Berry Busters: BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha future hardware overview

After three months with my BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha device, all I can do is be excited about things to come. The tale of how I came to own the device itself is long and interesting, but that’s besides the point. Let’s take a look at how the BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha paves the way for future devices.

On the software side it’s still lacking, because it obviously doesn’t have the final software and just a polished version of the Playbook OS, but that doesn’t stop it from being unique. The hardware, on the other hand, is a completely different story, it’s amazing, it’s awesome, it’s modern.

The device is extremely fast and fluid, and although it may largely be contributed to the efficient software, but the hardware at play is just as snappy. Exact specifications are unknown, but it’s believed to run on a 1.5GHz dual core ARM processor of Qualcomm descent, which may just indicate the praised S4 chip. Then there’s RAM, it’s believed be at least 1GB in size, which should be more than enough.

The screen is clear, crisp, vivid and smooth. Its pixel density is higher than the iPhone’s supposed ‘Retina’ display’s. The resolution measures in at 1280×768 pixels, higher than the current Android flagships with their 720p screens. It’s an OLED display meaning its images are pretty great and it’s quite power efficient too. The display is just great. Applications, videos, and images are displayed with immense detail and great colour, the brightness was perfectly balanced as well.

The cameras are pretty awesome too. Yes, after years of waiting, BlackBerry users will finally be able to enjoy a front-facing camera. Neither cameras’ sizes are disclosed, but the front is quite good and could possibly be the same sensor used the lower end Curves, meaning 2MP. The rear camera is spectacular, it takes some of the best pictures I’ve ever seen on a mobile phone, and I have owned five Nokia N8s, so that does say something.

Then there’s audio components. The loudspeaker is quite the performer; it perfectly delivers rich sound with excellent balance between bass and treble. The audio output is just as good, through both micro-HDMI and 3.5mm audio jack. Sound sounds spectacular, mind the alliterations. Your ears are graced by its audio, and future devices may just have even better audio components.

Battery life is pretty decent, it’s not perfect, but directly competes with current flagship devices. Devices will still be optimised to use much less power through both software and hardware. The beauty behind all of this is that RIM is determined to pull out all the stops and provide users with a device that has almost no problems at all, and they know users want battery life.

The main reason behind the Dev Alpha being used in my overview is the fact that it would have been one of the first BlackBerry devices, codenamed Colt, and hardware between all the different devices will be pretty universal, with the main differences being cosmetic. Subtle hardware upgrades are expected though, with the BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha B being prepared for developers with more precise hardware and software.

Hardware and software are almost ready, last minute changes are being made, both are being polished. When BlackBerry 10 eventually launches to markets in early 2013, it’s going to be something else, something good, something great. There will be quite a lot of features that users have been craving for, hardware will be the last thing anybody cares about, but it’s good to know that they have it covered.