WAYS TO IMPROVE BLACKBERRY
with Special Regard to BlackBerry OS & Hardware Running BlackBerry OS - Present & Future
WHY BBOS 6 ON THE BLACKBERRY CURVE 9300 IS WAY BETTER THAN BBOS 10, e.g. ON THE BLACKBERRY PASSPORT: [OR, how QNX (bless 'em) messed up BBOS by trying to ... nah, I can't even figure out what they were trying to do]
[i.e.: Why I am downgrading from the Passport to the Curve, yes, really] [Article composed between 2013 - 2018]
Precis: The BlackBerry Passport's BlackBerry OS 10 is higgledy-piggledy in its GUI, unlike the cold hard logic of BBOS 6. The hardware also has a few disadvantages over BB06 devices such as the Curve. Beautiful screen though - great for reading eBooks, great for academics.
BlackBerry OS 10 version referred to throughout this article: 10.3.2.2836
# HARDWARE # [OK, nothing can change this, but for what it's worth, here's what I think the hardware needs, it's not a major thing really, feel free to skip this section]
- Sometimes l want to do a quick and easy hard OS reset via battery pull. There is no hard reset on the BlackBerry Passport. Granted, l've not actually needed a hard reset on the Passport - yet. Also, we need to be able to swap batteries, for long business trips (l know, l know, the Passport has plenty battery life, and there are mains sockets everywhere these days - except when there aren't, e.g. some coaches, and possibly when you're glamping). [BBOS 6 on the Curve 9300 allows this]
- We could do with some haptic feedback when using a touchscreen to type / enter phone numbers
- Need dual sim, really. If people need 2 phones, then you can be sure they will have at least 3 phones (quantity of phones owned = quantity needed * 1.5) (l made this equation up myself but yes it sounds right). All people will have at least 2 phones, 1 being a spare. Let the other phone have everything else. This would require dual SIM.
- Have extra physical side buttons, e.g. one on each side for camera and calculator (default, but assignable to other apps, as per BBOS 6 on the Curve 9300)
# HARDWARE OR CAN BE DONE VIA SOFTWARE, or ASSIGNING TO HARDWARE BUTTONS #
- NFC icon keeps switching on, and then, once my sim card got validated, stopped this unwelcome behaviour. However, the red laser still appears to be in operation. Possibly to detect whether the phone has been flipped over or not? [BBOS 6 has no NFC, and who needs that annoying Borg laser anyway? I mean really ...]
- The BlackBerry Passport keys are nice and smooth, but there are no gel cases which cover the keys, allowing for real hands on typing. Yes l know this takes away the fun of using the keyboard as a browser. But we need the option to have a truly whack-able keyboard i.e. protected by a gel case. Ultimately, we need a trackpad, for when we want the touchscreen to be toggled off, and the keyboard protected from pressure under a gel case. [BBOS 6 has such gel cases, which leave the trackpad exposed for use]
- Need a trackpad, for when we want the touchscreen to be toggled off, and the keyboard protected from pressure under a gel case. Also, the trackpad allows for accurate pinpointing of places on a map. [BlackBerry Curve 9300 has the trackpad and it works beautifully with BBOS 6]
This is a physical feature request, but it can be done via software too, as the BlackBerry Passport's keypad already has trackpad functionality, and maybe any BBOS10 device without a physical trackpad, will have a screen large enough for some of it to be consigned to trackpad functionality?
At least, make the OS have the option to assign trackpad functionality to the touch sensitive keyboard, such that it works as a trackpad no matter what is on the screen (i.e. it works like a true physical trackpad, moving an arrow cursor around the screen, never letting the screen's content limit it to mere scrollbar functionality), whilst the screen's touch sensitivity is toggled off. A software solution that truly fixes things. You CAN do it. Include the option to disable the trackpad. [Of course, the Curve 9300 has a physical trackpad]
- Accompanying the trackpad, we need the traditional BlackBerry OS "action" (my own word) keys - to the left of the trackpad: Send / Call Key, Menu Key; to the right of the trackpad: Escape / navigate back / undo Key, End / Power Key. As with turning the keypad into a full trackpad, these special keys, too, could be implemented as a software modification rather than a hardware modification, so that they are displayed on the screen by default. Of course, include the option to disable (hide) the action buttons. [Of course, the Curve 9300 has physical keys either side of the trackpad]
- Need option to increase or decrease the sensitivity of (or disable / enable) the main touchscreen, the trackpad area, and the "action" key buttons, i.e. have them require 1, 2 or 3 taps to be triggered
- Need option to disable the touch screen. I don't want to make accidental phone calls, which happens all too easily, nor do l accidentally want to trigger anything else when the phone is resting near the laptop and l am brushing my palm against it while typing on the laptop. [BBOS 6 on the Curve 9300 has no problem with this as the Curve uses a physical trackpad]
- Need ability to re-assign one of the existing physical buttons to open the calculator, and one to open the camera [BBOS 6 allows this]
# KEYPAD TRACKPAD #
- The keypad trackpad functionality is absent in the native Pictures app, and impaired (only scrolling, no zoom) in the native Maps app. Perhaps other apps are affected too.
- Keypad trackpad cannot move text cursor [BBOS6 allowed this, by pressing down on the trackpad]
# DISPLAY #
- Cannot set screen timeout to "never" - it is 5 minutes maximum on the Passport, which l'll admit gives an advantage in device security [I'm certain BBOS6 allowed this]
- The displayed time on the home screen does not carry the option of also giving the date in various formats next to the time (currently it is on the actual screen, not the screen header, and therefore not always immediately visible and it disappears when there is an app window open; or you can tap the header and then the date shows, along with a list of other options) e.g. Weekday, Date, Month, Year, and time counting seconds too [BBOS 6 also wasn't able to show seconds, but it at least gave the date on the main screen, in the format: Weekday, Date, Month]
- Need the classic notification symbols in the header, to show that calls have been missed, and texts and eMails remain to be read
- Need an option to disable the touch screen, to avoid making accidental phone calls, which can happen all too easily [BBOS 6 on the Curve 9300 has no problem with this as the Curve uses a physical trackpad]
- The two options in blue font at the top left and top right of an app's display window (visible when doing some sort of editing work) (e.g. "Cancel", "Save" as on the image editor app, and the "Remember" notes app.) must be brought down to the bottom of the window, to within thumb's reach
- Need an onscreen icon to switch the device off [BBOS 6 has this]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now to list improvements by feature, with the features listed in generally descending order of importance (except that related features have been clustered together) to myself, and perhaps to other people too:
# CALLS / DIALLING / TXTING #
- Remove the "Phone" icon from the bottom left of the screen - it's too easy to accidentally touch it and end up phoning somebody. Perhaps make the bottom left and bottom right icons user-configurable? On that note, seal off (e.g. by adding requisite steps to access it) use of the telephone functionality (inc. contacts directory), so that it's less likely to be used accidentally.
- How do l get my keypresses to give auditory feedback (to be toggled on / off at will) when l'm making a phone call? [BBOS 6 allows this, not sure how l toggled the behaviour on and off though, nor if it were even possible. Admittedly, if not possible, could create problems when hiding under bed from mad axe man, but v. v. unlikely to ever happen]
- Unfinished (i.e. not yet sent) text messages are no longer highlighted green [BBOS 6 did this, it was very helpful]
- Allow barring of texts and calls from specific senders [Not even BBOS 6 permits this, sadly. Maybe it is only something the carrier can enable?]
