Blackberry devices, once the mainstay of business organisations because of the security associated with having the servers located outside the United States, has been behind major competitors when it comes to smartphones.
Available: Now
From: Telecom
Price: $899 or $0 on a $119 24-month plan
The company has been through leadership changes, but executives promised BlackBerry devices would return and would challenge the likes of Apple, Samsung and Nokia.
Recently, BlackBerry launched its Z10 in New Zealand and the devices now run on the Telecom network. The Z10 has a recommended retail price of $899 or $0 on a $119 24-month plan.
Gen-i Dunedin delivered a Z10 to the Otago Daily Times for trial.
There is no doubt about it, the device looks slick, it feels good to hold and the first home screen to show looked impressive.
However, that is where it ended for this reviewer.
Despite BlackBerry managing director for Australia and New Zealand, Matthew Ball, saying New Zealanders would love the device, I found it hard going.
The lack of a home button to return to something resembling a home screen was frustrating. So, too, was the use of social media. Twitter is something of a mainstay these days, along with Facebook and LinkedIn. While those social sites had an app already loaded, Twitter and LinkedIn were not easy to use - ever. Sitting for hours, I tried to get the device to work as advertised before admitting defeat.
BlackBerry could have perhaps provided a more detailed instruction book, as the phone is a step change away from devices prevalent in the market. Swiping has become second nature, and the Z10 was meant to be swipe-friendly, but I struggled.
To be fair, the device has some impressive features, including a 1.5GHz dual core processor with 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage and a expandable memory card slot that supports up to 32GB cards.
The camera included extra features that gave plenty of options for photos but again, it was difficult to exit that particular function.
I really wanted the Z10 to become my favourite device - while still having fond memories of my earlier BlackBerries. Alas, it was not to be.
