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BlackBerry Returns With 3 Possible New Phones in 2017, But Do You Care? (cnet.com)
The BlackBerry KeyOne, which the company unveiled at MWC, may soon see some siblings. From a report on CNET: TCL isn't wasting time building up its portfolio of phones using the BlackBerry name. The company plans to release as many as three phones this year, TCL Communications Nicolas Zibell said in an interview on Saturday. The company is working on an all-touchscreen version, a spiritual successor to the DTEK 50 and DTEK 60 phones, which it also built for BlackBerry itself, according to a source familiar with the rollout plans. TCL will likely get rid of the DTEK branding, the source said.
Really? People still buy this?
Only if CowboyNeal recommends them.
I started out with the HTC Dream, sold as the T-Mobile G1 in the United States. The physical keyboard was incredibly useful.
Among other uses, I can do device management with the phone. USB-OTG via USB-serial adapter sort of thing, or SSH. It allows me to be able to handle simple emergencies without having to drag my laptop around with me. Even the best on-screen keyboard on a phablet phone is not as good as a physical keyboard.
Obviously the vast majority of phone users do not do this, so I understand why the onscreen keyboard has won-out, but it would be nice if a single manufacturer made a ruggedized phone with a good physical keyboard. Even still though, users that want to do a lot of forums or instant messaging could probably benefit from a physical keyboard over an onscreen one, simply to reduce the error-rate.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
I have to admit, their TVs catch my attention when I'm shopping, but then I go look up what consumers who've actually bought the things have to say about them, built in Roku or not, no way.
If they put that sort of build quality into a phone it will quickly earn the Dingleberry nick-name and have little to entice a consumer away from the OTHER fruit phone.
The preceding post was not a Slashvertisement.
No.
Seriously, blackberry? Even stuffy old executive types have switched over to iPhone or Android. I can't see BB ever getting their mojo back, they are ancient history, the app ecosystem, if it exists, is far too behind, their designs are tired, their tech is old... good NIGHT.
640k ought to be enough for anyone.
Not with all the effort they're going into compromising firmware, 'accidentally leaving' phone home stuff turned on, heck even uploading your text messages? wtf? Lenovo tried the same with the thinkpad range once they got it, and now thats a smouldering mess too.
Simply put, no.
Too much stuff out of china is deliberately backdoored.
Slide out keyboard, decent android phone, good internal storage and SD card slot, 1080p screen all for a decent price and I'd take one.
Wanna buy a shirt?
https://www.redbubble.com/people/stealthfinger/shop?asc=u
"BlackBerry Returns With 3 Possible New Phones in 2017, But Do You Care?"
Not really.
I have nothing against Blackberry per se but the cost of a Crackberry is more than what I'd normally be inclined to spend on a phone.
Just cruising through this digital world at 33 1/3 rpm...
It looks like all these new phones run Android, so that kills it for me. I'm not really interested in making a crappy OS slightly less crappy by attaching a keyboard to it. Plus Blackberry made it clear they are against user privacy so there is no way I'm buying one of their phones until they change their stance on protecting their users.
No I don't care.
They are not safe
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
Now THAT I care about!
I'm not sure I need to have my own opinion, the title has given me one..
And here I thought the poll had moved again to the story feed.
And I haven't cared since iOS got native activesync support.
And, judging from smartphone marketshares in 2017, neither has the rest of the world.
Obviously the vast majority of phone users do not do this, so I understand why the onscreen keyboard has won-out, but it would be nice if a single manufacturer made a ruggedized phone with a good physical keyboard.
Or at least leave enough access (pogo pin contacts, etc.) so 3rd party can easily manufacture after-market keyboards.
e.g.: TOHKBD (the other half - keyboard) back cover with magnetically sliding keyboard for the Jolla phone.
Same should also be possible for Fairphone 2 (has USB pogo pins available under the back cover for the exact purpose of this kind of extensions).
"Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]
I care VERY MUCH. I am willing to pay a permium - a hundreds of dollars premium - for a physical keyboard.
But if they are completely unrootable, like the Priv? No sale, at any price.
I guess you didn't know iMessage uses end-to-end encryption so Apple cannot be compelled to let anyone monitor it.
BlackBerry even goes so far as to host message servers in other countries - while that makes sense from a technical performance standpoint it makes it super easy for foreign governments to monitor communications.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Slashdot. Non-news for nerds. Stuff that doesn't matter.
I don't give a shit. But that's true for any famous brand. All I want is a dual-sim phone, and if it has a minimum of smartphone features, all the better.
No, your children are not the special ones. Nor are your pets.
