BlackBerry has reported an 8% decrease year-on-year in its cyber security revenue, although it increased its Internet of Things (IoT) revenue by 28% and attracted new customers to this part of its business.

The Canadian company reported its earnings for the last quarter today and revealed that its cyber security revenue was $111 million, 8% less than the year before. The revenue from this segment in the third quarter is expected to be flat year-on-year, BlackBerry added in an earnings call, as reported by Reuters.

In the security software industry, the company has had to compete with rivals like Microsoft, Citrix, and IBM, with BlackBerry also having to face customers spending less in general due to the uncertain economic conditions facing the global economy.

Despite this, its IoT revenue came to around $51 million, an increase of 28% year-on-year, with a gross margin of 82%. This includes its BlackBerry QNX software which is used in the automotive industry for the design of cars’ operating systems. It has managed to attract more customers here, adding Ford, GM, and Hyundai to its list of customers that already included Honda, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Toyota.

“This was a solid second quarter for BlackBerry, where we delivered both revenue in line with, and EPS ahead of, expectations,” said John Chen, executive chairman & CEO of BlackBerry. “Our IoT business continues to gain market share, and design-phase revenue remained at near-record levels.”

Chen added that a major design win in the quarter was with Volkswagen, who chose QNX for its new VW.OS which will be deployed across all Volkswagen Group brands.

“In our cyber security business we delivered double-digit sequential billings growth, including securing significant business in both government and financial services, as well as in the middle market,” said Chen.

The total revenue for the company for the second quarter was $168 million, a fall of 4%. Its total software and services revenue was $162 million, with $6 million coming from licencing and other revenue.

Although bigger companies are suffering through the downturn in the global economy, it’s not potentially the same for smaller businesses. Recruiting giant Randstad said earlier this month that small businesses are in an unprecedented position to hire talent than would usually be taken by big tech companies. In an assessment of the market landscape, Randstad found that employers in small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) should use this period to their advantage.

OnwardMobility, the company that promised to launch a 5G-enabled BlackBerry by 2021, has closed down, ending yet another attempt to resurrect the once-famed brand.

The Texas-based firm was working on an Android-based BlackBerry device, complete with classic physical keyboard, for release in the US and Europe.

BlackBerry phones haven't been made by the company itself since 2016 due to poor sales. Instead, the company offers the brand name under a license, and all handsets released since have so far come from the Chinese firm TCL communications.

OnwardMobility picked up the license in 2020 but was unable to bring a product to market.

"It is with great sadness that we announce that OnwardMobility will be shutting down, and we will no longer be proceeding with the development of an ultra-secure smartphone with a physical keyboard," the company's statement reads.

Onward picked up the BlackBerry torch in August 2020, and at the time promised to release a "secure, 5G-enabled device" in 2021. However, the year came and went and the only BlackBerry news was an announcement on 4 January that older devices running the 7.1 OS and earlier would no longer be supported with updates.

In the days following that announcement, there was a barrage of social media posts and messages directed at OnwardMobility, with BlackBerry fans apparently upset that the firm had missed its self-set deadline without explanation.

On 7 January the firm addressed the issue with a statement claiming it was "not dead". It said that 2021 had been a "truly challenging year to launch a new phone", especially with the "high expectations" it had set for itself. The statement also appeared to suggest that a device had been built, but was held back by shipping difficulties.

Just over a month later, however, the company have posted a new statement to its website announcing that it is shutting down and, as a result, will no longer be releasing a 5G-enabled BlackBerry with a keyboard. The reasons why are still unclear, with OnwardMobility unreachable for comment at the time of writing.

"Please know that this was not a decision that we made lightly or in haste. We share your disappointment in this news and assure you this is not the outcome we worked and hoped for," its statement continued.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and BlackBerry have signed a multi-year deal to develop and market BlackBerry IVY, a scalable, cloud-connected intelligent vehicle data platform. The platform aims to give automakers a standardized and secure way to read and analyze vehicle sensor data.

The IVY platform will support multiple automobile operating systems and multi-cloud deployments. It’s built on BlackBerry's QNX auto data capabilities and AWS' portfolio, including IoT and machine learning capabilities.

Modern cars and trucks have an increasing variety of vehicle sensors that produce data in unique and specialized formats. AWS and BlackBerry added that the highly specific skills required to interact with this data and the challenges of accessing it from within contained vehicle subsystems, limit developers’ abilities to innovate quickly and bring new solutions to market.

The firms claim BlackBerry IVY will solve these challenges by applying machine learning to that data to generate predictive insights and inferences, “making it possible for automakers to offer in-vehicle experiences that are highly personalized and able to take action based on those insights.”

BlackBerry IVY will run inside a vehicle’s embedded systems but will be managed and configured remotely from the cloud. The firms said that automakers will, as a result, gain greater visibility into vehicle data, control over who can access it, and edge computing capabilities to optimize how quickly and efficiently the data is processed.

Automakers will also be able to deliver new features, functionality, and performance to customers over the lifetime of their cloud-connected vehicles. They’ll also unlock new revenue streams and business models built on vehicle data.

The platform is touted as a way for automakers to collaborate with a broader pool of developers to accelerate the creation of new offerings that deliver improved vehicle performance, reduced maintenance and repair costs, and added convenience.

By analyzing real-time performance data, automakers could recognize faulty parts, deploy code to identify affected vehicles, notify impacted drivers, and perform targeted recalls. Automakers will be able to remotely deploy and update the software from the platform’s Cloud Console - a web interface for managing BlackBerry IVY - to continuously improve the system’s functionality.

"AWS and BlackBerry are making it possible for any automaker to continuously reinvent the customer experience and transform vehicles from fixed pieces of technology into systems that can grow and adapt with a user’s needs and preferences," said Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon Web Services.

"Through this joint effort with BlackBerry, we will provide automakers with the insights, capabilities, agility, and speed they need to thrive in an increasingly connected world. As automakers seek to race ahead in their digital transformations, BlackBerry IVY empowers them to build their brands and set the standard for connected vehicle services across the automotive industry."

BlackBerry has announced a new solution for protecting mobile users against phishing attacks and mobile malware.

The new BlackBerry Protect Mobile is an artificial intelligence-based mobile threat defense (MTD) designed to detect attacks before they execute.

As the COVID-19 pandemic forces millions of workers to shift to remote work, mobile malware and phishing attacks are increasing. Frequently, when users' devices are compromised, they can infect their company's system quickly, but the company may not discover the issue for months.

BlackBerry Protect Mobile, which is based on the BlackBerry Spark platform, uses AI to detect attacks before they execute. It monitors attacks at the device and application level, allowing it to alert users before they open URLs leading to spoofed websites designed to collect data. It does all this without human intervention.

Protect Mobile also identifies security vulnerabilities and malicious activities by monitoring system parameters, device configurations and system libraries at the application level. Plus, it can identify malware from sideloaded apps and ensures applications come from secure repositories only.

"The number of phishing attacks that target mobile users will continue to rise because business is being conducted on mobile devices and users are more susceptible to attacks when viewing and accessing content on the go," said Billy Ho, executive vice president of BlackBerry Spark.

"BlackBerry Protect Mobile provides mobile device security integrated into our unified endpoint security (UES) solutions for a simplified approach to identifying and alerting users and administrators to phishing attempts and mobile malware across the enterprise."

BlackBerry is making a strong push to be a factor in the new work-from-home era. The launch of BlackBerry Protect Mobile comes alongside the release of BlackBerry Persona Desktop, an AI-powered security solution for desktops and laptops. BlackBerry Persona Desktop and Protect Mobile are part of the company's larger Cyber Suite.

BlackBerry has announced BlackBerry Persona Desktop, an all-new security solution that uses advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to detect user and entity behavior abnormalities.

Once the new BlackBerry Persona Desktop notices an irregularity in behavior, it protects the endpoint, network and data.

BlackBerry Persona Desktop works at the endpoint, eliminating the need to share data back to the cloud before acting. This allows it to work in real-time with minimal delay to prevent hacks and data breaches.

On top of working faster, BlackBerry Persona Desktop also protects against even the most challenging security challenges, including:

• Stolen credentials: Persona Desktop protects in the event of stolen credentials by learning how a user works and their interaction with a device. If Persona Desktop senses abnormal interaction, it sends an alert through the cloud and takes other threat-mitigation actions, like asking for second-factor authentication.
• Insider threats: If a rogue employee attempts to breach your system, the Persona Desktop can detect the abnormal behavior and flag the risk. It’ll then alert the administrator, who determines what action Persona Desktop takes to mitigate the threat.
• Physical compromise: If someone physically compromises or steals a device, BlackBerry Persona Desktop uses biometric capabilities, including keystrokes and mouse movement, to sense a different user and alert an administrator or lock the user out.