- Allow mutltiple selected messages to be marked unread / read / deleted / read in sequence
- Allow deleted messages and other items to be retrieved
- Allow deleted messages to be finally deleted ("empty trash") permanently, unrecoverably. Useful in the case of viruses.
- Allow to send messages to group
- Allow to resend a message
- Allow to save a template message
- Allow to save messages in a "Saved messages" folder
- Have a "Deleted messages" folder (i.e. one specifically for deleted texts)
- Have a "Sent messages" folder
- Phone cannot ring AND vibrate at the same time [BlackBerry Curve 3900 running BBOS 6 permits this]
- There is no option to have the phone on loudspeaker prior to dialling a number. Therefore you must be deft in switching to loudspeaker as soon as you've dialled a number. [BBOS6 never did this]
- When dialling a number for a phone call, the first 3 digits are mysteriously put into brackets, which creates confusion [BBOS6 never did this]
- When dialling a number for a phone call, if you pause for more than a few seconds, the digits you have so far entered just get dialled regardless [BBOS6 never did this]
- When inputting additional numbers (e.g. when typing in options on directory tree, or entering access numbers for an international call card), there is no keypad press tone, unlike when entering the actual primary phone number [BBOS6 never did this]
- When a mistake is made while entering the additional number, you cannot delete a number entered erroneously [BBOS6 never did this]
- When the additional number is finally entered, pressing the Enter button on the physical keypad causes the entire block of digits - including the primary phone number - to be redialled. What on earth? [BBOS6 never did this]
- When dialling a number, and the call gets connected, the number pad should still be visible by default, to enable progressing through an options tree
- Contact screen should close once a call is connected, so that once the call is finished, you know you are not still in the call (the contact screen is visible during the call, and before that, whilst dialling the contact's number). There should also be an alert telling you when your call has ended, and which side ended the call.
# TONES #
- It's a perilous quest fraught with tricks and cunning traps, just to set SMS and phone tone. There should be ONE centralised menu for ALL sounds the phone makes, including app profiles (set type and volume of app sounds) and general phone profiles (e.g. airplane mode, vibrate only, etc.). Still no idea how to set Alarm tone. [BBOS 6 allows this] [Edit: alarm tone is set via the Clock app. Set an alarm, then press the time setting, to enter a menu where you can change the alarm time, snooze time, and change the alarm tone]
- Unsure how to toggle input tones on / off when dialling numbers, or change the volume of the tone [pretty certain BBOS 6 allows this. It certainly gives auditory feedback when dialling numbers, by default]
# BLACKBERRY MAPS #
- Erm what??? Cannot paste a copied postcode / address (from a webpage) into the native BlackBerry maps application [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Unable - just, unable - to remove a place marker accidentally laid down on the map in BlackBerry maps [on BBOS 6 it's simple ... just select then delete the marker]
- Need 2 digits (= both hands?) on the screen in order to zoom into BlackBerry maps [on BBOS 6 this was simply a mode entered via the menu - in that mode, an upward swipe via the trackpad gave a zoom in, and a downward swipe gave a zoom out. Simple. Elegant.]
- Cannot zoom in and out with a simple press of "i" or "o" (respectively) on the keypad [On BBOS 6, the map allows this]
- Need to be able to pinch fingers together and outward on the touch-sensitive keyboard, in order to zoom in and out of BlackBerry Maps without having to touch the screen and inadvertently create a map tag.
- The BlackBerry Maps app is too slow to load locations, particularly remote locations. [BBOS 6 is noticeably faster]
- It takes 4 steps to add a location as a favourite, after which it's not clear how to even get back to the map and it's not even certain if the place has been added as a favourite because l've seen a further form after one more step that is required, but l've somehow added a favourite without filling in that form, but was unable to add another favourite without filling in that form [in BBOS 6, it's 1 step and then 1 step to return to the map]
- It's uncertain how to search the vicinity of a map area for shops etc. [in BBOS 6 it's directly from the "Find" menu]
- You can't even edit the name of the favourite you've just added to the map!!!! I want to add the opening times to the place name, so that l can see all the info at a glance, instead of the endless layers and steps that BBOS 10 is so fond od [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Your other favourites aren't visible on the map!!! Just the one you've selected. So forget planning to visit multiple places - you must visit one place then return home to sleep, OK? [BBOS 6 allows this]
BUT HEY, AS LONG AS YOU CAN SHARE THE LOCATION ON FACEBOOK AND GET LIKES, THEN BB10 OS ROCKS!
- Forget about seeing the entire immediate area around a favourited map location. The new BlackBerry maps proudly displays a big cartouche with the place name, blotting out much vital map info. That cartouche doesn't disappear unless you press a map location. Once you press a map location, you risk confusing BBOS 10 but hey, the bonus is you'll then end up with a planned route to the random place you touched, and it can all be sent to Facebook, +1 LIKE!
- To go to a favourite on the map, from your favourites menu, you have to click on the favourite, click on the map on the record for that favourite, and then you will see it on the map. Why not go straight to the map? [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Extremely odd how BlackBerry maps renders faster (?) on the Curve 9300 with BBOS 6, than the magnificently spec-ed Passport with BBOS 10. Or at least, both render just as fast. Very odd.
- There is no visible scale on the maps anymore [On BBOS 6, the map gives the scale]
- No live data on your velocity and direction [On BBOS 6, the map gives this data]
- One good thing about BlackBerry Maps on BBOS 10: Your favourites actually save, rather than losing all when you do a reboot [sadly, that happens on BBOS 6]
- It takes a long time for the direction of travel (e.g. when on foot) to register on the map, potentially leaving the pedestrian running wild and the motorist rabeting
- There's no direct way to clear accidental flags created when the touchscreen is accidentally pressed. The only way is to clear the map of all flags, which sadly removes all favourites too.
- Navigation via the keypad (the keypad's trackpad functionality) needs to be activated / primed by scrolling the view via the touchscreen first, to "wake" the keypad's navigation. Even after this, the keypad trackpad keeps freezing when scrolling down a page that contains, for example, advertisements or large images, and needs to be re-awakened by stroking the touchscreen.
# WEATHER #
- The native Accuweather app appears to have hardly any settings (add humidity, pressure, visibility etc.), unlike the AccuWeather app on BBOS 6 (downloaded via BlackBerry World). What is truly bizarre is the wind direction being given in degrees rather than compass direction.
- There is no inline radar mapping, instead you get redirected to the Accuweather website [with BBOS, the radar map is part of the app]
# SECURITY #
- Same unpleasant thrills as with PlayBook. App permissions are not fully explained. Will that app really inspect my contact list or switch on my cam, even without my permission? Even with all of my data encrypted? Every app seems to want to own your life and photo you naked. How's about taming these apps when they are installed in BBOS10 so that they chill out and are rendered incapable of doing the freaky things they promise to do in their mandatory app permissions, unless via momentary and specific permission by the user?
- As with any phone, l want to be sure my device isn't filming me in the bathroom. Could you please reassure me? I want to know if an app can really take a photo without asking me, l want to know if an app has actually recorded video without asking me.
