Day two at BlackBerry Live 2013 was ripe with exclusive sessions for the Elite guys and as well as the session with Frank Boulben, BlackBerry Elite members got a chance to sit down with the product design team and learn about the ideas and inspiration for building the BlackBerry 10 platform and devices.

Todd Wood, Industrial Design and Don Lindsay, User Experience gave us a look at how they came about designing what the BlackBerry 10 products we see today.

Todd started off by showing off a house designed back in the 60s that was the inspiration behind creating the flow of BlackBerry 10. The house is linear and you can seamlessly flow between the rooms. So, the design team took inspiration from that and started to create the BlackBerry 10 platform.

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So here's the deal. Since the Z10 has been released, I have used several different Z10 units (probably 7 or 8... I lost count) across four different carriers, and I have never once experienced a random reboot on my Z10. The same goes for all of the members of the CrackBerry editorial team - there have been very few mentions of the phone randomly rebooting for no reason.

However, if you jump into CrackBerry's crazy busy BlackBerry Z10 forums, you will find a LOT of discussion around owners experiencing their Z10 randomly restarting, either during the day, or during the night while it's on the charger. For some, it seems to be a once per week thing. For others, it's happening daily. It felt like the reboot issue has most-often been reported by users on Verizon - to be certain, the reports in the forums do seem disproportionately high for Verizon Z10 owners compared to other carriers, but as you dive through the forum threads it is an issue that is definitely reported by at least some users across carriers around the globe.

Have you experienced randoom reboots on your BlackBerry Z10?

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If you're feeling the blues now that BlackBerry Live is over and looking for a bit of excitement for the weekend, you can check out this freshly leaked BlackBerry Z10 OS from lbfe!

Please note, this leak is not for all devices. This time it's just the STL100-2 & 3 getting some love so if you don't have one of those then you'll want to move along. This leak bumps the OS version up to 10.1.0.1880, and some people are already reporting improved performance and battery life. If you install this please be sure to share your findings in the comments below or in the forums.

Just like every other time - be sure to read over the instructions before you get going. You'll need a Windows PC to run the autoloader and you'll want to perform a full backup of your device first. If anything goes bad - don't blame us. Remember you can always reload your Z10 OS if something gets borked. 

Grab the OS for your device at the link below then head into the forums for more help and discussion.

Download OS 10.1.0.1880 for the STL100-2 / STL100-3

The BlackBerry Keep Moving Tour is in full swing, bring BlackBerry 10 love to everyone across the globe. The most notable and high-profile vessel for the tour are those awesome vans that we've seen more than a few times now. They are popping up all over major cities in the US and showing off the BlackBerry Z10. Manned with a staff of BlackBerry experts, anyone can jump in the van and learn all about BlackBerry 10 from top to bottom.

So far we've seen the vans in places like Toronto for the Z10 launch, Alicia Keys shows in various cities and here at BlackBerry Live 2013. 

If you haven't checked one out in person, sit back as Kevin runs us through the ins and outs of the BlackBerry Keep Moving Van. 

Learn more about the BlackBerry Keep Moving Tour

As announced at BlackBerry Live 2013, BlackBerry 10.1 is now available for the BlackBerry Z10 officially and if you're in Canada, you're in luck. It looks as though Bell, TELUS and Rogers have already started their roll out of the software update all at once - yes, all at once. That's pretty awesome! The BlackBerry 10.1 update brings plenty of changes to the BlackBerry Z10 but here's a short list of folks should be seeing in the update:

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We saw Skype pop up in BlackBerry World over the weekend for the BlackBerry Z10, but at that point only users running a leaked version of OS 10.1 could get at it. Today with the announcement that OS 10.1 will be rolling out for the Z10, users will finally be able to install Skype from BlackBerry World.

It's been a hot topic for months now and as BlackBerry Q10 users have had access to Skype since launch, Z10 users can now take part in the fun as well. 

Once you update your Z10 to OS 10.1, Skype should show in BlackBerry World for you to download. 

More information/Download Skype for BlackBerry 10

During the BlackBerry Live keynote this morning, BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins let the world know that the BlackBerry Z10 will be receiving the long-awaited OS 10.1 update starting today. OS 10.1 already up and running on the BlackBerry Q10, but now Z10 users will be able to take advantage of all the new features in the OS update as well. 

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As quickly as our adventure in NYC began it has come to an end, at least for a little while. The last few days were a whirlwind as we stripped down our temporary HQ and I packed up my things in a hurry to head to BlackBerry Live.

