[Kommandant]

I give my Priv another chance. And i reset / updated my phone again and again. Restart it again and again. And Now ? IT WORKS <3

I don't know why but it works smooth and the phone won't go hot. yeahhhh i love it

[rfin16]

Thanks for your feedback on the Q5 vs Priv keyboards. One other thing - how does battery life compare? Q5 does well for me with moderate usage, but I assume with the larger screen Priv wouldn't last as long even with the bigger battery? Thanks again.

[Leona-BB]

Hi, I'm a first timer to blackberry, I have impaired vision so have always used a phone with a physical keyboard. I just got my Priv, as I say, in the Black Friday deal, sim free. Moving from a Galaxy Note 3, which loved for the big screen, but struggled to use as no physical keyboard, there are things I miss, (the large screen being one of them), but am getting used to the priv, so nice to be able to use a keyboard, its a little cramped, haven't found a way to type fast on it yet, seems to be a one finger affair (stop smirking), had to use a large font app to get the systems fonts to a size I can read, oh boy it really messes up the layout, sadly developers don't take into account people wanting bigger fonts, hay ho.

As I say still finding my way around, no gallery app (yes I know use google photo), no music app that I can find, so will have to look for one seem odd omissions, the hub takes a little getting used to , shame it doesn't integrate with 3rd party SMS apps, (like Chomp, which I used as again you can monkey with the fonts to make them readable and it will read out texts).

Does like getting hot doesn't it, nice in the winter so keep your hands warm as you use it, but doesn't seem to take much to heat it up, bit of facebook and web browsing.

Got it updated to 6.0.1 straight away, love the regular security updates, makes me feel a lot better, my note 3 hadn't got any updates and was unlikely to get any.

Fitted a screen protector (curved glass) and jacket to the phone from new, as yes, I'm a bit accident prone.

Looking forward to long lasting relationship with the Priv.

Thanks

Kind Regards

Leona

[berryspun]

Got my PRIV on 12/22/16 from Verizon store in Eureka, Ca. Surprised that they actually had them in stock. The sales guy said " this is the first one I've sold", so he was not able to give me any tips or clue how things were supposed to work.
This is my 4th Black berry starting with the Curve about 10 years ago, then the Bold and finally the best blackberry ever, my Z10. I loved that phone. I dropped it, doused it and accidently submerged it in water, and it continued to work beautifully. Unfortunately, the apps could not keep up and I needed certain apps for school that were not available for Blackberry 10 OS.
The PRIV was not my Blackberry of choice, I would have rather had the Dtek50 due to the size factor. I live in the boonies so Verizon my only option and they only carry PRIV.

So, how am I liking it? not nearly as well as my Z10. I find the android system to be stupid and cumbersome compared to the beautiful simplicity of my Z10. I have an android tablet and a Kindle fire, so it is not as if I am not familiar with Androids. My husband is an avid Android fan and thinks that I need to give it time. I am sure that I will get used to it, just like I can get used to a Chevy after years of driving a Cadillac.... but do I really want to? I agree with many who think the HUB experience is lame. It does not look nor function the same as the OS 10 hub.

I thought that I would like the physical keyboard more, but as also mentioned, with the slider out, it is top heavy and cumbersome. I find typing on the screen keyboard nearly as difficult due to the width of the phone. I hold the phone in my right hand and type with my right thumb, and the width of the PRIV makes this difficult..

What I do like is the sharp resolution of the screen and the quality feel of this device. It looks good sitting on the desk, and it isn't until I turn it on and see all those annoying pre-installed google apps that I am once again made aware that this is not the blackberry of old. I do not see the plethora of apps being an advantage.

I will probably keep this and make friends with it, mainly because, what option do I have? Not going to a full-on android and not yet willing to sell out to iphone.

[anon(6038817)]

I finally got a PRIV yesterday. So far, I am pleasantly surprised. Here are some first-impressions:

It actually looks and feels more quality to me in-person than it looks in photos/videos.

The screen is absolutely brilliant. Highest pixel density of any phone I've owned and I love AMOLED.

I wanted a physical keyboard and, while the one on the PRIV is certainly not as good as the Q10 or 9900, it's good enough for my needs. I'm pleased that it's not as top-heavy as I thought it would be when the keyboard is out.

The slider form factor is brilliant. The benefits of a physical keyboard without compromising on screen real estate. I really hope TCL eventually produces another slider. If not, I may be using my PRIV for quite some time.

My phones have to be different enough to stand out and I think the PRIV meets that requirement. Until the Mercury is released, the PRIV is definitely the most "BlackBerry-ish" Android device they sell. I love the glass weave back that I adored on the Q10 and Z30. And the BlackBerry logos are quite prominent on both the back AND the front, unlike the DTEK50-60.