BlackBerry Personal is available with the BlackBerry Cyber Suite, which is a unique combination of endpoint protection (EPP), mobile threat defense (MTD), endpoint detection and response (EDR), and user and entity behavior analytics (UEBA) products together in one package.

BlackBerry is making yet another comeback, with OnwardMobility and Foxconn subsidiary FIH Mobile agreeing to licence the brand to launch a 5G BlackBerry smartphone in 2021.

The new Android-based device will come with the classic physical keyboard and will be made available in the US and Europe.

China's TCL Communications announced that it would "no longer be selling" BlackBerry smartphones in February after the brand failed to make much impact in the market. TCL said its work would end in August, marking the official death of the business smartphone.

However, the new deal with OnwardMobility has resurrected the BlackBerry once again. Under the terms of the agreement, OnwardMobility has been granted the right to develop, engineer, and bring to market a 5G-enabled handset.

The company said it will work closely with both BlackBerry and FIH Mobile to ensure "world-class design" on the new device.

"BlackBerry is thrilled OnwardMobility will deliver a BlackBerry 5G smartphone device with physical keyboard leveraging our high standards of trust and security synonymous with our brand," said BlackBerry CEO John Chen.

"We are excited that customers will experience the enterprise and government level security and mobile productivity the new BlackBerry 5G smartphone will offer."

Security seems to be the main reason BlackBerry is making a comeback, with the company looking to capitalise on the current trend of remote working and the high risk of cyber attacks.

Speaking from an enterprise point of view, BlackBerry has cited the difficulty organisations now have when selecting, deploying, securing and managing devices to meet expectations and maximise productivity.

"Enterprise professionals are eager for secure 5G devices that enable productivity, without sacrificing the user experience," said Peter Franklin, CEO of OnwardMobility.

"BlackBerry smartphones are known for protecting communications, privacy, and data. This is an incredible opportunity for OnwardMobility to bring next-generation 5G devices to market with the backing of BlackBerry and FIH Mobile."

Last month, in a low-key announcement on Twitter, the death of the business smartphone was confirmed.

In the post, BlackBerry announced that China’s TCL Communications will “no longer be selling” BlackBerry-branded phones as of 31 August 2020, perhaps an unsurprising development given the once-beloved devices accounted for a mere 0.02% of the global smartphone market as of January this year.

TCL has said it will continue to support models that are already in the market, such as the BlackBerry Key2, until 31 August 2022, but the end of the companies’ three-year-long partnership undoubtedly marks the end of both BlackBerry and the business smartphone as we know it.

BlackBerry devices, which were once famed for their physical hardware keyboards and “uncrackable” security software, dominated the corporate market in the 2000s. In 2009, the then Research In Motion (RIM)-owned company claimed more than 20% of the smartphone market after becoming the handset of choice among high-powered executives and the ultimate status symbol in boardrooms across the globe.

This prestige, which saw Fortune at the time name RIM the “world’s fastest-growing company,” can be largely credited to the fact that the BlackBerry offered the first devices to “push email," enabling busy workers to keep on top of their emails without having to refresh their inboxes perpetually.

“The democratisation of email was a huge priority for business users, and they could do that in the safest way using a BlackBerry,” says Roberta Cozza, research director at Gartner. “It was the de-facto email wireless device.”

However, while this focus saw BlackBerry add over 4 million subscribers in a single quarter in 2009, it’s this business-first approach that also lead to the company’s demise and, ultimately, the extinction of the so-called business smartphone.

“The competition – Android and iOS – soon caught up, and I think BlackBerry failed to recognise this consumerisation of IT and responded too late,” Cozza says. “Apple introduced the touchscreen, for example, and the smartphone became a platform for applications. Other companies were offering more than just a business smartphone, so there was no longer any point of differentiation for BlackBerry.”

Missed signs

BlackBerry, which now sells secure software and services to enterprises, unwisely believed that the corporate world, rather than the consumer, would drive smartphone adoption. However, as its QWERTY-equipped devices failed to resonate in a world that quickly became saturated with touchscreen devices, the exact opposite happened.

Brian Foster, SVP of Product Management at MobileIron, says: “As smartphones have kept evolving and becoming more accessible, the idea of the business phone has slowly become obsolete as most smartphones are now suitable for business.

“This has led to the emergence and rapid growth of Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD), a model of working where company employees use the same device for both their personal and professional dealings.”

While in BlackBerry’s heyday an initiative such as BYOD would have seemed unimaginable given the firm’s at-the-time market-leading security software, both Apple and Google now proudly tout the enterprise credentials of their respective operating systems, with the latter going so far as to offer ‘Enterprise Recommended’ programme that helps businesses identify which Android phones are best-suited to corporate deployments.

“The world’s most popular mobile platform, built for business. Secure, manageable, and flexible – Android is ready for work,” Google boasts on its Android website, noting that all devices will receive security updates for three years after launch, keeping them protected from vulnerabilities.

In a similarly styled post on its website, Apple – which accounts for almost 70% of the enterprise smartphone market, according to Good Technology’s latest Mobility Index Report – brags that it creates “products that give employees everything they need to make better business decisions, wherever they are.

“With the most intuitive, secure and powerful products, as well as the hundreds of thousands of apps on the App Store, your team will stay connected, share ideas and get more done”, it adds.

Ben Woods, chief of research at CCS Insight, comments: “We’ve reached a point where pretty much any mid-or high-tier iPhone or Android phone is ideally suited to both business and personal use.

“Google has doubled down on security for Android smartphones and the operating system now has a whole raft of security features; there is now the Android Enterprise Recommended programme which mandates a number of things, such as security patches, are regularly delivered.

“In the case of Apple, it has a wide range of tools that businesses can use to secure iPhones making them ideal as business devices.”

From the consumer to the business

It’s not just Apple and Google that are looking to win over business users with their largely consumer-first devices. Samsung’s mobile devices, which claimed 21.8% of the smartphone market in 2019, build on Android’s own security features with the Samsung Knox platform, which allows IT admins to secure, deploy and manage mobile devices for business use.

Beyond this security focus, Samsung in 2017 also took aim at business users with its DeX platform, a docking station that enables its smartphones to offer users a desktop computing experience.

As Samsung has demonstrated, the downfall of the business smartphone isn’t just due to the increased security credentials of Android and iOS. Employees’ needs have also changed, with younger and more flexible workforces now demanding devices that are powerful, have a dependable battery, and have access to the software they need - be it access to Microsoft Excel on-the-go or the ability to store boarding passes for business travel.

These are both areas where BlackBerry couldn’t compete. Before it gave up on its homegrown BlackBerry OS in favour of a customised Android experience, the firm long-struggled to match its rivals in terms of both in terms of availability of popular third-party apps; the firm long-insisted on pre-loading its now-defunct BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) app on its devices, failing to realise the growing popularity of third-party services such as WhatsApp.

When it comes to hardware, it’s a similar story. As recently as 2018 with the BlackBerry Key2, the company – with its now-irrelevant business focus continuing to dominate business decisions – insisted on releasing devices with hardware keyboards, despite the fact that it had become clear that the majority of smartphone users had moved on and preferred using more convenient touchscreen devices.

As we said in our BlackBerry Key2 review at the time: “If this was still 2008, this would be a brilliant device, but it's not. It's 2018 and we have amazing touch screen keyboards. There's simply no need for a physical keyboard any more.”

It’s not just its persistence with keyboards that caused the firm to fall behind its rivals in the hardware department. The company did release fully-touchscreen devices, but these were largely mocked as sub-par iPhone imitations. And in a world where the likes of Huawei and OnePlus were starting to show up with high-spec smartphones at low prices, BlackBerry – and its at-the-time partner TCL – continued to peddle out devices with lacklustre specs and uncompetitive prices; the £500 Key2, for example, packed average 12MP cameras and an underwhelming mid-range processor.

BlackBerry’s demise is perhaps the perfect example of what happens when a tech giant fails to innovate in a fast-paced, consumer-first market. The company’s continued focus on the notion of a “business smartphone” was ultimately flawed; it was late to recognise the changing mobile industry and failed to realise just how influential Apple, which now dominates the enterprise mobile space, would become in the market.

While the notion of the business smartphone arguably dies with BlackBerry, some will say that it’s not dead at all - it lives on in every modern handset available today

The best business smartphones won't have everything you need to get you through the workday, but they can be a reliable backup option should tasks need finishing on the go. That requires snappy processing power, long battery life, and enough display space to see read your emails and even fix spreadsheets. 

Over the last twelve months we have tried and tested some of the best around, from the latest iPhone to the best Samsung has to offer. In this article, we will provide you with a detailed review of each device, what to look for when purchasing a new smartphone for work, and also an insight into our testing methodology. 

The Best Business Smartphones 2026

If you're an iOS person or you're business is deep into Apple's product ecosystem then the iPhone 14 Pro is, in our opinion, the best value for money right now. The 15 models are out, but there isn't enough of a difference between the two to go for the absolute latest but there will be a price difference. 

