Test driving the Blackberry Key2

Not long after I reviewed the Blackberry Motion smartphone, they released the Key2 mobile. It’s very similar to the Motion except that it features the classic physical keyboard that the Blackberry name is known for.

I received a silver review unit and I have to say, it looks pretty slick. As with the Motion, it has the standard grippy back that I love. I will also say that I didn’t want to like this device. My last smartphone with a keyboard was a Treo 650 ten years ago:

But I wanted to give it a shot. I was impressed by how quickly I was typing on the Key2’s keyboard. Much faster than I can with the on-screen one on my iPhone. Needless to say, I was won over pretty quick. It did take a little getting used to where some symbols were. The spacebar doubles as the fingerprint scanner which is a nice touch.

Interestingly, there is a SYM key that will bring up the onscreen keyboard so you can double your typing pleasure.

As you’d expect though, the keyboard does take up some of that screen space so you end up with a strange aspect ratio. This could impact some games you want to play but chances are you’re not buying the Key2 for gaming.

Like I mentioned in my Motion review, the Key2 also comes with a very clean Android OS install with only a few additional Blackberry apps such as their Hub and the DTEK security scanner which will scan your apps and permissions.

Also included is the Privacy Shade which allows you to darken most of the screen to hide what you’re doing on your phone from prying eyes. You can either have a movable rectangle or a small loupe. It also includes the ‘Redactor’ which makes it easy to remove sensitive information from screenshots. Some great additions for keeping your device and usage secure.

In addition, they also now include Firefox’s Focus browser which is a great mobile browser with security and privacy it’s main focus. It has built in ad blocking and disables ad tracking by default. It also has private browsing turned on. These features should also speed up browsing and page load times significantly.

While some of these apps are available for anyone on Android to download and install, they can’t be uninstalled from the Key2 – you can only disable them which is disappointing. But they are definitely worth checking out if you haven’t before so likely worth the storage space.

Unlike some other Android phones I’ve reviewed, the Key2 gets regular software and security updates…one was pushed to the phone as I was writing this post.

Overall, I really like the Key2 for a great and secure Android experience for power typists. It may not be the fastest on the market but the physical keyboard, clean Android and decent battery life means you can use it all day which is all you could want for a business focused device.