- How do you get BlackBerry Protect to work (to protect your phone if it is lost / stolen)? You need BlackBerry ID? What is BlackBerry ID anyhow? It's not explained properly or intuitively. You need to make the whole BB ID thing more clear. I mean, why do l need it to use BBM? How do l get a BB ID? How do l go about getting BlackBerry Protect? How does it work? I'm sure there are explanations out there, but look, l've owned my BB Curve 9300 for years and l still don't have a clue about BB ID, how to get it and why l need it, and l don't have a clue about BB Protect. I'm of average intellect too, so what gives? It seems that you are making products for your own designers to use, because Joe Public doesn't know what you're on about and doesn't have time to sit down and learn something that has no clear use.
- Where is the symbol that tells us BlackBerry Protect is working to protect the device? [BBOS 6 had this on the Curve 9300]
- User should be asked to give permission before closing a browser tab / wordprocessing / PDF document and / or must be able to swipe back to open document when the screen is changed
- Where is the onscreen icon to immediately toggle screenlock with password protection, for when you see a criminal-looking guy approaching? The icon at the top of the screen doesn't even take you into your password-protected screen lock. [BBOS 6 has this]
[EDIT: Reply received: Lock the screen of your BlackBerry device from the home screen, the BlackBerry Hub, or the Phone app Press and hold K]
[MY RESPONSE: It is done by clicking one simple icon on BBOS 6]
- "System" application mysteriously attempts to connect to the internet at around 00:52am, but if it cannot connect (because you have disabled internet data), then the battery will be used up and the phone will get very hot under your pillow. And weirder still, once you enable data, when you check the "System" app usage spikes, they become 01:52 instead of 00:52. Weird.
- Where can l get the memory cleaner icon? [BBOS 6 has this]
[EDIT: Reply received: Please try to look at the Blackberry World and there are third party application available.]
[MY RESPONSE: It is a no-frills preloaded native app on BBOS 6]
# DUAL BOOTING & VIRTUALISATION #
- WHY NOT DUAL BOOT BBOS 10 WITH BLACKBERRY'S ANDROID IMPLEMENTATION?
- Allow virtualisation so that people can load and run other OSes to solve compatibility issues
# BROWSER #
- Upon opening the browser, we are confronted with thumbnail panel view of your entire browsing history mixed up with your actual bookmarks. There seems to be no way to go straight into list view, with bookmarks (in order of recently viewed) and recent history kept separate, and indicated by a list view of their full titles. [BBOS 6 does this properly]
- Open new tab on an open browser is 2 clicks, rather than 1 click with BBOS 6
- Cannot copy text from a website via any menu option [BBOS 6 allows this]
- I'm pretty sure l could set the minimum pixel dimensions of results via Google Images on BBOS 6. I certainly could with the PlayBook. Yet with BBOS10, l can't get into the image settings on Google Images. How come? This is really, really strange.
- When you click on an object (e.g. an image), you don't see the option for that object to open in a new tab. This is an absolute necessity when browsing for wallpapers etc. [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Want to save an image? Press down on it, wait for the save image tab to appear on the right, then time your hand to physically raise from the screen just in time so that the save image tab on the right stays put. Then save image. Oh but it will save the unenlarged image anyway, cos you can't open the full sized image in a new screen (but hey, you can open that exact same thumbnail in a private browser screen for all your privacy needs! *Sarcasm*). [BBOS 6 on the Curve 9300 has none of these issues. On BBOS 6, if you want to view a full sized version image from a thumbnail, just hold selector down --> open in new tab --> done.]
- Browser doesn't give the option to zoom in and out of a page [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Browser doesn't give the option to toggle Java and Flash on / off. Bad, bad, bad. [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Browser doesn't give the option to allow / disallow images [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Browser doesn't always give the option to clear cookies - except when cookies are enabled [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Enabling cookies from a browser window where you're told to enable cookies is a long hard trek. You need to open a new browser after mistakenly fiddling around with the existing browser. Then go into a sub-menu, then go into a sub-menu, and from there, enable cookies. [BBOS 6 makes this only approx. 2 steps]
- To refresh a browser tab requires accessing a menu [BBOS6 makes this only 1 step]
- There is no [cancel / escape / back] button on the browser. Thus, an accidental keypress in the URL window prevents a loaded webpage from scrolling, with everything becoming dependent upon actioning whatever has been typed in the URL window. Thus nothing further can be done with the loaded webpage. [BBOS 6 has a back button on the browser for this]
- As with BlackBerry Maps, navigation via the keypad needs to be activated / primed by scrolling the view via the touchscreen first, to "wake" the keypad's navigation capability
- Browser cannot reformat the text on a webpage so that it fits between the left and right margins regardless of zoom level [BBOS 6 did this with ease, using far, far, far inferior hardware spec on the Curve 9300]
- Browser needs a shut down button on the actual displayed window, which gives a dialogue box when pressed, asking if you really want to shut that window / tab down
- "Clear History" is in two places - both in the options that accompany a new tab before opening it (left hand side --> History) and the options that accompany the tab history view (right hand side --> Settings). Inelegant. [With BBOS6, all tab options are on one screen]
- Need to recognise, and so ignore, an accidental upward swipe from the keypad to the address bar of the browser (causing the address bar editor to come into effect, making the keypad trackpad "sleep" until the editor is cancelled or a new URL is inserted and enter is pressed), such as may happen when using the keypad as a trackpad to scroll down a big webpage
- The Settings option must be available even on an open webpage
- The view that immediately opens when "Privacy and Security" is pressed in the Settings option, must include the option to clear cookies, i.e. it shouldn't require a downward scroll in order to find that option, especially considering it will be the second or joint-first most used option on that menu, beside "Clear History"
- Opening a new tab, be it empty or a webpage, should not change the focus to the new tab
- Browser no longer allows some sites without the user specifically waving them through, and in some cases, the browser will not allow certain known safe websites to be opened - this is apparently because of the use of opensource SSL certificates, which the browser does not recognise, and apparently this has been fixed with the latest version of BB10 OS
- Pressing enter after entering the filename of an item to be downloaded, should automatically download that object, rather than requiring the "Save" button to be pressed, as is currently the case. Also, the option to View Image and Save Image should be on the right-hand side swipe menu, rather than requiring that the image be pressed for a while until an independent menu automatically emerges from the right hand side. [BBOS 6 allows this, l'm sure]
# DATA MANAGEMENT #
- Data Management screen shows a different current data usage level depending in the renewal date ... OMG. I mean, 29 Jan renewal date = 5.8GB on 28/01/2017, but 30 Jan renewal date = 5.5GB on 28/01/2017 (same day) - even when switching between the two renewal dates, l still got those two different data usage quotes. It seems to have been calculated pro-rata - WTF?
- If data usage is set to a figure, the data usage graph does not reflect this upper limit, instead the red upper limit line on the usage graph is set to some close, lower, but ultimately irrelevant figure. For example, set the data usage limit to 79950 Mb, and the red limit on the graph will be 7.7Gb.
- Must be able to reset the data usage graph manually, e.g. when you are inserting a new sim from a new provider. Currently, when you do this, the phone displays the data you have used from the last refresh date, up to the present moment. It doesn't recognise that a fresh simcard from a new provider requires a data counter reset. Also, the data usage counter fluctuates for the same point in time, depending on the refresh date you set. Weird.
# YOUTUBE #
- The native YouTube app requires 2 steps to enter a search term (first click the app icon, then click the search icon within the app, then enter the search term). With BBOS 6 it took only 1 step - just enter the text directly into the search window.
