In a few years, BlackBerry has become a key player in the mobile phone market and a negligible builder. Despite a successful passport and the gradual arrival of Android in the house OS (BB10), the Canadian could not stop his fall and is dangerously close to the ground. It is therefore a sharp turn as necessary that is operated with the Priv, since it is the first BlackBerry device running Android. The record of this first is mixed and it must be admitted, a little disappointing, despite good ideas.

BlackBerry Priv

Specifications

Dimensions: 147 x 77.2 x 9.4 mm
Weight: 192 g
Screen Diagonal: 5.4 inches
Screen Definition: 2560 x 1440
DPI: 540

Display Type:

Resolution: 540PPI / 2560 x 1440 resolution / 24-bit color depth
Screen Size: 5.4" diagonal / 16:9 aspect ratio
Share of the surface screen: 71.15%
Mobile chip: Qualcomm Snapdragon 808
Processor: ARM Cortex A57 1.8 GHz + Quad-core ARM Cortex A53 1.44 GHz - 1.8 GHz
Number of cores: 6
Integrated GPU (iGPU): Adreno 418
Memory (RAM): 3 GB
Internal memory: 32 GB
Memory card: Yes
Battery Capacity: 3410 mAh
Photo sensor: 18 Mpx
Front photo sensor: 2 Mpx
Video Capture
Operating system (OS): Android
OS version tested: 5.1 (Lollipop)
Connectors
Fingerprint sensor
Type Wi-Fi
Type Bluetooth
NFC: Yes
4G (LTE): Yes
Dual-sim: no
SIM card format
Exposure Level (SAR): NC
Type of sealing: No


Introduction

The BlackBerry Priv adorned itself with the same weapons as its rivals in the high-end segment. Behind its 5.4-inch Amoled QHD (2560 x 1440 px) slab, there is a SoC Snapdragon 808 from Qualcomm. Comes with 6 ARM Cortex cores (2 x A57 and 4 x A53), it is supported by 3 GB of RAM and an Adreno 418 iGPU. The 32 GB internal memory is expandable by the addition of a microSD card, Power supply is entrusted to a battery of 3450 mAh.
Snapshot capture is left to an 18-megapixel back sensor, backed by optical stabilization, and seflies are managed by a 2-megapixel front-end sensor. NFC, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and 4G LTE are of course part; On the other hand, the absence of a biometric sensor is noticeable. It's Android 5.1 Lollipop that animates the beast, over which BlackBerry has added some elements inherited from BB10.

The CEO of the Canadian firm, John Chen, said it was necessary that 5 million Privs be sold. A forecast that seems very optimistic, especially with regard to the price claimed (799 €).

ERGONOMICS AND DESIGN


The BlackBerry Priv is an atypical smartphone. Like the Passport, it has a physical keyboard, but unlike the latter, Priv hides it under a large 5.4-inch screen. When the keyboard is cut off behind the display, we have a smartphone that does not play in the yard of thin and light terminals with its 192 g for 9.4 mm thick.

To bring up the keys of the backlit keyboard, a simple movement of the thumb is enough. A gesture that will undoubtedly recall memories to some. The sliding of the two parts is done without hang, whether it is deployment or folding of the keyboard. Above all, despite its unusual height, all keys outside, the Priv retains an excellent balance in hand. With its dimensions, physical keyboard deployed or not, the BlackBerry Priv will ask both hands to be present for the vast majority of uses.

Excellent on the Passport, BlackBerry here confirms its expertise in terms of physical keyboard. On the Priv, we find everything that made the success of the smartphone to the square screen. Beyond typing, which requires adaptation to those who have sworn by tactile for some time, the surface of the keyboard also acts as a touchpad. Thus, it is possible to use it to navigate in a text, to scroll a page and to manage the predictive input.

But, finally, it is the seizure of text that is the main advantage of this device. It will be used readily to enter emails or long notes, leaving the short SMS to the virtual keyboard - equally good for the rest.

