All you need...

I'm not a photography expert, or even an enthusiast for that matter. In an age where everyone hauls DSLRs, I guess I'm slow to pick up on that...

Truth be told I like photography where a photo speaks to you - but have no desire to get serious into it. Buat pakai Blackberry Z10 pun cukup lah ala kadar. Feeling Instagram model la jawabnya...

Here are some shots I took during the Muzik Muzik semifinal last night... hope you guys like them. I love Stacy's best...

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Three 10s

I forgot to update. I have a new toy!

Yes, aftr my red Z10, my white Q10 - I now have the black/silver Z30 to joint he family. Yeay!

And to make it sweeter...tickets to the Blackberry creative director and ambassador... Alicia Keys. Nice!

I love Blackberry!

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Switch

I love thee Blackberry... let me count the ways...

Ok fine. So I'm a Blackberry fanboy. What can I say... nothing beats using a Blackberry. Obviously... for me...

So anyways, today switched my white Z10 (I love the white, but it is quite a bitch to care for such a pure object) to a limited edition developer's version of the Z10 in red.

Only 12,000 units in the world - so yeah... I guess it's worth the switch even though the red is an STL 100-1 compared to my STL100-2 white Z10 (difference being STL100-1 is not 4G enabled).

Oh fuck it. It's the look that matters. Style over substance indeed.

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Blackberry history

I'm so happy today, it's worth a blog entry. Aku selalu minat kumpul benda-benda yang pelik. One of my obsessions I've blogged about obviously are toys (specifically from the cult hit M.A.S.K.) from the 80s. There's also Gucci - but since I'm not exactly swimming in money, that 'hobby' is a little harder.

Another love of mine - of course, is Blackberry.

My first phone was Motorola. And I was stuck on it for years. I tried almost every model that came out - managing to get my hands on the latest. And then - I discovered Nokia. Motorola stopped innovating - and Nokia was top dog. There were occasional flirtations with other brands like Siemens, Alcatel... etc.

My last Nokia was the N95 - and then I discovered Blackberry with my Blackberry Bold 9700.

Needless to say - even though I started a little bit late, I've been hooked on Blackberry since. No matter what anyone said about it - I loved it, because it works for me. Fuck apps and shit. Who needs 800,000 apps on a phone that lasts only 4-6 hours (clue : iPhone)

So up to now, I've had the 9700, 9780 (sold), 9900 - and of course the Playbook and the Porsche Design P'9981 apart from my latest in the Z10. It's sad of course that my P'9981 got its screen broken 0 so that's RM6,400 down the drain. It still works, but the touch function doesn't work. 

Blackberry Malaysia and Singapore tried calling around but they can't find a replacement. So it's just part of my collection now.

For the last two weeks, I've been happy over my Z10.

 And of course, I'm waiting for the next release in the Q10 - I've always loved the Qwerty function more. But I'm definitely holding on to my Z10 - it is the BEST smartphone in the market - and even if you hate the Blackberry - you MUST check it out. Screw Androids and iPhones. It doesn't even come close.

Today however - after two weeks (12 days exactly since a friend sent it from the States), I received a package. I've been waiting for it, worried that it may get lost, misdirected and so on. You know the postal service...

But surprising that past 7pm today, there was a delivery!

Guess what it is!!!!

Want to know what it is? Here's it is. TAA-DAA!!!!

And now a little history lesson. Beginning from the bottom photo.

This is the RIM - Blackberry 957 released in 2000. It's one of the earliest models of Blackberry handheld devices. Blackberry began with the Inter@ctive Pager - and moved on to PDAs. The first four models were the 850 - then on to the 857, 950 and 957. So this is a little piece of history in my hands.

Next, RIM released the monochrome Java based series - the 5000 and 6000s series. This is the Blackberry 6750 - among the first of Blackberry's smartphones. This was released in 2002.

And then Blackberry began releasing its first batch of colour series phones - 7200, 7500 and 7700. This is one of the earliest models - the Blackberry 7230 released in 2003.

And last but not least, this is the Blackberry 7730 - the last of the series before the current crop of Bold, Curve, Storm, Torch and Tour after the 8800 lot. 

I am EXTREMELY proud to have one of the healthiest collections of Blackberry history in Malaysia. All of these Blackberrys - if I'm not mistaken were never released in Malaysia. We started with the 8*** series.

And just a little extra - as you can see in the photos, the 7730 works fine - as I managed to get a charger for it since it uses the old charger yang kepala besar sikit ala ala yang Bold 9000 nya.

The funny thing was that masa member kat US snapped a photo of it, he had the phone on. And despite it being in the box for TWO weeks - the phone was STILL on when I opened the box and it had 10% battery left! Awesome!