I'm actually typing this From the Editor's Desk post from one of our hotel rooms at the Marriott World Center hotel in Orlando. I flew in with Adam Zeis earlier this afternoon and Bla1ze touched down around the same time, so we all cabbed it over to the hotel together (that's *never* happened before in all the years we've covered this show). Things are still quiet here on the Sunday night before this event. We're enjoying the peace while we can... soon enough the rest of the CrackBerry team will arrive as will all of the attendees to the event, and then the craziness will begin. Before we start looking ahead to BlackBerry Live though, I want to take the rest of this post to cap off our time in NYC and highlight some of my favorite moments.

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Friday fun day? I'd say so. A shiny new batch of OS leaks has turned up in the forums thanks to the ever popular lbfe.

This time we come in with a few different versions depending on your device model. The good news is that these come down the line for all devices - STL100-1, 2, 3 & 4.

Just like every other time - be sure to read over the instructions before you get going. You'll need a Windows PC to run the autoloader and you'll want to perform a full backup of your device first. If anything goes bad - don't blame us. Remember you can always reload your Z10 OS if something gets borked. 

Grab the OS for your device at the link below then head into the forums for more help and discussion.

Download OS 10.1.0.1720 for the STL100-1
Download OS 10.1.0.1762 for the STL100-2 / STL100-3
Download OS 10.1.0.1756 for the STL100-4

BlackBerry is rolling strong with promos and has now teamed up with the MLB to host a "Twitter Takeover" that begins at noon EDT today. The official @MLB Twitter account will be closing out new followers in order to host a trivia contest that is co-sponsored by BlackBerry. @MLB will essentially be going private between 12-4pm EDT today for the contest and we won't argue with that.

The contest includes prizes such as 2013 World Series tickets, BlackBerry Z10's, MLB.com gift cards and much more. All you need to do is follow @MLB before noon today to get in on the trivia action. 

It's great to see promos like this from BlackBerry and this one certainly won't disappoint!

Follow @MLB on Twitter

So here's the deal. Adam and I recorded a video back on April 30th debating the much asked BlackBerry Z10 or BlackBerry Q10? question. I was planning to get my BIGGER write up done within a few days and then post this "vodcast" as part of that longer editorial. For a bunch of reasons, it's taking a little while for me to get that write up finished up. I know a lot of you are waiting for that post, and I feel bad leaving you guys and gals hanging, so in the meantime I'm posting the video. And I'll follow up soon with the detailed write up (and maybe even another video based on where my feelings are at after another week or two of use with both phones).

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Need advice on how to solve your BlackBerry woes? Dear Berry is here to save the day.

Hello again readers! Dear Berry is here once again with a mailbag full of BlackBerry questions and woes. This week's question comes from a reader who asks:

Dear Berry - 

I hope you can help answer a question for me. I just picked up my Z10 and I see how when answering an incoming call, all I have to do is swipe down. What I would like to know is how do I ignore an incoming call? On my Bold 9900 I would just press the end key. Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

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Local storing, shmocal storing. Access your files remotely with these BlackBerry Q10 cloud apps. 

We’ve gone through Dropbox’s integration on BlackBerry 10 and touched on the Box preload in our Z10 review, and poked around at third party apps like PlayCloud that provide access to SkyDrive, Google Drive, and SugarSync. What we haven’t done is pit them all against one another and see how they run on the recently-launched BlackBerry Q10. 

Cloud services are now an integral part of BlackBerry 10. Even if you haven't used them in the past, you should really be taking advantage of the great functionality they now offer on BlackBerry.

Stay with us as we run through it all and break down the cloud services offered on BlackBerry 10.

 

Dropbox is the go-to cloud storage solution for most folks. If you’re especially techy, odds are good that you’ve amassed quite a bit of space by taking part in promotions or inviting friends to sign up. Even if you haven’t, Dropbox gives you 2 GB for free. It benefits from a simple, strong web interface, and clients for just about every platform.

Surprisingly, Box has the edge in terms of sheer functionality. Unlike the Dropbox BlackBerry 10 app, Box has toggles available to sync up videos and pictures, either when you’re on a cell network or Wi-Fi only if you want to save banwidth and battery.

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One of my buddies (Jens-Peter) from Denmark decided that his BlackBerry Z10 needed spicing up a bit and as you can see from the image gallery above it looks pretty darn hot.

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From the CrackBerry Forums

"It's great that BlackBerry is starting this comeback."

