Turning over a new leap

With an amazingly efficient battery and sturdy design, the BlackBerry Leap does tick quite a few boxes. However, it is unlikely to trouble competitors in its segment

Two years ago, BlackBerry tried to unshackle itself from the dispiriting, almost morbid image it had built for itself - that of a smartphone brand rapidly plunging into oblivion - with the launch of its first full touchscreen phone, the Z10. The Canadian cellphone maker's latest offering, the Leap, is another hopeful attempt at image correction. Let's find out if they've succeeded.

Design and display

The Leap looks almost identical to its predecessor, the Z3. The phone comes with a grainy design on the back, which gives it a familiar Z3 feel when you hold on your palm.

In terms of looks, there is hardly anything nifty about the phone. It is a sturdy and an elegant device that will proudly find a place in any boardroom. Though at 170g, the Leap is marginally heavier than most of its competitors in the five-inch segment.

The 1,028x720-pixel HD display is adequately sharp, complimented well by a range of vibrant colours. Along with a decent display, it also offers ample viewing angles.

Performance

The Leap runs on the BlackBerry 10.3 operating system pales in comparison with the much user-friendly Android but functions smoothly. You can switch from one app to another without much difficulty. However, I found myself struggling with the operating system initially. For those unfamiliar with the BlackBerry 10, getting used to it will take some time. Also, the Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Plus dual-core 1.5GHz processor isn't the fastest around.

The strongest facet of the Leap is its amazingly efficient battery. The 2,800mAh battery, once fully charged, can easily run for a day. The phone comes loaded with the Amazon app store, giving you access to almost all Android apps, a feature that will help overcome one problem that all BlackBerry users have faced in the past - a lack of quality apps. The Hub, one of the key features of the BlackBerry 10, helps you store and filter all your emails, texts, tweets and Facebook messages in one place.

Camera

The Leap comes with an eight-megapixel (MP) rear camera and a 2MP one in the front. Much to my surprise, the camera performed reasonably well - capturing high-quality images.

Pictures taken in low-light also turned out well. The 2MP front camera - as expected - isn't the best you'll ever see. But then flashing a broad grin and clicking selfies when you're sitting with your boss is the last thing you would want to do.

Verdict

Overall, there is little that there is wrong with the Leap. But for Rs 21,499, there are far better alternatives available. There would be few who would opt for this over the OnePlus One or the Xiaomi Mi 4i.

But for those who want to use it for sending emails and browsing through office documents, the Leap might not be such a bad bet after all.

SPECIFICATIONS
Price: Rs 21,499
Size: 5-inch LCD screen
Weight: 170g
OS: BlackBerry OS 10.3.1
Processor: Qualcomm MSM8960 Snapdragon S4 Plus
Camera: 8MP primary, 2MP secondary
Battery: Non-removable 2,800mAh battery
Memory: 16GB internal, 2GB RAM