[ubizmo]

Almost four months, to be precise. I bought it at a T-Mobile (US) store on launch day, near the end of March.

Now that we're in July, and I've been running mostly leaked OS versions, I thought this would be a good time to comment on my perceptions of the Z10. To put my comments in perspective, I'm 59, wear glasses, and I'm an academic, not a businessman. My work-related uses mostly involve email and browser. My previous phone was a Samsung Galaxy Blaze, which I used for about 10 months, and before that a BB 9900, 9780, 8900, 8320. I own a PlayBook.

Mainly, I like it. The OS is smooth and a pleasure to use, for the most part. Yes, it takes some adjustment, to take full advantage of it, but on the whole I think it's good and will only get better.

1. When headless apps become available (presumably soon), it'll be a big step forward. There are plenty of utility apps that really need this capability, and they will give users more options to fine-tune the way they use the phone. On Android, I used a profile scheduler app that was very handy. There's a similar app for BB10 but of course it has to run in an active frame, which just isn't how such an app should work.

2. I still miss Swype. I find that for thumb-typing, I still like the tactile feedback of a keyboard, and for one-finger typing, the "cursive" feel of Swype is better. It's just a personal preference, of course, but it's a strong one. I really hope BB10 gets SwiftKey's "flow" feature at some point, as an option.

3. Reader Mode is simply not as good as being able to double-tap and zoom with text reflow in the browser. For one thing, Reader Mode fails on a good number of web sites, such as many blog and forum sites, where it won't show comments or follow-ups. Since blogs and forums are just the kinds of sites where you want to be able to read comfortably, this is one of my biggest complaints, and one of the main things that tempts me back to Android.

4. I'm pretty pleased with the camera. I find HDR mode useless unless the phone is braced against something to hold it truly motionless, but the Time Dial (or whatever it's called) feature is terrific, and has helped me to get some nice shots that otherwise wouldn't have made it.

5. The app situation is mostly adequate for my needs, but not entirely. I'm very happy to have Audible, using the debug-sideload method, which obviously isn't an option for most people. It's maddening to know that the Audible app works just as it is, but isn't available in BB World. I'm not bothered by Android ports, if they work as they should. Kindle, for example, works fine on my Z10. The CNN app, on the other hand, needs help. There's no TV Guide app, which is a fairly basic consumer app. The mobile site works, but not as well as the Android app did. So I'll just say what everyone already knows: They've made a decent start with the apps, but they have a long way to go before they're really competitive.

6. There have been a lot of complaints about BB Maps, but it's been working fine for me. It's not the best for POI searching, so I tend to use Foursquare or the new Yelp app for that, then invoke BB Maps from those. I hope we'll see improvements and/or better local search tools that can invoke Maps. BlackBerry can't hope to compete with Google directly in search capability, but they can get better partners on board.

7. Since I listen to a lot of podcasts and audiobooks, I wish the speakers were a bit louder. This is the one thing that tempts me to the HTC One.

8. I find battery life pretty respectable, with 10.1. To be sure, if I spend a few hours reading a book or newsfeeds or whatever, the screen is going to be lit the whole time, and that's going to drain the battery. I expect that. But I like the fact that the drain rate when the phone is in my pocket, idle, is less than what it was on my 9900 or my Blaze. Yes, a bigger battery would have been a plus, but all things considered I'm satisfied with battery life.

9. The GLO screen brightness management is good. On my Blaze, I tried a number of screen brightness management apps, and couldn't find one that worked as well as the Z10's native software. I ended up using a manual brightness toggle app on the Blaze, and I'm happy not to need one on the Z10. These are details that make a real difference to the user experience.

10. I like the Remember app and the Evernote integration. I use it quite a lot for jotting down ideas and quick tasks. There really does need to be a way to move notes from local to Evernote folders, though. And tasks should be either more robust or moved to a different app with BBOS-like features (recurring tasks, etc.).

I could keep going, but those ten things are some of the main things, both positive and negative. As you can see, I could easily switch back to an Android device and not have to deal with any of the problems I mention here, and I'm sometimes tempted to do so. But I do like the overall experience of the Z10 and my inclination is to stick with it for a while. I don't mind installing OS leaks--in fact, it's part of the fun of owning a BB. And I don't mind sideloading, although I have only two sideloaded apps. I'm not terribly optimistic about the future of the BlackBerry brand, though, based on what I see in the US. In January I bought $500 worth of BBRY stock, just for fun, thinking I could use the money later in the year to get the A10. As things stand, I might be lucky to have enough for a Pantech flip phone...

[Kris Simundson]

All jokes aside, great write up

[howarmat]

thanks for a great review!

[anon(1035135)]

LOL @ Pantech Flip phone.. I think they hand those things out for free if you just walk into the store and "consider" buying a contract. LOL

I do think that BBerry's stock will gradually rise once BB10 catches on. It will definitely take them a while to shake all the negative perceptions of the OS. But, I can already see that happening in my own little world. People don't shun me because I own one nearly as much, in fact, rarely at all any longer.

It's a fantastic phone (OS), and in time, I believe it will slowly but surely gain market share.

[Dzyen]

Being an owner since launch day as well I agree with many of your points. Great review.

[anon2100101]

Although a very subjective grading I do agree with you in your intension. Your description applies the average use and shows a very factul and levelheaded way of dealing with BlackBerry.... Sometimes I miss my emotional distance to BlackBerry, but your fair comment helped me to forget random reboots and headless apps... Thank you for your clear head... ("only" 52 with glasses, academic but beyond of pressure of work...public administration) :-)

[ubizmo]

I posted this mainly for the benefit of prospective Z10 buyers looking for what an actual end user, not a tech blogger, has to say after a few months of using it every day.


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