This is not your traditional BlackBerry. It's unlike anything you've ever held and an entirely new form factor. With this device, BlackBerry has created its own niche market. You won't find any university students using this. Don't expect the passport to be your go-to for selfies, or your music player at the gym. The much-loved Q10 was and still is a phenomenal device. It has now grown up and you are in for a treat.
The BlackBerry Passport is a $600 off-contract smartphone (it will also be available for $250 at AT&T) running the Canadian manufacturer's latest mobile software, BB10.3. It also comes with a blast from the past: a physical QWERTY keyboard designed to recall the company's storied history of selling the best portable email machines, while simultaneously erasing memories of the lackluster touch-centric BlackBerry Z10 and Z30 from last year.
As its hybrid smartphone/tablet design suggests, the Passport is a phablet with a slight height deficiency. The reason is the name: the Passport's squareish dimensions match up nicely with an actual government-issued passport and could be a subtle reference to its intended customer—the on-the-go international prosumer who needs the productivity which BlackBerry had long been associated with.
specifications
According to the review, the Passport is powered by a quad-core 2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MSM8974 processor with Krait 400 CPU and Adreno 330 GPU paired with 3GB of RAM. The smartphone is said to house 32GB of inbuilt storage, which can be further expanded via a microSD card slot (unspecified limit - the previous leak had indicated up to 64GB). The review says the BlackBerry Passport features a 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and OIS, as well as the ability to capture full-HD videos at 60fps. There are no details on the front camera as of now - though the previous leak had pointed to a 2-megapixel camera.
Interestingly, the BlackBerry Passport's Wi-Fi connectivity is said to only support the 802.11n standard, while the smartphone is also said to come with NFC and LTE connectivity. The review adds the BlackBerry Passport features a 3450mAh battery, measures 128x90.3x9.3mm, and weighs 195 grams. All these specifications appear to be in-line with the previous leak.
The Czech website's review of the BlackBerry Passport also states that the device feels sturdy and is easy to grip because of its soft touch build material. A unique feature of the BlackBerry Passport reported by the review is that the keypad can also act as a large trackpad. The review details a gesture command that enables users to quickly delete words by swiping left, though it hasn't detailed whether this gesture is for the trackpad, touchscreen, or in proximity to the device. The website also mentions that the handset is clearly not made for one-handed use.
Design
The biggest talking point about the BlackBerry Passport comes from its, ahem, unconventional appearance. People will notice it, and they'll ask about it. The design is based around the 4.5-inch square screen that, with a 1:1 aspect ratio, is unlike any other smartphone on the market.
There's no portrait or landscape mode to be had here - it's a perfect square. This begets the obvious question of why... why has BlackBerry done this? Well, it ties in to the type of customer the company is focusing its efforts on.BlackBerry is betting that you'll be using the Passport for checking spreadsheets, office documents, ebooks, presentations and full-scale websites.
All of which, it says, are reproduced better on the square, 1440 x 1440 pixel Gorilla Glass 3 screen. It's an undeniably weird-looking phone, but BlackBerry tried to follow the crowd with the BlackBerry Z10 and it didn't work. So props to the company for attempting something a little bit different.
The second big design point is the return of the keyboard - which was always BlackBerry's calling card. It's attached to the bottom of the screen with a somewhat squat appearance - due to dropping from four rows of keys to three.
This means common punctuation marks, as well as numbers, appear as on-screen keys directly above the physical buttons. Once you get past the...interesting...form factor, the Passport is an attractive handset. There's a stainless steel trim that runs along the edges of the phone while the back is a soft rubberised plastic that's comfortable to grip while you fire out emails from the keyboard.
You'll find three physical buttons on the right hand side, used to control volume as well as pause music or video playback. The power switch meanwhile is on top of the handset (as is the 3.5mm headphone jack) and placed slightly right-of-centre.
Given the width of the phone, it's pretty tricky to hit this when you're operating it one handed. I found it easier to slide upwards on the capacitive screen to unlock the phone.
There's a slight heft to the 194g BlackBerry Passport; but the Canadian company has kept the chassis to a fairly standard 9.3mm thickness. It's a device that needs to be held to be really appreciated and while I was using it, it reminded me of the original PalmPilot PDA from the mid-90s. Take from that what you will.
It's clear the design of the BlackBerry Passport is more suited to the inside jacket pocket than the one on the sides of your jeans.
Camera and Battery
The BlackBerry Passport comes with a 13 megapixel lens with video and image stabilization, meaning less camera shake for better video, and 2 megapixel cam on the front. Once inside the app, the smartphone's space bar and volume buttons work as physical capture keys, so you can keep your hands away from the screen and actually see what you're shooting.
And don't worry, you're not forced to shoot only weird square-shaped photos all the time. The app lets you switch among a square 1:1 ratio as well as 4:3 and 16:9 options, but once again, the frustration of the Passport's square screen becomes a problem. Whether shooting 1080p video or taking photos in landscape, your viewfinder is forced into tiny confines with massive black bars on top and bottom.
As for the images themselves, the Passport feels like a capable camera. Compared to the Galaxy S5's 13 megapixel shooter, the Passport captures warmer images (See: The Red Door), but isn't disappointing by any means. It's also equally impressive in low-light situations, snatching even small details with little to no noise in the background.
All of this is powered by a whoppingly huge 3450 mAh battery. Despite its impressive size, all I can say is for certain is "results may vary." Some days the BB workhorse would chug along, easily powering my entire day. But there were a few outliers; one day the phone was off the charger by 8 a.m., put through reasonably light use (a few pictures, texting, Spotify) and was dead by 10 p.m. I'm still testing a few different things to discern what was obnoxiously nomming on my battery, and I'll provide an update after a few more days of use.
When taxing the device, the Passport heats up—not scorching but certainly noticeable. Unfortunately, the Snapdragon 801 processor is located near those upper right corner buttons, so when your device climbs upwards a few degrees, you'll physically feel it. You won't be receiving third-degree burns or anything, but your palm will get sweaty, which only feeds my fears of inevitable clumsiness.