BlackBerry KEY2 - Living With a Physical Keyboard 

I'm tempted upgrade from the iPhone SE to this. I hate virtual keyboards.

a lot of people miss the point of this phone, is a business phone, the camera is to document things, not a beauty shot with the GF, the keyboard is great for technical use with word that are uncommon, edit documents etc. the prediction on a screen keyboard just gets in the way... and so on. its a phone with a very specific porpuse and thats why it sucks for the average consumer, but its the best phone for some of us

I use to swear by Blackberry phones until iPhone 4 came in 2010. That thing changed everything. But first love is first love. Who remembers that beautiful Blackberry Pearl Flip? That pbone was utmost pure beauty...

It might not be the best phone, but it's a necessary one

If there weren't navigation buttons under the screen and the screen went all the way to the keyboard it would look a lot better IMO. They could put the home, back, and recent apps buttons on the empty parts of the keyboard and do away with the speed key or integrate it into the recent apps key.

Demitri: Hey Eber, your intros are great... but I think you should do it like mine. Demitri 2: Yeah, you need a little diversity. Demitri 3: Have you tried clones yet? Demitri 4: They're all the rage. All Demitris together: Alriiight. Eber: ......... Fine.

You can enable swipe on physical keyboard in the settings. Works exactly like on the virtual keyboard. And if you're using the physical keyboard long enough, it is actually much faster and more precise than virtual one

I love Blackberry I collect them all I have the Q10, Bold, Passport, Playbook ( Tablet) ,Keyone.... BB is better then apple I phone and samsung galaxy series @ ITALY ( im sorry my english is not so good)

This thing won me over. It's just so...satisfying. The way it feels, looks, functions. Blackberry's own software additions and modifications to OS are fantastic. Overall it just feels like it doesn't look down on users. It's not trying to dumb down everything, and treat you like a baby. It's a very versatile tool that presents itself as such. It means business, and it delivers with no nonsense approach. Surely it lacks some multimedia capability by modern standards, but it's completely not a focus of this device. Ask yourself - are multimedia oriented smartphones are even half as good at productivity as this phone? Probably not by a long shot. Then you realize Key2 is more versatile than it seems on the surface.

Random thought: I actually kinda enjoy my phone having big bezels because my hands are absolutely huge and sometimes I watch youtube before I fall asleep, the palm of my hand sometimes ends up skiping on the video.

I miss my BlackBerry phone, so this is good news!!

🖤 blackberry, but this one is too expensive for me 😔

I got a key2 ad while watching lol

Speedkey seems good, it is a similar feature that I have on the iPad, just flick up and sideways to switch apps. I use it all the time 👌🏼

I switched to the Key2 from Galaxy S9+ and I'm loving it. I do miss the screen and the camera, and the fact that I can't play Guns of Boom (it handles it performance wise but the small screen and keyboard makes it difficult). As a communicator and productivity device it can't be beat. I hated the multitasking on the S9+ and with the Key2 it's a breeze and super fast. The battery... wow. I get 1-2 days of use which is simply amazing. The Key2 is a productivity device so if you're just using your phone for fun stuff this is not the phone for you.

Hey, mention the great security compared to ALL other ANDROID virus filled phones

in regards to the multitasking, i was just saying how its surprisingly better even with the smaller screen because you dont have a virtual keyboard ruining whats on your screen also, you can swype on this physical keyboard

Very nice video, Eber!

Interesting... This maybe worth to try. Virtual keyboard is kinda okay, but sometimes I missed the blackberry's keyboard.

I miss my physical keyboard keys, never liked virtual keys. On the other hand i like big screens. Flip out keyboards were always the best thing for me

Bought a sliderphone (LG-C800 Eclypse) in 2012. Kept going back to it right up to 2018, the old Gingerbread finally got too obsolete to run anything useful. Tough little thing, battery just refuses to die. If somebody made a decent modern slider smartphone then I'd be all over it in a second. I suppose my thoughts about onscreen keyboard are similar to other people complaining about the notch.

