Tag Archives: N4BB

iPhone Fan Impressed with BlackBerry Z30 (Video)

A very nice posting in N4BB :Dan Nessel, the founder of DadDoes.com is a big iPhone fan, who can’t imagine a day without an iPhone. However, Dan decided to take the BlackBerry Gets It Done 7 day challenge by replacing his iPhone 5 with a BlackBerry Z30.

To his surprise, he begins liking the BlackBerry Z30 more than the iPhone 5. Dan was very impressed with the 5-inch display, the huge battery life, BlackBerry Hub, and touch screen software keyboard which are just few of the features he really enjoyed.

The ONLY negative point he found in the platform was lack of apps but hey, we now have Android apps injection which unfortunately Dan couldn’t play around with. Furthermore, Dan explained that when it comes to things like E-mail, messaging, making calls, and web browsing, he preferred using the BlackBerry Z30 over his iPhone 5 90% of the time.

Check out Dan’s progression towards dropping the iPhone in favor for the BlackBerry Z30 in the video above.

Alleged BlackBerry Z3 renders and specs surface!

Today, N4BB posted some alleged renders of the Jakarta, which they say could hit the market has the BlackBerry Z3. Following that, BBin posted some rumored specs for the device, as follows:

Display – 5″ display, 540 x 960 pixels, 24-bit color LCD display

Memory – 8 GB application storage and 1.5 GB RAM

Processor – 1.2 GHz dual-core processor

Battery – 2650 mAh non-removable battery

Rear-facing camera: 5 MP Autofocus and flash, 5x digital zoom

Front-facing camera: 1.1 MP Fixed-focus, 3x digital zoom

With a phone like this, what matters more than specs is the price you can buy it at outright. We’ve seen low-cost Android handsets and even Nokia Lumia devices pick up a decent chunk of market share at this end of the market. A Z3 at a $150 or even up to $200 price point could be pretty darn compelling, and a great deal given the rumored 5″ display and BIG battery.

The chairman of Foxconn previously let it slip out that the device they’re working with BlackBerry to build could be unveiled at Mobile World Congress, which is just over a week away. Given the closeness to the event, we may not have to wait too long to find out whether these rumors are true or not.

One thing that is certain is that I will be making the trip to Barcelona for MWC. If anything gets announced or released, I’ll be on the ground to bring it back to you with a hands-on first look and plenty of details.
Source:
N4BB

BlackBerry to Focus on Software and Services, Support BBOS 7 Until December 2015, and no Future Tablet Plans, says Managing Director [UPDATED]

BlackBerry to Focus on Software and Services, Support BBOS 7 Until December 2015, and no Future Tablet Plans, says Managing Director

Report by N4BB : In the last earnings report, BlackBerry revealed that a whopping 3.2 million BlackBerry 7 devices were sold, versus only 1.1 million BlackBerry 10 smartphones.

It was clear that either the lack of certain core features or price points for BlackBerry 10 smartphones were not garnering the shift the company expected.

Managing Director of BlackBerry India, Sunil Lalwani, recently gave an interview discussing the company’s future. Lalwani acknowledged the company’s fault with BlackBerry 10′s release, saying “The inherent new features of BB10 had to be clearly articulated to end-users, which wasn’t done well, leading to issues like inventory build-up of the Z10, but after cutting the price, sales have picked up again.”

Software and services accounted for 60% of BlackBerry’s revenue last quarter, according to Lalwani. This is why BlackBerry will primarily focus on such ventures and leave little focus to devices.

BlackBerry will seek to cutting costs of current BlackBerry 10 devices, with the Q5 expected to receive a price cut by January in India. Lalwani says the company will no longer focus on the entry-level market with its next devices and has no future plans to re-enter the tablet space after the PlayBook.

With BlackBerry 7 smartphones still selling better than BlackBerry 10 devices, the company plans to support BlackBerry 7 until December 2015. “Then we will discontinue sales of older BB devices, and provide exchange offers and upgrade offers for existing BB 7 users, to move to BB 10 platform,” said Lalwani.

Update: We have check with BlackBerry to verify this and this is their official statement from BlackBerry on the matter.

BlackBerry intends to support the BlackBerry operating system indefinitely. Any comments to the contrary are not correct.

BlackBerry 10.2.1 Launching in January 2014?

There are talks over at N4BB reporting that 10.2.1 could be launching in January 2014, if that is true that it would be cool as users will get to download Android APK files direct and run them to install Android applications.

