Despite numerous efforts to save and/or revive the brand over the years, most people have accepted that Blackberry phones have gone the way of the dodo. However, a Reddit post suggests a UK-based startup is quietly working to resurrect the Blackberry Classic and more where the last attempts from Onward Mobility failed.
Reddit user u/coldheartedsigma shared the news to the Blackberry subreddit, but couldn’t provide the brand or show the complete design as they had “signed an NDA.” The post didn’t share much information, but it did mention specs including 5G, an AMOLED display, and 12GB of RAM with either 256 or 512GB of storage.
Supposedly, the new version of Blackberry will run Android 15, support some level of generative AI, and have a capacitive keyboard. There’s also supposedly a roadmap in the works for multiple QWERTY-based devices, and the startup is “negotiating exclusive licensing for Blackberry patents.”
u/coldheartedsigma shared the above image, but edited the end result “not to get in trouble.” Unfortunately, the image is edited to the point that it’s nearly impossible to glean any information from. We can make out the phrase “Blackberry Patents” and “QWERTY,” as well as “The world’s first.” All other text is too obscured.
The post was met with a fair amount of skepticism, and we also encourage readers to take this with a potentially unhealthy does of sodium. While Blackberry has an enthusiastic fan base, this post isn’t indicative of much besides rumor. The original poster is a relatively new Reddit user and doesn’t have a track record to go from.
They also responded to another user and said, “Nobody said anything about reviving Blackberry. Blackberry are no longer in the smartphone sphere, and as such their name cannot be used by others.” If this startup succeeds in manufacturing a device akin to a Blackberry, it will likely be a phone with a similar design rather than one carrying the same name.
Patrick Hearn writes about smart home technology like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, smart light bulbs, and more. If it’s a…
Classic BlackBerries are finally losing suppport as company shuts down services
After kickstarting the smartphone era, BlackBerry’s classic devices and services are finally shutting down. No, not the Android-powered modern BlackBerries such as the KeyOne, Key2, and Key2 LE, but anything that ran a BlackBerry-branded operating system. Whether this is a classic QWERTY keyboard powered by BlackBerry 7, or the iPhone-inspired BlackBerry 10, or even the forgotten BlackBerry PlayBook OS — it’s all shutting down this month.
“As another milestone in the BlackBerry journey, we will be taking steps to decommission the legacy services for BlackBerry 7.1 OS and earlier, BlackBerry 10 software, BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.1, and earlier versions, with an end of life or termination date of January 4, 2022,” the company announced. “As of this date, devices running these legacy services and software through either carrier or Wi-Fi connections will no longer reliably function, including for data, phone calls, SMS, and 911 functionality. We have chosen to extend our service until then as an expression of thanks to our loyal partners and customers.”
BlackBerry bids farewell to its longtime customers. Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends
It’s the end of an era for what was once a distinguished product that defined the market a decade ago. Even predating iMessage, the BlackBerry instant messaging service — BBM — was a great selling point for the product line. As iOS, Android, and WhatsApp began to dominate, BlackBerry devices began to fall by the wayside.
The company tried to rejuvenate its smartphone business by launching its own touchscreen phones and later its own operating system in 2013, but had little success. Unable to keep up,ity stopped the creation of smartphones in 2016 and licensed services to TCL Ltd. between 2016 to 2020. BlackBerry promised to launch a smartphone by the end of 2021 in partnership with OnwardMobility, but that hasn’t panned out.
The company has now shifted its focus to selling software. It briefly had a nostalgia-fueled increase in its share price this year, which later nearly returned to its original price. While the market has been saturated with multiple companies claiming a stake in the smartphone pie, hopefully, BlackBerry manages to return to some form of relevance with its current partnership.
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BlackBerry rises from the grave: New 5G phone with a keyboard coming in 2021
BlackBerry is the smartphone brand that steadfastly refuses to die. The presumed-dead name has been resurrected once again, this time by a new company called OnwardMobility. It will work with manufacturer FIH Mobile to create and sell a 5G BlackBerry Android phone with a physical keyboard, ready for a potential release in the U.S. and Europe during the first half of 2021.
You read that right: A new BlackBerry phone with a physical keyboard and 5G, running Google’s Android software, is coming next year. TCL Communications was the last company to produce BlackBerry smartphones. It did so under license from BlackBerry Ltd., which continues to provide mobile security services, but isn’t in the hardware business anymore. TCL let its license lapse in February 2020 when modern, Android-based BlackBerry phones became a thing of the past. Until now.
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Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold leak unravels old looks, and that’s okay
Google is still months away from the launch of fresh smartphone hardware in the Pixel 10 series. But it seems the company will focus more on internal refinements than aesthetic makeovers this year. Or at least that’s what it looks like from the recent string of leaks, which now include the next-gen Pixel foldable phone, as well.
The folks over at Android Headlines have shared what they claim to be product renders of the upcoming Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold. The leak doesn’t add any details about the internal hardware, but it notes that the device will be pricier than its predecessor.
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