With its A16 Bionic processor, the 14 Pro is an extremely powerful smartphone. In Geekbench 5, the 14 Pro hit 5,497 for multi-threaded workloads, leaving its Android rivals in the dust. For comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra only managed 3,475. If it's speed you need, the iPhone 14 Pro is the clear winner in that regard.

The iPhone 14 Pro is currently priced at $999, which is still admittedly high – though that is far more affordable than the very latest iPhone 15 Pro. An argument could also be made for an older model, such as the iPhone 12, which has almost the same design, and most of the necessary features, for almost half the price – something businesses are most likely going to weigh up.

However, the 14 Pro has plenty of worthwhile extras, such as the Dynamic Island which makes emails and notifications that little bit easier to deal with.

Read our full Apple iPhone 14 Pro review for more information.

Google has found great success in the smartphone market with its Pixel range and that is partly to do with its innovative AI-based features. Take the Pixel 7 Pro, for example, which captured the imagination with its 'Magic Eraser' tool that allows users to make groundbreaking edits to photos.

The element that made us all go 'wow', and what really sold most on the Pixel 7 Pro, was the ability to remove objects and people from images. This is down to the innovative Tensor G2 chip and its machine-learning capabilities. It's also worth noting that it is still early days and AI capabilities on phones will become very advanced in the years to come. But for right now, the Pixel is arguably the best around.

For businesses the most appealing aspect of a Google Pixel is its native links to the Workspace suite of apps – there is no phone around that can replace the performance of a laptop, but for quick checks, minor tweaks, and little notes, the Pixel 7 Pro is great for Gmail, Google Docs, even Google Sheets. There is also potential space here for AI in the future.

Read our full Google Pixel 7 Pro review for more information.

Flip and foldable phones might seem gimmicky in the consumer space, but they do have a reasonable purpose for businesses. This is largely because they're mini tablets, offering larger screen space than your average phone. And the absolute best of the best here is the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4. 

Packing an octa-core snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip, the Fold 4 is a smooth operator and business-friendly handheld. Switching apps is effortless, editing Google Docs is actually doable, and the larger screen really does allow you to work on the go.

Its Geekbench 5 scores are also noteworthy, with a multithreaded score (3,960) far above the likes of the Pixel 7 Pro and the Huawei Mate X2s. You have the processing power to handle the heaviest of work apps.

However, what really matters, and what businesses should take note of, is the inclusion of a Samsung S-Pen. The whole experience of a foldable screen gets better with a stylus, from annoying docs to creating doodles, it just offers that little bit more.

Read our full Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 review for more information.

There is something to be said for smaller phones; they're easier to handle and ultimately use on the go, for example. But what Sony has with its Xperia 5IV is a narrow smartphone with its compact 6.1in display and its slender 8.2mm thick chassis. It is a very unobtrusive device, perfect for minor business needs. 

The OLED display and its 21:9 aspect ratio and a 120Hz refresh rate are the big plus points of the device. The size is great for your thumb, as it can actually reach all parts of the display, but also good for streaming content as the aspect ratio takes away those annoying black bars. What's more, it's also very vivid with 99.9% of the sRGB color space covered under our calibrator. This is a display that matches the likes of the S22 Ultra and the iPhone 14 Pro but in a smaller way.

There is also a stellar camera system on the IV, which is less important to business users, but it does mean that the device has a more premium quality to it and therefore a more premium price. It is still under $1,000, but only just. 

Read our full Sony Xperia 5 IV review for more information.

What to look for in a business smartphone

When shopping for a smartphone, it’s easy to be lured into thinking that you should simply go with whichever device boasts the highest specs - but this isn’t always the case, and in some instances, more technically advanced devices can actually offer a less satisfying experience.

For example, while a super-powerful processor may seem attractive, most flagship phones have far more CPU power than the average user needs, so unless you’re planning on using your phone to handle extremely demanding tasks like professional videography, you may find that a mid-range processor offers better value for money. It may also result in better battery life thanks to less power-hungry components, which applies equally to screen technology.

The higher a display’s resolution and refresh rate, the more charge will be needed to power it, which can quickly sap your battery. While most devices with a high refresh rate also include dynamic optimisations to mitigate this, it’s nonetheless worth bearing in mind. Generally, you should aim for a resolution of between 1080p and 1440p, and a refresh rate of at least 60Hz, which will ensure the best blend between battery life and user experience.

Regardless of how long the battery lasts, however, you should make sure to look for devices that include fast-charging support, as this will inevitably come in handy at some point. Wireless charging is also a nice feature to have, but unless you own a wireless charging pad, or your work has them dotted around the office, it's unlikely to be a feature you use very often.

You should, however, make sure that your chosen phone supports Wi-Fi 6 and 5G; these technologies may still be comparatively nascent, but skip this functionality and you may need to upgrade sooner than planned as it becomes more widespread.

Those seeking the most secure phone possible should check our best secure smartphones list.

FAQs

Are iPhones or Android phones better for business use?

There’s a certain amount of animosity that can sometimes be observed when it comes to Android vs iPhone; Android fans contend that Apple devices are needlessly expensive, prone to failure and restrictive to use, while iPhone devotees insist that Android devices are cheaply-made, poor quality hardware brimming with malware.

All of these arguments have grains of truth behind them, but on balance, it’s iOS that comes up trumps for business. As the dominant platform, it tends to be prioritised by software developers, and although high-end manufacturers like Samsung and Google can offer experiences that compete with Apple’s smartphones, the wider Android ecosystem does contain more than its fair share of duds.

However, the simple fact is that in most cases, Android and iOS are equally capable for business users. The software required for business smartphones - enterprise collaboration apps, document management systems, device management tools, and so on - are all available across both platforms, and as long as organisations don’t try and cut too many corners on the price of the unit itself, device quality is unlikely to be an issue.

How often should I update my employees’ company smartphones?

Smartphone technology moves at a seemingly breakneck pace, and every year manufacturers are touting more and more impressive specs and features. This leaves businesses with a dilemma: do they invest more money in upgrading employees’ devices every year or so, or do they sweat them for a longer period and risk missing out on the latest capabilities?

The key thing to bear in mind is that many of the features these newer smartphones boast are geared towards personal use, as opposed to business. While an improved camera is nice for taking holiday snaps, it doesn’t make much difference for most workers’ day-to-day use. With this in mind, it’s better to invest in buying higher-end devices and sweating them for a longer period of three to five years, which will offer better long-term value.

Should I get a 5G business smartphone contract?

5G has been around for a number of years now, but its introduction somehow doesn’t seem as revolutionary as previous generations of mobile broadband. Many contracts will now include 5G connectivity as standard, but it’s still worth paying a bit extra to secure a business smartphone contract that supports the latest standard - assuming your corporate devices do as well.

When employees are on the road - or working flexibly from a third location - the added speed and stability that 5G can offer is an excellent way to ensure consistent productivity, and sharing a 5G connection via hotpot can even be used as a backup broadband connection for PCs and laptops in the event of a connection failure.

How we test

We measure the effectiveness of a smartphone in a number of ways; to test the quality of the display, we’ll use a colour calibrator and the open source DisplayCal app to measure how much of the sRGB colour gamut it covers, as well as the Delta-E rating. This tells us how much of the colour spectrum it’s able to represent, and how accurate those colours are. We’ll also test the maximum brightness and contrast ratio.

Performance testing is carried out using the Geekbench 5 benchmark app, which gives separate results for single-core and multi-core operations. For phones that don’t support this app, we’ll use a different benchmarking app, then run that same app on a phone which does support Geekbench, and then use that as a basis for comparison.

To test the battery of a smartphone, we’ll charge it to 100%, use the calibrator to set the brightness to 170cd/m2 (or as near as possible) and then play a looped video in flight mode until the battery runs out. This gives us a figure that can be compared across models, but to assess real-world longevity, we track how long the battery lasts on average during our testing period.

Following on from the KeyOne, BlackBerry has released the Key2, or rather, a Chinese firm called TCL Communications has. Since it stopped making hardware two years ago, this is the fourth mobile phone with the BlackBerry branding to be released by TCL and it's continued to support the famous physical keyboard that BlackBerry takes its name from.

Why isn't TCL using virtual keyboards like every other manufacturer you ask? Apparently, people are still keen on physical ones; case in point, the KeyOne, which evidently sold well enough to warrant a second model.

Looking beyond the keyboard, there has been a considerable improvement from the KeyOne, but that has resulted in a considerable hike in price too. That puts the device in amongst some very good smartphones like the LG G7 and the brilliant OnePlus 6. Can a smartphone with a physical keyboard really cut it in 2018's competitive smartphone market?

