Took me a couple of days to gather my thoughts on everything I saw at the BlackBerry 10 event a couple of days ago. I went in with an open mind, excited about the possibilities, and I came out still pumped up. Here's what grabbed me:
1) The BlackBerry Hub - BlackBerry stayed true to its core. It's a communication device first. This one feature, the BlackBerry Hub, has me geeking. Why? It's one place for all your messaging, from email to social networks, and it's easily accessible. Currently I have no less than 7 apps I have to use on Android to communicate with everyone I know. I have to open each app, and have each take up space on my phone to be able to keep my lines of communication open. If I'm going to stay with Android, I'm going to need some GUM.
2) The Keyboard - I think it's a given the BlackBerry Q10's keyboard is going to rock, however, the Z10's predictive type is what I'm anxious to give a spin. The fact that it recognizes multiple languages as well, for those of us who are multi-lingual like that, is awesome and a well thought out feature. For business users communicating with peers and clients globally, it's a godsend.
3) BBM with video AND screen share - BlackBerry could have stopped at just pairing BlackBerry Messenger with video conferencing capabilities, but decided to take it up a notch by offering the ability to share your screen as well. This proves BlackBerry can throw in some innovation besides a 4th row of icons.
4) Screen size - BlackBerry had the opportunity to follow Android handset makers into the realm of the phablet world with 5+ inch devices, but exercised restraint, at least for now. With the 4.2 inch Z10, it's nestled itself between the larger 4.5 inch+ Android devices and the smaller 4 inch iPhone 5.
5) Apps - Skype, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Kindle, just to name a few, are some of the major apps moving forward to support the platform with many more to come. That's extremely encouraging. When Palm launched webOS, how many of those top app developers were officially onboard?
6) Carrier support - Getting a large number of carriers to support a device is a daunting task. If they don't see the demand, then might as well take your dog and pony show elsewhere. In the U.S., where carriers can make or break devices, all four major carriers are onboard to carry BlackBerry 10 smartphones. This effective strategy made the Samsung Galaxy S3 immensely successful. No matter what carrier your friends are on, they can BBM with you.
7) Last, but not least, specs - BlackBerry 10 devices are armed with the latest and greatest specifications: 2 gigabytes of RAM, dual core processors, 16 gigabytes of internal storage which can be expanded with a memory card, LTE, removable batteries (hallelujah), NFC, HDMI Ports, 8 megapixel rear cameras, 2 megapixel front facing cameras, 1080P video recording, and gorgeous 1280 x 768 resolution, 356ppi displays. Yes they can compete in 2013.
Am I switching? I don't know yet. I need to get my hands on one before I can make that final decision. For me, as I mentioned before, there are key apps that I use from Google. My gut feeling is though, if the sales numbers are there, Google will show the BlackBerry 10 platform some love as it has for iOS. The Crackberry addicts deserve that. I know if I did switch, one other thing I would definitely look forward to is consistent OS software upgrades across all devices, something iOS owners have enjoyed, and Android owners have struggled with.
So far iOS and Android have dominated the market, but there's been a strong sense that the market needs at least a 3rd viable alternative, and BlackBerry 10 has all the potential to be that. I've been an Android fan for 3 years, but there's just something about that blinking red light that makes me want to checkout BlackBerry 10 for myself.
BlackBerry 10 Devices in black and white:
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