The materials chosen are good bills and the back plastic with its slightly gummed feel offers a very good grip. It is not so much the materials as their assembly that are problematic here. Indeed, at the first gripe, the Priv disappoints so much the elements that compose it seem to lack linking. The rear face has a certain clearance with the battery it covers, leaving a rather negative feeling. We can not say that this is a handicap to use, but to a high-end smartphone, we can not let anything pass.

Another downside is that the volume control keys on the right side and the unlocking screen on the opposite side do not offer an experience worthy of a € 800 smartphone. Their operation and their position do not pose any problem, but to the touch, again, a play in the assembly is to be noted.

The general idea of ​​this BlackBerry Priv will certainly not appeal to everyone, but it is executed beautifully. Too bad that small defects like those mentioned above come to spoil the balance.

Beast of many terminals in 2015, the heater comes here to play the spoils. When it is solicited for heavy applications or gourmet games, the Priv does not lack to rise in temperature. A heater that concentrates mainly on the upper right of the terminal and that comes to hinder the grip in landscape mode.

SCREEN

The Priv signs the return of the Amoled in a BlackBerry screen. Here, the 5.4-inch slab displays 2560 x 1440 px, for a very comfortable resolution of 537 dpi. This technology benefits from an almost infinite contrast ratio, each pixel being able to be turned off independently of its congener. In addition, the Priv has a maximum brightness of 387 cd / m² which allows a flawless display even in full sun. Especially as we noted a rather good reflection rate of 13%.

All the manufacturers have taken care of the colorimetry of their most smartphones. BlackBerry does not really follow the movement and we have taken a delta E to 5.4, away from the best students who go under the bar of 3 or even 2. Small satisfaction all the same, the color temperature at 6550 K is To a hair of the norm (6500 K).

Finally, if the remanence is excellent, at 3 ms - thanks to the Amoled - this is not the case for the tactile delay, which points to 106 ms. It is well above the average of our comparison (87 ms) and especially very far from the cadors like the iPhone 6S Plus and its 23 ms.

INTERFACE AND NAVIGATION



The BlackBerry OS 10 has one major flaw: the lack of applications natively developed for it. A problem that completely fills the passage to Android 5.1 Lollipop on the Priv. But BlackBerry does not give up the good ideas that it had been able to implant in its OS, at least not all.

Graphically, the Canadian firm has remained wise and we find the atmosphere of an Android stock. The logic of navigation is however more marked by the seal of BB10. Obviously turned to productivity, the Priv takes back some of the successes of the OS and especially the hub. It is a center for aggregating notifications from a multitude of applications. From emails to SMS, social networks and call logs, everything is centralized and everything happens as under BlackBerry 10. It is possible to sort by priority, to archive an email, and to find the Communications with a contact, all means combined. It is regrettable, however, that the application of SMS is outsourced and not managed directly in the hub, forcing it to switch from one application to another.

Unfortunately, the integration of the Hub is not as perfect as on BB10 and it would have been nice to find it on one of the reception panels, for example. However, it remains a powerful productivity tool to centralize all information.

Another addition on the part of BlackBerry, a side menu, which is reminiscent of the one on the edge and edge + versions of the Galaxy S6. A tab that can be placed where you want on the edges of the screen, giving a preview of the calendar, the Hub, shortcuts to favorite contacts and notes. All this is quite practical and would almost forget the relative difficulty of access to the Hub.

BlackBerry has not forgotten to provide its physical keyboard with other assets. It is thus possible to assign a shortcut to each key of this one, allowing to launch quickly any application from the home screen. Icons also provide quick access to certain functions. Just like the long press on the central Android key, which allows to choose two quick accesses. If at first sight one could think that all these options walk on the feet, one soon realizes to the use that the Priv offers mainly the choice and that some options suit us better than others.