BlackBerry Key2: Keyboard

When you think of the uproar over notches on flagships like the iPhone X, it's staggering to think a manufacturer would release a smartphone with a physical keyboard that takes up such a large area of the screen. The modern smartphone has evolved to cater for streaming films and TV on the go, which means expanding screens and reducing bezels and buttons, not putting four lines of physical keys across the lower part of the screen. And that's not unusual for BlackBerry as it has released devices without a physical keyboard, like the Motion Leap and the DTEK60. But by sticking with it for the Key2, BlackBerry just further emphasises that physical keyboards are a feature it's basically defined by.

Back in 1999, the company went by the name "Research in Motion Limited" but it was allegedly given the nickname BlackBerry after making a pager with rounded keys that resembled the seeds of the little fruits of the same name. That title wasn't officially adopted until 2013 - ironically, just before the company started to struggle in the market.

Unsurprisingly, it stopped making its own hardware two years ago and the BlackBerry brand of mobiles has been run by TCL Communications ever since. The original KeyOne was designed in partnership with BlackBerry - which explains why it had a physical keyboard - but the successor was designed by TCL, making the choice to keep it somewhat perplexing.

Even more strangely, it has a new, and needless, physical key. Dubbed the 'Speed key' and housed on the bottom row, this is a shortcut to loading apps quicker, where you hold it down, press the first letter of the app in question and hey presto, you've got a faster way of loading an app. This type of shortcut works well on a laptop, like the Command key on a Mac or the Windows key on Windows, but it isn't as easy on such a small scale. It's also still slower than using a touchscreen.

It does have a touchscreen though, which is combined with the physical keys. The two together just feel strange, like switching back and forth from digital to analogue. To its credit, it is a great keyboard; the keys click nicely and it's easy to get up to a decent speed, but physical keys can only house so many buttons, unlike touch screens which have changeable pages of numbers, letters, symbols and emojis, so there's a lot of annoying Alt button pressing. More annoyingly, the Alt, along with the 'Q' and 'A' buttons above it, are on the end of the rows and can be a little awkward for your thumb.

However, rather bizarrely, the touchscreen also has a virtual keypad that pops up when using third-party apps such as Whatsapp. I admit there was a nice novelty in using different keyboards with each thumb simultaneously, but the already reduced display becomes a tiny window where not much can be seen. How this has made it through a development process begs belief, but then we are talking about a design that has both a physical keyboard and a virtual one. It's like hiring a chauffeur for a self-driving car.

BlackBerry Key2: Design

The best way to describe the Key2 is that it looks like someone has taken a rolling pin to a BlackBerry Classic and flattened it into the shape of a modern smartphone. From a distance it doesn't look much different from the KeyOne, but on closer inspection, the Key2 has some nice little refinements.

It's a device with pointy edges and an aluminium frame that is cold to the touch, which is quite different from most current flagships which sport more glass surface areas and generally have rounded edges. The rear panel features that famous BlackBerry logo and is covered in a textured plastic similar to that of a basketball.

The Key2 is 1mm thinner than the KeyOne at 8.5mm and it weighs 168g. There's a narrower top bezel (thankfully without a notch) but it's still a bezel and it robs you of that top 5% of the screen. Likewise, it has slightly thinner bezels down the sides of the screen in total contrast to almost every other flagship smartphone on the market, which have mostly gone for edge-to-edge displays.

BlackBerry Key2: Display

The physical keyboard and bezels leave the screen a little cramped at 4.5in, but the 1,080 x 1,620 display isn't bad for image quality. The display is crisp and clear enough to suit all your needs, which probably won't include watching TV shows or movies because the screen is just too small for that. It's like trying to stream stuff on a smartwatch.

However its colour reproduction is quite good, reaching more than 107% of the sRGB gamut by total volume, but less can be said of the sRGB coverage, which isn't as good at 93.3%. However, there is a decent contrast ratio of 1,394:1, so overall you have a vivid, vibrant display that holds up against most mid-range smartphones on the market - but only if you ignore the fact they all have bigger screens.

BlackBerry Key2: Specs and Performance

BlackBerry phones have never won any medals for speed or performance, which is one reason why the price of the Key2 might make you think twice. This is actually the most powerful BlackBerry phone yet, but sadly it isn't as powerful as the other phones within its price bracket. For that 579 price tag, you get a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660, which runs at 2.2GHz, with 6GB of RAM and a choice of 64GB or 128GB of storage. It launches apps quickly and with the 6GB of RAM it switches between them smoothly.

This is a perfectly paced smartphone, considerably faster and more responsive than the KeyOne, but despite that improvement, it doesn't quite translate to value for money. For comparison, other smartphones in its price range, such as the Asus Zenfore 5Z and the fantastic OnePlus 6 all performed considerably better on our GeekBench tests. The OnePlus 6 in particular blazed past the Key2 with a stronger CPU performance and vastly superior graphics, despite the fact it's more than 100 cheaper.

BlackBerry Key2: Battery life

"Up to 2 days battery life" is proudly stated on BlackBerry's website, but from my own personal use during a working day, the battery gets you from morning to night time, but no more - and certainly not two days. Its 3,500mAh battery made it to 13hrs 6mins in our video rundown test. For comparison, The OnePlus 6 (which, again, is much cheaper) gave us a little over 17hrs. On a positive power note, it is compatible with Qualcomm's Quick Charge 3 standard, which will boost the battery up to 50% from empty in just over half an hour.

BlackBerry Key2: Camera

BlackBerry phones have rarely been known to house top quality cameras and taking into consideration the brilliant camera phones currently on offer, such as the Huawei P20 Pro and the Samsung Galaxy S9, you would be forgiven for thinking that a BlackBerry device wouldn't have much to shout about in this regard, but this is where the Key2 actually manages to hold its own.

It comes with a pair of 12-megapixel f/1.8 cameras, with the extra camera offering a 2x optical zoom and depth mapping for Bokeh-style portrait images. Improving on the KeyOne, the low-light performance is good too, with decent colours.

BlackBerry Key2: Features

The Key2 runs Android Oreo 8.1, with a classic BlackBerry-style user interface and within it is some neat features. BlackBerry Hub is nothing new, but it's still a good service that combines all your messages from your email, SMS, Slack, Twitter, Whatsapp and so on into one easily accessible place.

Like the KeyOne, the Key2 comes with security as a top priority. There is a privacy monitoring service called DTEK, which keeps all those pesky apps in check and lets you see how they are accessing your valuable data, with options for notifications and a meter that keeps you well informed. On top of this, there's BlackBerry Locker, which acts as safe storage for all your photos, documents and other private bits of information.

BlackBerry Key2: Verdict

BlackBerry and TCL are trying desperately to push the brand back into the mobile phone market, but it's still keeping its biggest fault front and centre; if this was still 2008, this would be a brilliant device, but it's not. It's 2018 and we have amazing touch screen keyboards. There's simply no need for a physical keyboard any more.

While there are a lot of improvements from the KeyOne and it's got some decent features, the Key2 is still not good enough for today's smartphone market and it's wildly overpriced to boot. Unfortunately this means BlackBerry is still about as relevant to modern life as Chuck Berry - but in fairness to Chuck, his music is more likely to be appreciated on a smartphone than a physical keyboard ever will.

Verdict

It’s difficult to look beyond the physical keyboard and the cropped screen, both of which are alien in today’s mobile phone market. Despite vast improvements from the KeyOne, BlackBerry is still not relevant in the world of smartphones.

Come on, own up - who's still buying BlackBerry phones? After all, someone must be because despite a string of sub-par devices, the company is still releasing products. Its last couple of devices have been disappointing, but the company is aiming to win back some fans with its latest release, the BlackBerry Motion. Claiming a hefty battery life and (as always) top-notch security, can the Motion reverse the company's ailing fortunes?

Design

Measuring 156mm x 75mm, this phone is decidedly on the larger side - which is accentuated by the fact that it's bordered on three sides by a wide aluminium frame as opposed to the rounded edges used by many manufacturers. The edges have a slight chamfer to them, but not enough to stop the phone feeling much thicker than its 8.1mm depth would suggest. It also feels fairly heavy, despite the fact that at 167g, it's not too far above the rest of 2017's flagship crop.

Like most of BlackBerry's products, the Motion features a soft-touch plastic back, inlaid with a textured carbon fibre-style pattern and the trademark BlackBerry logo. The soft-touch back is a feature that we actually quite like on a phone - it's grippier than glass or metal, and it's more resistant to picking up fingerprints and scratches.

Another feature it has in common with the company's other devices is that BlackBerry has gone for a starkly utilitarian design aesthetic for the Motion, rather than the snazzier looks sported by most other phones. It has more in common with the visual language of industrial machinery than with high-end flagship devices.

That's not to say that the Motion is unattractive though - its carbon fibre and brushed aluminium style has a certain appeal, and it definitely stands out from the rest of the market. On the downside, it doesn't feel nearly as comfortable in the hand as we'd like it to. A combination of its large footprint and wide aluminium frame means that it feels slightly too large and unwieldy to use - even given our comparatively large hands.

