BlackBerry Ltd launched its long-awaited Classic on Wednesday, a smartphone it hopes will help it win back market share and woo those still using older versions of its physical keyboard devices.
The Canadian mobile technology company said the new device, which bears striking similarities to its once wildly popular Bold and Curve handsets, boasts a larger screen, longer battery life, an expanded app library with access to offerings from Amazon.com Inc's Android App store, and a browser three times faster than the one on its legacy devices.
- See more at: http://digital.asiaone.com/digital/news/blackberry-woos-keyboard-loyalists-launch-classicşthash.G6iDir2N.dpufBlackBerry Ltd launched its long-awaited Classic on Wednesday, a smartphone it hopes will help it win back market share and woo those still using older versions of its physical keyboard devices.
The Canadian mobile technology company said the new device, which bears striking similarities to its once wildly popular Bold and Curve handsets, boasts a larger screen, longer battery life, an expanded app library with access to offerings from Amazon.com Inc's Android App store, and a browser three times faster than the one on its legacy devices.
The conversation about BlackBerry has changed in the last year," Chief Executive John Chen said as he launched the Classic at Manhattan's upscale Cipriani restaurant. "We are here to stay, there is no question about that. Now we have to engineer our growth."
He said BlackBerry had listened to its fans and brought back the command bar functionality that helped make its legacy phones easy to navigate.
When the company initially introduced its new BlackBerry 10 operating system and devices early in 2012 it put more emphasis on touchscreens, alienating many fans of its physical keyboard.