BlackBerry 10 update boosts third-party app performance, video playback

March 1, 2013 | By Jason Ankeny

A month after releasing its BlackBerry (NASDAQ:BBRY) 10 operating system overhaul, BlackBerry is issuing its first over-the-air update, promising a series of improvements requested by users.

Chief among the BlackBerry 10.0.10.85 enhancements: Improved third-party application performance enabling developer partners to offer faster, smoother user experiences. "With this update, you might want to keep an eye out for some fresh new app launches in March, like WhatsApp," said BlackBerry Senior Product Manager of Handheld Software Product Michael Clewley.

The BlackBerry 10 update additionally overhauls the browser to improve video playback and optimizes the camera to deliver better photos in low-light environments. "You'll also find improvements in the BlackBerry Hub for logging calls log and how conversations are handled," Clewley notes. "We've also made general improvements to importing contacts from online sources."

Clewley adds that BlackBerry engineers have made more than 60 BlackBerry 10 battery-savings improvements since the OS launched, stating users can expect improved battery life and longer average usage per charge cycle.

BlackBerry 10.0.10.85 is 150MB in size. BlackBerry will roll out the update to carrier partners worldwide over the weeks ahead.

BlackBerry (formerly Research In Motion) is relying on BlackBerry 10 to resuscitate consumer and enterprise interest in its platform. Market intelligence firm IDC reports that while Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android and Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS combined to power 91.1 percent of all 227.8 million smartphones shipped during the fourth quarter of 2012, BlackBerry powered just 4.5 percent of devices shipped during the period, down from 10.3 percent at the end of 2011.

For more:
- read this Inside BlackBerry blog entry