Display

BlackBerry has kept the Motion's IPS display fairly modest, with a resolution of 1080p across its 5.5in screen and a pixel density of 403ppi. This reasonably basic screen isn't really anything to write home about; while its maximum brightness of 401cd/m2 is above average, the panel itself is on the oversaturated side.

It doesn't make a huge amount of difference to the experience of watching video clips or viewing images and photos, but the screen definitely isn't as picture-perfect as the likes of the Galaxy S8.

On the other hand, BlackBerry has fitted it with a 'proprietary nano-diamond anti-scratch coating', meaning that if you've got it in the same pocket as your keys, it supposedly won't get too scratched up.

Specs and Hardware

The Motion is rather unimpressive when it comes to hardware and performance. BlackBerry has used a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor paired with 4GB of RAM, and the Motion shares its processor with a variety of lower-end budget devices. In fact, it's got the exact same internal configuration as the Lenovo P2.

Accordingly, it racked up near-identical scores to the P2 in our benchmark tests, with a GeekBench single-core score of 821 and a multi-core score of 3558. That's not terribly impressive compared to modern flagships; the Galaxy S8 managed to score double that, as did the OnePlus 5T - which is less than 100 more expensive than the Motion.

Admittedly, we found the phone to be generally capable in day-to-day use and didn't experience many problems with stuttering or lag, but performance definitely isn't up to the standard of top-of-the-line devices.

Battery life

A lower-powered processor also confers some benefits - namely a hefty battery life. After a full day of use, the BlackBerry Motion still had a very comfortable amount of battery left, and it racked up an impressive score of 18hrs 20mins in our battery tests.

Admittedly, that's not quite as good as the chart-topping P2 (and it's still some way off the 35-hour figure claimed by BlackBerry), but it's up there with the current crop of Android flagships, and it's certainly nothing to be sniffed at.

It's set up to take advantage of Qualcomm's Quick Charge 3.0 technology should you need to juice up in a hurry, and you can also use BlackBerry's 'Boost Mode', which switches off features and limits performance for increased charging speed.

Features

As a BlackBerry phone, the Motion includes a bunch of enhanced security features designed to keep IT managers happy. This includes all of BlackBerry's trademark security software, as well as a special, encrypted 'Locker' section protected by biometric authentication.

These biometrics come courtesy of a fingerprint reader housed in the Home button. Unfortunately, it isn't quite as accurate as some sensors we've tried. It frequently took us two or more tries before we could unlock the Motion, which is a disappointment.

Elsewhere, there's a couple of welcome additional features; IP67 waterproofing makes the cut, as does a MicroSD card slot supporting a theoretical maximum volume of 2TB. That's in addition to the 32GB storage that comes as standard.

BlackBerry has also included a programmable 'convenience key' as seen on some of its other devices. This button can be mapped to any shortcut you choose, allowing you perform tasks like turning on silent mode, launching apps or start composing an email.

You can even program it with different behaviours based on where you are, such as launching navigation when you're driving, bringing up your calendar when you're at the office or opening Netflix when you're at home. This may be a timesaver for busy executives, but we're not totally convinced that it's saving that much time compared to other methods like using a digital assistant.

Verdict

The BlackBerry Motion isn't impressive in any particular area; everything about it is average. It's not bad, it's just not doing anything to set itself apart from the rest of the competition, and in a market full of outstanding smartphones, it's nothing special.

BlackBerry's stock-in-trade has always been business-grade devices, but there's nothing here to entice businesses beyond the security features BlackBerry offers - and even in this regard, the iPhone has a better reputation. All of BlackBerry's productivity and collaboration tools are available on the Google Play Store too, so there's no reason to buy the Motion if you want to use those, either.

Its sole saving grace is the sub-300 price (before tax), but considering that the OnePlus 5T is less than 100 more expensive and offers double the performance along with heaps more features, you're far better off spending a bit more and getting a far, far superior device.

Verdict

While it may have a wallet-friendly price and a respectable battery life on its side, there's not much else to recommend the BlackBerry Motion. It's functional, but it isn't particularly impressive.

Processor	Octa-core 2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 625
Screen size	5.5in
Screen resolution	1,920 x 1,080
Rear camera	12 megapixel
Storage (free)	32GB
Wireless data	4G
Dimensions	156 x 76 x 8.1mm
Weight	167g
Operating system	Android 7.1

BlackBerry has put yet another nail in the coffin of its BBOS smartphone line, with the news that the company will be shutting down the BlackBerry app store by December 2019.

First on the chopping block are the BlackBerry Travel and BlackBerry Playbook apps, which let you use your BBOS device to plan trips and videoconference respectively. BlackBerry Travel will be discontinued in February next year, with Playbook following suit the month after.

They will be followed by the company's BlackBerry World app store, which shuts down on 31 December 2019, a little over two years away. BBOS Customers won't necessarily be left out in the cold, however; the Amazon Appstore is included with BBOS 10, allowing customers to download a limited (but still fairly robust) selection of Android apps, and BlackBerry has not confirmed whether or not this will still be operational following BlackBerry World's closure.

To assuage nervous BBOS users, BlackBerry has promised customers "at least two full years" of support and network access for older BBOS devices. However, it has not committed to anything beyond that point, meaning that many businesses may find themselves out in the cold come 2020.

The company finally made the decision to ditch its own-brand operating system in 2015, moving instead to Google's Android software. However, BlackBerry's fortunes were not much improved by this, and the firm announced last year that it would cease manufacturing its own phones, outsourcing these duties to Chinese company TCL.

Unfortunately, sales have continued to be poor, and BlackBerry managed to shift just 200,000 units over the course of 2017. Despite launching a number of flagship devices, including the KeyOne with its physical keyboard, response from both consumers and businesses has been lukewarm at best.

BlackBerry is anxious to push users of its older BBOS devices towards its newer Android models, and is offering a trade-in programme which promises "a significant discount and incentive to upgrade," according to the company.

BlackBerry has unveiled its new flagship phone that goes all-in on the touchscreen and dumps the vendor's usual physical keyboard.

Officially announced at the GITEX Technology Week, held in Dubai, yesterday, the Blackberry Motion is an Android-powered full touchscreen device made by TCL.

While Blackberry did not have much input on the design of the product, the phone will feature its Enterprise Services. Out of the box, the phone runs Android 7.1 Nougat, but will get Oreo in the new year.

As for hardware, the Motion sports a 5.5in IPS LCD display with 1080 x 1920 Full HD resolution. It also has a Snapdragon 625 octa-core SoC running at 2GHz, with an Adreno 506 GPU. It also boasts 4GB of RAM. It also has 32GB internal storage and a 4000mAh battery.

Alongside the battery, the phone comes with Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0, which enables up to a 50% charge in roughly 40 minutes using a USB Type-C charger. There is also a fingerprint sensor on the front of the device, which also doubles as a physical home button.

The Motion is also the first Blackberry device to be IP67 dust and water-resistant. Camera-wise, it has a 12MP rear camera with an f/2.0 aperture along with an 8MP front-facing camera.

A new security feature called Locker enables users to store documents and photos to an internal storage area that requires the device owner's PIN code or fingerprint to access. Locker Mode allows customers to capture images and directly save those photos to the internal storage area, so they are not automatically saved to a cloud service.

"The launch of BlackBerry Motion allows us to further diversify our product offering, delivering new experiences while remaining steadfast with the privacy, reliability and productivity that have made BlackBerry so iconic over the years," said Alain Lejeune, global general manager for BlackBerry Mobile.

At present, the Motion is only available for pre-order in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. No price has been given nor has availability for other markets.

Image: BlackBerry Mobile/Twitter

BlackBerry appears to be making a belated comeback thanks to its solid licensing and software strategy, which netted it a $19 million profit for the second quarter of its 2018 financial year.

Once a company on the brink of failure, bleeding money from massively reduced sales in a market dominated by Apple and Samsung, BlackBerry has now posted revenue of $238 million for the quarter.

While this is less than the $334 million it made in the same quarter last year, BlackBerry ended up in profit rather than posting a thumping loss of $372 million, as it did last year.

Its licensing division has been key to putting BlackBerry back in the black - with the division's revenue growing 250% year-on-year by offering its various patents and technology out to other firms for a fee, rather than ringfencing BlackBerry tech and trying to compete directly with other firms.

One example of this includes the newly announced BlackBerry Secure, which offers Android device makers the ability to sell their own devices with BlackBerry security features, rather than forcing them to embrace the BlackBerry brand wholesale.

BlackBerry's enterprise software and services division also appears to be ticking along nicely, with the Canadian company bringing in $91 million compared to $84 million for the same quarter a year earlier.

Since shifting away from making its own smartphone hardware, BlackBerry has invariably seen a massive decline in the money it makes from its phones, but at the same time it has avoided the losses competing in the phone market can bring, thanks to a strong stable of enterprise-friendly software features.