Keystone of the BlackBerry speech for his Priv, security is here in the spotlight. As we explained in a dedicated article, the whole system is protected and checked from hardware to software. The Dtek application provides information on the security level of the device and tells you if a particular item can be optimized. It also allows you to keep an eye on what applications access, a function that should lose a bit of interest with the management of Marshmallow permissions.

To conclude this part, we could say that, overall, BlackBerry knew how to import the assets of BlackBerry 10 on Android. Nevertheless, users of BB10 will sometimes be frustrated by certain limitations, but the habit quickly takes precedence and the Priv offers an excellent experience. In addition, the six cores of the SoC S808 and the 3 GB deliver a performance that matches our expectations in terms of fluidity. No slowdown is to be expected and the transition from one application to another is done without a hitch.

MULTIMEDIA

BlackBerry devices have never really been great tools for multimedia, and they have never really boasted about it. This Priv, passing to an Android platform, marks a step forward from this point of view. The 5.4-inch screen is perfectly suitable for playing videos, although the services of a third-party player must be avoided to overcome the limitations of decoded formats.

The helmet output of the Priv is not very powerful and it will be necessary to push the volume to its maximum on some equipment greedy. Too bad, because the rest of the measures is close to excellence. The distortion is at a very low level and the dynamics is excellent, as is the stereo image rendered.

The loudspeaker is located on the front, under the screen and the physical keyboard. It is powerful and offers a quite acceptable sound, despite a fairly common lack of the bottom of the spectrum.

For the video game, the Adreno 418 chip works well. All Play Store titles are playable without slowdowns; Even the most greedy keep an exemplary fluidity. Unfortunately, the rise in temperature caused by the most demanding games comes a little spoil the observation.

PHOTO

This BlackBerry Priv embeds a photo sensor of 18 Mpx behind a stabilized lens. The observation is rather good in full light. The triggering is certainly not the fastest on the market, but the details are well present and the management of the exhibition is satisfactory. The contribution of optical stabilization is on the other hand unclear, since the triggering speed sometimes seems a little weak. In low light, the result is well below what is obtained with a Passport. This is once again below the cadastics that are the Galaxy S6 or the LG G4.

Most of the disappointment is the poverty of the application, which allows only a very limited choice of settings. You can only change the aspect ratio (1: 1, 4/3 or 16/9), exposure, flash and HDR. Not much to say compared to the rest of the high-end offer that goes much further.

The front sensor of 2 Mpx is not really wonders and it will be necessary to use videoconference under mild light conditions.

Independence

With its battery of 3450 mAh, the Priv could claim to a good endurance and to walk in the footsteps of the Passport. But its autonomy is not finally as bright with a score of 11:05 on our general protocol with the application viSer. This is as much as the LG G4 which nevertheless has a battery with less capacity. In practice, intensive use will not allow to exceed the day of autonomy, more standard use allows to reach a day and a half. Our video streaming test remains in the same vein, with 9:05 of reading.

The BlackBerry Priv's fast charging mode allows you to perform a full charge in just over an hour. Unfortunately, the Priv does not come with a compatible charger and the latter only allows a complete cycle in about 2h30.

The BlackBerry Priv side telephony

The Priv network grip did not show any particular weakness and the recovery of 4G after getting out of a coverage area is done quickly. During calls, the conversations are clear to both the caller and the called party, but you will need to raise the volume of the speaker to hear correctly.
The GPS fix is also very fast and poses no problem.

STRONG POINTS

Powerful physical keyboard.
Amoled bright screen.
BlackBerry Overlay provided in convenient options.
Correct multimedia performance.
Honest autonomy.

WEAK POINTS

Very average colorimetry.
Finishes far from the expectations of the high end.
Photo part disappointing.
Heat on greedy uses.

CONCLUSION

The BlackBerry Priv is globally a good smartphone and the contribution of the functions inherited from BB10 is undeniable. It ensures an unfailing service when it comes to the professional world, but sins much more on leisure aspects. We remain on a good entry for the Canadian, but at 800 €, it will be difficult to convince potential buyers.