Bro your reviews are really professional. From camera angles, backgrounds, lighting, sound, keeping the audience locked in. Ect. Keep it up bro

Using it I don’t use the speed key much. I’m used to traditional multitasking which is still fast. Loved your point about the dual app feature. Didn’t even think about that.

I like the BBK1 and BBK2 but what I liked more is a Priv 2. Imagine a 6", 1080p (or 1440p), 18:9, and OLED display together with the physical keyboard.

I think a physical keyboard is something I would prefer over a virtual one, only the implementation falls short on this Blackberry device in numerous ways as pointed out in the video.

Probably the only phone where a notch would be acceptable. Dig the smart key feature and new color. Wish my company would hand these out instead of the s7

Honestly if they would have given these devices better support and better specs then I would have been tempted to get one. There is something that you can't beat with having the physical keyboard on a phone. Yeah the taptic feedback we have is pretty great these days and all but it just is not nearly as accurate feeling.

When the first touch screens came, I already knew its worse for typing than actual keyboard. It's still the same. Exactly the same thing that happend with 60hz lcd screens, it was downgrade from 240hz rgb crt displays. Also same for eax 5.0/directsound hardware vs current age. Now we start understanding AGAIN that sounds add immersion.

Been a blackberry user for over 10 years! Just dropped my new keyone on the sidewalk last night. Scuffed a bit but screen doesn't scratch lol unbreakable

The split screen multi tasking observation is awesome! Not done by other reviewers. Good job guys! Also, please send feedback to BB about the touch sensitive keyboard's lack of palm rejection issue. Can it be fixed through a software update?

I like that with physical keyboards you spend less time touching the screen of the phone. Always feel the oleophobic coating wears down awfully quickly with smartphones. So any reason to touch the screen less. Though software keyboards have gotten so good it is almost scary. SwiftKey on iPhone is scary how good it's gotten.

Damn two blackberry adds back to back

Jeez, chill out with the b-roll, you're killing me

You can actually enable swipe typing on the Physical keyboard. Give it a try. That'll get you one handed typing for when you need it.

I would love a Blackberry Priv 2. Im still using my Priv and exept for the heat, it's the best phone i've ever had.

Meeting mode on the Calendar! I know this is available on any Android device if you download the app from the Play Store, but I have noticed it would sometimes run into issues when it was supposed to go out of it and turn notifications back on. This doesn't happen on the native Blackberry devices.

FYI Samsung has the same thing as locker app too, you can add apps, documents etc and it requires fingerprint

Using this phone and it is great. My only problem is the front camera.

If the keys were a matte aluminum... That would be pretty awesome.

I love physical buttons, but only if they're big. Blackberry typing was always hard for me. Constant mistypes. Now my Motorola w370... That was great. T9 all day. If I could use the same number on 2 phones, I'd do that

That JDS Labs shirt

I was so excited for this phone but lack of water resistance was a major deal breaker and LCD screen is a huge bummer, guess I'll have to get by with my lame on screen keyboard. 😒 probably still buy it for half the price...

Of course I get an Ad for the Blackberry Key 2 before the video.

The premium price of this smartphone comes from its 6 GB of RAM. It's hard to find other phones with 6 GB of Ram in that price range.

Imagine having Cherry MX Blue switches inside that.

I've been tempted by this device but it seems the price is too high for what you are getting. Virtual keyboards have gotten much better and when I'm traveling I often carry a bluetooth keyboard in my bag for when I'm composing a bunch of text. Looks a bit stupid but it cranks it out. The vault feature is very nice and something I'm hunting for in the android market now to help protect apps

Have any of you that bought this had problems with memory? Mine told me from brand new that the device memory is low. I have kept it to bare minimum apps, but the blackberry software seems to be the problem.

