ BestBuy)
    b. Buy a New Priv from a legitimate vendor ($460+/-)
    c. Buy a Key2 ($870 unlocked from my service provider)
    d. Buy a Google Pixel something or other and add Hub+ (ugh. Who knows? maybe $1,000 + monthly for Hub+?)
    e. Continue to use my crack[screen]berry until it disintegrates in my hands ($0)

    If I only need to limp through until May or July 2020 for a new Blackberry, I only want to spend a few $. If the new Blackberry doesn't arrive until 2021, then I need something to last only 1.5 years. That being said, I'm not interest in budget functionality. I would rather have an older, fully featured Priv than a newer, light edition Key2. And Hub+ and a physical keyboard are must-haves for work functionality.
    Whatever you do, don't get a Priv for $460 lol.

    It is NOT worth that kind of money today.

    Again, I strongly recommend the LE because while the screen size and quality will be a downgrade, everything else should be better.
    01-22-20 12:27 PM
  10. Omato's Avatar
    It would take a miracle for another BlackBerry device to be released, so really your choices are either to stick with BlackBerry for 1.5 years or to pull the bandaid off now and get that Pixel.
    This is the realization I'm coming to slowly. I don't want to admit it, but I think I'm at the end of the road and in denial.
    01-22-20 01:12 PM
  11. Omato's Avatar
    There is no way i would pay that much for a Priv that doesnt get any security updates nor OS updates. The Key2 series atleast has some security updates coming still.

    99.9% chance there is no next key device.
    Very valid points. Although, I was trying not to believe that devices are truly dead and was hoping for a miracle announcement in May.
    01-22-20 01:13 PM
  12. Omato's Avatar
    Again, I strongly recommend the LE because while the screen size and quality will be a downgrade, everything else should be better.
    Well, that's kind of the thing. The phone is 2 years old already, but not discounted price ($870 at my carrier).

    On any phone, the one thing that is universal is that the screen is the most used part of the experience. Therefore, the screen quality should be weighted accordingly. The second biggest part of the experience is the tactile experience (Glass, PKB, other input options like buttons). The next is the platform on which the computer is built (iOS, Android, Windows). After this, you get into specifics depending on your personal usage... you can argue over what's more important, software, camera(s), reception, etc etc etc.

    The Key2 has compromised the screen right out of the gate.
    It does have a keyboard... so that's the bonus in my world.
    I need to stick with Android... so there's that, but I can't imagine the Key2 is going to get updates for the next 4 years. So limited lifespan is a concern.
    And it comes with Hub+, right? so that's the key bit of software that is a requirement for my work.

    So... if I spend $480+tax for a Key2 LE, and keep it until July 2022 (4 years old), then that will work out to $0.60/day. I guess that's a viable option. Using the same values, $870+tax for a Key2 would yield $1.09/day. Ugh.

    I guess Key2 LE is a viable option if I can live with it.... I guess I better double-back and go read some reviews and forums.
    01-22-20 01:28 PM
  13. howarmat's Avatar
    2022 is not 4 years but if you are worried about getting updates then yes you should get the Pixel. It would get updates for 3 years. If you want 4 years of updates or more get an iPhone. No BB will be updated that long. Hub is nice but its not the end all be all apps either so that shouldnt matter to you either
    Bbnivende likes this.
    01-22-20 03:34 PM
  14. John Albert's Avatar
    You want to buy a brand new device that runs on Marshmallow and didn't receive any security update since two years??

    Seriously?

    Key2 LE is now $279 on BestBuy. I'm going to Toronto after two weeks. I can buy you one if you want.
    01-22-20 05:05 PM
  15. Omato's Avatar
    2022 is not 4 years but if you are worried about getting updates then yes you should get the Pixel
    Key2 LE was released July 2018 iirc; I was thinking 4 years from that date which is 2022. Buying one now means a few months of updates then nada after July 2020, right?

    Yes, I do want updates for longer than 2 years. The accepted practice of only supporting a handheld OS for 2 years is wasteful and borderline criminal imho. We wouldn't accept that for a PC or laptop, why do we accept it for a handheld computer?

    As for Hub+ It may be "nice" for you but for my work it is a requirement so it does matter to me. I'm not going to get into that, but it is a functional requirement for what I do. I'm glad it is available for other android devices, even at a cost, I'll need to purchase it.
    01-22-20 09:54 PM
  16. the_boon's Avatar
    Key2 LE was released July 2018 iirc
    The LE was released in October 2018, so updates should stop at that time this year.
    01-22-20 10:02 PM
  17. Omato's Avatar
    You want to buy a brand new device that runs on Marshmallow and didn't receive any security update since two years??

    Seriously?

    Key2 LE is now $279 on BestBuy. I'm going to Toronto after two weeks. I can buy you one if you want.
    No, I don't want to. But at the moment, the feature set of the Priv is everything I want and need. You nailed the biggest downside is that it's Android 6 with no updates (and more than a few bugs). Yes, seriously.

    Key2 LE is $460cad ($351usd) here. But as I mentioned in my original post, I'm not really interested in a budget feature set. I'd rather have an older, full featured phone than a newer budget phone. Like the Key2, it was released when... 2018, right? So it's about out of updates as well. The Priv has high res screen, keyboard, Hub+, memory card slot, 3.5mm jack. I also value the ability to use the FULL screen while the keyboard is extended (i.e. Not losing screen real-estate for keyboard) as I work a lot with ssh terminals, long emails and so-on where I need view a full screen of text while I type - I have my doubts that I can do that on a partial screen or a slab-phone with enormous on screen keyboard. I'm guessing I'm in for a world of hurt with any option out there. So yes, seriously, the Priv is (was) my ideal phone and I wanted for nothing except that they move the numeric pad to the right-hand side of the keyboard and leave the alt-key on the left.
    01-22-20 10:16 PM
  18. John Albert's Avatar
    No, I don't want to. But at the moment, the feature set of the Priv is everything I want and need. You nailed the biggest downside is that it's Android 6 with no updates (and more than a few bugs). Yes, seriously.

