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@GA2G
(my) Blackberry Z30 review:
I am an Android person. I owned one of the first G1 phones, and was the first Galaxy Note user on this forum (I believe). But before I was an Android person, I did use various Blackberrys over the years. They were certainly lacking some things, but what they did, they did well (emails and security).
When the Z30 came out, I waited, read the reviews, then plumped for one. I ahven't regretted it.
Connectivity:
Fast. WiFi, Bluetooth, voice calls, selectable 2G 3G and 4G, are all excellent. Switching between connectivity functions is simplicity itself. The WiFi hotspot is created in less than 2 seconds, and has a very strong hold rate, hardly dropping any signal. Bluetooth, WiFi and 3G/4G can all be on at the same time. This is does not happen on my Android phones. Selecting data or voice can be done when you only wish for one or the other. Or turn off both, without being in Airplane mode. Airplane mod can be switched to WiFi only also. All done with the flick of an on-screen switch.
Camera:
Functional. Nothing special. Most top end phones are better. But they don't have Time-Shift. This function allows you to scroll back or forward a few fractions of a second, and replace part of an image (a face) with the same image, but slightly before or after. Its clever, but for me, its still a bit gimmicky. Its does work though.
Communication (written):
Texting or emailing has become more intuitive. The predictive text is pretty good. But still takes time to learn. Sometimes an option word will appear above a single letter/character, and if you quickly press and swipe up at the same time, that choice is selected and will replace the word you're writing. I like this alot. Of course, Blackberry back in 2004, could attach doc files, or jpgs, or mp3/mp4 to emails. This is even easier now, and it makes me scoff at the iPhone family.
Apps:
It doesn't have one particular Android game that I play, but apart from this, I find that there is definitely an adequate amount of apps to choose from. Amazon is coming on board as an app partner. This will allow many more apps, but there will surely be some sort of charge.
OS:
This OS does take some learning, but so far, it seems a work of genius. Really well thought out. I've had little to no freezing or stuttering. To close an app, you just draw your finger upwards from the bottom up to the middle of the screen. To get to the message hub, just swipe from left to right. All messages can be found there, unified. So you can reply to all from one screen.
Here is how a power user demonstrates more important functions.
http://www.daddoes.com/10459/blackberry-z30-review-update/
Two negative points (for me):
I cannot download files from the internet. I can view any and everything, but no matter what, and I've followed all the advice, from Crackberry and elsewhere, but still, no go.
The battery is fixed; non-replaceable. This is the one thing that made me wait many months before getting the Z30. I recycle all my phones, to family and so on, but this one may need a factory installed battery before I'd be happy for a loved one to use it. This is why I use Samsungs so exclusively.