And the usefulness of a RGB notification LED cannot be understated.

Overall, I am liking the PRIV so far. I came from a Q10, but I have also recently used an iPhone and a Lumia 950. When it comes to smartphones (and consumer tech in general) I always say get what you want and be happy. Every device - every platform - has its unique strengths and weaknesses. What it comes down to for each of us is to decide which strengths we want and which weaknesses we are willing to live with.

Right now, the the PRIV's strengths are far exceeding it's weaknesses from my perspective.

[badelhas]

Have you guys seen the Mr Mobile review "re do" youtube video launched yesterday?

The sluggishness is something blackberry should definitely improve. It's unacceptable, imo.

[cowboysfan4ever]

I got my Priv yesterday. I'm coming from a Z30, so its really different. I think I'll like it though. Any tips or must have apps?

[FF22]

I got my Priv yesterday. I'm coming from a Z30, so its really different. I think I'll like it though. Any tips or must have apps?

That was the move I made back in March. It takes some getting use to.

You will need a File Manager - Asus and solid explorer are two regularly recommended. A music player - Blackplayer, Pi, and others. A picture viewer - Piktures is one and there are others.

[TLSTWIN]

I got my wife and myself each one. We are on Verizon. I really like this phone. I have been hanging on to my old samsung slider for the full keyboard, so glad Blackberry made this phone.

[Lefty724]

This is my 3rd and last Priv and it's awesome! Granted this one is running Marshmallow (for now) compared to Lollipop on my older Privs. I have recently sold off all of my iPhones and other Androids to come back to BlackBerry for one last hoorah!!!!

I plan using the Priv until the Mercury is released and if I'm not happy with the Mercury, I will probably buy another Priv as a backup and use the Priv for a really long time.

Coming from a Note 5 and Galaxy S7 Edge, I'm actually very impressed with the Priv. I absolutely love the way PKB and being different than the rest of the crowd. Battery life so far is better than both the N5 and S7E. If I'm getting 5-6 hours SOT on the Priv while I'd get 3-4 hours of SOT on the S7E.... Both phone are setup and used the exact same.

Build quality is very good imo and I bought this one used for under $300. Again, I'm very happy with my purchase and the Priv.

[Cbmfreak]

I got mine in november last year and love it.
I had Nokia for years untill i finally switched to android phones, first samsung s3, then Samsung note 4 and now the BlackBerry priv.

I think the BlackBerry keyone looks awesome but I Hope they will consider making a nokia communicator Style phone with capacitive keyboard and BlackBerry android maybe even with a stylus.

For me the 2 most awesome phones in the World today are note 4 ( stylus, removeable battery, sd card, multimedia dock) and priv (capacitive slideout keyboard, BlackBerry android, curved screen, sd card, LED)

[ChemTech]

My husband and I are both getting the Priv on Saturday. He is coming from an iPhone, and I have a Note 4. I am liking that this is going to be different from the typical Android phone, because I love experimenting with new tech.

Are there any suggestions you have for a couple of Blackberry newbies?

[newcollector]

My husband and I are both getting the Priv on Saturday. He is coming from an iPhone, and I have a Note 4. I am liking that this is going to be different from the typical Android phone, because I love experimenting with new tech.

Are there any suggestions you have for a couple of Blackberry newbies?

Just play with the Priv to get used to it. The Hub is amazing, and there are plenty of YouTube videos that help with all aspects of the Priv.

I have had my Priv since March of last year and really love the power of the OS and how BlackBerry has optimized it.

You are familiar with Android, so have fun with it. I personally prefer the Nova Premier Launcher because of all the gestures that can be used for actions or apps. I have mine set to open apps so I don't clutter my screen with a lot of icons. I also like that you can pin your wallpaper.

But the BlackBerry Launcher gives you over 50 ways to use the pkb for shortcuts. Plus you can disable annoying bloatware.

BlackBerry is great about security updates. And rumor has it that Nougat will be coming in a few months.

[ChemTech]

BlackBerry is great about security updates. And rumor has it that Nougat will be coming in a few months.

Nougat would be nice. I was disappointed to hear that the Note 4 would not get it. It is frustrating how a flagship phone only 2 years old is already being left behind.

[axllebeer]

I know I'm late to the party but, I got my PRIV. Just sayin...

Flicked via the BlackBerry keyboard on my PRIV.

[yyz321]

I think my Priv just arrived. It's at home waiting for me.

[Frank SZ]

I got my priv last week friday. It's "refurbished" and I was scared it's gonna have physical blemishes, but this thing looks brand new! The price I paid is almost nothing, compared to some other phones on the market.

[tfitzpat03]

Just got me PRIV a couple days ago. The first thing that jumped out at me is the clarity of the screen. Amazing screen. It looks better than my nexus 6p that I switched from. Pleasantly surprised at that.