Report from N4BB:-

We might see BlackBerry 10.2.1 become official as soon as January 2014 for all BlackBerry 10 devices. One of our readers attended the virtual event and asked the following:

Caleb Squires: I heard blackberry will release an update in January that will allow all BB10 devices running 10.2.1 to directing install android apk files, is that true?

Justin Jasmann (BlackBerry – Android): That is true, yes.

It will be interesting to see if BlackBerry will make the January launch of 10.2.1

BlackBerry 10 Picture Password Walkthrough (Video)

Another great walk through video by N4BB, this time on BB10.2.1 Picture Password.

BlackBerry 10.2.1 introduces a new unlock screen called Picture Password. BlackBerry took a page right out of Microsoft with building their own version of Picture Password.

However, the Picture Password feature of BlackBerry 10.2.1 does not use swipe gestures. Instead, you select a picture of your choosing and a single digit number.

You then place the number in a desired position. Once set and the phone is unlocked it shows a grid of numbers. You must pull your selected number to the position on the picture you previously designated.

What’s interesting, is each time you unlock your BlackBerry 10 smartphone with Picture Password the grid of numbers refreshes. This adds an added buffer of security as your selected number is always in a random location.

BlackBerry 10.2.1 Call Screen in Action (Video)

N4BB have posted a video of the 10.2.1 call screen in action:-

BlackBerry 10.2.1 brings a completely revamped call screen. The original call screen on BlackBerry 10 had you swiping up to decline a call and swiping down to answer a call.

Apparently, users were experiencing such a difficulty in understanding how to answer calls that it generated a significant blowback. Thus, BlackBerry addressed the issue with this new call screen.

Instead of being in the middle of the screen, the swipe bar to answer or decline a call is positioned at the very bottom.

Install Android App APKs Directly with BlackBerry 10.2.1 – N4BB

Install Android App APKs Directly with BlackBerry 10.2.1 - N4BB

Another post by N4BB, Rumors regarding Google Play Store and the Android runtime have been swirling lately. While BlackBerry denies offering support for the Google Play Store, the Android runtime in BlackBerry 10.2.1 will allow you to directly install Android app APKs directly.

Shown in the screenshot above, users will be able to download Android app APKs and install them. BlackBerry gives a disclaimer about the newly opened feature for BlackBerry 10.

This feature will surely make BlackBerry 10 users immediately happy. You will literally be able to install almost any Android app. However, you won’t be able to make use of widgets, etc.

BlackBerry Denies Google Play Store Coming to BlackBerry 10

It is reported by N4BB today that BlackBerry have denied that Google Play Store will be coming to BlackBerry 10:-

N4BB
There has been a tremendous amount of rumor swirling about that Google Play Store will arrive on BlackBerry 10. The rumor has it that BlackBerry 10.2.1 will usher in the support of Google Play Store to aid in giving BlackBerry 10 users access to a plethora of apps.

We’ve reached out to BlackBerry for comment on the matter and received this official statement:

“We can confirm that there is no planned support for Google Play on BlackBerry. BlackBerry World remains the primary source for trusted and curated BlackBerry applications and we continue to support open standards and open source tools so BlackBerry developers can continue to create apps on any of the development platforms we support.”

BlackBerry 10.2.1 Bringing Exciting New Call Screen and Quick Settings to BB10

BlackBerry 10.2.1 is rumoured to be bringing a multitude of changes to the BlackBerry 10 operating system.Rumors have it that the update will bring the Google Play Store to allow BlackBerry users access to the Android app ecosystem. How true that is we will let you know once we have a more solid confirmation.

But we can confirm that BlackBerry 10.2.1 will be bringing a new call screen. BlackBerry 10′s original call screen allowed you to answer a call by swiping down or reject a call by swiping up.

In the 10.2.1 update, you will be swiping either left to answer or right to decline. This action bar slider is located below the callers image (should they have one saved from your contacts book).

The 10.2.1 update will also bring a new Quick Settings drop-down menu. You will now be able to toggle which settings are shown, which can include a flashlight, device monitor, mobile hotspot, and more.

Rumours: BlackBerry 10 Getting Android Apps to access Google Play Store?

There’s a new rumor that the Google Play Store will soon arrive onto BlackBerry 10 smartphones by way of the OS 10.2.1 update. There have been plenty of whispers lately, and now photos have emerged that allegedly show the Google Play Store officially running on a Z10.

Our friends at N4BB have reached out to some sources, who have confirmed there are ongoing negotiations between BlackBerry and Google.

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