The new Blackberry Mercury is slated for a February reveal and a certain TV show is helping build the hype by showcasing the device.
In what is considered a genius product placement, Blackberry got some free publicity for its upcoming Mercury handset thanks to Tim Allen and his show "Last Man Standing".
Allen plays Michael Baxter who happens to own a Blackberry Mercury and is shown a number of times using the smartphone in last Friday's episode. In one scene he could be seen talking to someone using the Mercury. In another, Allen is looking at the Mercury which shows the device in full glory. The phone also showed a photo of "Brother Jimmy" with animated horns and smoke spewing out of his ears.
Blackberry Mercury Rumored Features
The Blackberry Mercury was introduced at the CES 2017 early in the month so its physical features as displayed in the ABC sitcom shouldn't come as a surprise. One of the most prominent features of the Mercury, which also should not be surprising, is the QWERTY keyboard planted beneath the 4.5-inch touchscreen display. The QWERTY keypad doubles as a trackpad while a fingerprint sensor is embedded in the Space Bar.
The Mercury will run on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 625 processor and will sport a USB Type-C port along with a 3.55mm headphone jack. It will come with 3GB of RAM, a 3,400 mAh battery and either a 12MP or an 18MP camera.
Tim Allen And His Blackberrys
Allen has long been a fan of Blackberry which should account for the Mercury's appearance in the show. The veteran actor has previously been seen in his shows using a Blackberry Passport and a Blackberry Priv.
"Last Man Standing" airs on ABC every Friday at 8:00 p.m. The Blackberry Mercury, meanwhile, will be officially introduced in February during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.