- The native YouTube app's browser "back" button ought to be closer to the centre of the screen, not to the far left side of the screen, so that it can be reached no matter which hand is holding the phone, and it won't be accidentally pressed by the left hand as it holds the phone (as it currently can be, as it is on the far left side of the screen)
- When opening a YouTube video, the automatic view should be the minimised window with comments visible. Only by tapping an icon should the full screen view be activated. Don't be so apologetic of the screen dimensions that the software must to go direct to full screen view by default.
# ALARM & CLOCK #
- When "Snooze" is activated after the alarm goes off, the alarm will next go off from the moment (l believe) the snooze was activated, not from t=00s i.e. the minute the time arrives. And thus the snooze timer can eventually end up going off a minute late or more (if several rounds of snooze are triggered in a row) - CAN YOU BELIEVE IT??? [BBOS 6 of course doesn't do that. NOBODY else does that]
- There is no way to get the analogue clock on my home screen [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Cannot have the analogue clock on my screen saver, only digital [BBOS 6 allows this]
- Setting the alarm clock requires working through 2 different screens and many clicks, whereas with BBOS 6 it is all done via one screen and requires only 2 clicks (plus 1 click to exist the screen).
- Analogue clock does not also display the time in digital. At least have a digital clock with seconds counting down. [BBOS 6 allows this]
# FILING SYSTEM / FILE MANAGER #
- There is no option to view folder / drive (e.g. media card, phone storage) statistics e.g. number of files, no. of directories, total space taken, free space available
- When saving a file over another file, i.e. saving it with the same filename, there is no dialogue bar asking if you wish to save with a different filename. Moreover, a bizarre, undeletable (no permissions) file is generated, and the pre-existing file is left untouched.
- Add trashcan to the PlayBook and BlackBerry OS phone, with undelete option and fileshredder (permanent delete) option
# REMEMBER (NOTEPAD APP) #
- Should be able to undo / redo the deletion of notes in the Remember app (and any other app), and those notes should be sorted strictly in alphanumerical order, rather than at present where the capitalisation of letters affects the order in which they are displayed (lower case letters are displayed after upper case)
- To delete a note in the Remember app requires, you guessed it, 2 steps [BBOS 6 takes, you guessed it, 1 step]
- Editing window closes as soon as "Save" is pressed
# BLUETOOTH & TETHERING #
BLACKBERRY BRIDGE - FOR TETHERING INTERNET FROM PHONE TO TABLET REGARDLESS OF CARRIER PERMISSIONS, AND COMPLETELY FOR FREE:
- This was a major selling point for the BlackBerry phones and the PlayBook tablet, in fact it's one of the main things preventing me from abandoning the PlayBook and my old Curve phone
- BlackBerry Blend, the replacement for BlackBerry Bridge: lolwhut. It doesn't connect to the PlayBook for internet tethering. Installed BlackBerry Bridge instead. [So simple on BBOS 6]
- Had success with BlackBerry Bridge but this might be because I finally managed to register and confirm my new BlackBerry ID
- Toggling internet on / off takes 5 steps, whereas on BBOS 6 (at least on the Curve 9300) it's approx. 2 steps.
- Bring back the [blue] indicator for Bluetooth. Because, it tells us when bluetooth is in use. Because, we might want to switch bluetooth off but we may have completely forgotten about it. [BBOS 6 had this]
- Toggling bluetooth on / off via the pull down menu gotten when you downward swipe, doesn't actually toggle bluetooth on / off. You need to go to Settings, then Networks and Connections then click on Bluetooth. With BBOS 6 it's 2 steps and it actually toggles bluetooth on / off. Even then, it doesn't work so easily when you want to bluetooth your wireless internet from your BlackBerry phone to your BlackBerry tablet. You need to go via BlackBerry Bridge on the Passport (l don't think the native app on the Passport - "BlackBerry Blend" - even works, you need BlackBerry Bridge, as that's the one on the PlayBook) and then you need to enable bluetooth separately. [This was ALLLLL just one click on BBOS 6]
- Even then, the Bridge connection may drop and become irrecoverable without pairing the phone and tablet anew, e.g. giving the tablet a new name. Mind you, it would help if you could revert to the PlayBook's original bluetooth network ID, as l recall it also caused problems on BBOS 6 when you changed the default name (e.g. PlayBook_03CH) to something else.
# BLACKBERRY MESSENGER #
- How exactly does BBM work? It's not explained properly or intuitively. Doesn't seem possible to log out of BBM.
# BLACKBERRY WORLD #
- Impossible to verify BlackBerry ID - when link is pressed as soon as received in email inbox, told that link has expired [EDIT: No, this was because l had cookies disabled]
- In BlackBerry World, when browsing apps, l'm pretty sure there's no indication of whether you've already downloaded a specific app that has appeared in your search results. Also, l'm sure BBOS 6 actually gave such indication.
- How do I sign out of BlackBerry World? e.g. so that I can be prompted for a password change when I try to log in with my BBID again. [Pretty sure it was easy to just log out of BB World on BBOS 6]
# MUSIC #
- Allow playlists to be edited, i.e. songs to be deleted (currently, can only add songs, and it doesn't care that you already have an identical copy of the song already in the playlist)
# ADOBE READER #
- It is hard to select text in the native Adobe Reader app, and when selected text is copied, it does not flash green in confirmation that the selected text is copied, as it does everywhere else in the BB10 OS
# CAMERA & IMAGE EDITOR #
- If screen orientation changes during a photography session (there should at least be an option to prevent this), it stays changed until the camera app is exited and restarted
- It is very difficult to edit the title (filename) of a media item if that filename (existing / next intended) takes up space greater than the screen allowance - in other words, if scrolling is required to edit the title
- Must be able to change the image size in the native image editor app
- Need an undo function in the image editor app and as many other apps as possible
- When viewing saved images on the phone, it should be made possible to swipe left / right to scroll through the saved images, like a slideshow [BBOS 6 allows this, l'm sure] [EDIT: You must be fully zoomed out to do this - but then again, the trackpad of the Curve etc. made it easier to zoom right the way out, whereas with the Passport, you need to pinch your fingers and you're not quite sure if you've reached the maximum extent]
# VIDEO EDITOR #
When sending a video via text message, if that video is too long, there is the option to edit the video. However, when the video editor opens, it is possible to change the length of the video but it doesn't appear that that new length (= new highlghted section of the video) is saved. There are a few other options in the editor too but they are all greyed out. The only way to edit video is to open the Pictures app, and from there, browse for the video, and open it for editing. However, even with that app, there is no specific method for just renaming a video (e.g. one you've changed the length of). It has to be done via the "Properties" option, which is the same effort, but a little vague at first.
# AMAZON APPSTORE #
- Errr ... I deleted an app from Amazon AppStore directly from my BlackBerry screen. But the app still shows on my Amazon AppStore "My Apps" tab, and the program even opens from there. I don't want this creepy app on my phone. It takes seemingly Godlike permissions. How do l delete it? Yes, I've heard there's a way, by linking your device to your PC (assuming you use Windows on your PC, which is a naive assumption), but BBOS 6 doesn't have these issues. Amazon is a brilliant company, but meaning well, it has inadvertently turned BBOS 10 into a battlefield, because it acts like a boss as much as BBOS 10 acts like a boss. There can only be one boss. Sort it out, guys, or it will make both Amazon and BlackBerry look immature.
- When the installation of an app from Amazon AppStore fails, there is no way of uninstalling it via Amazon AppStore in order to download and install it afresh. Amazon AppStore makes a show of uninstalling it, but it then shuts down and if you restart AppStore, you are back to the uninstall "OK / Cancel" screen, you end up infinite loop, unless you press "Cancel".