The second thing is the keyboard. When I first tried it I was thinking to myself "what have you done" lol. I panicked a little but I settled down and let it come to me. Now I can say that I am way more comfortable now the when I first got it. I am a former torch and 9900 user, so coming back to this style of keyboard wouldn't be too difficult for me.

The software on marshmallow is far better than lollipop. I am satisfied with it. I have had a couple of random reboots though. I don't know if that is user error or the phone. I am certain that the second time was the phone. Other than that it has been a great experience.

Didn't know how valuable dtek would be but it is! It tracks activity of what apps are doing. It really surprised me how much my weather app used my location (which I understand because it is constant updating ) but what it did was make me aware of something that I may need to tweak. This is appreciated as well.

I get emails way faster than when I used blackberry manager on my nexus 6p which I appreciate. The music volume is fine for my taste. I heard people said it was low but I can't tell. The speakerphone was louder than I anticipated. It is more than adequate for my needs. The speaker in general is good.

All in all the PRIV is a lesson that I learned over the years: "don't knock it until you try it" it has been well worth it so far.

[newcollector]

Well said, tfitzpat03, we'll said. You echo some of my concerns about switching to Android from BB10. I should have done it sooner. However I am very glad I decided on the Priv over some other options just because of my appreciation of the native BlackBerry Suite of apps. The Priv, for me, is the best of both worlds. The security and the Hub of BlackBerry with the plethora of apps and Power of Android.

[nogutsnoglory]

Purchased mine from local VZW store this weekend after originally returning Priv in June, 2016 due to heat and battery drain issues that plagued Lollipop. Happy to see that Marshmallow seems to have taken care of these issues! It's not perfect, but much better than I remember.

After all of the updating of apps, etc. the battery seems to have settled down today. Came off the charger at around 8:30 am and am currently at 57% with no charging and moderate use at a little after 8PM. I used content transfer app; nothing too major - about 900 items; played music via bluetooth, placed calls, some texts and emails and a decent amount of tweaking settings.

Anyway, glad I came back to BlackBerry. I left the iPhone 7 and do not have any major withdrawals. Thought I would list just a few things that are better for me with the Priv: better antenna/signal reception in my office (iPhone would constantly drop calls but Priv has 3-4 bars LTE); fluidity of Priv/BlackBerry compared to iPhone (Priv not up to BB10 standards but not too bad); call quality (much better than the iPhone); blinking light notification; and key board short cuts, short cuts and short cuts. Nothing is perfect, but I am glad to have made the switch back to BlackBerry, even if my family and the VZW sales rep think I am crazy!

[greatgooglymoogly71]

So interesting story. Had 6 months left on my contract with Telus so looked into upgrading my device. Only Blackberry they offer is the Classic (already have one) and I'm looking for full touchscreen, hoping for a Priv (to get the best of both vkb and pkb) but only the Bell network still offers them.

Okay Plan B - get the S7 Edge which Telus has for 0 dollars and load it up with the Blackberry apps from Google Play. Not a Blackberry but next best thing. I'm told my plan needs to be bumped to a "premium" plan which will cost an extra $20 per month over two years. WHAT? And I have a device payout of $142.50. So to get the Edge I'd have to shell out a total of $622.50 and be locked in for two years?!

So I bought a new factory unlocked sealed Priv on Ebay for $398 all in. Should be here tomorrow or Monday.

[Rico4you]

unlocked 🔓 is definitely the way to go! Enjoy the PRIV!

[greatgooglymoogly71]

Thanks. Can't wait for it to come in. Love the customizable UI on Android. IOS is too limiting and even though I had access to Google Play apps on my Passport whether they would work properly was always hit or miss. Love the Passport and BBOS though.

[Rico4you]

Yes! I use my PRIV as daily Driver really good on Marshmallow and constant updates! And secondary device my RED Passport!

[tfitzpat03]

So interesting story. Had 6 months left on my contract with Telus so looked into upgrading my device. Only Blackberry they offer is the Classic (already have one) and I'm looking for full touchscreen, hoping for a Priv (to get the best of both vkb and pkb) but only the Bell network still offers them.

Okay Plan B - get the S7 Edge which Telus has for 0 dollars and load it up with the Blackberry apps from Google Play. Not a Blackberry but next best thing. I'm told my plan needs to be bumped to a "premium" plan which will cost an extra $20 per month over two years. WHAT? And I have a device payout of $142.50. So to get the Edge I'd have to shell out a total of $622.50 and be locked in for two years?!

So I bought a new factory unlocked sealed Priv on Ebay for $398 all in. Should be here tomorrow or Monday.

You definitely came out on top on that deal. I would rather have an unlocked paid phone then to be locked down with a carrier phone that I owe for.