Only when they sell one with a landscape mode physical keyboard
They couldn't think of a number so they gave me a name
Betteridge's Law applies again!
https://app.box.com/WitthoftResume Code: https://github.com/cellocgw
"but do you care" WTF - these are ANDROID phones.
I own a Blackberry Priv and absolutely love it. It's a solid phone that was hampered by rough software at launch which has been fixed. I absolutely enjoy using the phone. Not to mention, I typed up this post using the physical keyboard!
I'll be the first to admit the Priv was over priced at launch. I bought mine used on eBay as I don't like getting locked into a contract to get a new phone. It's a solid phone and the slider reminds me of the really old Tungsten T3, XDA win mobile phones, and my personal favorite the Droid 4.
I absolutely refuse to use on-screen keyboards. They're easily the worst for writing anything worthwhile. Seriously, i've been out in the field and had to write lengthy emails. No way in hell i'd do that with an on-screen keyboard.
Physical keyboards were the first thing they happily gutted from phones. Ironically, I think consumers prefer physical keyboards but the money saved and consumer apathy meant that manufacturers could continue eliminating feautures without complaint much to the chagrin of mobile tech nerds like myself. Now that they've finally hit the headphone jack, manufacturers are rightfully getting push back from consumers.
One day I hope for a mobile phone renassaince that brings back creative designs of the old days. One can only dream!
> It's a solid phone that was hampered by rough software at launch which has been fixed.
I have a Classic. Buggy browser, OS patching seems to have stopped, nobody's developing apps anymore (but at least it's Android-based now so you can side load many apps if you want to).
They hamstrung the Blackberry Bridge and then dropped the Playbook platform altogether after swearing up and down they wouldn't.
I like the sandboxed work and personal modes. I like the secure link to a private server (though poorly implemented so features fail if Blackberry has an outage).
People say to me quite often "oh what kind of phone is that", because its attractive, its sleek, sexy, its got a james bond wolf of wallstreet executive look to it, its responsive, its got all the hardware, the OS and navigation is intuitive and anyone ive let muck around with it says its a really nice phone.
I'm happy we're sticking with BB at the office.
Yeah, let's just sell the whole country to China. That way, everything we own can be total shit, not that it isn't pretty much already.
And if they can deliver, then yes.
I fucking hate typing on a touch screen and will never understand why it became the norm.
> I have a Classic. Buggy browser, OS patching seems to have stopped, nobody's developing apps anymore (but at least it's Android-based now so you can side load many apps if you want to).
The Classic doesn't run Android. It can emulate Android enough that some apps can work, but it doesn't run Android.
The Priv -- which the parent poster was talking about -- *is* an Android device.
So... comparison's not really relevant.
- I don't care.
I have a phone - been fine for 3 years so no need to consider another one. Plenty of more exiting uses for money.
I like physical keyboards and it would be nice if Blackberry could continue producing them. The Keyone has me curious and an updated Passport with Android as OS would be interesting too.
Blackberry deserves to live on at least as much as Apple does.
And throughout the years their phones have gotten less uglier too. I remember my 8130 and 8310. Both very ugly and cheapy plastic all over. Not nice.
If they continue to build good phones with good keyboards, I'll always look into BlackBerry aswell when a new phone is due.
My 2 cents.
We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
If you don't care about this, you shouldn't care about apple products. It's been ages since Apple has done anything note worthy. All they do is ride the success of Steve Jobs. End of story.
I am not in the market for a new phone.
If my phone still works and I can still call gramma every sunday after church, then I am happy.
Most Respectfully Yours Mark Allyn Bellingham, Washington
You didn't read the article did you? iMessage is just as vulnerable as BBM when using Apple's server. But with BBM you can add your own BES and BB doesn't have access to the keys.
"A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it." - K
What does "end to end" mean to you? Not much it would seem.
Messages go through Apple's servers BUT THEY ARE ENCRYPTED YOU BLITHERING MORON. As Apple has stated they have no way to decrypt the messages, only the devices do.
When you have your own BES server the CIA actually smiles a big, wide grin. So nice of you to hold everything where they can access it in one place!
Sorry to yell but your level of ignorance is dangerous to the universe. I hope you feel shamed, but I don't intend to read any response from you as idiots cant really feel shame... which ironically is a shame.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
This is the only Blackberry that ever matters.
Wow, you must be a complete mutton head. Apple provides a backdoor to their devices and is funded directly by a CIA front organization. They're laughing at you right now. I cannot believe you take Apple at their word......... HAHAHA - dummy
> I have a Classic. Buggy browser, OS patching seems to have stopped, nobody's developing apps anymore (but at least it's Android-based now so you can side load many apps if you want to).