    Key2 LE is $460cad ($351usd) here. But as I mentioned in my original post, I'm not really interested in a budget feature set. I'd rather have an older, full featured phone than a newer budget phone. Like the Key2, it was released when... 2018, right? So it's about out of updates as well. The Priv has high res screen, keyboard, Hub+, memory card slot, 3.5mm jack. I also value the ability to use the FULL screen while the keyboard is extended (i.e. Not losing screen real-estate for keyboard) as I work a lot with ssh terminals, long emails and so-on where I need view a full screen of text while I type - I have my doubts that I can do that on a partial screen or a slab-phone with enormous on screen keyboard. I'm guessing I'm in for a world of hurt with any option out there. So yes, seriously, the Priv is (was) my ideal phone and I wanted for nothing except that they move the numeric pad to the right-hand side of the keyboard and leave the alt-key on the left.
    I do respect your desire here. I had the Priv four years ago, and it had many problems at that time like overheating, slowness, low battery life, very slow charging capability, and many software bugs. I can't imagine how functional it is at this time!

    I love the form factor and design, but based on these cons + the very outdated hardware and software, I will never recommend buying a new Priv today to anyone!
    01-22-20 10:46 PM
  19. conite's Avatar
    The LE was released in October 2018, so updates should stop at that time this year.
    Unless Oreo updates stop in August. Depends on Google.
    John Albert likes this.
    01-22-20 11:33 PM
  20. the_boon's Avatar
    No, I don't want to. But at the moment, the feature set of the Priv is everything I want and need. You nailed the biggest downside is that it's Android 6 with no updates (and more than a few bugs). Yes, seriously.

    Key2 LE is $460cad ($351usd) here. But as I mentioned in my original post, I'm not really interested in a budget feature set. I'd rather have an older, full featured phone than a newer budget phone. Like the Key2, it was released when... 2018, right? So it's about out of updates as well. The Priv has high res screen, keyboard, Hub+, memory card slot, 3.5mm jack.
    The LE does have the Hub+, as well as a sim card slot and a 3.5mm jack.

    The ONLY thing that's better about the Priv is the AMOLED display.


    ...oh and the notification LED is also way better on the Priv
    01-23-20 11:11 AM
  21. Omato's Avatar
    Thanks Boon, I'll give it some thought. The screen is a big negative.

    I just heard from a client who happens to have an old Priv. I may get a free one to hold me over until I decide on the 'next' phone.
    01-23-20 01:05 PM
  22. the_boon's Avatar
    Thanks Boon, I'll give it some thought. The screen is a big negative.

    I just heard from a client who happens to have an old Priv. I may get a free one to hold me over until I decide on the 'next' phone.
    If you want a keyboard, the LE with its current pricing at Best Buy is pretty much unbeatable.

    Yes, it will be a downgrade, display Wise.

    However, despite the general consensus that all three KEY phones have the same exact display, I find that the LE actually has better color accuracy than the KEY2 and way way better than the KEYone.

    I've had a fair share of each color of all those devices and the color/calibration of the LE is superior to the others.

    Not sure who else will agree with me there but it's my observation.
    01-23-20 01:08 PM
  23. falbo's Avatar
    Thanks Boon, I'll give it some thought. The screen is a big negative.

    I just heard from a client who happens to have an old Priv. I may get a free one to hold me over until I decide on the 'next' phone.
    As its free and that's a price range I'm all for, I reckon it's worth trying that old priv.
    Posted via my beautiful priv; -)
    Omato and JHBrandt like this.
    01-23-20 08:19 PM
  24. JHBrandt's Avatar
    Seem to have drifted off topic....

    Back on the original question, I wouldn't sweat "new" vs. "refurbished" much. The bigger issue is whether you'll have a warranty in case the thing goes belly-up on you.

    If you can get a free one, that's clearly the best option. Next best would be a screen repair, if you can get that done cheaply. Third would probably be that $160 refurbished Priv at Best Buy; at least you'll have a store warranty (probably 90 days).

    I also wouldn't worry much about the lack of security updates. As long as no one can root the thing, I'd trust an outdated BlackBerry over a new Android slab. The bigger issue is if you need to run apps that can't be run on Android 6, or if there are bugs you can't live with. If that's the case, you'll need to move on, but you'll get $160 worth of use out of the Priv in the meantime.
    Omato likes this.
    01-24-20 03:26 PM
  25. Chuck Finley69's Avatar
    Seem to have drifted off topic....

    Back on the original question, I wouldn't sweat "new" vs. "refurbished" much. The bigger issue is whether you'll have a warranty in case the thing goes belly-up on you.

    If you can get a free one, that's clearly the best option. Next best would be a screen repair, if you can get that done cheaply. Third would probably be that $160 refurbished Priv at Best Buy; at least you'll have a store warranty (probably 90 days).

    I also wouldn't worry much about the lack of security updates. As long as no one can root the thing, I'd trust an outdated BlackBerry over a new Android slab. The bigger issue is if you need to run apps that can't be run on Android 6, or if there are bugs you can't live with. If that's the case, you'll need to move on, but you'll get $160 worth of use out of the Priv in the meantime.
    Warranty on a 4+ year old device?
    01-24-20 05:26 PM
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