BlackBerry is perhaps one of the saddest casualties of the great smartphone arms race. Once the be-all and end-all of mobile technology (and arguably the progenitor of the modern smartphone), BlackBerry has fallen from favour in recent years.

This is a real shame, because the company still makes rather excellent devices, particularly for business users. Not only does it still have a sterling reputation for security and management options, BlackBerry is the only company still making phones with physical keyboards - and there's really nothing better for typing out long business emails.

Display and Design

The Password differs significantly from most handsets on the market because of its shape. The unique 12cm x 9cm square screen is undoubtedly this device's unique selling point, with BlackBerry throwing away the rulebook when it comes to the traditional rectangle.

But with big swings comes divided opinions, and the look of the Password has indeed caused much debate among BlackBerry fans. A somewhat Marmite-esque option, then, the increased width of the screen does make it ideal for reading long passages of text.

The 1440 x 1440 resolution and 700 cd/m2 brightness are also big plus points of the unique smartphone, and again make it easier to read on the device. That's good, because video is a much trickier proposition. Due to the display's square shape movies, Netflix or YouTube will appear with those unattractive black borders on either side.

The issue of portability should also be noted, as not many people will be able to fit the oddly-shaped device in a trouser pocket, and the hefty phone weighs in at 196g - heavier than most. Single-handed use is almost impossible because of its size, and anything as simple as texting will require both hands.

Sitting in the pros column is the Passport's sturdiness and general quality, and long-time BlackBerry fans will appreciate that the company has kept the classic business-like appearance that instantly feels at home in the boardroom.

BB10

BlackBerry 10's interface is designed to give you quick access to your most commonly used apps. The home screen is made up of ever-changing preview windows. Tapping on these panels allows you to pick up where you left off.

BB10 differs from Android and iOS, especially when it comes to navigation. There's no home or software buttons - so everything relies on swiping from the edges of the screen.

Don't worry if you're new to the OS, because you're provided with a tutorial when you boot up the device and this can be revisited at any time from the app screen. It's pretty intuitive and you shouldn't find any problems getting up to speed with the gesture control.

To help businesses deploy BlackBerrys to employees, the device also supports features like BlackBerry Balance. This allows 'personal' and 'work' profiles to be created - so confidential information can be sandboxed in a safe environment and altered without affecting personal content.

BlackBerry Hub

This remains the best messaging aggregation hub on any mobile OS. The BB Hub syncs your emails, IM and social media accounts into one easy to access place. You can get to the Hub at any time by swiping in an inverted 'L' motion from the bottom of the screen regardless of which app you're using.

Download Facebook or Whatsapp, for example, and it will automatically pull your conversations into the Hub - and you can jump straight into the app from there.

There's a Priority area too - so you can assign important contacts to make sure their messages aren't buried in a busy inbox.

Physical Keyboard

In order to fit its signature physical keyboard onto the Passport's unusual chassis, BlackBerry has had to make some design changes. The keyboard has been cut down to three rows, in order to accommodate the 4.5in display. The physical keys are used exclusively for letters, with punctuation and numbers popping up on the touch screen when you start typing.

We found the new positioning of the spacebar to be problematic. It's now on the same row as the letters, whereas on previous models it was always placed underneath. On the Passport, the spacebar is now where BlackBerry users expect to press the letters "b" and "n".

Despite using the Passport for a few weeks, I feel like I'm not typing as fast as I could be. Touchscreen keyboards have come a long way and with apps such as Swype dominating the market, you may find physical keys aren't needed.

On a positive note, the keyboard is touch sensitive, which means it can be used to scroll within documents and web pages. This is a nice touch as it means you don't end up blocking content on screen with your fingers.

Hardware & Storage

The OS is powered by a 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 processor and 3GB of RAM. Every Passport ships with 32GB of internal storage and also supports micro SD cards (up to 128GB in size), so storage space won't be a problem. To access the micro SD and SIM card slots, you need to unclip the top of the device - this is secured in place so don't be afraid to use a bit of force to prise it off.

On the rear, there's a 13-megapixel snapper with autofocus and optical image stabilisation.

Wireless connectivity is comprehensive too with 4G, Wi-Fi Direct, NFC, Bluetooth 4 and Miracast all included as standard. When it comes to transferring content, there are plenty of options with the Passport, many of which work cross-platform.

BlackBerry Blend

This feature allows you to access your phone's data and messages on your Mac or Windows machine. You can sync up the Passport via a USB cable or through a connection to the same Wi-Fi network.

When your phone and computer are connected, a BlackBerry Blend Dashboard pops up on screen. This shows emails, BBM and text messages as well as Calendar appointments. You can respond to messages from the dashboard should you choose to.

We could drag files onto the Passport using the File Manager in Blend. However, to take files off, we had to use the device as a mass storage device.

Battery life

One of the standout features is the battery life, thanks to the gigantic 3450mAh battery pack powering the Passport. That's larger than the batteries found in phablets such as the Note 4 (3,220mAh) and the Nexus 6 (3,220mAh), which have screens that are over an inch bigger.

This translates to excellent battery life. With moderate usage expect to stretch the battery life to over 48 hours. Even if you're hammering the device during the day with multiple email accounts synced up, you'll make it through the working day. We've been averaging 30 hours on a single charge.

Apps

Apps are no longer a massive problem because you can dip into either the BlackBerry World Marketplace or the Amazon App Store. This means you've got more than 500,000 apps at your disposal, so you're more than likely to find the one you need.

Box, Docs to Go, Dropbox, Evernote, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, and Adobe Reader are useful apps already pre-loaded onto the device.

Personalisation

Although the interface has limited customisation options, there is plenty you can change when it comes to notifications and how you interact with the device.

To set up custom notifications for contacts go to Settings > Notifications > Contacts. It's then possible to assign unique ringtones as well as alerts for emails, texts and other messages.

We like the Advanced interactions too. From this menu, it's possible to do the following:

Web browsing

This has been a weakness of previous BlackBerry handsets with keyboards, primarily because the screens have been so small. This is no longer an issue with the Passport.

Running the latest version of WebKit, the default browser loads pages in a couple of seconds.

BlackBerry's default browser also remains one of the few to retain support for Adobe Flash on mobile devices. You need to activate it in the browser menu by going to Settings > Display & Actions. Whilst the web is transitioning to HTML5, having the option to view Flash content on the move is useful.

You can add pages to the Home screen for quick access, enable a Reader Mode to get rid of clutter and even save pages. There are even one-click keyboard shortcuts for actions like 'refresh' and 'find on page'.

Overall

The Passport provides all the functionality you'd expect from a high-end device. It's got one of the best reputations for security in the business, and it's one of the few manufacturers still offering a physical keyboard. It may not be enough to pull BlackBerry's hardware business back from the brink, but it's a great device that's likely to be a hit with fans.

This article was originally published on 16/1/15 and updated on 14/4/15 to include more details about the physical keyboard. Last update on 15/03/2017.

Verdict

This slightly bonkers BlackBerry is an excellent choice for those who still value rock-solid security and a physical keyboard

Once the biggest name in the smartphone industry, BlackBerry has fallen from grace of late. The Keyone is the company's latest attempt to regain its former crown; following in the footsteps of 2015's excellent BlackBerry Priv, it's got a full physical keyboard, an unabashedly businesslike aesthetic and a host of features designed to put it back in the top spot once more.

But with so much market competition, and so much baggage accrued by the company over the last couple of years, does BlackBerry still have what it takes to make it in the mobile game?

Keyboard

The BlackBerry Keyone's headline feature is undoubtedly its physical keyboard. We pilloried last year's DTEK60 for not having a physical keyboard - after all, it's one of BlackBerry's few truly unique strengths - but we've found that we've still got a fair few issues with the Keyone's keyboard.

Unlike the Priv, BlackBerry has opted to keep the Keyone as a single unit rather than using the slider form-factor. This means that the keyboard is in view all the time, rather than hiding neatly away when not in use.

This feels like a mistake. The Priv felt like the best of both worlds, offering a physical keyboard when you needed it but not compromising on screen size when you didn't. The KEYone's keyboard, on the other hand, has a tendency to get in the way quite a lot, and we found ourselves frequently wishing we could trade the space it took up for another few inches of screen.

BlackBerry has attempted to compensate for this by making the keyboard touch-sensitive - you can use it like a trackpad to scroll through websites and flick between home screens. It's rather selective about which apps it works in, however, thereby hobbling a lot of its usefulness.

As for the keyboard itself - it took us a while to get used to physical keys after so long using a virtual keyboard. Those who have used BlackBerry devices in the past may find it easier to adapt, but the switch was not an easy one for us to manage.

Increased typing speed is frequently touted as one of the main benefits of physical keyboards, but after spending some time with the Keyone, we're no longer sure how valid this argument is. While we noticed an uptick in typing speed while using the Priv's keyboard, the Keyone felt too cramped to offer any real speed benefits. Indeed, in our tests, typing on the Keyone was pretty much on par with our touchscreen typing speed.