- Opera browser on Amazon AppStore won't even load Netflix, at least the Opera Mini version doesn't (couldn't test out the full version, it crashed during setup, when AppStore crashed, when l tried to uninstall an AppStore app via a useless uninstaller app also gotten via AppStore)
- Opera and just about every upper tier app demands FULL permissions from your phone - permission to take pics, shoot video, browse your contacts, view your device access PIN, etc. etc. etc. and none of these permissions can be revoked, only the app can be uninstalled via BlackBerry device. Except it can't, because it's still showing up as present on Amazon AppStore, if not on your device, then on the Amazon AppStore cloud.
- Skype from Amazon AppStore is frozen in downloading, and there's no battery pull that can save me from this. I switch the phone one and off, and it's still frozen in download. I cannot re-download it as the orange tab next to the app title is blank now, on the Amazon AppStore page for the app.
# TYPING #
- When typing a file name or whatever, it seems hit and miss to have the first letter of a sentence to be a capital letter [BBOS 6 makes it a default unless toggled off]
- When the numerical entry section is toggled on and a number is inserted just before an existing character, the numerical entry section immediately closes down after the number is input, even though the user may need to input more digits
- Typing predictions should appear in all situations (e.g. Google etc.), not just when typing text messages and private memos
- No way to exit any text input screen without swiping, which also risks entering more text in error [I believe BBOS6 had a little "X" in the corner of all text input screens]
- For the keyboard input, replace semicolon with colon, so that is the character immediately available, and you have to dig deeper to find the semicolon. Colon is more important.
# THINGS NOT TESTED #
- How exactly do you sync your phone with your computer, and why? It's not explained properly or intuitively
- Linking email accounts to phone
- Accessing phone from another computer on another connection
- Bluetooth transfer of data between phone and another device
- Using phone as a server (other than bluetooth tethering with PlayBook)
- App wrapping / sandboxing / virtualisation (requires BES?) --- MAKE ALL-OUT WAR ON OTHER PHONE MANUFACTURERS BY MAKING THIS AVAILABLE TO ALL USERS, NOT JUST ENTERPRISE USERS
- Virtual machines containing entire OSes (for compatibility - download an iso, put it into a VM, one click to start up, et voila, all compatibility issues solved, just run native software natively on OSes within a VM on the Passport)
- Why would you set up a VPN, and how do you do it with a BlackBerry phone / tablet? Explain these things succinctly right from the basics - you are relying too much on people already knowing these things, whereas some people want to start up their own businesses, and they might need convincing on the necessities of things like VPN in the first place, and then going with a PlayBook or a BB Phone to achieve such things - when you explain how they work and how your products do them, they will be more likely to buy from you
- BlackBerry Balance (requires BES)
# OTHER THINGS #
Innovate in terms of future paradigms (rather than the constant swing from { business phones --> consumer phones --> business phones } that has spanned the past 2 decades) - embrace the following:
--> Idealism (visionary):
- Computing for space travel
- Stay independent, but hybridize with other platforms competing against major opponents (even hybridising with one against the other, just so long as there is one arch-opponent) [= take on the worst clique of opponents, whilst maintaining your own independence from each other within your clique, and thus not becoming a neurotic clique yourselves. The key to it is that the opponents are high maintenance dinosaurs - they are really just prisoners of their own paradigm, so run rings around them while staying wild and free]. Share licenses with the other manufacturers, to produce new phone models and app repositories, something that paranoid monolithic opponents are reluctant to do.
- Have artists offer music (free and paid) only via a BBM Music-type streaming / audio CD distribution wing. Streamline it so that the business can be kept afloat indefinitely.
- Have music creation software sponsored by BlackBerry, and integrated with the streaming / audio CD distribution wing, for rapid publishing of any music made by it
- Develop a Cosmic aspect ("Hype"), encapsulating people's hopes and dreams. For example, via my own website, which is geared to mankind reaching the stars and convergence between man and digital tech, between digital technologies and between people (i.e. strengthening society). Sponsor Indie music festivals - not crappy mainstream music, leave that to Apple and Google.
- In your advertising, show all race and gender combinations - not just a handful
--> Realism (Practical):
- Internet of Things (IoT) (including automobiles, including driverless cars, and running an entire house, including housekeeping robots, even running an entire skyscraper / tower block / town),
- Big Data
- Retinal Computing / Ocular Computing (my own coinage, which in itself embraces the new bandwagon, the new paradigm: Minimalism). Create wearable tech - like Google glasses.
- Apps for work and play (the previous 2 paradigms between which the past phone market alternated) are already there in the putative new generation phone by BlackBerry (and to this end, the Cloud computing paradigm is fully embraced). You just need to secure these phones to prevent erosion of the status quo in the app market, by which l mean: prevent established apps from becoming established hacker targets. BlackBerry = security.
- We need a one-fits-all OS to cater for all these diverse bandwagons and innovations, to make that bold step into the space age of the future. Create a BlackBerry OS that can be placed on any device by any other manufacturer, e.g. phones, tablets and PCs.
- BlackBerry could perhaps become its own mobile service provider, so as to prevent conflicts between the BlackBerry Services database and the service providers' databases
- Give your own website many hits, e.g. linking to your site from CrackBerry, and also BlackBerry employees themselves being regular visitors to your site. Thus you can host BlackBerry news articles and those news articles will feature on Google searches about the latest product from BlackBerry, and thus, being positive in outlook, share prices will be driven up. Two or three positive news articles being displayed in the list of news articles when you type into Google just the name of the latest BlackBerry phone, drives the price of shares up by approx. 7%-12% for the 24 hours after the news article first airs - this is a massive increase.
- Have all Stock Exchanges running BlackBerry Enterprise Server
- Make CrackBerry browseable on Linux, Windows, etc. - currently the ads cause screen freezes even on full sized 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo laptops, and of course CrackBerry usually causes the browser on the Curve 9300 and probably similar vintage models, to overload and shut down even with Java, Flash, images and cookies disabled
- Bid on key words / phrases with Google, such as "Most secure phone" / "Most secure smartphone" / "Most secure Android" / "Most secure OS"
- Acquire (take over) Nokia
- BlackBerry should call on Microsoft and Nokia to merge with / license to BlackBerry, e.g. overhauling Windows to be compatible with BlackBerry and be BlackBerry-flavoured / hybridised in as many ways as possible. Also, have solid-built Nokia Lumia phones, running BlackBerry OS. And why not? BlackBerry licensed (at great cost) Google's Android OS after all.
- Tell BlackBerry to respond to and refute major reviews and videos attacking BlackBerry products, e.g. by showing that BlackBerry Priv performance (battery life, overheating, etc.) improves after a week of use, it's just during setup that standards fall short of what is expected. Also explain that slow performance of the Priv is because of the chip-level encryption on the device - making the device unrootable.
- Take care of and reward the early adopters of anything you put out, i.e.: updates should be software not hardware (don't make the early adopters want to buy newer hardware), and give the early adopters discounts for your future products
- Incorporate Good Technology on all BlackBerry phones by default, not just with business suites. If you've got it, flaunt it.
- You have $4 billion. Make your own apps. Make your own movie streaming app. that's free for BBOS and costs $$$ for other OSes (perhaps purchase an existing streaming service?). It will be baloney just like Netflix is, but at least people will have the option to watch a decent film in bed. It's the feelgood factor!
