Blackphone “code” 2 security
When Swiss company Silent Circle developed the Blackphone 2, they had secured communications in mind. The device encrypts SMS, emails, and voice chats, and provides every bit of micro-management on maintaining the Blackphone 2’s security system.
On the surface, the Blackphone 2 looks like a consumer-level Android phone. It looks nice and sleek. I found the 1080p resolution rich in color and detail, and personally, is more than enough for movie watching. The screen is highly responsive and the Snapdragon 615 processor isn’t really all that bad. It still manages to fire up a number of decent apps that matter for everyday use.
I admire the Blackphone 2’s design. It’s simple and doesn’t take too much design-DNA from other phones. Silent Circle did their best to make a unique designed phone and they’ve done all right. It is, however, a fingerprint magnet. Hold the device for a few seconds, and whatever elegance it had would be all covered in smudges.
The 13MP camera is decent at most. It’s not as fast as other cameras from other phones, and it doesn’t exactly take the sharpest ones on the market. It’s not exactly a big problem for me. But for other users who loves taking pictures with their phones, might not like this.
The 3060mAh battery is pretty huge. Combine that with the 1080p and the Snapdragon 615 processor, you’d be getting as much from the battery as possible. I was able to use the Blackphone 2 for more than a day, serving me adequately.
You should understand that getting the Blackphone 2 is a trade-off. High-level performance over security. This is not to say the Blackphone 2’s performance is terrible. But if you try to compare it to other bigger named companies that have been developing smartphones for years, then the Blackphone 2 still has a long way to go.
There is a feature called “Spaces.” This lets you create multiple virtual phones. No data is shared between each virtual platforms. It helps separates work from personal use. And is a great feature to hide sensitive information, if the device has fallen into the wrong hands.
The Blackphone 2 uses a heavily modified Android 5 Lollipop called Silent OS. It’s from this system where they are able to implement all the security features Silent Circle is so confident about. The best thing about the device’s security measures, it’s user friendly. You don’t need to be tech wiz to get a full understanding how certain features work, or what to download to keep this and that safe.
If you check out apps Permissions, on other phones, you’re limited to what the app developers have allowed for you to see. In the case of the Blackphone 2’s Security Center, it shows everything, giving you full control which of these permissions to disable.
While you’re free to download any app in the Play Store, the Silent OS will alert for any potential threats. The Blackphone 2 has a “Brace for Impact” feature, which allows users to remote wipe specific data on the phone.
With the Silent OS, every form of communication goes through Silent Circle’s cloud VPN, which adds another layer or security, preventing anyone or anything from getting a glimpse data, though this is a subscriptionbased platform.