BlackBerry’s flagship Android device — the Priv — got several major updates on Monday. With the updates, the Canadian firm has added stability fixes and new features to BlackBerry Services, Camera, Launcher and Keyboard.
A major update for the BlackBerry Priv
After the update, users will be able to turn on all security notifications at once and flip them off based on information type (location, microphone, camera and other data-related personal information) with the help of BlackBerry’s DTEK security services. BlackBerry Hub now has WhatsApp notifications integrated directly into it, and new snooze and unread filters have also been added. BlackBerry’s stock keyboard has been updated as well, offering users the ability to use the shift key to toggle the number row to show symbols in password fields.
Increased cursor movement and sensitivity have been added to the physical keyboard. Also the virtual QWERTY keyboard now supports 20 new languages, including Ukrainian and Belarusian. With this update, emoji predictions have been added as well. This help BlackBerry’s keyboard software guess an emoji the user might want to use next. Other updates include minor enhancements and stability fixes to BlackBerry’s Launcher. The camera app can now shoot 16:9 photos, features faster performance and has indicators for HDR and low-light scenes.
AT&T releases first update
The Google Play Store has all of these updates available for download. Users are required to click on the hamburger menu on the top-left corner and select My Apps and Games. Priv owners are simply required to update a few apps and not wait for a complete system update that will be probably be delayed while AT&T tests it.
“This is the perfect example why many manufacturers, like Motorola and HTC, offer system apps in the Google Play Store,” says Phone Arena.
AT&T is also rolling out its first update to the BlackBerry Priv, bringing a number of changes along with it. The update includes smartphone camera enhancements, security patches and more. The update was released last week to unlocked devices. The size of the update is 475MB.
On Monday, BlackBerry shares closed down 1.37% at $7.57. Year to date, the stock is down by over 31%, while in the last one month, it is up by almost 5%.
