BlackBerry Classic review: For old times' sake

2 January 2015
The BlackBerry Classic is a quintessential BlackBerry, any way you slice it. With a hardware QWERTY keyboard and navigation buttons, a strictly business appearance and the best enterprise chops in the industry, the newcomer is reminiscent of...

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  • D
  • AnonD-138165
  • Y7%
  • 04 Jan 2015

"This phone is built for work, not for wasting time in games and media gobbling"

.... guess you've LOST all the iPhone crowd

    • s
    • sawgunner31
    • t7X
    • 04 Jan 2015

    AnonD-4340, 04 Jan 2015Removeable batteries is a waste on BB10, having to reboot t... moreAs a z10 owner no glitches almost the past 2 years and the removable battery is a gud thing my galaxy s4 had glitches and made me wish I could do a battery pull been owning BlackBerry cell phnes since 2008 and I can honestly say they are the most dependable as well as nokia

      • t
      • teo
      • L7X
      • 04 Jan 2015

      Anonymous, 04 Jan 2015BBs global market share is less than 1% (down from 20% in 2... moreThat's why I like it :)

        • G
        • GeorgeB
        • Y9Q
        • 04 Jan 2015

        Still using a Bold 9900, since it has two essential (for me) features:
        1. trackpad and belt
        2. Categories (for Contacts and Memos...)

        Classic has the trackpad and belt - but not yet or perhaps not ever - Categories, which is a software feature.

        Haven't heard whether the OS 10.3.1.1949 leak (now available on CrackBerry) has Categories.

        That would make me get a Classic...otherwise I'll stay with the Bold 9900.

          • D
          • AnonD-4340
          • Kg{
          • 04 Jan 2015

          Brian, 03 Jan 2015Q10 user here. I am not sure if i will pick this one u... moreRemoveable batteries is a waste on BB10, having to reboot the phone to change battery is a huge battery drain, BB10 OS uses extremely much battery to boot up. A power bank is definitely the way to go for BB10, uninterrupted operation, top up a little now and then at convenient times instead of fiddling with changing battery at (often) the most inconvenient times and waiting forever for the phone to boot up again.

          And like that wasnt enough trouble, when you get back to your home or hotel or whatever you have to start messing with desktop chargers for the spare batteries and to make it even worse again you cannot remember which one was empty or not.

          Powerbank all the way, once you start using it you will laugh at the stupid removable batteries that does nothing else than making phones feel and look cheap built, like the Z10, the removable back has glitches all the way around, looks like crap.

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • vuD
            • 04 Jan 2015

            AnonD-8044, 03 Jan 2015Silly comment I and others are buying it.. BB is only one o... moreBBs global market share is less than 1% (down from 20% in 2009).... I think the majority have spoken.

              • B
              • Brian
              • 0Cr
              • 03 Jan 2015

              Q10 user here.

              I am not sure if i will pick this one up as it isn't really an upgrade from the Q10. I would like the toolbelt back and i appreciate the extra 400 MAH in the battery, but as it is non-removable this advantage is gone. I have 3 extra batteries for my q10 and when i travel to very remote places i appreciate having them. I often go 4-5 days without being near a charger. I could use one of those portable chargers to solve the problem i suppose, but I've been doing it this way for years.

              A slightly better CPU could be nice, but i've had no complaints with the speed of my Q10 and perhaps they viewed it as an incredibly efficient and stable CPU which makes it ideal for business.

              Nice looking phone though. I will certainly check it out.

                • D
                • AnonD-8044
                • nI3
                • 03 Jan 2015

                Anonymous, 03 Jan 2015jackhammer isn't wrong. You wasted your money palSilly comment I and others are buying it.. BB is only one offering buttons, sick of tapping at a piece of glass.

                Remember gsmarena represents a few thousand folk out of billions of folk on the planet.Whats said on here never reaches 99.95% of the population.

                Anyhow get bored of phones quick so may not even keep it long,who knows.

                Waiting now for Samsung S6.

                  • ?
                  • Anonymous
                  • c{g
                  • 03 Jan 2015

                  This thing would have been great at $250, unlocked.

                  Instead, it is the cost of another smartphone more.

                  Compared to 2013's Q10 (which had the same hardware specs), this is the same thing. Except now instead of a high quality AMOLED screen and removable battery, you get a cheapo LCD (not even IPS) display, a non-removable battery, and you get to pay twice as much.

                  I keep my phones for two years...am I supposed to still be running on 2013 specs in 2017?