The rest I'm not sure if they work, but they should be. Just need to find the chargers for it.

And that - is the little happiness that I have to share with for today. Joy!

I love Blackberry!

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I dream of Z... 10!

Haven't had the time of late to blog so much. Tweeting as usual dominates my life, sehingga tak ada masa nak betul-betul duduk nak update. Walaupun tak panjang punya entry pun - blogging sesungguhnya lebih memakan masa nak buat. Tapi kerana blog ni juga lah ramai mula kenal siapa aku, so sayang gap nak abaikan sampai bersawang.

Anyway, for the last couple of days, I got my new 'toy'. Something I've been waiting for over a year now. It's the Blackberry 10 - Z10!

Oh my... what can I say. I'm in love with it. Blackberry haters can say what they want, but put the Z10 to a test against the iPhone or any Android - the Z10 kicks major ass!

In every, single way. You've probably read of all the features, but honestly, nothing beats giving it a go for real!

Earlier tonight was the launch of the Z10 which begins sale in Malaysia from tomorrow, so while everyone was clamouring over it at the event, I was showing off my white Z10!

The launch at Marini's on 57 0 on the 57th floor of the Petronas Tower 3 was mind blowing. Check out the view - taken of course with my Z10.

If you're thinking of getting a new phone - seriously try the Z10. I won't hard sell it to anyone, because I seriously say you have to try it for yourself to realize how amazing it is and how it's really redesigned from any Blackberry you may have known.

And to answer the age old question...

I've been one of the few online friends of Blackberry in Malaysia (they don't pay me, but they recognize I'm a loyal fan of the brand) - but with Blackberry 10 - I've gotten another status from Blackberry Malaysia - I'm one of the Blackberry Elites - a small group of hardcore, Blackberry fans cum 'experts'.

Expert indeed. *giggles* - but yeah... I guess I do know my Blackberry. It took me all of 2 minutes to master the Z10 - without needing manuals or tutorials.

Ok... time to sign off. Wanna play some more with my Z10.

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Blackberry Z10

Tak sabar... tak sabar... tak sabar. Can't wait to get my Blackberry 10 - Z10. Kurang dua minggu lagi saja!

Pada siapa yang se-excited aku, here's a teaser kat atas. Ini iklan Blackberry Z10 masa Superbowl. Memang kerek gak lah sebab iklan dia stressed that 30 seconds was not enough to show what the phone can do - but enough to show what it cannot do.

And here are four other commercials yang aku rasa for UK and/or Canada sebab dia sebut Z10 'zet' dan bukan 'zee' cam orang Amerika.

Can't wait for February 20. Ugh!

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Blackberry 10 - The Dummies Guide

Yesterday night (11pm - Malaysia time) was the worldwide launch of Blackberry 10. The new Blackberry platform.

And there is SO much that's new about it. First of all - introducing two members of the Blackberry 10 family. The Z10 and the Q10.

Now here's what you need to know.

1. First of all. Research In Motion is now officially known as just - Blackberry. There is no more RIM. The tagline for the company is now 'One Brand, One Promise' to refocus its strategies.

2. The Blackberry 10 is a complete overhaul of the Blackberry operating system. Meaning, it won't function as what you know of the normal Blackberry that you may already own. It will be familiar - but a big change from what you had. So until you get to test drive a Blackberry 10 - don't compare it with what you know based on past Blackberry experiences.

3. The Blackberry Hub is now a key feature. Bringing together your email, text messages, BBMs, and various other notifications from social networking sites and the calendar - integrating it all with the execution of the newly introduced Blackberry Flow that means you will never really leave the screen.

4. There is no home button! It's all swipe motion. This brings on Blackberry Peek. Think of your Blackberry now as a book, you can flip to any page - without having to close the other. Hard to imagine? Watch a demo video online or try it out. It makes things so much easier.

5. Blackberry Time Shift. This has been one of the outstanding new features I've been waiting for. You take a photo, and someone blinks or smirks or whatever. You just click on their face - and go BACK or FORTH in time before you took the photo to choose the right 'face' that you want. On the spot editing, no need to take like five different pictures to get the perfect picture.

6. Blackberry Story Maker is amazingly a surprise. Didn't hear about it until the launch event last night. Basically, your Blackberry is built in with a movie maker! You can edit you photos, images, music together to make an instant movie.

