Blackview BL8800 Pro Review: Robust smartphone with FLIR thermal imaging camera

 Design and workmanship 

The design of the Blackview BL8800 Pro is primarily designed for robustness. Here it follows in the footsteps of its rugged smartphone predecessors. It is clearly a smartphone that was designed for tough everyday use - a fact that is immediately apparent at first glance.

With its dimensions of 176,2 x 83,5 x 17,7 millimeters and an impressive weight of 367 grams, the BL8800 Pro is a real chunk and does not guarantee a device that can be conveniently stowed in a tight trouser pocket.

The smartphone in the color Mecha Orange.

However, if you are looking for a robust, resilient smartphone, you will see the size and weight more as a sign of stability and quality. In terms of color, you have the choice between "Mecha Orange", "Navy Green" and "Conquest Black".

The case, a mixture of metal and hard rubber, not only gives a robust look, but also serves its purpose. It ensures that the smartphone can be gripped securely even under difficult conditions. If the smartphone does slip out of your hand, it can easily withstand a fall from stomach height, which was proven by a drop test carried out three times in a row.

On the left are the SOS button and the SIM slot.

As for waterproofing, the Blackview BL8800 Pro is IP68, IP69K and MIL-STD-810H certified, which means it is completely dust and water resistant. However, it should be noted that the smartphone is not designed for excessive water pressure, despite the certification. I didn't want to leave that untested either and put the smartphone in a bucket full of water for 30 minutes, which it survived without any injuries.

Blackview placed the power button and both volume buttons on the right.

The physical buttons for volume, power and SOS are easily accessible and have a comfortable pressure point, but they could be of a higher quality. The keys sit a bit wobbly in the case frame, so that dust, which occurs on construction sites and outdoors, can quickly settle in it. After all, the USB-C socket is protected by a rubber cover so that no dirt can get in there.

The scope of delivery includes the smartphone, a USB charging cable and a 33 watt quick charger. A kind of pick for removing the SIM slot is also included. Unfortunately, Blackview does not include a screen protector.

This is how the Blackview BL8800 Pro is delivered.

Display

The device features a 6,58-inch JDI IPS display with a resolution of 2408 x 1080 pixels and a refresh rate of 60 Hz.

Despite the high resolution, which delivers pleasant sharpness, animations and scrolling movements can appear delayed due to the 60 Hz refresh rate. This is especially evident when you are used to a smartphone with a refresh rate of 90 Hz or higher. Colors are displayed very intensely, which can lead to videos and photos appearing unnatural.

The only special feature is the glove mode, with which the touchscreen can also be operated through gloves. In glove mode, the display reacts to simple approaches, which can lead to an increase in incorrect inputs.

Unfortunately, the display only has a 60 Hz refresh rate and weakens in terms of brightness.

In the price range of the Blackview BL8800 Pro, a 90 Hz display would have been expected. In addition, the maximum display brightness leaves a lot to be desired. The BL8800 Pro weakens, especially with an outdoor smartphone, where good readability in sunshine is essential.

performance and features

Inside the Blackview BL8800 Pro is a MediaTek Dimensity 700 chip from 2021, which is supported by a generous 8 GB LPDDR4X RAM and 128 GB UFS2.1 internal storage.

Although the chip is already a few years old, the smartphone shows an acceptable performance in everyday use. The navigation through menus and apps works as smoothly as possible and the device can also handle multiple apps running in parallel without major problems.

One point of criticism is the less powerful Mali-G57 MC2 GPU. While simple apps run smoothly, graphics-intensive applications quickly push the smartphone to its limits.

In terms of network performance, the device supports fast 5G mobile communications in the sub-6 GHz frequency range, WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.1. All common frequencies and bands are supported in the 4G network, which ensures compatibility with most European mobile networks. Up to two SIM cards can be inserted in the SIM tray. However, there is no option to expand the storage by inserting a microSD card instead of a SIM card.