The Classic doesn't run Android. It can emulate Android enough that some apps can work, but it doesn't run Android.
The Priv -- which the parent poster was talking about -- *is* an Android device.
So... comparison's not really relevant.
I just got an update for my Classic last month, 10.3.3.
And you're right, it's not Android at all.
Some of us don't want to be locked into Google or Apple with phones that are so ridiculously priced that you have to take a loan out to buy one. Okay, so 90% of people buying their latest phone have to take out a loan, I'm not a sucker for that. If Blackberry is smart they'll do as others have recently announced and offer an inexpensive Android phone without the crapware and 'extras' that many people don't give a dam about.
As someone who has both used and managed BlackBerry and then a range of phones for 13 years, I really cringe when I see every BB article with some kind of "Who cares" equivalent line. That's what I'm posting to - as general comment on all BB articles.
BlackBerry phones (post pager) were created when there was no alternative. They were incredibly useful and did their job well.Millions of people were as functional on their BB for managing emails as they were on a desktop. The phone and it's browser gave you an automatic and secure VPN to your companies network. The phone was high quality. Battery life very good (amazing by todays standards - 5 days) and while BB didn't promote it and charged too much, there was an app store. Above all, the BES management server and phones were trivial for an admin with no prior experience to setup and manage. 5 phones or 5 thousand, little difference.
BlackBerry did modernise, with their QNX based BB10 OS and all touch hardware. With a few days use as a learning curve, the fact that the UI had actually been designed for a Smartphone shines - everything is a swipe away and you can navigate acurately without too much care. But all articles pretend that didn't happen.
Right now, the ONLY drawback by using a native BB10 device is app support. Apps published to Amazon App store are available, but frankly no useful apps are there. Installing from Google Play is a hack and too hard for mainstream market.
As someone who has been using a Google Pixel for the past 4 months and an iPhone 7 for the past month (and as a Apple guy since Commodore went bang, I'm not new to IOS or general Apple UI concepts) I can honestly say I'm in despair for what the market can do to itself. I'm testing as BB have announced end of support in the not to distant future on the BB10 devices so I'm ensuring we can offer users choice - IOS, Android or Android by BB, fine with me, my BES supports it.
With perspective of extensive use of all phone types, the big one that stands out is just how bad the keyboard of IOS in particular is. By keyboard, I mean all input it's responsible for. Slightly laggy for a fast typer but it's the terrible predictive text that kills me. I've currently experimenting with having it OFF and think I might be faster now. Double space for full stop, I'm good with that and it's in muscle memory. Having to SHIFT to use a comma? That's a sign it's got no place for professional communication right there. The BB keyboard seems to let me totally mash it for 3 minutes without even looking, then I review the several paragraphs I've written and in most cases will not find a SINGLE error. We've done that test at work with some IOS and Android advocates. We even let one use his beloved Swype.
Battery life even on the bigger Z30 - 2 days easy. 1 day easy if you're letting the kids WiFi hotspot for youtube off it too. Now with my iPhone trial I'm another of the guys with a charging cable in my suit pocket, one at my desk and one in the car - having conversations while scanning the room for a juice point. How is that progress?
Robust Hardware. I 'test' my BB devices. I'm talking clattering down concrete fire stairs, and other party tricks involving 5m spinning throws onto concrete. Basically, the only BB replacements we have had on the fleet involve water - usually a cistern after someones had a few drinks. Another unit in my business issues iPhone. They have a repair bench where in house is a constant back log of units for screen replacement. "If you look at it, it cracks". My Google Pixel was actually the worst. I didn't smash it, but in the 4 months use the case is scratched to hell and the screen has a gouge in it. I was being careful! Then it died on its own, middle of night after being put on charge at what I recall was about 30%. Bricked, to bad. Lucky it was burning 8GB a month syncing all data to Google Cloud so I lost no data.
That's the next point. Data use. Our fleet averages less than 1GB per month per smart phone. BB compresses data, this isn't abou
Yes I have a BB Priv and I can tell you it was the best choice I could make! Priv is a great phone and BB made a great job leaving all the annoying and frustrating things of Android behind. But also BB made some little changes to the stock android. Yes I switched from Nexus 5 (with Android 6) to BB Priv (Android 6) and it's the same thing but with all the annoying features of Android like the "swipe again and again to unlock the phone are left behind. Obviously BB made a great effort to setup a good phone and start all over again with the android this time. Also I found surprising features like the capacitive physical keyboard. They also upgrade the software very often. Everyday they put a new feature!
Wow, now you look bad.
