UKC Forums - Recommend a reliable Blackberry (not too fussed about updates)

Recommend a reliable Blackberry (not too fussed about updates)

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Timmd 21 Oct 2013

My Dad has very kindly offered to pay for my phone contract after me losing my phone, so I can (hopefully) transfer my old number from my PAYG card.

At the moment I'm working alongside blackberry users as part of my Diploma, so a Blackberry makes sense for the next year or so for ease of communicating.

I gather they can vary, does anybody have any recommendations for one with a stable operating platform?

Thanks,
Tim

Only a hill 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:
In my experience there's no such thing as a reliable Blackberry (at least not for a year or two). Blackberries account for 70% of our warranty repairs at work and I'd never recommend a Blackberry to anyone. In addition it seems very likely that the company is about to withdraw from consumer electronics and be sold off. Sorry!

OP Timmd 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Only a hill: It does seem like that regarding being sold off.

Hmm, non button typing key pads drive me nuts!

Just out of interest, when was the last (mostly) reliable model?

andic 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:

I have one it says curve on the back. It is actually a reasonable phone and if you just want to check traintimes and watch youtube on the bog. I have gone back to it after having used an HTC for a year or two I got sick of the short battery life and weight, and having to treat it like a flour baby.

I have heard of BBs being dropped down several flights of stairs and still working, that is why I got it in the first place...

Only a hill 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:
One of the Bolds I'd say, but not the 9900 which has major screen and battery issues. All of the Curves since the 8520 have been dreadful, and I've also seen severe problems with the Z10, Q10, and Q5.

steve taylor 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:

I'm on my fourth work BBY in 3 years, a combination of Bold and Curve models so far. I love having a keyboard but that's where the "good" ends.

They are unreliable, slow, and too complex. I much prefer my Android phone. My employer recently announced a move from O2 to Vodafone and all of the press releases have piccies of iphones - lets hope they switch soon, then I can flush mine into oblivion.

BBY doesn't give you anything extra over other, much better, phones (except for BBM, which Whatsapp does a better job of IM-ing).

OP Timmd 21 Oct 2013

In reply to steve taylor: What would you say they're like if all you ever really do is text and message people with just the odd phone call?

I seem to have a quirk where I don't get on with things like predictive texts and touch screens, so the keyboard really appeals. Though I realise I could turn the predictive text off on a smart phone.

Only a hill 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:
I have seen Blackberry Curves from customers who only use them for basic texting and calling. Sometimes they have to be sent back to the warehouse five or six times to repair, because they invariably freeze / stop responding / outright die after a few months. Blackberry don't even try to repair dead units - they simply replace them, and then the replacement unit invariably goes wrong after a short period. I have seen Blackberry Bolds that have spontaneously caught fire and more broken scroll pads / unresponsive keys than I can count.

I would go so far as to say that, at our store, the majority of our customers who use Blackberries experience some kind of issue with their unit.

The quality control on recent Blackberries is simply abysmal and I can't think of a single redeeming feature compared to other devices. In my opinion they are almost unusably bad for any purpose whatsoever.

steve taylor 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:

> (In reply to steve taylor) What would you say they're like if all you ever really do is text and message people with just the odd phone call?
>
> I seem to have a quirk where I don't get on with things like predictive texts and touch screens, so the keyboard really appeals. Though I realise I could turn the predictive text off on a smart phone.

If that's all you want it for, and get one that's reliable (unlikely) then it's probably what you're after. Got to say that few of my colleagues with BBYs have many good words to say about them.

There are other phones with keyboards though (Nokia, Samsung, HTC Desire Z) which might be more reliable/flexible.

Bob Hughes 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd: we get blackberry 9760s at work and the one thing they are is bombproof.

The battery last for ever and mine have been dropped, kicked and left in the damp and they still keep going. The only thing they haven't survived so far is getting lost on a drunken night out.

That said, they only really work for email, whatsapp and - wait for it - phoning people. Everything else is just dressing.

KevinJ 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:
I'm also on my third work Blackberry in three years had a bold, then two curves. Not impressed with the devices or OS, but do find the keyboard easier to use than the touchscreen one on the iphone. Have to use the BBerry for work due to the security of the email functionality. The BB Enterprise Server is generally very secure for such matters and is probably one of the biggest selling points for certain business users.

OP Timmd 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Only a hill:

> (In reply to Timmd)
> I have seen Blackberry Curves from customers who only use them for basic texting and calling. Sometimes they have to be sent back to the warehouse five or six times to repair, because they invariably freeze / stop responding / outright die after a few months. Blackberry don't even try to repair dead units - they simply replace them, and then the replacement unit invariably goes wrong after a short period. I have seen Blackberry Bolds that have spontaneously caught fire and more broken scroll pads / unresponsive keys than I can count.
>
> I would go so far as to say that, at our store, the majority of our customers who use Blackberries experience some kind of issue with their unit.
>
> The quality control on recent Blackberries is simply abysmal and I can't think of a single redeeming feature compared to other devices. In my opinion they are almost unusably bad for any purpose whatsoever.

That's very helpful.

OP Timmd 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Only a hill:

I don't suppose you know how easy it is to keep your old Orange PAYG phone number by any chance, if you/do you have to take out an Orange contract?

Ta for your info.

David Bennett 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Only a hill: funnily enough blackberries seem to have the best reliability where I work. iPhone are 4 times more likely to fail before the end of contract.

blurty 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:

I got hold of a 6 year old Blackberry curve at work, when my 4th blackberry bold died a few weeks ago.

Miles better, robust & simple.

Blackberry lost the plot a few years ago, we are switching to sony windows phones at work now because Blackberry are so poor

Enty 21 Oct 2013

In reply to Timmd:

I had a Bold then a Torch over the last 5 years just because of the keyboard. I got a Nokia Lumia windows phone this year and it's like a breath of fresh air. I've been kicking myself for putting up with BB for so long.

E