BlackBerry Z10 is expected to launch in India the second half of this
month. Analysts, however, doubt the prospects of the flagship BlackBerry
10 smartphone in the country due to the likely high pricing.
India along with Indonesia have emerged as the top two BlackBerry
markets with the company eyeing the low-end subscribers with budget
handsets and offering service packages as low as $2 a month. Reuters in
its report quotes Melissa Chau, senior research manager at technology
research group IDC as saying, “It's clear that not only are India and
Indonesia among the largest markets but in terms of future smartphone
growth, they're amongst the ones with the most potential. But the two
devices that have been launched are not well aligned to the needs of
these two markets."
The report citing ABI Research notes BlackBerry ranks third in the India after Samsung and Nokia in smartphone segment. However, the platform is facing stiff competition from Android-based smartphones in India as well as Indonesia.
"The Z10... is obviously a high-end
product and India is not a market at that price point," says Anshul
Gupta, an industry analyst at Gartner. "We don't know exactly what will
be coming here, but I would expect them to launch different models in
India which would give them more traction."
Analysts believe BlackBerry will need to announce cheaper BB10 devices in order to maintain its popularity in its top markets.
BlackBerry had unveiled the Z10,
a full touch smartphone, last week. The device, pitted against Apple's
flagship iPhone 5, features 4.2-inch 1280 x 728 pixel display, 2GB of
RAM and 16GB internal storage. The company also unveiled BlackBerry Q10
with the traditional QWERTY keypad. The device features 3.1-inch 720 x
720 pixel touchscreen, a dual-core processor and 2GB of RAM. The Q10
also has an 1800mAh battery.Designing of the Z10
The resemblance with the iPhone 5
seems to be pretty much there. This was pointed out by quite a few
reviews. Joshua Topolsky, in his Z10 review on The Verge says, “The
Z10's general form mimics the iPhone in more than a couple of ways. The
curved corners of the slabs share an almost identical circumference, the
screens are separated by an equal amount of surface space on either end
of the front panel, and a solid band of what feels like light metal
(it's actually plastic) runs around the casing of the phone. The Z10
does deviate in some notable ways, of course. Besides being larger (the
phone has a 4.2-inch display), there's no home button on the front of
the BlackBerry device. BlackBerry also places the sleep / power button
in the center top of the bounding component (with a headphone jack next
to it), and adds a mute button in the center of the volume rockers
(located on the right side of the phone). microHDMI and microUSB ports
are on the left side of the slab. Unlike the iPhone, the back pops off
the phone to reveal the SIM, battery, and microSD. That back is made of a
dimpled, soft-touch material that I found myself habitually running a
finger across when I was using the phone. I like it, and would love to
see more phone-makers considering the tactility of their devices like
this.” Jessica Dolcourt @ CNET echoes similar sentiments, “At first
glance, the handsome BlackBerry Z10 looks suspiciously like Apple's
black iPhone 5: tall and narrow, with straight edges that meet at
rounded corners, and a roughly 4-inch screen. Like the iPhone 5, the Z10
is adept at one-handed operation. That's where the similarities end.”
Build Quality
Interestingly, everyone seems to rather happy with the build quality of the Z10. TechRadar’s John McCann says, “The weight gives it a reassuring presence in the palm and while the chassis is distinctly plastic, the handset's heft at least restores some form of premium feel. Round the back you're greeted with a textured plastic rear which is slightly rubberised, providing a decent level of grip. The BlackBerry Z10 doesn't wow us with a new design, but it's a sturdy handset with a decent build quality and functional layout which makes it easy to use.” Ray S. at PhoneArena says, “We like that BlackBerry has taken its time do design a beautiful product. The design of the Z10 is both modern and strict. For that reason, it may not appeal to all consumers out there, but it will certainly be appreciated by those who want a more neutral-, yet stylish-looking smartphone. Everything in the external design of the device exudes class. Sure, the Z10 is made of plastic, but it seems like a pretty good example of a plastic phone done right.”
Interestingly, everyone seems to rather happy with the build quality of the Z10. TechRadar’s John McCann says, “The weight gives it a reassuring presence in the palm and while the chassis is distinctly plastic, the handset's heft at least restores some form of premium feel. Round the back you're greeted with a textured plastic rear which is slightly rubberised, providing a decent level of grip. The BlackBerry Z10 doesn't wow us with a new design, but it's a sturdy handset with a decent build quality and functional layout which makes it easy to use.” Ray S. at PhoneArena says, “We like that BlackBerry has taken its time do design a beautiful product. The design of the Z10 is both modern and strict. For that reason, it may not appeal to all consumers out there, but it will certainly be appreciated by those who want a more neutral-, yet stylish-looking smartphone. Everything in the external design of the device exudes class. Sure, the Z10 is made of plastic, but it seems like a pretty good example of a plastic phone done right.”
