[RealGrouchy]

I wanted to cling on to my PRIV in the hopes that a PRIV2 will eventually come out, but with the battery and processor struggling to keep up, I decided to buy a Key2. I looked here in the Priv forum before buying it so thought I'd post my impressions here.

Edit: I forgot to mention that I'm using an unlocked phone on the Freedom Mobile (ex WindMobile) network and the connectivity works fine.

A main issue I have is being unable to find help resources for transferring certain things from one Android device to another. For example, I want to transfer my BB keyboard settings and learned words: if I search "Android to android", I get instructions to transfer Google keyboard settings. If I add "Blackberry" to the search, it's all about transferring from BB10 to Android.

If someone has solutions, or links to solutions, to the issues I describe below, I'll edit the post to add those links. Thanks in advance!

Seidio Priv Holster:
- Yes, the Seidio Priv holster will carry the Key2. It isn't pretty (the different dimensions means that the phone can wiggle into various different orientations) but it stays in. See attached photos.
- As has been discussed elsewhere, the magnet isn't in the right place, so I can't pop the top and angle the phone out to check the time, because the screen won't turn on.
- The power button on the right side of the phone messes with my habits. I'm used using my left hand to put the phone on the holster on my right side, pushing the power button with my left thumb in the process.

BB Launcher/screen lock:
- The BB launcher seems to no longer let you swipe up from the launcher button to open one of three different apps (swipe up-left, up-middle, up-right). This is annoying!
- The new function key can be programmed to display up to three icons on the right side of the screen to launch any of up to three functions/apps (and different combinations can be configured for meeting mode, driving mode, etc.), however these app icons are centred vertically instead of around the launcher button.
- To unlock my Priv, I'm used to double-tapping to turn on the screen, then swiping up to unlock it (I didn't use a PIN). The Key2 required me to have a PIN when I set it up, so if I double-tap and swipe up, it now asks for the PIN. However, the fingerprint sensor on the spacebar can take me straight from screen-off to unlocked, and as I get used to this it's turning out to be quite convenient.
- Similarly, I'm used to the home button being at the bottom of the phone, whereas now it's above the keyboard. So I've been soft-pressing the space bar expecting to go to the home screen. Old habits!

Data/Content transfer:
- Google's data transfer moved a lot of the stuff, including apps and settings. I have two Google accounts on my phone(s), and it only transferred the stuff associated with the one account. I had to log into Google Play and manually install the apps in the Library of the other account.
- I had a hard time getting the Content Transfer app to work. I eventually gave up and started using separate apps to transfer my SMS messages and notes, and I transferred my device contacts to one of my Google accounts. I later managed to get Content Transfer to work.
- I used SMS Backup & Restore Pro to transfer all of my SMS messages, I believe on the SD card. This was really easy.
- I installed Simplenote to transfer my BB notes. I later saw that I could have used the Content Transfer app, but it was good to transfer the notes to a new app because they clearly weren't being backed up. I had to do it one at a time, but it was an easy process of opening the BB Notes app (using a swipe from the bottom), opening a note, clicking "Share" and selecting Simplenote. Then the note opened in Simplenote. Swipe up to open the Notes app, delete the note, and repeat. They immediately synced to the new device via the cloud. A caveat if you're doing this: I started with the newest note and as a result Simplenote has my oldest note first.