I miss my physical keyboard from back in the day. I wish BB would release a solidly built budget oriented phone with a physical keyboard. It's such a pain managing a calendar or ordering parts with a virtual keyboard. I picked up a Sony XA2, it's not a fancy phone but it's cheap and it does everything I need to get my work done. I don't need a pocket SLR camera, I need one capable of getting parts numbers from the sides of equipment. I don't need a great gaming GPU, I need one capable of browsing PDFs or web pages. I need a phone cheap enough that when I break it squeezing through a tiny hole, or it slips out of my pocket or hands in the middle of a 60m ladder climb, I can grab another one. The insurance deductibles on some flagships cost more than it would be to replace my XA2. GBoard is getting better, but I've felt hobbled in productivity ever since I gave up my Torch for a Nexus 4.

If it had the latest SD processor, High DSO Mark Camera Score, Minimum Bezel Display then this would be my work phone

I'll stick with my V30 and having a great screen, camera (pixel camera app), audio, floating bar, design and put up with a virtual keyboard that works really well.

At that price I would consider an galaxy s8 with the keyboard attachment

Im sorry, but *FUUUUCK* that camera work is next level.

Someone’s been working out, your lookin fiiiiiiine my dude. Keep it up buddy!

check out samsung' s knox on S9 & S8 , it is pretty much the same as blackberry's locker and very functional ass well

If you accidentally touch the home button, and it happens more often, why isn't Blackberry using the utility-belt again? Wouldn't it use the same space but with more functionality? They could mabe get rid of the trackpad (you have the touch keyboard for it?)

Imagine a modern sidekick, portrait mode physical keyboard that is retractable or something like that

What is your widget for the hour on your homescreen please ?

This is like a side phone for business management. Seems handy

I'm missing my Sony Xperia X10 mini pro (terrible name)... The best phone experience I had despite many flaws. I just wish there were more phones with physical keyboards (and maybe cheaper options too).

You can glide type on the keytwo

Doesn't the KEYone and KEY2 have gesture typing (not flick) like any other virtual keyboards? I'm pretty sure it has it.

Huawei/Honor also has a "locker"-style feature, although i wouldn't recommend them

I have been using the BlackBerry KeyOne SE with 4GB Ram and 64GB storage, dual sim, factory unlocked, for a year. The big issue is that for productivity, this device is poor. The keyboard is OK-ish, I can reach now about 40 wpm, however, I cannot make photos of documents, programs are staggeringly slow to open and function, the home button gets pressed too often accidentally. Typical scenario: I am in a meeting, and want to take notes in OneNote, with pictures inserted of the ongoing presentation. Most of the slides I miss, because the camera opens up too slowly, and the picture is poor. OneNote hangs at least every 5-6 minutes, and I cannot type. Typing notes during a Skype call - forget it. Battery is good for general use, but when I am typing for an hour or two on a meeting or presentation and add photos, it does drain the battery like any other phone, so I need to recharge it anyway. Or if I make a usual 1h Skype call conference, it still drains a lot the battery, in the afternoon I wouldn't risk it without a powerbank nearby. And worst for productivity: wifi connection drops, and poor reception, sometimes the wifi is so problematic, that I rather use the 4G data plan. However, the GSM rececption is also poor - in our office bulding it happens often that I don't have a signal and cannot make a call, while my colleagues with low-end phones can make still make a call. All in all, the keyboard is ok-ish, but everything else is so low-end, like a 150 USD phone. After a lot of discussions in forums, I found that cleaning the cache daily can bring back the speed to a tolerable level, similar to when the device was new. Now I use Cache Cleaner, to automatically erase the cache every 24h. Before this, I had a BlackBerry Priv (that lasted only half a day, and was even slower, getting hot). My wife's S7 Edge is a speedy-snappy machine compared to the KeyOne. I believe the Key2 had improved a bit, I hope the connectivity issues went away, but speed, camera, the two most important for productivity, remain still quite poor. And the selfie camera just unusable, cannot be used for any work related task. As for future updates, forget it. The BlackBerry Priv is still stuck on the Android version as it was released, and the KeyOne is still on Android 7.1, with only security updates. Oreo is promised, and maybe it will be released during autumn. I find that for productivity, the OnePlus 6 is a much better choice, or any of the Samsung Galaxy S9/+/Note 8 devices. They can handle many applications, switching between them, Excel documents without a problem, and the cameras make good pictures for capturing documents, slides, product photos, and most people can reach 40 wpm easily on a software keyboard.