- CrackBerry Member dmsbang

As a BlackBerry user, these are exciting times. A new platform, two new devices so far with more on the way and things are looking pretty solid for BlackBerry. Because of that, there is a lot of excitement in the CrackBerry forums.

Finally, after months of waiting BlackBerry users have some new hardware to show off and they're doing so proudly and the best part about it all is that others are starting to notice 'Hey, this isn't the same BlackBerry I know' from days long gone.

iPhone to me, is boring and retro by now with it's old interface that does not ever change.dannejanne, CrackBerry Member

Some folks in the forums have noticed the glaring eyes from iOS and Android users when showing off their BlackBerry 10 devices. Those glares of jealousy watching a demo of BlackBerry Hub, peeking into messages, the exceptional web browsing experience and that oh so beautiful BlackBerry 10 keyboard.

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Have a nuked or bricked BlackBerry 10 device? Here's how to fix it by reloading or downgrading the operating system on your BlackBerry Z10, Q10 or other BlackBerry 10 phone.

There are certain times when you may geek out more than you should with your BlackBerry 10 phone and run into some issues. Whether it be a poor-running OS leak, an interrupted security wipe or a somehow nuked device, you may want to downgrade or reload the stock OS. Thankfully, just as in the past, you can still do so on BlackBerry 10. 

With older BBOS devices there was a high chance of "nuking" a device for any number of reasons - bad apps, botched restore, bad software, crappy OS leaks ... you name it. On BlackBerry 10 there is really no chance at all that you'll ever need to reload the OS unless you run across a bad leaked OS or happen to stop a security wipe prematurely.

For both the BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 you can restore the OS to stock when you run into any of these issues. The process unfortunately requires a Windows PC (sorry Mac users) but requires only a few steps to complete. 

You can reload or downgrade the OS on your BlackBerry 10 device one of two ways.

The Easy Way - Reload BlackBerry 10 OS Using BlackBerry Link

Make sure you have the latest version of BlackBerry Link installed on your Windows PC. 

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When the BlackBerry Z10 was released we quickly discovered the tastiness of the BlackBerry Z10 Oreo. Putting a black battery door on the white Z10 made it look not only like a tasty cookie (or maybe ice cream sandwich??), but also gave the slightly slippery white Z10 more grip thanks to the soft touch feel of the black battery door.

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Some great news for BlackBerry today came via the U.S. Department of Defense. After having put the devices through testing, the BlackBerry Z10, BlackBerry Q10 along with the BlackBerry PlayBook, have all been approved for use on the U.S. Department of Defense networks when coupled with BlackBerry Enterprise Server 10. 

"The U.S. Department of Defense's strict security requirements are amongst the highest in the world, and this allows other government bodies to follow suit. The role of BlackBerry including devices and BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 continues to be important and relevant for security conscious organizations."

Earlier this year, you may remember BlackBerry 10 became FIPS certified before it had even publicly launched, so the news of approval by the DoD might not be all that surprising to some. In any case, it's another nod to the security BlackBerry continues to offer built right into their devices. If you're looking for the full press release, you can jump below to view it.

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Q10 what?! Another leaked OS for the BlackBerry Z10 has surfaced in the forums today, again courtesy of lbfe. This one is for the Z10 model STL100-1 / STL100-2 / STL100-3 only (sorry Verizon users).

Most of the 10.1 leaks seem to be fairing pretty well for most users so far, so if you haven't given it a go yet you may want to take the plunge.

Once again, you'll need a Windows PC to fire up the autoloader to get this installed. Also be sure to perform a full backup first and don't blame us if anything goes south.

Hit up the forums at the link below to download and for instructions.

Download Leaked OS 10.1.0.1627 for the BlackBerry Z10 

AT&T is stepping things up for potential BlackBerry Z10 buyers. Thanks to their new trade-in program, if you trade in your current smartphone you can receive at least $100 off a number of new devices including the BlackBerry Z10. 

Most devices will net you $100 credit for a new phone, while some newer models can get you even more. So that means if you trade in your current smartphone you can grab a new Z10 for just $99 (down from the $199 retail tag) or less depending on what you're trading in.

So if you've yet to purchase a new Z10, now may be the time to get on it. We know many of you are still holding out for the Q10 to arrive, but there's no telling if the offer will still be valid come launch day. 