The SIM slot can be easily pulled out.

 GPS, NFC and even an FM radio are on board, making it a well-equipped smartphone for on the go. The SOS button offers a special function that is particularly useful for outdoor enthusiasts. When pressed, it automatically sends an emergency SMS with the current GPS coordinates to a previously defined emergency contact number.

Blackview has integrated a fingerprint scanner into the power button for secure unlocking. The recognition accuracy is not particularly high, so it took me several attempts to unlock the device in the test.

Software

The Blackview BL8800 Pro runs Doke OS 3.0, an operating system based on Android 11. The operating system comes with various pre-installed apps. Some of these, like the MyFLIR app, turn out to be useful, while others, like an Arielle mobile game, seem rather inappropriate for an outdoor smartphone.

Unfortunately, the Blackview BL8800 Pro lags behind its competitors when it comes to software updates. An update to Android 12 is unlikely. This is a significant disadvantage in terms of important security updates that are essential for all Android devices. The device received the last security patch in October 2022.

FLIR thermal imaging camera

The thermal imaging camera cleverly takes its place in the camera module on the back of the BL8800 Pro. It is started via the MyFLIR app , an overall tidy and user-friendly application, so that even inexperienced users should have no trouble finding their way around.

The FLIR camera is ideal for detecting leaks in pipes.

Multiple color schemes, each highlighting different temperature ranges, open up a variety of usage possibilities. A special highlight of the app is the high/low point function. They can be used to instantly identify the hottest and coldest parts of an image - a useful tool when locating heat leaks in buildings or examining temperature differences in more detail.

 The application possibilities of the thermal imaging camera are enormous. Ambitious do-it-yourselfers and professionals can use them to detect heat loss on walls and leaks in pipes, for example. Hunters can use them to spot animals at dusk that would be difficult to see with the naked eye. Finally, tech enthusiasts can monitor their devices' heat build-up and spot overheating issues before they cause serious damage.

Despite the positive aspects, there are also some limitations. The resolution of the thermal imaging camera is low compared to normal cameras, which limits the sharpness of detail. In addition, the camera must be calibrated regularly to provide accurate results, making it less suitable for spontaneous use.

More cameras

Aside from the thermal imaging camera, the Blackview BL8800 Pro also has traditional smartphone camera equipment. In addition to the thermal imaging camera, there are four more cameras on the back.

The cameras are more illusion than reality.

One of these cameras is the main camera with 50 megapixels and f/1.8 aperture. A 5 megapixel “Thermal Assisted” camera is positioned directly below the thermal imaging camera, which supports the thermal imaging camera by displaying structure. The two remaining cameras have a resolution of 2 megapixels and are used to display depth.

There is also a 16-megapixel selfie camera on the front. There is no such thing as an ultra wide-angle camera!

Here are some photos taken with the main camera:

The photos I took in the test were, to say the least, average and mostly disappointing. The colors of the photos do not correspond to reality and there is a clear lack of detail. Image noise is noticeable even in good lighting conditions.

In the dark, the photos become increasingly blurred. Although a special night mode reduces image noise and brightens the images overall, it cannot eliminate the blurriness. Considering the price, one could have expected more from the cameras, as well as the display.

Battery

After all the criticism we come back to one of the strengths of the Blackview BL8800 Pro and that is the mighty 8.380 mAh battery.

With such a high capacity, the smartphone can easily last three days of moderate use without charging. Even when used intensively, for example by constantly navigating or playing games, it can easily survive a full working day.

Charging is via USB-C.

A helpful feature is reverse charging, which allows the BL8800 Pro to be turned into a power bank to charge other devices. This can be especially useful when you're out and about outdoors, especially considering that the smartphone's rugged build and powerful battery will likely last longer than most other devices.

As is so often the case, however, there is a catch. Charging the huge battery can take some time. Even with the included 33W fast charger, it takes more than three hours to fully charge the battery. Unfortunately, wireless charging is not supported.