The Canadian mobile player, Blackberry (BBRY, Financial), seems to be getting back to the yesteryears by introducing a classic Blackberry which no active player in the market would probably have launched in today’s age. But Blackberry knows that people will stay on or will come back for nothing else but its keyboard and of course an extra layer of security. That’s why it has launched the smartphone not with touchscreen features but with QWERTY keyboard – something which might sound completely absurd in this age but which is a vital point for Blackberry whose initial handsets raised a storm in the market with such keyboards in place. And now customers could look forward to an upgrade in the keyboard features as well from the company’s end. So, what is the complete story and what is Blackberry’s management saying? Let’s take a quick look at the different facts in place.
The management is moving around a new strategy
While announcing the latest smartphone from the Canadian company, CEO John Chen, stated, “BlackBerry Classic is the powerful communications tool that many BlackBerry Bold and Curve users have been waiting for. It’s the secure device that feels familiar in their hands, with the added performance and agility they need to be competitive in today’s busy world.”
It seems that, with the recent launch of the Passport and now the Classic models, Chen is in some manner taking the company back to its roots, re-emphasizing the physical features such as the keyboard, rather than trying to compete directly against the touchscreen handsets of the dominant rivals like Samsung Electronics (SSNLF, Financial) and Apple (AAPL, Financial).
In fact, Blackberry did try to entice buyers earlier by launching keyboard models, but all its plans went in vain as buyers were terribly unhappy with the fact that command keys such as the Menu, Back, Send and End buttons along with the trackpad had been dropped. Thus, this time the CEO has taken up this turnaround plan for the revival of the sales of Blackberry mobiles as this would improve the top line and aid in bringing the company back into profits.
Upgraded features for those interested
Blackberry claims that this new device has several attraction points – a three times faster browser, 60% more screen space and 50% more battery life than the Blackberry Bold 9900 which it would possibly replace.
For those interested to buy Blackberry’s new products, this phone would bring back the trackpad and classic navigation keys. And, it would feature the Blackberry 10 web browser which the company claims is the fastest around. Additionally, the phone would feature a 3.5-inch touch screen display with 294 dpi HD resolution and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection for greater durability. The battery of 2515 mAh would offer longer life up to 22 hours on a single charge.
The phone would feature the Blackberry 10 OS version 10.3.1 with Blackberry Blend and Blackberry Assistant, the two software enhancements that the company is looking at as differentiators from the rest of the pack.
The final conclusion
Being priced about $ 449 globally, it would obviously offer competition to the Samsung Galaxy series and the Apple’s recent offerings as there are still several buyers who want a phone that is a QWERTY one and thus the Classic offering is the best for such folk. According to Wells Fargo analyst Maynard Um, “We expect the Classic to be the most popular BlackBerry enterprise device and the easiest transition for current BB7 (legacy device) users…” The launch has also coincided with an upgrade on Blackberry stock by BGC analysts who raised the price target to $12.50 from $11, and rating from “buy” to “hold”. Let’s stay tuned to find out how the sales of the Classic model aid Blackberry in its revival process and in creating a niche for itself in the smartphone arena crowded with umpteen touchscreen players.
