What's the point of having a BlackBerry now?

Hi friends,

first off: This is a serious question and I wanna know your opinion on that.
It's not meant to be offensive in any way - really wanna know your point of view!

Why I ask that question:

BBM is moving away from consumer,
some native BlackBerry apps (like Productivity Tab etc.) won't be supported as end of June,
OS10 is EOL end of 2019.

With sight to Android Q, which will natively offer a DTEK equivalent (app permission and controls)
within privacy settings.

Is it the PKB only that keeps you with BlackBerry?
Will you stay with BlackBerry?
What is left having a BlackBerry now?

Thanks in advance for every reply!

To be honest, BlackBerry brand has zero value today. In fact, there is no reason to own a BlackBerry.

Nostalgia is the only reason that makes me attached to this world. I was here and very excited many years ago when I was very young, and my soul currently never let me move on.
I love BlackBerry because it was great and had my best memories with.

Nowadays, BlackBerry isn't anything special by any means. The brand will absolutely die soon (all signs say so), and I want to sit with my beloved friend during his last days and enjoy every minute before the final goodbye.

BlackBerry is like a beloved patient with cancer. You know he is in a slow death stage. You know he is losing his strength and glory day after day. You know you might not see him one day. But, you love and never let it go!

I love you, BlackBerry. 😔😔😔

Originally Posted by John Albert

In fact, there is no reason to own a BlackBerry.

Keyboard.

Originally Posted by Slash82

Hi friends,

first off: This is a serious question and I wanna know your opinion on that.
It's not meant to be offensive in any way - really wanna know your point of view!

Why I ask that question:

BBM is moving away from consumer,
some native BlackBerry apps (like Productivity Tab etc.) won't be supported as end of June,
OS10 is EOL end of 2019.

With sight to Android Q, which will natively offer a DTEK equivalent (app permission and controls)
within privacy settings.

Is it the PKB only that keeps you with BlackBerry?
Will you stay with BlackBerry?
What is left having a BlackBerry now?

Thanks in advance for every reply!

The only reason to own a BB or BBMo device is for the PKB and the software aspect like security and hub. BBM and BB10 mean little to nothing for most BB users of history as BB really died for most people with Android/IOS back 10 years ago, then WhatsApp introduction not long after.

Even if BB had never wasted all the money on the BB10 mistake, the situation wouldn’t be much different. BBAndroid would have been introduced eventually around 2009-2011 with some limited hub version. Hardware running some Android version eventually would be wound down just like Motorola selling off it's mobile assets. Enjoy BB and BBMo for the reason that people do purchase, the PKB and it’s unique factor with older generations.

Originally Posted by Slash82

Hi friends,

first off: This is a serious question and I wanna know your opinion on that.
It's not meant to be offensive in any way - really wanna know your point of view!

Why I ask that question:

BBM is moving away from consumer,
some native BlackBerry apps (like Productivity Tab etc.) won't be supported as end of June,
OS10 is EOL end of 2019.

With sight to Android Q, which will natively offer a DTEK equivalent (app permission and controls)
within privacy settings.

Is it the PKB only that keeps you with BlackBerry?
Will you stay with BlackBerry?
What is left having a BlackBerry now?

Thanks in advance for every reply!

The keyboard is by far the main draw for me.

That said, the other aspects of the phone are more than adequate for my needs, so I don't feel I'm compromising in the least.

Originally Posted by the_boon

Keyboard.

+ 1

Originally Posted by Slash82

Hi friends,

first off: This is a serious question and I wanna know your opinion on that.
It's not meant to be offensive in any way - really wanna know your point of view!

Why I ask that question:

BBM is moving away from consumer,
some native BlackBerry apps (like Productivity Tab etc.) won't be supported as end of June,
OS10 is EOL end of 2019.

With sight to Android Q, which will natively offer a DTEK equivalent (app permission and controls)
within privacy settings.

Is it the PKB only that keeps you with BlackBerry?
Will you stay with BlackBerry?
What is left having a BlackBerry now?

Thanks in advance for every reply!

Pkb... Secure version of Android... Physical look and feel... Hub... [emoji3]

Originally Posted by the_boon

Keyboard.

This and exactly this.

Whether this is enough to keep TCL in the game is the question.

I'm afraid my Motion will be my last BB 😔 . I don't want a keyboard phone, so looks like I have no choice.
I recently bought a used Samsung S7 Active from Amazon, to see if I liked it. I'm trying, but can't seem to turn it into my primary phone. I keep going back to the Motion.
One benefit to the S7 is, once I get used to it, it has trade in value towards an S10.

BB9000>Q10>Z10>Z30>Classic>Dtek50>Dtek60>Motion>S7

Keyboard, Hub, and nostalgia. I've only strayed from BlackBerry once, when my wife bought me a Windows phone (which had a slide out landscape keyboard.) I've otherwise had BlackBerry devices since my RIM 957.

Plus, I enjoy not having yet another slab phone that looks like every other one out there. Much like when RIM was gaining steam, there were only a few of us using BlackBerry devices. Circle of life...