Press Release

AT&T Offers Newest Smartphones at 50 Percent-Off with Trade-In of Current Smartphone

DALLAS, April 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Beginning May 1, consumers who trade in their current smartphone to AT&T* will be eligible to receive at least $100 off the purchase of a new smartphone, including the new Samsung Galaxy® S 4, BlackBerry® Z10 or 32 GB HTC One®.  These devices are normally $199.99 with a qualifying two-year agreement** but, with this limited time promotion, they will be available for $99.99.

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BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins has been busy with interviews of late. We saw him sit down with Bloomberg, talking about the BlackBerry Q10 and how it became the fastest selling handset at Selfridges, amongst other things. Thorsten was asked about when we should see the BlackBerry Q10 launch in the U.S., following the successful week launch in the U.K. and he states that the U.S. should expect to see an end of May launch. He goes on to say how the these initial sale numbers, for both the Z10 and Q10, are an exciting time for the company. They certainly are. 

When asked about taking back market share, Thorsten states that he's only interested in targeting the "hyper-connected people", always on the go. He's not interested in shooting for the stars. There's a target audience for the BlackBerry 10 products and that's what he's aiming for, that segment of the market.

The topic of Detwiler Fenton comes up once again. He adds that the investigation he requested with the SEC is still on going.

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Coming soon in BlackBerry 10.1: access your home and work files on the go through Link!

One of the hidden gems in BlackBerry 10.1 is a new feature for Link that allows you to remotely access files on your PC from your BlackBerry Q10 or BlackBerry Z10. Yes, you can do this when you're on the cellular network, far away from your home's Wi-Fi. This, in a nutshell, is awesome. Sure, there are a few reputable third parties that provide this kind of service, but having the functionality baked right into BlackBerry 10's native file explorer, right beside microSD and Dropbox  storage, is ridiculously helpful. All you need to get started is the latest version of BlackBerry Link, and BlackBerry 10.1 on your phone. 

As is the case with most of these kinds of solutions, your computer has to be turned on,  but luckily Link doesn't have to be running in the background in order for you to be able to access your designated shared directories. After you've paired up your BlackBerry 10.1 device with Link 1.1 and up, just tap the little gear at the top when your computer is the active tab along the bottom. Here, you'll have a list of the familiar settings, but the new section is Remote File Access. Just make sure that your BlackBerry is checked off in that section, and designate which computer folders you want to share below that. 

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Although there has been plenty of leaks for several of the the BlackBerry Z10 variations, non of them have really targeted the STL100-1 versions out there. That appears to of have changed now though as a new release is making its rounds. OS 10.1.0.1609 has now appeared online and is ready for testing. At this point, we don't have an STL100-1 to test it on, so you really are flying on your own with this should you decide to give it a go.

You'll again need a Windows PC to run the autoloader for your device, and of course this isn't an official OS and thus has no BlackBerry support behind it - so use caution when installing and don't complain if it breaks anything. We do recommend performing a full backup of your device before you fire it up ... just in case.  If you don't know your Z10 model number you can find it by going to Settings > About. Plus, you can always hit up the forums for help.

Download OS 10.1.0.1609 for the STL100-1

BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins sat down with Bloomberg in Los Angeles to talk a bit about the BlackBerry Q10, Z10 and some of BlackBerry's current business strategy. Thorsten was all smiles as the interview started on a high note on the news that the Q10 is now the fastest selling tech product ever at Selfridges. When asked about the higher price tag of the Q10 over the Z10, Thorsten noted that "it's a high quality product" for "people that need to get the job done." 

He runs through a bit of the Q10 features and stats before jumping over to the Z10 and the Detwiler Fenton fiasco. Thorsten reiterated the fact that Z10 returns are in line with the standard but they are still in the middle of sorting things out.

When asked about licensing BB10, Thorsten says they aren't ruling it out and that once the BlackBerry 10 platform and OS is proven they'll see who comes forward and "whatever comes up we will entertain."

Last but not least, there is word of good things to come at BlackBerry Live in just a few weeks but when asked about the possibility of a tablet, Thorsten notes that soon the only computing platform you'll need is your phone.

 

As you all know, Skype has been released for the BlackBerry Q10 officially but those of you with a BlackBerry Z10 will have to wait. If you're the adventurous type though and don't mind sideloading an app, you can have Skype on your BlackBerry Z10 right now. It's the same build as what is on the BlackBerry Q10 but it works fine on the BlackBerry Z10 all things considered.

If you're looking to give it a go, hit the link below. Just remember, it's not an official build as of yet for the Z10 and there is some issues with it. Plus, when it does arrive officially, you should be sure to download that version as well so that you're at least relaying the right download numbers back to Skype. 

