Applications
There are a number of popular applications such as WhatsApp and Instagram missing from the App World at this moment. However, the company promised that all those applications will be made available in the coming few weeks.
The most interesting improvement comes in the form of the popular instant messaging service " BlackBerry Messenger. BlackBerry Messenger is now capable of making video calls with contacts directly from the app. Unfortunately, we were offered demo-units without SIM cards and BlackBerry accounts configured. So we shall confirm later if the device will offer BBM calls (video) over WiFi and cellular networks. However, we did see a demonstration of the Screen Share function, which is possible over BBM video calls.
BlackBerry has packed several native apps but of those the company developed are BlackBerry Remember, BlackBerry Story Maker, Voice Control Picture Editing and Video Editing. The rest are the usual Gallery, Contacts and Social Network apps. The new BlackBerry Remember app is meant for storing your memos, tasks, flagged emails, voice notes etc. Every native app has been coded to offer anchor to the Remember app for organizing important stuff in one place.
BlackBerry Hub is the messaging central for storing emails, text messages, BlackBerry Messages, and other social network notifications. There is a File Manager that offers lovely visual access to the important files, unlike the old tree-like structure of the file system.
The company has also worked closely with several India based developers to push ready to use applications such as HDFC Banking for mobile banking, PVR Cinemas for movie ticket purchases and the list goes on. Popular apps such as Skype, WhatsApp and others are expected to be available from App World next month.
At the experience zone, we also got to enjoy the full version of 3D and 2D Maps though the MapMyIndia application that comes pre-loaded is free for those who purchase the device. While several other Gmail services based apps are still missing the company tactfully avoided the question on what's happening on that.
Rushed up thoughts
The BlackBerry Z10 does look like an astounding device in the hands, and interesting to try out the new swipe gesture driven user experience. From making a story-like presentation on the go to sending out an update on a social network - the phone offers it all smoothly. The Active Frames certainly makes multi-tasking interesting and the Peek gesture makes one want to check for notifications. Though the user interface and the navigation method are fairly new it hardly took us any time to get familiar with the device.
The only thing that caught our mind was the price - Rs 43,490 which is the MRP. Now, when the phone is widely available later this week, users will be able to buy it for a couple of grand less as well. However, we shall eagerly wait for a review unit to bless our hands.
