Usage and User Experience
The Q10 has the same Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ S4 dual-core processor as you’ll find on the Z10. It runs at nippy 1.5 GHz giving it a pretty smooth user experience overall. Again, the UI (user interface) was simple and easy to navigate. Swiping right-to-left will give you access to all the icons, menus and pages just like on the Z10. From the home screen, swiping left-to-right will reveal the Blackberry “Hub”. An all-in-one place to access all your social feeds. Simply peek into the BlackBerry Hub from any app with just a swipe, and you can flow effortlessly in and out of your messages and conversations.
Unlike most touchscreen smartphones (including the Z10) … you can’t just use one hand to do everything. Well, not for me at least. So users are expected, or should I say used to, using both hands with most Blackberry phones. The Q10 is no different.
Emails and setting up accounts
Just like the Z10, creating email accounts and add social media was simple and easy. Twitter or Facebook apps are already part of the OS. Just enter your username and password and you’re done! Again, setting my Gmail and Exchange accounts was dead simple … I was done within 5 minutes.
The BB OS10 is still in its infancy, and there have been reports of bugs like contacts and calendars duplicating. Others have experience data not syncing and some data fields not mapping. I guess this is to be expected with anything new, but I’m sure Blackbeery is working hard to fix this issue with their next OS 10.2 update expected in August.
There is NO touch keyboard on the Q10. All typing is done on the built-in QWERTY keyboard. This great news for all you hardcore Bold users who just love the physical QWERTY keyboard.
What I found with the Q10, which I thought was a little annoying, is the fact that there are no navigation buttons anymore (like what you’ll find on all Bold series). The call button, the Blackberry button, the trackball/pad, return and end call buttons … are all missing. Gone. No more. What Blackberry has done is to integrate those functions into the new OS10 and making you USE the touchscreen for navigation. So, if you’re an avid user of the Bold series … you’ll probably need some time to get used to the Q10.
The overall diemensions meausres Height 119.6 mm (4.7 in), Width 66.8 mm (2.62 in), Depth 10.35 mm (0.40 in), which is bigger than is predecessor the Bold 9900 and Apple’s iPhone 4. It’s also slightly heavier than I expected.
Battery Life
The overall battery life of the Q10 is slightly better than the Z10. It will last about 2-3 days on standby (no usage), but for normal use … you’ll still need to charge it everyday, just like with any high-end smartphone. A full charge will last about a full day with continuous use. I was able to surf the net, access maps, take photos update my social feeds, check and reply to my emails, as well as listening to my favorite music. Remember, if you’re using 4G LTE it will drain the battery much faster than 3G. Ideally, I recommend you use WiFi connection where possible.