• Download the Skype preview for the BlackBerry Z10
• Discuss more in the CrackBerry Forums

In another bit of great news, international law firm Clifford Chance has announced that the will be rolling out 1,600 BlackBerry 10 phones to employees starting this summer. Clifford Chance has been a long-time BlackBerry customer and are looking forward to using the updated BlackBerry 10 devices soon. The company will issue a mix of both the BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10.

Paul Greenwood, CIO at Clifford Chance said, “BlackBerry Enterprise Service offers us a strong combination of flexibility, functionality and security. Combined with the new BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 smartphones, it helps our people to be more productive and to deliver excellence in client service.”

Clifford Chance will also be rolling out BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 along with the new devices. 

Press Release

London, UK and Waterloo, ON – International law firm Clifford Chance and BlackBerry® (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB) today announced that Clifford Chance will roll out 1,600 BlackBerry® 10 smartphones with  BlackBerry’s recently launched Enterprise Mobility Management solution, BlackBerry® Enterprise Service 10. Clifford Chance is a long-standing BlackBerry customer, with BlackBerry smartphones at the core of the law firm’s enterprise mobility strategy for over 10 years. The firm’s new investment in BlackBerry 10 will see 1,600 employees, initially in the UK, being issued with BlackBerry® Z10 (all touch) and BlackBerry® Q10 (touch with physical keyboard.) smartphones, beginning early this summer. 

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As if you thought the day was almost over - another OS has popped up in the forums. lbfe is at it again and this time has OS 10.1.0.1483 for the Z10 models STL100-2/STL100-3/STL100-4 only, no STL100-1 love this time around. From what we've heard this is a pretty solid build so if you've been thinking about hopping on the 10.1 train this may be the time to do it. 

You'll again need a Windows PC to run the autoloader for your device, and of course this isn't an official OS and thus has no BlackBerry support behind it - so use caution when installing and don't complain if it breaks anything. We do recommend performing a full backup of your device before you fire it up ... just in case. 

If you don't know your Z10 model number you can find it by going to Settings > About.

Hit up the links below to download and the forums for more help and discussion. 

STL100-2 / STL100-3
STL100-4

Discuss more in the CrackBerry forums

The forums are buzzing with Verizon news this morning as it looks like a new BlackBerry Z10 update is rolling out for certain users. Some have reported the update is a go while others are being told there are no updates available.

For those that do get it, the update doesn't bring a new version number (it's still sitting at 10.0.9.422) but it does come with a few small improvements. We're certain that lots of users were expecting something bigger but this will have to due for the time being. 

Features of the update include:

• Improved Battery Life: Over 60 battery-saving improvements have been made to keep you moving.
• Photo Enhancements: The camera has been optimized for better photos in low-light situations.
• And More: You’ll also enjoy fixes to Gmail® calendar, improved performance for 3rd party applications, and better browser video playback.

The update isn't a very big one either so it should a quick one to install. If you're on Verizon and have been able to update, be sure to hit up the comments and let us know how it's working for you so far. If you're not seeing it, check back later and see if it pops up. 

Discuss more in the CrackBerry forums

Yes, you read that title right.

While we've seen all kinds of photos of the BlackBerry Z10 through the last few months, this one is certainly new to me. Just as we thought that we were running down on "cool" ways to show off the Z10, Ian came through and surprised us. 

A Radiologist by profession, Ian took some down time to send the Z10 and an iPhone 5 on a quick trip under the X-ray. The results are pretty cool as we get an amazing look at the innards of both devices. If you examine the Z10, you can see the obviously large battery, speaker, camera, buttons, ports and all the other internal goodies. It's almost like a game of spot-the-component.

Fear not - the Z10 is still working just fine.

This just leaves us wondering what's left for the Z10 on camera now that we've seen it both inside and out!

Over the weekend we saw a full OS 10.1 leak for the BlackBerry Z10. While the hardcore users jumped all over it, most waited a bit to see just what changes it brought and how well it's holding up. I haven't yet installed it on my Z10 but I know many of you have been using it with no issues thus far.

BlackBerry OS 10.1 will come pre-installed on the BlackBerry Q10 at launch and should be available as an update for the BlackBerry Z10 shortly after. No word on official dates for either but we should see some action within the next few weeks.

So if you're wondering just what's new, we've pooled a list of some of the top features we've seen from user comments and in the forums for your viewing please. Most of these features popped up in the 10.1 SDK OS we saw last week, but if you didn't scope that out then we'll give you a quick refresher.

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