What about samsung cases with integrated keyboards? I use one for the s7 and it is a joy to type on it and I can swap the keyboard to the back for media consuming.

People are forking out $850 to $1200 for Samsung and iPhones now. Seems $650 is appropriate and very affordable for the Key2.

Do you think that i will face the same slowdown that i have faced in the key1 after the first year of use,

Very nice review, thank you very much for making it. One question: How do you split the screen for multitasking on Key2?

Are you sure glide typing doesn't work on this phone? Because the Priv could do it.

but is it mechanical?

Spotted Caleb from DSLRVideoShooter =D

Life is about making $$$£££, I work on my phone 24/7, love the keyboard.

You use Fuji X-H1 with MKX lens? How long time use this equip? And what your opinion about H1 for product video and B-roll? If this questions not complicated for you.:)

Just ordered a Key2, 128GB dual. CAN NOT WAIT! Bye iPhone

I hope they make a priv 2 with slide keyboard in horizontal position. Like what nokia use to do in the past in their smartphones.

Blackberry just got better 🙌

With Lineage OS it would be just PERFECT!

Can you hardline water cool the keyboard?

Wait, the Key2 DOES support typing by swipe though...

This is such an Interesting video. Keys dont matter for me. but thid phone looks really awesome 👍

is it worth upgrading from an iphone 7 to this?

Umm i think the Key2 does have Glide/Swipe typing on the capacitive keyboard!

The only problem I have with physical keyboards on phones like this is that's they're inflexible. You can use QWERTY or QWERTY, and that leaves crazy people like me who type on a Dvorak keyboard out to dry. I would not be able to type on this phone nearly as well as I can on a virtual keyboard, it wouldn't even be close.

That was an interesting cut

Does your spacebar sometimes feel sticky?

A keyboard is great but people will not switch to this because they are obsessed with screen sizes. A Priv might work again if they try it out at reasonable price last last year's KeyOne.

My problem with physical keyboards on smartphones is that the keys are always so small. I'm so used to the big digital keys that I would end up mashing like 3 keys at once.

The hub is a bloatware? Seriously? It's a good app to manage all your messages/emails/notifications in one hub (hence the name).

Been rockin a keyone for about 6months. The app shortcut's via key are a godsend to instantly access app's. Can't complain on the camera sensor on the keyone (google pixel used the same) guess the one in the keytwo is a defo downgrade.

It does have swipe typing

can we get a tesoro gram xs review from you guys as there are not many reviews on it and Demitri was really excited for it when they showed it off

Yoo nice review eber 👌🏻💯💯💯

Goodbye samsung I might be going back to blackberry after 10 years. I would instantly go, but I just bought a 7000mah battery for my S5 and man that is great. took them 10years to use android (maybe they went years ago but I am only finding out now).

Firstly, Thanks for your video it's really great. I just noticed something weird; when I share it on Facebook, it shows a different title. Is this only me or does it happen to somebody else? Please tell me. Thank you

They should make a new version of the milestone 3

Hey’ Dimi!...Where’s the X299 Micro 2 review!?

Awesome video! Are you Malayalee?

This phone is incredible

I didnt know Jinder Mahal is reviewing phones now

In today's environment you need Security and BlackBerry is the leader in providing the best security. These are not toys thesy are work horses.

i would much rather have the extra screen real estate tbh , I've never had issues composing emails with a virtual keyboard