                  Major FAIL BlackBerry.

                    • ?
                    • Anonymous
                    • X0F
                    • 03 Jan 2015

                    Anonymous, 02 Jan 2015Non-removable battery = failplease note Nexus and iphone too have non removable battery

                      • J
                      • James
                      • rAn
                      • 03 Jan 2015

                      Anonym, 03 Jan 2015No doubt about it, BB has their own strengths. Still, do n... moreAs I have commented elsewhere, premium mobile phones typically only exist in the market with the support of carrier deals. This has underpinned Apple and top Android mobiles. As cash outright purchases there is not the value, not because of specs so much, but because of software. These top end mobiles over promise and under deliver. Lower the value point with Android means compromises. Samsung is very good with price verses specs. So where does that leave Blackberry. I think with a better OS, little carrier support for passport, not saturated with a pile of superfluous apps, but suffering from spec perception. Android is inefficient and not secure but a great entertain platform. The Classic does not need to follow the el cheapo Android trend as it serves a business need. So why does Blackberry act as if it is its own worse enemy with over pricing when they need to get their OS out into the market place. That is the question.

                        • A
                        • Alvin Jangda
                        • t@F
                        • 03 Jan 2015

                        The pioneer of actual 'smartphones' is back!

                          • A
                          • Anonym
                          • A1a
                          • 03 Jan 2015

                          Anonymous, 02 Jan 2015"Every time I read a BB discussion I always get that n... moreNo doubt about it, BB has their own strengths.
                          Still, do note that your comment is rational and very well put, something which comes in stark contrast with the typical arguments in this kind of "threads".

                          RIM/BB was once the dominant force in the smartphone market, which happened for a good reason (at the time they had the best product for their market). The problem is their current predicament isn't also void of good reasoning.

                          Unfortunately (as it is) BB Classic is a step in the opposite direction of that "viable alternative contender" to Google/Apple/Microsoft (mostly due to its value vs. the asking price). -- And contrary to what many other BB supporters appear to believe, denial isn't what's going to give us that much desirable renewed contender in the mobile arena.

                            • D
                            • AnonD-82756
                            • nEi
                            • 03 Jan 2015

                            High price and non removable battery deal breaker for me I'm afraid.

                              • ?
                              • Anonymous
                              • Mx@
                              • 03 Jan 2015

                              AnonD-8044, 03 Jan 2015Why make that comment? If you are not interested one iota i... morejackhammer isn't wrong. You wasted your money pal

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • Mx@
                                • 03 Jan 2015

                                Finally, Blackberry will always be best

                                  • D
                                  • Don
                                  • rAn
                                  • 03 Jan 2015

                                  What are the LTE frequencies, thanks

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • t1$
                                    • 03 Jan 2015

                                    To all Tech Geeks phone don't run on specs but on quality control, the more the control the costlier the phone. This is why apple and BlackBerry produce few and costly phone and Xaiomi produce new products every day at cheaper price. So price is correct as long as it satisfy needs

                                      • D
                                      • AnonD-8044
                                      • nI3
                                      • 03 Jan 2015

                                      JACK HAMMER, 02 Jan 2015They are going to fall flat on their face again with this o... moreWhy make that comment? If you are not interested one iota in this phone why comment.? You have not commented in many other forums on phones you are not buying so something suggests you have an interest in this device to warrant a comment.

                                      Mines due after the 5th Jan and looking forward to it more than any other device on market bar Panasonic CM1.

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • c{L
                                        • 02 Jan 2015

                                        Anonym, 02 Jan 2015Even though they are not my choice, they are (at this time)... more"Every time I read a BB discussion I always get that nostalgic feeling that I am talking (once again) to Nokia fans and their "oh superior" OS."

                                        Not necessarily superior. It still misses the little things; there is no OpenVPN support AT ALL which is a major turnoff, and I probably wouldn't have bought in had I known this. There is no Dual-SIM support. BlackBerry also doesn't push OS updates directly; they allow carriers to interfere, meaning your factory-unlocked phone might end up with carrier bloatware depending on what SIM you put in.

                                        Still, it's the only true alternative for people who don't want to buy in to the big three of Microsoft/Google/Apple. Android app support is stellar without Google Play services. The gesture-based UI is well-thought out and makes going back to Android seem archaic. I think that BlackBerry is continuing the spiritual legacy of what Nokia was trying to do before the takeover. I don't see how any mobile enthusiast (the type of people who would frequent this site) could cheer for monopoly and lack of innovation in this field.