- Have a BlackBerryPi variant of the RaspberryPi, with its own BlackBerry OS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
# MY SOLUTION? #
Make the small changes required for BBOS 10 to be at least as functional as BBOS 6 for the average guy, if not more functional. Never forget what the average guy wants - a secure device for everyday stuff, without getting virused. He wants to link it to his PlayBook and he wants neither device pwned, at least not the phone. After that, he will reboot and shop online. Maybe change phone wallpaper too. Then find the way to the nearest supermarket via BlackBerry Maps - weather permitting. Maybe also visit a few more places marked as favourites on the map, whilst he's in the area.
BBOS 10 throws barriers up at this usage scenario at every step, whereas it was a breeze with BBOS 6.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE PLAYBOOK
Implement these changes on the old PlayBook OS as much as possible, as well as a future PlayBook
# HARDWARE # [OK, nothing can change this, but for what it's worth, here's what I think the hardware needs, it's not a major thing really, feel free to skip this section]
- The physical metal pause button needs to be marked in relief, i.e. by being embossed with the symbol "||". Perhaps the volume up and volume down buttons could similarly be brought into relief?
- Have a trackpad (like on the BlackBerry Curve 9300) on any future iteration of the PlayBook, for precise cursor placement when text editing / inputting data. Also allow mouses to connect.
- The PlayBook must have a resistive touchscreen instead of capacitive, because a capacitive touchscreen requires a certain minimum surface area for a stylus, something like the eraser on the end of a pen, whereas a resistive touchscreen stylus can have a much finer tip - but then again, resistive screens won't allow multitouch, being older technology? Well then, invent a sort of hybrid between resistive and capacitive touchscreens
- Add a tight carry strap so as to fasten the PlayBook to an outstretched hand
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now to list improvements by feature, with the features listed in generally descending order of importance (except that related features have been clustered together) to myself, and perhaps to other people too:
# BLACKBERRY MAPS #
- BlackBerry Maps is required as a default app
# SECURITY #
- Make it so that the Playbook does not require WiFi at any time during setup / non-internet offline usage
- When entering passwords where the characters input are hidden by asterisks (e.g. when logging into eBay), the characters actually momentarily display as they are being typed, on the Playbook. For example: when entering passwords into websites, the password is visible letter by letter as it is input (when it is supposed to be completely obscured) when using the PlayBook at least, l don't think it is the case with the BB phone.
- Simply do not give apps on Playbook or BB phone the ability to access or handle information marked as "private", to include browsing history etc. And when cookies are blocked, simply do not allow any to be stored - you found a large number of cookies e.g. seemingly from Google, Yahoo, etc. when you browsed your BB Curve 9300's folders while it was connected to your PC.
- In the security tab, for application permissions, display at a glance all permissions for all programs, all on one screen
- Must be able to erase the Playbook (and BB mobile, for that matter) memory of any learnt user-input words and phrases, as these pop up as auto sugestions when inputting text into a field, on the Playbook - which means that personal information is held on, and can be leaked from, the device. It is at least possible to unlearn words / phrases in BlackBerry 10 OS.
- Supply each phone or tablet with protective and carrying accessories
# DUAL BOOTING & VIRTUALISATION #
- Have a new Playbook OS that allows multi-booting with Linux etc., and that natively has VMs
- Allow app sandboxing and virtualisation for running other OSes to bridge software compatibility issues and for security
- Playbook must allow VMs and individual app virtualisation / sandboxing
# CALCULATOR #
- PlayBook calculator needs a 1/x (inverse) button
- PlayBook calculator must permit pasting formulae / numbers into the display, using linear text expressions such as "sqrt", "e" as in "5e-19" (to represent 5 x 10^-19), "pi", "theta" (for astrophysics radians calculations etc.), etc. i.e. be able to deal with calculations that wordprocessing for scientists
- PlayBook calculator must have a button for rendering large numbers into standard form (and other formats, if it doesn't allow them already?)
- PlayBook calculator must have a button for writing the "x 10^" part of a standard form expression, so that all the user needs to do is input the exponent
- PlayBook must make it easier to square root or perform other functions, on an already-displayed number (as it stands, when you have a number displayed, and you then press square root, the screen blanks, and you have to enter a number to be square rooted, and then you have to select the last number in the history, and then press "=")
- PlayBook calculator needs to make it easier to copy stuff (numbers, formulae, entire calculation sequences) from it, to paste to another file [currently, you need to press a finger down on the history of calculations, l think, and then the option to copy the number or to copy the formula, comes up]
- Calculator app must make tapping sounds when buttons are pressed
# BROWSER #
- Must be able to:
* View Netflix / Amazon Prime Instant Video (but frankly, l don't think any online streaming service is better than Freeview television)
* Download and save webpages
* Grab video
* Right click and save as / view in separate window (e.g. with pictures on webpages)
* Select, copy and paste text from a webpage - even the BlackBerry phones can do that
- Have scrollbar on browser for Playbook
- Must be able to save webpages and also search within them for words and phrases
- PlayBook must allow multiple browser windows to be opened side by side, not just as tabs within the same window
- PlayBook browser crashes every session when browsing far and wide
- PlayBook doesn't remember search settings when you have gotten an eBay search result and then refined its parameters, and then bookmarked it
- The bookmarks page on the PlayBook should remember what position on the bookmarks list you triggered a bookmark from, so that when you return to the bookmarks page, you are at the same position on the bookmarks page - quite useful if you have a massive array of unsorted bookmarks listed there
- On that topic, allow sorting of PlayBook bookmarks into user-defined categories
- Playbook must be able to rename bookmarks
- PlayBook needs to stop screen wildly moving up and down when inputting text into a small form within a webpage teeming with other objects. As it stands, when there is the slightest touch outside of the form, or when typing pauses for a brief moment, the virtual keyboard retracts, and the screen shifts down, often nudging the text input cursor on the form, and when by reflex the user taps the text input window again, the webpage rocks up (as the virtual keyboard reappears), which is bad enough, but the cursor once again will often get dislodged too.
- Google search field must be larger, on the default installed browser
- PlayBook browser must show the constantly changing download speed / rate during a download. Congratulations by the way, on being able to continue a download from where it left off, when the connection crashes (drops) and restarts again.
- Allow bookmarks to be accessed when the BlackBerry phone / tablet is plugged into the PC. At least, allow the list of bookmarked URLs to be accessed / edited / exported / imported into the BlackBerry device.
- Give users the option to delete the cookies or whatever files they are, stored in E:\BlackBerry\system\appdata\rim\webstorage\net_rim_bb_browser_daemon\localstorage [this was only discovered when connecting the BlackBerry phone to a PC and thereby browsing the phone's file directories]
# DISPLAY #
- Allow split screens in two columns e.g. to read from one webpage while typing into a word document
- Option to toggle the PlayBook tablet touchscreen functionality on/off at the press of a button, in order to physically wipe the screen while in use, or when you are physically moving around but need to keep a webpage visible
- Playbook needs an assortment of stock screen backgrounds
- Battery level indicator must be visible when password challenge appears, so that while recharging, the user can easily gauge battery level without entering password
- Apps must acknowledge your existing screen orientation, rather than override it - even if you've locked the orientation - and reverting to the default orientation when the app is starting up
# PRODUCTIVITY ("Office") APPS #
- Get Word docs to transfer from Playbook Docs to GO across to Windows PC (it doesn't work with Word in Office 2000 on Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit, nor on Windows XP 32-Bit BUT it does work with WordPad on Windows XP 32-Bit, but not with WordPad on Windows 7 Home Premium, 64-Bit. The documents from the Playbook can be read easily on Linux's LibreOffice suite, not sure if they can be read on the Windows version of LibreOffice.).