Originally Posted by Sarek1701

Plus, I enjoy not having yet another slab phone that looks like every other one out there.

This too. I'm too bored with smartphones these days, there's really not much to get excited about.

Like Sarek1701, I have only owned Blackberry devices since the very first ones. The best part of Blackberry devices are primarily the PKB, and then the Hub and Privacy/Security features. I just purchased a Key2 LE, and couldn't have been more disappointed. When a new BB is less intuitive and has less functionality than an older BB, unfortunately, it's time to move on, I guess. I deactivated my new Key2, re-activated my Q10, and will be shopping for something that doesn't make me crazy.

Keyboard, with the side benefit of great looks (Key2) and brand loyalty.

Camera discussions bore me, I have an SLR for real photo taking.

Don't like iPhones - although I really enjoy my iPad ... yep, that's odd.

The question is why not? Look around the smartphone world. Most of the devices looks like others. Every manufacterer trys to copy the other (best example is the notch) But no one is coying a Blackberry 😁 Keyboard is still great! Performance too (depends what you expect from your phone)! Camera better as in the reviews! Hub and so on! Is a Blackberry device cheap? No! At the end, I love my BB Key2 👍 When I meet friends they are happy to see me, but also my device. BB forever 👍

Keyboard
Keyboard shortcuts
HUB
Privacy and security
BBMe
DTEK

I love how haters disguised as lovers keep spelling out doom and gloom for the brand.

The brand is not dead. it has transformed, and will continue to make niche phones as long as people want them.

The consumer is not the priority...enterprise is, and I'm happy to jump aboard that train.

At this point I think it's just the keyboard, especially now that exclusive apps like Productivity Tab are going EOL. Google is making a lot of aggressive security and privacy plays with Android Q so it's kind of hard to know where BB Android still stands as a consumer.

Hub+ is available for non BlackBerry branded devices so I don't think it's all bad if one has to migrate to a different Android OEM. Some of that "BlackBerry DNA" which traces back to the BBOS days can still be brought over.

Alway has been and always will be the PKB. I tried a Z30 but bought a Passport because I missed the PKB

The PKB, But primarily for the dozens of shortcuts, not so much for text entry. Also, for DARK, the locked bootloader, and the Hub.

I'd be happier with the continued support for BB10 on existing hardware with current functionality, but there's no business model for OS subscriptions and old hardware.

Posted with my trusty Z10

Less data mining.

As far as android devices go, it has one of the least bloated versions of Android available.

Take a look at Samsung or Huawei and it's a complete turnoff in my opinion due to the amount of data mining. The amount of continuous connections being made to Huawei is impressive - in a bad way. It even goes as far as to ask for your birthday when you first boot the device up....

So, the least bloated OS coupled with useful BB apps which are ad free on BB devices, plus the untarnished record of having an unrootable device which hasn't been publicly compromised by the likes of Cellebrite....

....Those are the reasons I still prefer a BB over any other android - even if the cameras aren't as good as past BB phones like the Priv. (Above all things, I wish they will fix this issue in the Key3)

Originally Posted by Slash82

BBM is moving away from consumer,
some native BlackBerry apps (like Productivity Tab etc.) won't be supported as end of June,
OS10 is EOL end of 2019.

I think that you are overreacting to issues that were not issues when Spring began.

BBM was given to Emtek to attempt to monetize a while ago.
The Productivity Tab was always lacking and few ever used it.
BB10 phones were last released in 2014.

It seems to me that they are choosing to focus limited resources on what is relevant to users in 2019.

I love the keyboard and hardware design. There's just something about the BlackBerry DNA that keeps me coming back time and time again.

I've owned a lot of non-BB devices over the years (Xperia, iPhone, Note, Essential, Nexus, Pixel) and not one of them elicits the same indescribable unboxing feeling that I get with a BB (DTEK50 and 60 being the only exceptions).

Originally Posted by danfrancisco

I love the keyboard and hardware design. There's just something about the BlackBerry DNA that keeps me coming back time and time again.

I've owned a lot of non-BB devices over the years (Xperia, iPhone, Note, Essential, Nexus, Pixel) and not one of them elicits the same indescribable unboxing feeling that I get with a BB (DTEK50 and 60 being the only exceptions).

Also don't forget the grippy-ish backs and notification LED's !

Overall, BB's just seem to have more "personality" than all the other devices which are boring, bland slabs of glass.

Since BlackBerry moved to Android, it has also gone down the road to drabbery. I made plans to get an iPhone ages ago, but the Passport won't stop working.

keyboard. im young-ish for a die hard but ive had a blackberry since 2003 and never really bothered to learn to type on glass. id love to avoid it for ever but its looking less likely. also I type 100k words a month on my phone... I could never do that on glass

IM a BlackBerry user only since 2015 and move from Samsung Galaxy I was attracted by the pkb and don't wanna go back to glass iM trusting the BlackBerry android security and I really love the hub