The ability to programme keyboard shortcuts - offering different actions for short and long presses - is a nice idea, but the fact that they only work from the home screen seriously limits their utility, proving no more convenient in practice than a shortcut icon. It's an excellent idea, but would have been much more useful with an in-depth customisation engine, the ability to use it from any screen and the inclusion of modifier keys like alt and shift.

We're not sure we'd opt for a physical keyboard over a virtual one, given the choice - certainly not for the majority of day-to-day interactions - but if you're one of the people that has been yearning for the return of the old-school keyboard, this will almost certainly scratch your itch.

Design

The Keyone is a phone which stands out, and not just because it's so rare to see a phone with a physical keyboard. The two-tone silver and black colour scheme is attractive, as is the asymmetrical design which features a flat top edge, but a rounded bottom.

It also sports a textured, soft-touch back - a design element that old-school BlackBerry fans will likely recognise from previous devices, as the company has historically been rather fond of it. We're pretty fond of it too; it's more elegant and distinctive than the ubiquitous glass and aluminium shells of other phones, it doesn't pick up marks and fingerprints as easily, and it's comfortable and ergonomic in the hand.

The Keyone is quite a bit thicker and heavier than other devices. In fact, at 9.4mm thick and with a weight of 180g, it's actually substantially bigger, but we don't mind that too much; it feels solid, sturdy and reliable.

Display

In terms of the screen itself, the Keyone's 1,680 x 1,080 IPS panel acquits itself admirably. A maximum brightness of 497cd/m2 is very good indeed, as are its results for contrast and colour accuracy. Technically speaking, it's a great display.

The main issue with it is that the addition of a physical keyboard leaves it rather cramped. Despite the phone's 149mm x 72mm footprint, the screen itself only measures 4.5in across the diagonal. It's also stuck with an unusual 3:2 aspect ratio, which means that some content can end up looking slightly squashed, or with black bars at the edges.

Irritatingly, BlackBerry has decided to sandwich the capacitive navigation buttons below the screen, but above the keyboard. This initially played havoc with our muscle memory, and our instinct was to hit the space bar in order to go back to the home screen. We got used to the slightly alien layout after a while, but we'd still much rather have the navigation buttons at the bottom.

Performance

Speed and performance have historically been something of a weak point for BlackBerry, and the technical specifications for the Keyone immediately start to ring alarm bells. The 2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor is lagging quite a bit behind the frontline competition, and 3GB of RAM certainly isn't going to impress anyone.

We couldn't run our standard Geekbench performance benchmarks due to compatibility issues, but the Huawei Nova, which has identical CPU and RAM allocations, is distinctly mediocre. The Nova, though, was considerably cheaper at launch than the Keyone - at 284 exc VAT compared to the Keyone's 415 exc VAT.

According to our Nova tests, the Keyone's performance would be wildly outclassed by the OnePlus 3T and Honor 8 Pro, both of which are cheaper to buy. In fact, these scores suggest that the Keyone's specs would be on a par with budget devices like the Moto G5 Plus, which is disappointing considering the price bracket it's in.

In daily use, we noticed several instances of stuttering and lag and there were a couple of times when the Keyone freaked out, forcing us to reboot the device. For a phone that retails for just shy of 500, this really isn't good.

The Keyone's battery life is similarly underwhelming. In our tests, it lasted just 12hrs 24mins, lagging behind much cheaper mid-range devices. We frequently found ourselves having to top up the Keyone's charge midway through the day.

On the bright side, that's made fairly easy with the inclusion of a USB-C port and fast charging technology. It uses the Qualcomm QuickCharge 3.0 technology too, so you'll be able to use any compatible adapter to juice up.

Camera

BlackBerry's cameras typically haven't been fantastic compared to other manufacturers. Thankfully, things are slightly improved here, with a 12MP, Sony-manufactured sensor and a f/2.0 aperture delivering credible results. Detail and colour accuracy was strong, as was the exposure. Shots weren't quite as good as the superlative Pixel XL, but they weren't that far off.

Somewhat unsurprisingly, low-light performance is more of a let-down. Detail is lost in darker areas, moving subjects will often blur, and shots without flash will look soft and fuzzy. The absence of optical image stabilisation is also painfully apparent.

Features

Aside from the physical keyboard, BlackBerry's other unique selling-point is its pedigree in enterprise IT security and management. As such, security is front and centre with the Keyone.

BlackBerry has billed it as the most secure Android smartphone', with a slew of hardware and software-based security features, built-in security monitoring apps, and monthly updates to plug security holes.

The primary user-facing security app is BlackBerry's DTEK app, which scans your phone's settings and advises you of the best ways to optimise your phone's security, like setting up a secure password and turning on device encryption. There are also security measures implemented at the silicone level to provide additional peace of mind.

Elsewhere, the Keyone features a microSD card slot, allowing the memory to be expanded by up to 2TB, and a physical convenience key', which you can remap to any app or shortcut you choose.

Verdict

Our initial impressions of the device were positive, but like some of BlackBerry's recent products, the BlackBerry Keyone ultimately left us feeling disappointed. It's a step in the right direction after the dreadful DTEK60, and there's a lot to like about it - it's just about the only phone with a physical keyboard, after all - but there's just too many mistakes here.

The main problem is the sub-par specs on a 500 phone. There are other issues too, though - the design isn't quite as useful or intuitive as a slider, and as a result, both the screen and keyboard feel cramped.

If you're really pining for a physical keyboard, then the BlackBerry Keyone will see you right, but to be honest, we're not so sure that anybody is craving physical buttons any longer. In every other respect, the Keyone is outclassed by cheaper, more powerful and more impressive devices.

Verdict

The BlackBerry Keyone showed signs of promise, but ultimately its positive points just can't overcome the underpowered hardware and design compromise that plague it. Unless you're dead-set on having a physical keyboard, the Keyone isn;t really worth your time.

Qualcomm has been ordered to refund Blackberry $815 million, after losing a patent arbitration case against the company.

Back in 2016, BlackBerry and Qualcomm agreed to arbitrate a dispute on whether Qualcomm's royalty cap program applied to non-refundable royalty prepayments made by BlackBerry between 2010 and 2015. Qualcomm claimed that the cap was voluntary.

"While Qualcomm does not agree with the decision, it is binding and not appealable," the chipmaker said in a statement.

The award will later increase to include interest and lawyer fees. A final total is expected on 30 May.

"BlackBerry and Qualcomm have a longstanding relationship and continue to be valued technology partners," said BlackBerry executive chairman and CEO, John Chen. "We are pleased the arbitration panel rule in our favour and look forward to collaborating with Qualcomm in security for ASICs and solutions for the automotive industry."

The loss comes at a very poor time for Qualcomm, which is currently involved in a patent lawsuit against Apple as well.

As reported by Ars Technica Apple filed the suit against Qualcomm back in January, claiming it charges companies billions in royalties for "technologies they have nothing to do with" and abuses its monopoly power of the mobile wireless chip market.

Qualcomm issued a countersuit earlier this week, alleging that Apple is forcing it to accept less than what's fair for access to its patents. The company denied a total of 389 allegations made by Apple.

Before Nick Clegg took office as deputy prime minister back in 2010, he was a self-confessed heavy laptop user. But one of the shackles that comes with high office is a need for added security. As with all new government ministers back in 2010, Clegg had to trade off as he revealed in his memoir his laptop for a desktop computer and a secure BlackBerry. The desktop computer would barely get touched. He and his colleagues soon became BlackBerry addicts.

The plight of the BlackBerry, though, has eerily mirrored that of Clegg. In the five years he served in government, RIM the firm behind the BlackBerry line found itself outthought and outpaced by more flexible Android and iOS devices that were proving nimbler, more reactive and - ultimately - more interesting to the world around them. According to figures from Statista, the BlackBerry OS has gone from peak market share of 20.1% in 2009, to the 0.1% it suffered as 2016 drew to a close. You'd need a top class spin doctor to find the light in those numbers.

It was a surprise to few then when RIM announced the cessation of production of BlackBerry smartphones in September of 2016. Instead, the brand name is being outsourced to other hardware manufacturers and RIM will instead focus on designing software. Not quite the end of an era, but certainly a particularly brutal fall from grace. At least in the short term.

The QWERTY Factor

Yet the BlackBerry still known in some quarters as the Crackberry, amongst those who refuse to give them up always had an advantage that rival smartphone manufacturers have never really matched: a physical keyboard.

It's a feature that surprisingly few smartphone manufacturers seem willing to offer and, given the expense of making such devices, smaller rivals are understandably wary to step in.

Yet coupled with the aforementioned security features, there were and still are compelling selling points to some business customers. Primarily, many find it far easier to accurately type on a physical keyboard. There's an additional consideration, too, for a subset of the userbase whose physical needs made it difficult to adopt touchscreen technology.