- The PlayBook wordprocessor doesn't close the gap with the rest of the word when auto-complete is enabled and a speechmark / bracket (and perhaps other non-alphabet characters) is inserted into the word being formed
- On the PlayBook, when flitting between the wordprocessor and another application (e.g. when reading a PDF and typing out that part of the PDF into the open wordprocessor document), the wordprocessor must remember the place of the cursor on the open wordprocessor document
- PB wordprocessors and spreadsheet must stop turning a small dash into a long dash (for one thing, it messes up the rendering of equations in mathematical software)
- For Word document editing on the PlayBook, have suggested spellings display on the actual document (i.e. as speech bubbles), instead of along the middle tier between on-screen keyboard and the document display
- Playbook and BB phone both need native eMail servers
- Add an app to read Notepad (.txt) files to Docs to Go
- PlayBook must allow multiple productivity (e.g. wordprocessor) files to be opened simultaneously
- PlayBook needs a freehand sketchpad with built in text editor (like MS Paint) by default
- Must be able to bulk export Memos and texts from the BlackBerry phone either directly or via the Playbook using BlackBerry Bridge and a bluetooth connection. Also must be able to bulk mail a selection / all of the Memos and texts etc. to an eMail address / your text inbox / a BlackBerry PIN, etc.
- Playbook must be 100% compatible with Microsoft Office software dating from 2000 to present. And that includes not turning higher-functioning Excel files from a Windows PC, irreversibly into degraded stripped-down versions denuded of higher functionality (e.g. conditional formatting, etc. - for example your auction spreadsheet cannot even take a key tap by way of data entry now, because it has become so sophisticated, the Playbook cites the totalling formulae at the bottom of the spreadsheet as the reason).
- There must be a scroll bar for large office (wp, spreadsheet) documents
# YOUTUBE, AMAZON, eBAY, etc. #
- Have dedicated YouTube, Amazon and eBay apps, to fix the otherwise excruciatingly slow rendering of these sites / in response to the relegation of these apps by the named services. PlayBook appears to be extremely slow (in rendering) on eBay and other sites, when text is input into a form field, and the text input affects the display in real time.
- The PlayBook must natively load Amazon Kindle eBooks, as well has natively load Amazon Instant Prime and Netflix
- On Playbook, have the eBay app set to load the UK version, or at least make it programmable to load that way
# ALARM & CLOCK #
- Fix Playbook alarm - it stops making noise after a while - is it solved with an operating system / software update?
# FILING SYSTEM / FILE MANAGER #
- Playbook should list (i.e. catalogue, display them as present) downloaded files even if they are of an unrecognised format i.e. even if it has no software to open them (as in the case of .flv files). Currently, if an .flv file is not natively readable, and thus if it is downloaded, it appears nowhere in the Playbook contents, and can only be accessed / deleted etc. if connected to a PC which can thus recognise the file and delete it.
- Make the Playbook's files accessible via wired connection to a Linux / BSD / Solaris machine
- Playbook should support .mpg, .flv, .txt, .midi and other common file formats
- When renaming a file [to be downloaded], the file extension should be left out when the entire name gets highlighted in blue for editing
- Add trashcan to the PlayBook and BlackBerry OS phone, with undelete option and fileshredder (permanent delete) option
# BLUETOOTH & TETHERING #
- Make it possible again, by BlackBerry Bridge bluetoothing a BlackBerry phone that has its own internet, to a BlackBerry Playbook (does the Playbook have to have 3G?), to in effect get tethered FREE internet [UNMETERED INTERNET] via BlackBerry services as long as both bluetooth and wireless are switched on, on the Playbook. Does this also work for mobile broadband plugged into a laptop, that is bluetoothed to the Playbook? Does this work for a non-BlackBerry phone that has bluetooth and internet?
- Allow BlackBerry Bridge bluetooth tethering with BlackBerry's Android phones
- Simplify the process of bluetooth data transfer between the PlayBook and other BlackBerry devices
- Allow to revert to the PlayBook's original bluetooth network ID, as l recall it also caused problems when bluetooth tethering BBOS 6 phones to PlayBook when you changed the PlayBook's default name (e.g. PlayBook_03CH) to something else
# BLACKBERRY MESSENGER #
- Allow BBM accounts to be deleted
# ADOBE READER #
- On the PlayBook, Adobe Reader must offer search and text selection / copying, plus page menu. Also it must be less sensitive to page turn signals. It must also remember the page you were on, when a document is re-opened.
# CAMERA & IMAGE EDITOR / IMAGE VIEWER #
- All photos must be optimised when chosen as background wallpapers. Currently, the PlayBook does this very badly, l think only a square wallpaper gets optimised or something, a wallpaper in concordance with the PlayBook's screen ratio ends up bizarrely getting clipped and then what remains visible is horribly magnified, making it all look grainy.
- Pictures must be numbered in array view, just as they are numbered in slideshow view, so that unwanted pictures can be spotted in slideshow view, then deleted in array view
# VIDEO PLAYER / EDITOR #
- Embedded YouTube videos in forums somehow play at maximum hardware volume by default, on the PlayBook - very bad!
- Playbook needs native .flv support
- Playbook needs native video editing tools
- If the media (audio and video) player on the PlayBook is set to loop / non-loop, this setting should be remembered when a new media file is played, up until it is toggled back off / on
# MUSIC #
- Have controller software that turns the PlayBook into a MIDI controller for any DAW, e.g. have an adaptation of the Lemur controller for the iPad, which lets you design your own multitouch controller for any situation. The PlayBook absolutely must be multitouch, preferably up to 4 fingers (is the PlayBook already so?).
# DATA INPUT / TYPING #
- Remove the ".com" button from the Playbook's onboard keyboard
- Have arrow keys + home and end keys and numbers all on one keyboard - perhaps make this an options "extended" keyboard
- Do not have a full stop ("period"), or any other character, left or right of the spacebar on the virtual keyboard
- PlayBook virtual keyboard needs a wavy "=" symbol. Currently, the nearest thing to it is the "~" symbol.
- Playbook must offer a UK keyboard where the pound (£) sign etc. are fewer clicks away. Also have such things, along with numerals, all on the top row of the keyboard, and also have punctuation accessible on the main keyboard via shift key.
- Have a 'soft' auto spell correct setting which only auto-corrects prepositions [and other simple words]
- PlayBook must make it easier to move a cursor around text (both on a webpage and in a wordprocessor document / spreadsheet)
- PlayBook must make it easier to position the cursor to select text, both on a webpage and in a wordprocessor document / spreadsheet, i.e. make the cursor move in small increments when following the finger / stylus, and also freeze the window while this is occurring, so that the finger / stylus can guide the cursor better
- PlayBook must make it easier to select text on a webpage, i.e. to lay a cursor down with just a tap
- For Playbook have right and left mouse buttons as part of keyboard, giving you right click menus (with options such as 'save as') etc., and also have a CTRL button for copying (ctrl+c) and pasting (ctrl+v). Make sure the clipboard is safe and no data from it can be stolen.