7. Predictive text has always existed. BUT you NEED to see how it works on the Blackberry 10. Crazy! No phone does this.

8. There are variations in the two models of the Blackberry 10 family so far. 

First, the Blackberry Z10. It comes in two colours, both black - and white. I usually hate touchscreen devices because it can be so bloody hard to type. But the new Blackberry Flow, Peek coupled with the new capabilities of the predictive text function allow everything to be done - with just one thumb. Seriously. This is... yummy. The back is no longer cheap plastic. It is a durable rubberised soft grip feature that is really luxurious and gorgeous!

The Q10 offers a familiar look like the Blackberry 9900 but with a larger screen allowing the capabilities of Blackberry Flow and Blackberry Peek to make it more amazing.

9. BBM offers new features. Voice Call via BBM was introduced, and now - you have Video Calling available on your BBM service as well. Awesome demo was done at the launch, and it is definitely a bonus.

10. Screen Share is another feature that is pretty awesome. Imagine you want to show someone who's not by your side what's on your phone. Now that's possible via screen share, where the other user can be invited to take a peek at your phone to share pictures or more.

11. Blackberry Share allows you to partition your Z10 for both work and personal use making it physically impossible for the two sides to share data (such as photos). This will apply more for enterprise users.

12. How does the Blackberry 10 family stack up against competition?

BlackBerry Z10 vs. Samsung Galaxy S III vs. iPhone 5 vs. Nokia Lumia 920

	BlackBerry Z10	Samsung Galaxy S III	iPhone 5	Nokia Lumia 920
Screen Size	4.2 inches	4.8 inches	4 inches	4.5 inches
Resolution	1,280 x 768	1,280 x 720	1,136 x 640	1,280 x 768
Weight	4.78 oz	4.7 oz	3.9 oz	6.5 oz
CPU	Dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4	Dual-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 (in the U.S.)	Dual-core Apple A6	Dual-core 1.5 GHz Snapdragon S4
Storage	16 GB + microSD slot	16GB, 32GB or 64GB +microSD slot	16GB, 32GB or 64GB, no card slot	32GB, no card slot
Connectors	microUSB, micro HDMI	microUSB, HDMI adapter not included	Apple Lightning, HDMI adapter not included	microUSB, HDMI adapter not included
Operating System	BlackBerry 10	Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)	iOS 6	Windows Phone 8
Battery	305 hours standby, 10 hours talk time (3G)	790 hours standby, 11:40 hours talk time (3G)	225 hours standby, 8 hours talk time (3G)	300 hours standby, 10 hours talk time (3G)
Camera	8MP, LED flash, autofocus	8MP, 3,264x2,448 pixels, autofocus, LED flash	8MP, 3,264x2,448 pixels, autofocus, LED flash	8MP, 3,264x2,448 pixels, optical image stabilization, autofocus, dual-LED flash
Networking	Wi-Fi, 2G, 3G, 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot	Wi-Fi, 2G, 3G, 4G LTE	Wi-Fi, 2G, 3G, 4G LTE	Wi-Fi, 2G, 3G, 4G LTE
Price	$199 (estimated)	$199.99 + $35 carrier fee	$199 for 16GB, $299 for 32GB, $399 for 64GB	$99.99

As you can see, battery life which everyone bitches about has been greatly increased. The Blackberry is one of the major challengers when it comes to that now. As is pretty much the whole hardware.

In fact, if we were to go by hardware alone - the Blackberry 10 is neck and neck with the Apple and Samsung challengers. Windows phones are pretty much paperweights right now.

And that's not taking into account the software. Blackberry 10's QNX technology is amazing, but again, with all the new functions and user interface, it has to be experienced to get an idea of what it's all about. I have had the chance to try to both the Alpha Developers A and B - the test units of the Blackberry 10 and I can see how amazing it is. Note, despite being a fan of Blackberry - I have tested the iPhone, HTC, Samsung and Nokia. So when I say amazing, I am saying it by comparison - NOT by just preference alone.

Now...

The magic question. The Blackberry 10 that everyone's talking about - which has seen the likes of Alicia Keys, Neil Gaiman and Robert Rodriguez join the Blackberry family to promote it.

14. When will the Blackberry 10 family come to Malaysia and how much will it cost?

Officially - Blackberry Malaysia have announced the grand launch of Blackberry 10 on 20 February. 

No price has officially been announced, or the actual date the phone will hit the shelves, but I believe it will be immediate after the Malaysian launch. 

The UK gets theirs today, some territories get it by 15 February while the US will get it by March. Why 'so long'? Easy. Telco and provider issues I guess.

At any rate. I'm getting mine. Expect to see my personal review of it in three weeks. My only dilemma now is - do I get it in black, or white.


PS - There are other functions like Remember. But honestly, it's just loaded with new stuff.

PPS - More than 70,000 to begin with but more apps are coming. Meanwhile Blackberry World has much more. 

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