Specifications
The Z10 has a fairly impressive spec sheet, the dual core processor, 2GB
of RAM and 16GB internal storage. Mr. Topolsky says, “We like that
BlackBerry has taken its time do design a beautiful product. The design
of the Z10 is both modern and strict. For that reason, it may not appeal
to all consumers out there, but it will certainly be appreciated by
those who want a more neutral-, yet stylish-looking smartphone.
Everything in the external design of the device exudes class. Sure, the
Z10 is made of plastic, but it seems like a pretty good example of a
plastic phone done right.” PhoneArena adds, “The silicon ticking inside
the BlackBerry Z10 is a dual-core 1.5 GHz of an unknown type. We won't
be shocked if it turns out to be a Snapdragon of some kind, but we can't
be sure. The fact that it's a dual-core doesn't bother us much, because
the system is very well optimized and everything runs quickly and
fluidly. However, a quad-core solution might have helped BlackBerry
achieve a better battery life.”
Battery Backup
Battery life was always going to be a bit of a 50:50 with the new
software. However, the reviews aren’t very glowing about the battery
life. The Verge says, “Battery life is another story altogether. I
regret to report that I've been deeply disappointed by the battery in
the Z10. The company has historically made much of the BlackBerry line's
power-sipping abilities, but those talents have not been on display
while I've been testing this new phone. On several days during my test
period, I found that the device could not make it through an entire
workday without requiring a recharge or battery swap. If I took the
phone off of the charger around eight or nine in the morning, by six or
seven at night the phone was completely dead. It wasn't an everyday
occurrence — some days I made it into the evening with no trouble — but
it happened enough that it gives me cause for concern. LTE devices
aren't really known for their modest power needs, and it would seem that
BlackBerry's first entrant into the data-rich world of 2013 is no
different than the competition... and perhaps worse.”
Tech Radar had this to say, “With
moderate use the Z10 will see you through a full working day, but don't
expect it to make it through a second with a nightly charge definitely
on the cards for anyone who picks up this device. BlackBerry is quoting
up to 11 hours of talktime on BlackBerry Z10 and 408 hours of standby
which we reckon is pushing the boundaries a little, but it's good to
remember these figures are produced under lab conditions which are very
different to real usage.” Tim Stevens in his Engadget review writes,
“Battery life is merely average. On our standard video rundown test,
where we set the display to a fixed brightness and loop a video
endlessly, the Z10 managed eight hours and 11 minutes. That's an hour
less than the Verizon LTE-flavored version of the Galaxy S III
and three full hours short of the record put up by the iPhone 5. But,
of course, unlike the iPhone, the 1,800mAh battery pack here is user
replaceable -- and it's small enough you might reasonably consider
taking a second one with you.”
Screen Resolution
Camera and Image Quality
Camera has always been the weak point of a BlackBerry device. With the
new smartphones, there is the hope that this will be set right. However,
the reality seems to be slightly different. The Verge says, “The Z10
has two cameras, a rear-facing 8 megapixel shooter capable of 1080p
video, and a front-facing 2 megapixel camera which can do 720p video
capture. Both are reasonably clear and useful, though you're not going
to be doing much serious picture taking with the front lens. The
backside cam produced decent if somewhat washed out looking shots, and
focusing could sometimes be a problem (particularly in burst mode or
with macro shots). The camera also seems to suffer from the
all-too-common pink blotch in the center of the image, which can make
shots with lots of pale or white tones look off color, literally.”
Cnet points out the lack of features,
“Budding photographers will also notice scant options and controls.
There's no HDR, no ISO settings, no grid, no geotagging, no option to
drop resolution, and -- one of its worst offenses in my opinion -- no
way to silence the shutter's loud clacking.” And Engadget talks about
the slow focus while taking stills, “Standard stills taken when plenty
of lighting is available are bright and clear, showing great contrast
and color. However, focus was quite often off, resulting in a number of
very soft photos. Manually dragging the reticle where we wanted it and
waiting for the camera to refocus usually worked, but in times when we
simply wanted the camera to focus on what's in the center of frame, it
didn't always do that -- at least, not quickly enough to capture a good
photo.”