- Have a button to press to paste a configurable date / time stamp on any document
# MISCELLANEOUS #
- PlayBook keeps dying at the close (final 9%) of the first ever battery charge cycle after it has been wiped and reinstalled. It then requires connection to a PC to be kickstarted back to life. Why?
- Add to the PlayBook and BlackBerry OS phone the full suite of pro apps as default: Networking, antivirus, device tracking (i.e. anti-loss), firewall, VPN, collaborative editing, virtualisation, app containerisation, etc.
- Have debugging for individual apps, allowing them to be individually reinstalled (inc. the standard factory set apps), instead of having to reinstall the entire system when one app develops a fault
# THINGS NOT TESTED #
- Show how to wirelessly transfer data from Playbook to laptop via bluetooth
- Show how to security harden BlackBerry phones and tablets, and perhaps actually have them security-hardened right out of the box
- How to use Playbook / BB phone as a server
- How to use Playbook / BB phone for realtime collaborative editing of a file
- Show how to connect Playbook to TV screen or laptop / desktop computer monitor screen
- Playbook as a NAS server: http://forums.crackberry.com/blackberry-playbook-f222/playbook-nas-630557/?
- Does BlackBerry Bridge act as a VPN to connect with the phone via bluetooth?
# OTHER THINGS #
Innovate in terms of future paradigms (rather than the constant swing from { business phones --> consumer phones --> business phones } that has spanned the past 2 decades) - embrace the following:
--> Idealism (Visionary):
- Have BB10 OS adapted for the PlayBook, as a software update for the existing PlayBook (BB10 is based on QNX)
- Unify BlackBerry phone and tablet OSes, into one all encompassing OS
- Must be able to dock the BlackBerry phone and tablet with Linux / BSD / Solaris OSes (and possibly other OSes too) - in order to transfer files
- Get BlackBerry to offer IT courses and training
--> Realism (Practical):
- There must also be a larger array of native factory installed PlayBook apps
- The next PlayBook must come with 2 styluses, a detachable keyboard, have a 10" screen and it must be possible to connect it to a printer and wired internet
- For everyday life and work life, show how (i) Blackberry can help (ii) BlackBerry PlayBook / BlackBerry OS compares to other platforms / software
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLACKBERRY PRIV PRIVACY ISSUE
http://privacyblog.com/2015/11/06/blackberry-priv-has-a-problem-no-privacy/
BlackBerry Priv Has a Problem: No Privacy
November 6, 2015 Dick Eastman Cell Phones
Writing in ZDNet, Zack Whittaker claims that BlackBerry's new Android phone called the "Priv" is anything but private. Various apps routinely access the user's personal data and apparently send that information to data aggregators. Whittaker says that:
"Facebook accessed my location a total of 194 times in seven days.
Skype accessed my phone contacts list a total of 1,814 times in the past seven days.
Twitter accessed my location 704 times in the past seven days."
Whittaker's article may be found at http://www.zdnet.com/article/blackberry-priv-a-privacy-phone-misses-the-mark/.
Comment: While it is disconcerting to find such privacy violations in a cell phone called the "Priv," such information sharing is not unusual in Android phones and even iPhones are not much better. The only thing different with the Blackberry Priv is the company's obvious disregard for what that word means. As Whittaker wrote, "... marketing this phone as a privacy phone is borderline dangerous for those who think, perhaps naively, that this phone will protect their privacy."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NEW BLACKBERRY DESKTOP / LAPTOP COMPUTER
Suggestions for BlackBerry Tablets AND Phones [mostly reproduced in an eMail sent to RIM on Thursday 14 November 2013]:
- Redesign a safe computer system that can resist DDOS attacks and the worse malware. Perhaps use the Amiga A500 as a base. Submit it to the pwn2own competition, to see if it can outperform other computers and remain standing after several days of cyberattacks. If you win prizes, make sure to mention it on the website ads, website banner ads placed on other websites, the website itself, the eBay ads, the manual, the business card.
- Create a computer with goggles its VDU, but such that the VDU can be shown to other people (e.g. at a service counter, with the advisor explaining something to the client). The main body is a desktop PC in form factor, and the goggles themselves will be detachable, having the power of a tablet PC or thin client PC.
- Develop a Blackberry PC with a hybrid Blackberry operating system having a DOS runtime (so that it can run Windows software), with a basic (not updatable) version hardwired into each PC, so that it can quickly be reinstalled at the press of a button, without any extra cost. Also make servers, laptops and computerised goggles running this OS. Allow computer monitors to easily be plugged into the devices, so that (for example) jobcentres across the country can use them (they need swivel monitors to allow customers to see the screen, this could be a huge supply contract!).
- Have an inbuilt flash for the cameras on tablet and phone
- Make the phones more durable and shock resistant (and splashproof?)
- Keep up with times, have 12GB RAM, more powerful CPU (3 GHz, octacore), more powerful cameras (24MP), eMail server
- Make the PlayBook RAM and storage expandable, perhaps even make CPU replaceable
- Larger screen sizes available alongside the 7 inch
- Need USB slots that can take mobile broadband dongles - that would be an instant win with a lot of people that don't want any contracts as they feel they've paid enough for a product already. Or at least, have a MiFi SIM card slot (tablet and phone).
- Need the new upgraded PlayBook (as per my suggestions above) to be priced at around £175-£200
- You need to provide a full set of accessories with each tablet / phone - i.e. screenguard, rubber shock-proof case, carry holster with straps, stylus, removable keyboard
- Make your products more durable and splashproof, perhaps even waterproof, perhaps with the highest level - IP68, maybe even IP69K if you can?!
- In your marketing, don't trash previous models as being slow (as you once did, many years ago) - that just creates bad feelings among your past customers
OTHER THINGS BLACKBERRY COULD DO TO INCREASE THEIR APPEAL
- Show in complete detail how a university undergraduate, university postgraduate, hospital doctor, office worker, delivery driver and self-employed sole trader selling online can get through their day using BlackBerry products - include both the working day and the night out after work
- Compare BlackBerry phones / tablets with other brands for each of your desired parameters e.g. VPN access, ease of use and security level
- Get the manufacturers' own points of view, regarding the pros and cons of BlackBerry vs. Apple, Microsoft, etc.
- Get BlackBerry to make a small wearable mobile phone with many business-class features, which can function alongside a wearable Playbook (i.e. one that can have a strap firmly lodged into it, to attach to shoulder belts or hip belt straps), which can also tether internet to the Playbook via BlackBerry Bridge (with the option to render the Playbook unusable without the phone). With this new mini BlackBerry phone, the new Playbook must be able to interface with it either physically, wirelessly or through Bluetooth, to control it i.e. read / write texts, listen to voicemail, open media, and thus even act as a secondary VDU (visual display unit) for the phone. Thus the phone must be able to connect to the Playbook's keyboard and / or display, and the phone and / or Playbook must be able to connect to any external device to be controlled by / to control its keyboard / display.
- For all BlackBerry devices, make the files (contact lists, texts, eMails, browser bookmarks, etc.) readable via mainstream spreadsheets / text editors / wordprocessors / web browsers - AT A CLICK (no convoluted procedures and certainly no third party intermediaries)
- Instead of trying to reach out to as many apps as possible from other platforms (e.g. Amazon, Google Play), why not commission approx. 100,000 apps yourself? Sure it would cost approx. £50 million, but you could stand to gain an extra 1-10 million sales per annum. Look at the bigger picture - it all adds up.
- Lower the price point on all of your products except the tablets, which are ideally priced