Counterclockwise: BlackBerry, the king of keyboards, was killed by the touchscreen

09 September 2018
BlackBerry phones defined an era in phone history. They were as synonymous to business as a suit and tie.

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  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • 0TI
  • 09 Sep 2018

Zeidor88, 09 Sep 2018Yes and this company has no direction at all. They want to... moreHello sir.The company has direction,because they opened a new chapter as a software and security company,and they outsourcing the hardware division.Overall BB is not for everyone,because is consider a niche product,mostly for proffessional,government agencies,law firm,medical field and physical lovers.With the current CEO,the company will continue on with TCL to produce handset.Thank you.

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    • BB fan
    • HK5
    • 09 Sep 2018

    The article miss mention when they come with bb10 os similar iphone x gesture (or palm original) the bb doesn't have much customers left in the market,like apple have...and the OS was outdated for compatibility with others or how the things are going to. And the prices are to high for value of the hardware or software they pretend to achieve with Android.
    In my point of view they make a mistake leave outside bb10 and try to catch a place in saturated android market...not at this price point level.

      "...the gestures lacked discoverability and there was quite a learning curve."

      Strange to hear that, considering that Apple and Chinese manufacturers use gestures similar to Blackberry's and Palm's ones.

        AnonD-632062, 09 Sep 2018Hi Eske Rahn. Long time. Your image brought back memori... moreHe he, well I've been here, though for some reason the avatar was registered but not shown in here until recently.
        (And of course I was commenting without being logged in for a long period until they got their own login again)

          • R
          • Ruce
          • GBg
          • 09 Sep 2018

          Alcatel Pixi 3 4.5, 09 Sep 2018BlackBerry are still pretty goodAccording to whom?

            • D
            • AnonD-632062
            • 3Yc
            • 09 Sep 2018

            EskeRahn, 09 Sep 2018Though this argument may hold for fixed keyboard devices li... moreHi Eske Rahn. Long time.

            Your image brought back memories about the blog.

              • D
              • AnonD-632062
              • 3Yc
              • 09 Sep 2018

              That starting paragraph is one of the cheesiest ever. However, that last line is pretty sombre and goes to show how transient everything in the world is.

              Blackberry is to mobile keyboards, what Palm is to touchscreens and stylus.

              More than their keyboards, I was more fascinated by the softly-lit, pearly track-ball. It had a nice feel to it, something that wasn't replicated with the track pad, despite it's arguably better efficiency.

              BTW, how come this article does not mention a single Blackberry Curve?

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                • H-1
                • dMD
                • 09 Sep 2018

                Zeidor88, 09 Sep 2018Yes and this company has no direction at all. They want to... moreAside from your subjective opinion on the design (which o find unique and cool), you may have a point as the price is a big steep for the specs offered.

                I'm not sure how much the security and maintenance costs though, which if we knew we might think the device is actually cheap ;)

                The key2 LE should have the price announced soon so by then we might have a better idea about the "security for the masses" device

                  • I
                  • Izzie
                  • nx0
                  • 09 Sep 2018

                  Mike, 09 Sep 2018The Blackberry bold 9900. Probably the most high quality m... moreI had many Blackberry phones but the 9900 was a favourite of mine. I adored it until the day I reset it and it wouldn't boot back up.

                  Still got many fond memories, a beautifully made phone.

                    • M
                    • Mike
                    • 3L}
                    • 09 Sep 2018

                    The Blackberry bold 9900.
                    Probably the most high quality most beautiful looking smartphone made.
                    Its sad it needs BIS or BES (no license keys sold or given out anymore) to run its back-end to be able to use anything other than text and messaging I would love to keep using mine today.
                    Only a handful of expensive server-hosts are still selling BIS subscriptions.
                    Blackberry has already shut down the app store for pre-BB10 and deleted all apps available and will completely shut down all its servers for BB10 on December 31st 2019.

                      blastingcap , 09 Sep 2018The physical QWERTY lost value because a touch screen with ... moreThough this argument may hold for fixed keyboard devices like the key½, it does not hold for the Priv.
                      The form factor of the PrIv offers the best of both worlds. The keyboard when slid out, and working just like any other slab when slid in.
                      As written below the biggest problem with the Priv was that many people thought they bought a powerful flagship due to the hefty launch price. And it never was. It (still) is a GREAT phablet for the non-heavy users that does a lot of texting and e-mailing though.