Screen/Keyboard:
- A factor I hadn't considered with the smaller screen is that it also has a lower pixel density, and as a result the text in the Twitter app is larger than on the Priv. I can only see about 1.8 tweets at a time on screen, and I don't see a way to change the text size in that app.
- The keyboard is very pleasant to type on, and quieter than on the PRIV. I keep hitting the new convenience key because I'm used to the Shift key being there. I haven't yet configured any shortcuts and I'm considering programming it to be a shift key again.
- As with the Priv, there is a band of options that appears at the bottom of the screen. When it's not word predictions, it's the buttons for emoji, clipboard, selection, etc. In the Content Transfer app, this band obscures the app's "prev/next" buttons and I have to press the triangle nav button to close it.
- The rotation sensor seems a lot more sensitive on the Key2 than on the Priv. When viewing in landscape in an app with text input, an onscreen landscape keyboard appears (whereas on the Priv if the pkb is open the onscreen kb never appears, even in landscape).
- I had to disable the screen's auto-brightness adjustment when using the phone in landscape mode because my left hand kept blocking the sensor and making the screen go darker.
- I haven't watched too many videos, but the ones I have watched I haven't been overly bothered by the smaller screen. Between the bezel and the pillboxing, the black border around the 16:9 video is a relatively consistent width all around.
- Game performance is much better, so when I play a game like Polytopia I can zoom all the way out without the phone overheating, which makes up for the smaller screen.
- Bloons TD 6 uses a 4:3 aspect ration for my phone, resulting in black bars on the left and right of the screen, and then it puts the toolbar on the bottom instead of the side.
- I tested PUBG Mobile and it works OK (uses the entire screen), with graphics options I wouldn't dare try on the PRIV, but has all the issues you'd expect having a pkb on the side of your screen. I didn't try using the pkb for shortcuts. If I touch too close to the edge, I hit the nav buttons and minimize the app. That's not good. Those nav buttons are always functional but the icons go black so it's easy to forget they're there.

Other hardware and I/O:
- The microSD card and SIM card are in the same tray, so they can't be removed independently. However, unlike the PRIV, when you push the pin in to release it, the tray comes out far enough that you can reach under the tab and pull it out. The Priv microSD card tray didn't come out far enough to be able to grab onto any part of it. (Luckily I never took it out in the 1.5 years I've owned my Priv)
- Speaker grille is on the bottom and only one is active, is more easily blocked by thumb/palm (for better or worse)
- USB type C means that all my micro-USB connectors are redundant. I have a dual-USB (A/Bmicro) Sandisk memory stick that I'll have to replace with a USB A/C one.
- The headphone jack is on the top instead of the bottom. I prefer this.
- On my Priv I used an app called Buttons remapper to remap the volume buttons to force them to always affect the app/music volume, instead of turning my ringer volume down to zero. The annoying part of this was that I couldn't then change the call volume during a call because of the remapped buttons. Android 8 appears to have 4 different volume options (splitting the ringer volume out from the notifications volume) but I haven't used the phone enough yet to determine if I'll need to install the override app. I liked the Priv's separate buttons for volume up/down (separated by a Mute button), and have yet to see how I like the single volume rocker button on the Key2, particularly when it's holstered.

Apps, OS and software:
There are lots of differences moving from Android 6 on the Priv to Android 8 on the Key2, and if you're like me you didn't read upon these. The changes that I noticed:
- Startup is very fast
- I haven't compared the photo quality from the cameras.
- The maps app shows a widget on the home screen when doing GPS navigation (which can be moved around the screen) when the maps app is minimized. When I closed this widget, it cancelled the navigation
- On the Priv I could swipe down from the top to get the settings panel open, and tap the battery icon to view the battery status. On the Key2 tapping the battery charge icon does nothing; I have to open the Battery settings the old fashioned way.
- Quick settings can be customized more easily, and into panels.
- Notifications are very different, take up more space, and notifications from different apps all look very similar (they're all white).

Overall, so far I'm glad I bought the new phone, but I haven't used it in normal usage yet. I'm expecting the battery will last longer, it will do things faster, and will overheat less.

That's all I got so far. I hope it's helpful!

- RG>

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

Some great info for those PRIV owners thinking of upgrading....

[Bob80220]

Some great info for those PRIV owners thinking of upgrading....

Yes, a very well thought out post regarding going from a Priv to a KEY2. I'm still holding out and using my Priv until I can hopefully go hands on with a KEY2 and check it out before I take the plunge. That and wait for a later production and hopefully some of the PKB issues will be resolved.

Bob

[the_boon]

I have a Priv, KEYone BE and a KEY2 SE.

I used the Priv as a daily for several months, and moving to KEYone, the improvements were significant. Same feeling when moved from KEYone to KEY2. Big upgrade imo, even if the screen is about the same.

The battery of the KEY2 will absolutely destroy the Priv's, even with all power saving tips applied.

Aside from the screen size and OLED, the Priv has nothing on the KEY2.

Congrats on your upgrade!