With virtually everyone in the world carrying around Samsung’s and iPhone’s, and getting caught up in the world of games, social networking and attractive new apps, I’ve always felt that these devices represent a kind of fashion that many get caught up in.

Blackberry Passport Silver Edition

I don’t mind playing games and experimenting with the odd app, but at times it feels like the world is busy playing games, and that acquiring these gadgets is a form of conforming to the new norm.

I could also be accused of the same. Am I also a victim of these great mobile phone empires that want to suck all of our blood (aka money!!) every couple of years? May be I am.

I recently bought the Blackberry Passport Silver from STC, the local major telecoms company. When I went to get mine, even the customer services rep didn’t know which phone I was talking about even though it was in the latest promotional brochure. He had to ask one of his colleagues. It seems that I was the only one interested in this device. Everyone else was busy with buying the other makes (see first line).

I’m not going to say too much about the phone, except to say that I have had surprisingly good reactions from colleagues. Initially it was a case of “What’s that?”. Interestingly, my Samsung and iPhone owning colleagues have been very complementary.

The phone has a rock solid silvery quality look and beautiful finish. It exudes quality, and does not suffer from the plastic look that so many phones seem to have about them. The square screen is great for watching videos, it has a great calendar, and what is probably the most interesting aspect for me, is the keyboard. You can move up and down applications by swiping the keyboard. No need to touch the screen all the time.

I’m not going to pretend I’m a professional reviewer. I’m pretty much a lay person when it comes to these things. As mass consumers of these products, they reflect who we are and what we feel. For a moment, some of us Blackberry users can feel that we’re not following the crowd, that we have more important things to do than get caught up in the constant stream of messages via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, and that we’re different or more independent in the way we think.

Hope you like the photos. As a typical amateur, I’ve kept the original screen cover on the Blackberry until I buy a new one, and the order of the photos is questionable. Peace.

To teachers: You can use mobile phones as a great way to produce English. Nothing better than learning language through an interesting subject.