BlackBerry finally unveiled its BlackBerry 10 to the public today and will soon be launching its new devices in the U.S. some time next month. The BlackBerry 10 device they seem to be the most excited about is its BlackBerry Z10, so we decided to check out BlackBerry’s latest touchscreen device.
One of the first things anyone notices when they put a phone in their hand is its weight and the feel of the device. The BlackBerry Z10 feels both light and comfortable in the hand and doesn’t slip out of your hand when attempting to maneuver it with just one hand thanks to its textured back.
When I first started using the BlackBerry Z10, I had difficulty pulling up its HUD, but I was told all first-time BlackBerry 10 users will go through an instructional process to use the BlackBerry 10 HUD that will make it easier to use. Swiping up from the “BlackBerry” logo will call up the HUD, while an “up and right” motion with your thumb will allow you to use BlackBerry Peak, which gives the user a quick glance of other applications or incoming texts without stopping their main application. This can come in handy when you’re watching a YouTube video as quickly checking on an alert can be performed with ease.
The BlackBerry 10 OS on the Z10 is extremely responsive. No matter how much I tried to lock it up by throwing as many inputs as possible, the Z10 performed flawlessly. Opening new applications and then returning to previously opened apps worked like a breeze and, more importantly, I was able to continue where I left off in the previous app.
The keyboard really impressed me on the Z10 as it was responsive, even when I changed to typing Spanish half-way through my conversation. The predictive text also impressed me greatly as I was able to tap a key and flick upwards to finish the word I was in the middle of writing. This feature will be one people who are running late and want to reply quickly to a message with one hand would appreciate.
Taking photos with the BlackBerry Z10 was a rather simple experience. To take a photo, you would tap the screen and to focus on another portion of the image, you would just drag the focus to where you would like it to be. Photo editing also takes place within the app as you’ll be able to add multiple Instagram-like filters, crop, resize and rotate images.
After about 15 minutes with the Z10, we can’t help but walk away impressed with their new BlackBerry 10 mobile device. BlackBerry hasn’t been on the minds of mobile phone users for some years now, but they certainly got our attention with the Z10.
Filed in . Read more about BlackBerry, BlackBerry 10, BlackBerry Z10 and Hands-On.