The BlackBerry Z3 is the latest offering from the iconic brand in India, and for its asking price, is also the most affordable one running BB OS 10. The 5-inch smartphone boasts a solid build quality and reasonable specs, and from what we've seen, comes across as a dependable workhorse. Here's a quick review of the BlackBerry Z3, covering its specs, features, interface, camera and performance.

1. BlackBerry Z3
Review in pictures

2. Not really a ramp model, but a solid partner
• Looks rather elegant, but in
a subtle way
• Feels a tad large for a 5-inch
device
• Unibody design with non-
removable battery and a tab
on the side covering the
micro-SIM and microSD
slots
• The rear panel totes a
chequered pattern that
looks nice and also aids in
grip. It doesn’t smudge
easily too

3. A reasonably capable display
• The 5-inch display sports a resolution of 540 x 960 (220ppi)
• Colours are crisp, but text doesn’t look too sharp
• Brightness and sunlight legibility are decent
• Very responsive to touch

4. Evaluating the shooting prowess
• The Z3 sports a 5MP
autofocus shooter. The front
camera bears 1.1MP
resolution
• The app covers modes like
burst shooting and HDR, a few
scene presets, and control
over aspect ratio
• A nifty Time Shift feature is
available too, capturing a
series of images even before
you actually shoot and letting
you choose the best one later

5. Casual shooting for social shenanigans
• Captures reasonably good
results in good lighting
• The HDR mode is quite
capable, highlighting
darker areas of shot
images well
• Photos taken in low light
are noisy and unimpressive
• The camera is just good
enough for casual shooting
and social sharing

6. An intuitive UI…
• The Z3 runs BB OS 10.2.1 and
features a swipe-driven
interface
• Swipe-down quick settings
panel, vertically scrolling app
drawer and fixed dock at
bottom
• Handy lockscreen previews
• Swiping up from the bottom
minimises a running app and
converts it into an Active
Frame. Up to four of these
can be open at a time

7. … and dollops of features
• BlackBerry Hub integrates all
your email and social accounts
in one place
• Priority Inbox collects all the
important messages
• Incoming notifications pop up
on top, and some apps also
allow you to respond directly
from here, without interrupting
what you were doing
• Keyboard offers text
predictions, letting you flick
suggested words to enter text.
Hinglish and Hindi are
supported too

8. Don’t worry, be appy
• Baked in support for social
networks like Facebook,
Twitter and LinkedIn, and
cloud services like Dropbox,
Box and Evernote
• BlackBerry World app
storefront covers all the key
apps you might need and
then some
• Support for direct installation
of Android APKs is a big plus
• Lack of native Google apps is
a bummer

9. Smoothness is the name of the game
• A 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon 400 processor, paired with 1.5GB of
RAM keeps things fairly smooth
• Heavy games like Riptide GP2 play without any lags or freezes
• There’s 8GB of expandable internal memory, out of which about 4GB is
available to use for storage
• Up to 32GB can be added via microSD, but can’t be used for app
installation

10. The battery is a marathon runner
• The device is fuelled by a
2,500mAh non-removable
battery
• Keeps going on and on
without the need to go
anywhere near a power
socket
• Lasts over a day, and if
your usage is heavy,
should still see you
through a workday with
ease

11. At a glance
• 5-inch, 960 x 540 display
(~220ppi)
• 5MP primary camera, 1.1MP
front shooter
• 1.2GHz dual-core Qualcomm
MSM8230 processor
• 1.5GB RAM, 8 GB internal
storage, expandable by 32GB
• 2,500mAh battery
• 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, A-
GPS, Miracast, DLNA, Wi-Fi
Hotspot
• BB OS 10.2.1
• FM radio

12. -
• Average camera
• Doesn’t match up in
terms of specs
• No native Google apps
Pros and cons
+
• Solid build quality
• Smooth performance
• Intuitive UI with useful
features
• BlackBerry Hub
provides at-a-glance
info on all connected
accounts
• Superb battery life

13. Rs 15,990
Pricing and verdict
“The BlackBerry Z3 may lose the
spec battle, but it excels when it
comes its email experience, and
thanks to the BlackBerry Hub,
the ability to manage multiple
accounts with ease. The App
World features most key apps,
and the support for Android
apps makes sure you’re not left
wanting. Combine that with a
sturdy build and superb battery
life, and you have a solid
workhorse in your hands.”