By Corey Herscu
Hong Kong: After 15-hours of travel, I stepped off the plane in Hong Kong today in a surreal daze. This would mark both my first time in Hong Kong and my first time attending a Jam developer session. Godspeed, let's do this.
As I meandered over to the Asia World Expo (where the event is taking place), I couldn't help but notice the smiles and positive energy emanating from each and every person wearing a lanyard.
One thing is definitely certain: this did not seem like a conference for a brand on the verge of 'dying' as mainstream media has made it seem. On the contrary, it's a gathering of like-minded developers who are passionate about bringing their ideas to life and getting the support they need from a brand making a fresh start. I dig it.
On I went into my first breakout session with BlackBerry's Senior Director of Development Platform Chris Smith, discussing BlackBerry's latest OS iteration 10.2 - with its main features being mirror cast, priority hub, BBM now and instant reply. Which, in their own right, are all great and give a deeper glimpse into the evolution of this ever-growing OS. (Stay tuned for a more hands-on approach with these features shortly) Now for the the kicker: 10.2 will become publicly available on the Z30 (launching in Canada in the coming months with Bell and TELUS. No exact date or price point were offered) and that's exactly what he used to show me a hands-on with the OS.
You'll notice from the image above that the screen, at 5-inches, is stunning. Its capacitive super AMOLED which has a 1280px screen resolution shows colors crisp and clear.
The back has a carbon fiber feel, akin to the BlackBerry Q10. I didnt get much time with the device this time around, so stay tuned for a more in-depth hands-on shortly and a lot more to come from BlackBerry Jam Asia.