Apple doesn't verify keys nor enables the user to handle the keys. They distribute the keys. This is a closed system.
They are not end to end in practice, and because of lack of key verification, most experts rejected this implementation as end to end. You have no control over keys.
Now fuck off you Apple piece of shit.
If they are making three new phones, that will be one model, right? Or one each of three models?
I miss my Google G1 phone which had a flip out mechanical keyboard, because I think I can type faster and more accurately on a mechanical keyboard than a touchscreen. So, while I'm not interested in a Blackberry, I am interested in phones with real keyboards and phones that can't be butt-dialed. e.g. the old flip phones.
I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
I am still rocking the Priv and love it for the slide out keyboard. The phone still manages to be thin with great battery life. The two things I do not like about it are that the keyboard does not have the raised bumps, nor does it have the tool belt which I insist they could have integrated, albeit in a miniature fashion.
The KeyOne interests me greatly, but again no tool belt. I realize the tool belt makes most sense with a BB10 phone, but they should be able to put some software together to give it meaningful and similar functionality. The absolute deal breaker for me on that phone is the fixed keyboard which means VR is out of the question. We will see how the other phones look. The bottom line is that if you are looking for a BB phone with a keyboard, the tool belt is an essential component. Otherwise it's just not the same. A pity this was not understood.
Brought to you by Carl's Junior.
For those that don't know, Blackberry Mobile is run by TCL and they make and market Blackberry branded phones. They made the DTEK 50 and DTEK60 which were rebranded Alcatel phones and now the KEY one. The Priv was the last in house blackberry Inc made phone. Blackberry is now involved in just enterprise and software and provide/update the tweaked, more secure android softwares on Blackberry mobile phones.
If you are a business executive, forget what the media says, BB10 is excellent for productivity oriented individual's with the bb passport as the highlight of this now sinking OS. Blackberry took more that a few unique pointers from BB10 and baked it into ANDROID so it is more secure as apps are malware will have a headset time to steal your info and it has the added advantage of a unique form factor different from the slab that dominates the market.
Dont take the media word for it, if you are into emails, doc viewing and creation, note creation and generally not interested in a device for distraction, try out a Priv or Keyone (when it is released), I can guarantee you will be pleasantly surprised.
and screwing their employees, I couldn't give a shit less. They are long past due, just shutting up and going away.
You are very clearly misinformed. With BES, the administrator is in control of the keys. BlackBerry never receives this key, nor do the messages need to go over BlackBerry infrastructure, you could have it entirely within your own infrastructure. This is why they are gold standard for security, especially government.
You are fucking dumb. You need to cut back on the Apple kool-aid. Apple has your keys and your data.
Blackberry stands for bad interface design, bad user experience, poor build quality, poor application quality and an over all lacking phone experience. If they want back into the phone market, they need to deliver a great phone, not a bad phone over hyped and drastically under delivered.
For instance, the passport has got to be, one of the worst concept phones of all time, hands down. It's size made it unusable in any efficient manor, it's software stack was buggy and crashed. It's included applications would of been a sorry excuse for a kids product and forget about that insane hub idea / user interface. The passport was so bad, that it can't be recovered from.
When I worked at Blackberry as a application prime, I once tried to hold a build of the OS because some of the application they wanted to bundle into the build were so buggy and so poorly built, that would of made people throw the phones out. My manager overrode me, pushed the build and one week later almost all the carriers rejected it as total crap.
Blackberry is a company with no standards and no quality behind it's name. Until they can deliver a great phone experience, which would be the first time in a over a decade, they have no right to even be considered a contender.
Oh Blackberry. I have been enjoying your death throes. You were the people that helped turn email from a passive asynchronous medium to an annoying up-at-all-hours "push" mechanism for your fucking phones. Every A-Type personality LOVED it, and rode many a poor hapless IT employee like a donkey by sending 2am messages, wondering why they haven't responded ten minutes later.
So, fuck you Blackberry - you took email and made it a shackle, a small device that allowed pushy assholes that had barely any grip on technology at all to torment their co-workers with unreasonable demands and the built-in expectation that you'd be available at all hours, even if you weren't compensated for it.
Also, I see a trend here. Anyone pining for a physical keyboard is old. You're old, that's just about it. You didn't adapt to on-screen keyboards, now you're all flummoxed about having to retrain your crusty neurons to do something else. Well, fuck you too. You'd think you stupid shits would be welcoming technology that could integrate haptic feedback and variable layouts -- but no, the chorus for physical keyboards rises up from millions of arthritic (and soon to be) fingers.
Blackberry deserves to die, and so does physical keyboards on phones. You old bastards....