Blackberry Priv — Best Qwerty Keypad Mobile Phone

Introduction of Blackberry Priv

The BlackBerry Priv is amongst the most exciting phones unveiled last year. Truly a miracle, it is a common reaction for people to confirm that the device exists — a BlackBerry handset running on Android-based software. The combination is just perfect — the perfect hardware made to run on the world’s biggest mobile platform, bringing all that you love to your home screen, yet with the consistent reliability of BlackBerry’s keyboard. For those wondering what made the Canadian company resort to this step, one of the main reasons was developer involvement. Most of the developers have either adopted to Android or the iOS since that is precisely where most consumers are. Developing apps for BB or even for Windows phones isn’t likely to reap a lot regarding the monetary aspect. Given the earlier scenarios that BB had with Apple and Microsoft, BlackBerry’s involvement with them had to be a big affair. This led to them resorting to the present condition — adopting Android for their BB10.

Design

To begin with, let’s just give it to you in a simple statement — it is beautiful. Considering the history, BlackBerry never really had to stress out a lot to create premium-looking handsets. This time too, the firm hold good. In contrast to the leaks released earlier, the Priv is way better than it was forecasted. In fact, the design is way more than what the average Apple and Samsung users are accustomed to, and this is just not because of the QWERTY keypad. The entirety of the front panel appears to be curved (that also includes the display), and seems to slope down to the sides in a gentle uniform manner. The top and the bottom, however, are completely flat. The dimension of the device measures at 147 x 77.2 x 9.4 (in millimeters), and has a net weight of 192 grams. The rear of the phone is made of some Kevlar-type material, imparting an exotic and a rich look to the phone.

Display

Even with its first launch in the Android segment, BlackBerry’s Priv has made a place for itself regarding display. The device has a 5.4 inches QHD curved screen and is easily rated to be one of the most impressive displays in the segment. The screen is a 1440 x 2560 pixels, or with a rich pixel density of 540ppi. Needless to say, the picture clarity and the ability to read text is exceptionally great, with colours appearing stunning bright, and texts crispy clear. The viewing angels are appreciatively great, and the same goes on for black and colour fidelity. However, it must be pointed out that in exception to the fact that a large screen has a significant impact on the battery life, there is practically no purpose to it other than aesthetics. The same implied for Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge and goes in the case of the BB Priv as well.

Software

As mentioned earlier, the BlackBerry Priv runs on Android Marshmallow (5.1.1), the latest from Google. However, in contrast to other manufacturers who choose to go ahead with a forked version of the mobile platform, BlackBerry Priv comes with the entire Google package. All the preloaded apps given by default in the Android package can be found on the phone. Nevertheless, there are still some tweaks for those who like playing around with the device. However, it must be mentioned that there is no custom skin on the Android platform, but earlier BB users can see the familiar split icon for new notifications. This has also been incorporated with the apps being shown on the home screen. That being said, BB was always, and is still for the demands raised by corporate and enterprise users. In fact, this is what the phone stands for. The top management at the Canadian smartphone company hinted that Priv implied two things — Privilege and Privacy. Needless to say, the device comes with settings that make the phone less vulnerable to data attacks, and also less prone to corruption by bots.

System Performance

With staggering hardware specifications, the phone seems to handle most of the daily tasks without any pressure at all. It uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 64-bit chipset and a 600 MHz Adreno 418 as its graphics processing unit. Truthfully, apart from the Passport, we have very rarely seen BB bring top-notch specs to its devices. The simple reason behind it is the fact that there is a vast difference in the usage pattern of an Android device and one running on BB software. However, the Priv seemed to be quite engaging and scored a reputable 60,780 on the AnTuTu benchmarking platform. Games consuming extensive memory and graphical requirements ran pretty easily too, and a test on GFXBench recorded this device’s performance at 24fps when playing 3D games like Dead Trigger 2.

Camera

One look at the camera app gives the impression that it is cluttered, and needlessly so. You have to move quite a bit before you can perform basic functions within it. Nonetheless, the 18MP camera unit is possibly one of the best that one can find in any of the BB devices produced to-date. There are numerous effects and settings to choose from to take the perfect shot, and although the phone won’t replace a DSLR, it is just perfect for what most users demand from a phone camera unit. The other features include optical image stabilization and phase-detect autofocus. Also, the camera can capture 4K video at just about 30fps.

Connectivity

The Priv features a wireless connection to a router (Wi-Fi 802.11), Bluetooth 4.1 and NFC for quick data sharing. Also, and as per industry standards, the device also features 2.0 for faster data speed when connected to a computer or laptop, as well as faster charging.

Battery

The phone has a massive 3,410mAh battery (non-removable), and is big enough to last for a complete day’s usage, under moderate operating conditions. However, the QHD display seems to consume quite a lot of power, and the battery apparently requires a power top-up sometime during the day under heavy usage.

Final Words

Blackberry Priv has scored 87 for features as against to 75 for its user reviews . Being from a premium category, the phone has priced very less, it competes with Samsung S6 Edge and Apple iPhone 6S but still has an upper hand regarding RAM, battery, and processor.