BlackBerry might be on life support as it looks to sell the company, but it has a phablet up its sleeve that it hopes consumers will still buy.
The Canadian company was once king of the smartphone world and it had a loyal following. BlackBerry's QWERTY-equipped smartphones were so popular and addictive to some, that the term 'crackberry' was coined to describe how its users felt about their smartphones. BlackBerry users were loyal and stuck with the company when Apple's iPhone and Google's Android smartphones came onto the scene. As iOS and Android began to chip away at BlackBerry's market share, however, it became clear to the company that it needed to offer its users at least some of the features its rivals were offering. It announced that it was working on a next-generation OS that would breathe new life into the platform and promised the wait would be worth it.
After multiple delays and bringing in a new CEO, BlackBerry unveiled BB10 OS, the BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 in January 2013. The smartphones and operating system were well-received by the tech community who praised the new gesture-driven OS and smartphones. As great as things seemed, it was also the first sign the company had lost touch with its core users. It chose to launch an all-touch handset instead of the iconic QWERTY equipped smartphone the company was known for.
It appeared that things were finally turning around as analysts and the company claimed that sales of its new smartphones were very strong. Things came crashing down soon after when it reported its most recent earnings and revealed it had sold more of its previous generation smartphones than its current BB10 handsets. During this time the company also began working on entering the phablet market, somehow hoping a larger Z10 would help turn things around. It also formed a special team to look into selling the entire company.
Details of the BlackBerry A10 leaked, followed by images and video of the handset. It appears that we are now close to a launch as a new video of the device has made its way online, giving the world a better glimpse of what BlackBerry 10 is like running on a large screen. The video provides a look at its thin design, gorgeous 5-inch Super AMOLED display and smooth user interface, thanks to its 1.7Ghz dual-core Snapdragon processor and 2GB of RAM.
As impressive as the BlackBerry Z30 is, it's unclear how consumers will respond to a device, OS and company that is basically on life support. Would you feel comfortable buying a BlackBerry knowing the state of its current affairs? Let us know in the comments, and check out the video below.