                        • R
                        • Riyaz Madappally
                        • ypY
                        • 09 Sep 2018

                        If blackberry introduces qwerty android phones with track pad and all there will be takers.

                          Yes and this company has no direction at all. They want to sell phones but they continue on making ugly, bulky, high-priced phones. TCL on the other hand has not capitalized much on the great Blackberry name. Coz they continue on making ugly phones. How can you encourage to sell the security features of the phone if you cannot attract new consumers to buy. To Blackberry, all you have to do is for your OEMs to make a very sophisticated phone with a flagship specs and people will not complain of the price. Besides you will educate people the importance of security features once they have the phone in their hands. So don't complain if you don't sell much of your phones coz it is really at your fault. By the way TCL has no track record of making flagship phones, they better concentrate on making TVs.

                            • M
                            • MGTOW
                            • 3Aj
                            • 09 Sep 2018

                            Respect to Blackberry...

                              The BB Priv is/was a great compromise, giving the best of both worlds.
                              If my Priv broke tomorrow, I would dig up one, as no new devices offer what I want.
                              If a Priv 2 was released by BBMo tomorrow I would most likely buy it on the spot.

                              BUT the priv had issues already at launch
                              1) The price point was in the flagship range, but the chipset was not.
                              2) The battery is not that big, for a not too efficient chipset. So it is NOT a device for the heavy user.
                              3) On heavy use the chipset heats up.
                              And it all gave a lot of customer dissatisfaction.

                              Actually there were good reason to go for a less than flagship chipset at the time (other than the price), as a larger chipset heated even more and also would have needed even more power and thus required a larger battery, and thus adding to the thickness, and of course the sliding already make it thicker than similar slabs.

                              EVERY device is a compromise of different factors, and I think the Priv is a really good compromise for my usage pattern.

                              And people simply fail to see that the extra we pay is to get the keyboard that no other full screen devices offers, and as on every monopoly, this comes at a heavy price.

                              It is quite similar to what we see on the Moto Z series devices. A high price for the comparable specs, or said otherwise: A lot is charged for the ability to use Mods.

                              And the conclusion is similar:
                              If you do not want a keyboard on your full screen device, don't buy a Priv. If you do you want it you need to shell out, as there are no other options...
                              If you do not want the Mods for your device, dont buy a Moto Z series device. If you do want them you need to shell out, as there are no other options...

                              Some claims that it has issues with short stamina. This is just a usage pattern issue. The device can last a week with light use (no tricks)
                              See e.g. this https://eskerahn.dk/wordpress/?p=2197

                              Personally I'm (stil) awaiting the Livermorium QWERTY Mod for the Moto Z devices. And as soon as I has it in my hands I will buy a Z3 or a Z3 play. (As no Z3 force is offered)

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                                • H-1
                                • dMD
                                • 09 Sep 2018

                                I don't think BB is comparable to everyday phones, and I don't mean the keyboard.

                                It's the security options they offer which appeals to certain people who consider raw performance to be secondary. BB even has a team dedicated for this and the extra team and features come at a cost.

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • gDa
                                  • 09 Sep 2018

                                  concern, 09 Sep 2018and BB Z10 Z10 is the best device ever made

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • gDa
                                    • 09 Sep 2018

                                    Peter-B, 09 Sep 2018Right you are! The BlackBerry Z10 and Priv got conflated in... moreZ10 is the best device of Blackberry and in this site you still can see how it is in the first place of popularity list

                                      VoiceOfDigitalEra, 09 Sep 2018Ahem ! GSMArena, I believe you dropped the ball here but it... moreRight you are! The BlackBerry Z10 and Priv got conflated in my memory. I've corrected the article and added a bit about the Passport.

                                        Where did Passport go? I would like a Priv successor but with smaller keyboard or landscape keyboard cause with a bigger one the touchscreen when slid up has no support and it can break