Blackberry has announced that they are working on two new phones that will be released sometime in 2014. Their growth strategy is low-cost phones that build upon the trials and errors of the Q10 and Z10, the first devices to use the Android friendly Blackberry 10 OS.
The first phone the company talked about during the popular Mobile World Congress conference was the Z3, codenamed Jakarta. It features a 5-inch display with 540 x 960 resolution. It will pack a solid 1.2 GHz dual-core processor, 1.5 GB RAM, 8GB storage, 2650 mAh non-removable battery, 5MP camera with a 1.1MP front-facing camera. It will be released in Indonesia, this April for $200. The company plans to sell the device, which is a collaboration between BlackBerry and Foxconn.
The second phone is going back to basics with a full keyboard and trackpad. Currently the model is dubbed the BlackBerry Q20, but will likely be marketed as the Blackberry Classic.
BlackBerry CEO John Chen said “We do have a few high-end devices that we are working on, but I am unable to show you and share with your right now.” Also there apparently is no wearables from Blackberry in the works either, or a new tablet.
The main strategy for 2014 is to try and get the BBM software on as many phones as possible. This is a broader effort to get more into developing software and outsourcing the phone manufacturing to Foxconn. BlackBerry also says it wants to move beyond managing BlackBerry and other mobile devices into also helping those that create business applications for mobile devices. BlackBerry also sees writing business applications of its own, particularly in finance and other regulated industries where it is focused.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