The decline in the physical keyboard isn't a new story, though.

It was Steve Jobs, with the design of the original iPhone and subsequently the iPad who opted for a keyboard driven by software, rather than physical keys. There's logic, clearly. A physical keyboard impacts on the available space for a screen itself, and Jobs rightly figured that people would rather have a bigger display to work with. Yet when shrunk to smartphone size, the on-screen keyboard is a feature that suits those with diligent digits, but not necessarily those with more sizeable ones (this writer included). Furthermore, there's a contingent that actually prefers to touch a key than prod a screen.

That contingent, though, has not been well supported of late. Apple, as you might expect, has no plans at all to offer a QWERTY keyboard on its devices. Samsung, meanwhile, offered the Stratosphere once upon a time, but it's a device long since discontinued. Motorola too has backed away from this segment of the market. In short, if you're after a device with a keyboard on it, your choices have rarely been as limited, with no sign of any manufacturer willing to fight against this particular trend.

As a consequence, it's been an oddly homogenous smartphone market we've been left with. An arena that once rippled with true innovation now battles over multiple cameras instead. Salvation for the physical keyboard, though, may be coming with a trip into the past. Nokia is first up, with its headline-grabbing release of an updated 3310 phone. That's positioned as more a novelty, though, at least for now. More promising is the first collection of BlackBerry phones under its new arrangement.

Certainly for business use, there's a compelling case for the BlackBerry approach, and it's perhaps no coincidence that the Android-based BlackBerry Priv, released to some acclaim in 2015, is regarded by many as the best QWERTY device of its type on the market. The upcoming KeyOne, however, loaded with full Android compatibility, is a promising advance. Early word has been mixed, and pricing needs to be looked at (it's been positioned as a premium phone, and that may be a problem), but there's still a sense it's a step forward.

What'll be interesting to see is how damaged the BlackBerry name is, though. There's little point sugar-coating it. Reviews for the Priv were strong, but the BlackBerry brand name on the side did it no service. It's worth considering if the device would have enjoyed more success with an Apple or Samsung logo on it. The KeyOne may face a similar battle.

For the first time in a while, there's a touch of hope for physical keyboard users, though. BlackBerry's willingness to licence its technology to third parties and the move away from its own proprietary operating system exclusively (although inevitably, a switch to Android brings with it security flags), is a help. And if Nokia's experiment works, then that too could open a path up.

However, whilst Nick Clegg, off the back of his aforementioned memoir, has enjoyed something of a rehabilitation in the last year or so, the QWERTY keyboard has not yet enjoyed a similar turnaround. The whims of the consumer market, it seems, are taking heavy precedent over what have become niche demands of some in the business sector. The keyboard has become collateral damage.

BlackBerry has announced another licensing deal, which will see its Android-powered smartphones being manufactured and distributed by another company in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh.

The company has signed an agreement with Indian telecoms business Optiemus Infracom, which follows on from the company's previous deals with TCL Communication, penned in December, and PT BlackBerry Merah Putih in Indonesia.

Optiemus Infracom, like TCL, will be responsible for designing, manufacturing, selling, promoting and providing customer support for BlackBerry-branded handsets, while BlackBerry will allow it to use its software and services suite.

"This is an important milestone in our strategy to put the smart in the phone', providing state-of-the-art security and device software on a platform relevant to mobile customers, with more localisation," Alex Thurber, senior VP and general manager of mobility solutions at BlackBerry, said.

"With its infrastructure and experience in manufacturing, and proven success as our distribution partner, Optiemus Infracom Ltd is the ideal partner to design and manufacture trusted BlackBerry secure Android handsets for customers in India and neighboring markets."

The deal will also help India's 'Make in India' initiative, which aims to build the profile of India as a design and manufacturing hotbed, Thurber added.

"This agreement will help us expand mobility choices by designing, manufacturing and offering secure BlackBerry devices which are made in India, for customers in India, as well as Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh," Ashok Gupta, chairman of Optiemus Infracom, added.

"With our strong end to end play in the mobile ecosystem in manufacturing, retail, distribution and support, we are confident that our journey with BlackBerry will be a long and successful one."

BlackBerry's boss, John Chen, spoke to IT Pro last month about why BlackBerry is using partners to manufacture and distribute its smartphones, saying the strategy expands the company's market reach while taking the burden and cost out of manufacturing multiple handsets for different markets.

The next time you use BlackBerry software, it may be in a self-driving car.

The struggling smartphone maker expanded into transport with BlackBerry Radar, an Internet of Things system for lorries, and has long been working on in-car software. It's now expanding its efforts with the launch of an Innovation Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles.

Based in Ottawa, Canada, the centre won't make vehicles, but will develop the software to control them, working with the University of Waterloo, PolySync and Renesas Electronics on a concept car. The local government has already approved the use of BlackBerry's QNX software to control autonomous cars on public roads.

"Autonomous vehicles require software that is extremely sophisticated and highly secure," said John Chen, Executive Chairman and CEO of BlackBerry. "Our innovation track record in mobile security and our demonstrated leadership in automotive software make us ideally suited to dominate the market for embedded intelligence in the cars of the future."

While driverless cars attract more attention than their connected siblings, the latter are already a major market for BlackBerry. The company said its BlackBerry QNX software is already found in 60 million vehicles, for "infotainment", telematics and more.

"Experts predict that 50% of all cars will connect to the cloud by 2020, and the wide range of 'connected things' could exceed 20 billion. In the coming hyper-connected world, cars will soon carry one of the highest concentrations of Internet of Things (IoT) edge nodes and sensors, generating a vast amount of valuable and actionable data," the company said in a statement.

BlackBerry is now looking to extend that to driving assistance and autonomous systems as well as developing secure, over-the-air update services.

BlackBerry QNX has its origins in QNX Software, which the company formerly known as RIM bought back in 2010. The founder of QNX, Dan Dodge, jumped ship to Apple over the summer, where he's believed to be working on that company's self-driving car efforts, called Project Titan.

Of course, if you're still sold on having a BlackBerry handset, don't forget the company has licensed its brand to China's TCL to make new mobile devices after it stopped making hardware earlier this year.

To support its transition as security software company, BlackBerry has announced a licensing partnership which will see China's TCL Communication design and manufacture BlackBerry branded mobile devices.

BlackBerry revealed in September that it would no longer be producing smartphones, and instead focus on developing more profitable security software. Thursday's deal will see TCL Communication handle all production and global distribution of new BlackBerry-branded handsets, as well as providing customer support and dedicated sales teams.

The Canadian firm was forced to abandon the smartphone market after 20 years of production, citing strong competition from Apple and Samsung. The new deal with TCL, which is the fourth largest mobile manufacturer in the US, will ensure BlackBerry can remain competitive on the global market.

The new devices will continue to feature BlackBerry developed software, which the company claims will provide "the most secure and comprehensive software for devices around the world".

"At TCL Communication, we are committed to creating the best portfolio solutions, while ensuring the quality support to consumers and enterprise users who trust the integrity of the BlackBerry device and the brand's security leadership, coupled with the Android platform," said Nicolas Zibell, CEO of TCL Communication, in a statement.

"Together with BlackBerry's smartphone software platform, this partnership will strengthen our position in the global mobile market," added Zibell.

TCL, which also produces Alcatel branded devices, was involved in the manufacture of BlackBerry's last range of DTEK50 and DTEK60 handsets. The new deal allows TCL to manufacture and distribute devices in all regions except India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Indonesia.

A separate joint venture announced in September gave PT BB Merah Putih the rights to sell new BlackBerry devices in Indonesia, the firm's largest handset market.

"This agreement with TCL Communication represents a key step in our strategy to focus on putting the 'smart in the phone' by providing state-of-the-art security and device software on a platform that mobile users prefer and are comfortable with," said Ralph Pini, CEO of Mobility Solutions at BlackBerry.

"TCL Communication is the natural choice to license BlackBerry's software and brand on a global scale," added Pini. With our unparalleled expertise in mobile security and software and TCL Communication's vast global reach and consumer access, we are confident that BlackBerry-branded products developed and distributed by TCL Communication will address the needs of BlackBerry users."

BlackBerry's security software division reached revenues of $156 million in the third quarter, down almost $10 million from the previous quarter.

BlackBerry has stated that further information on product roadmaps and device availability will be released in the coming months.

BlackBerry's hardware business has fallen on hard times of late. Sales have not been kind to the company's smartphones, and it has chosen to rethink its business model. While BlackBerry will still release branded devices, the company is no longer going to design and build them, but will work with third-party manufacturers instead.

The BlackBerry DTEK60 is the latest result of this strategy. Produced in collaboration with Chinese firm TCL - parent company of Alcatel - the DTEK60 is BlackBerry's latest attempt to win back the enterprise market, featuring a boatload of security and mobile device management features.

Design

Based on the TCL 950, the DTEK60 will be immediately familiar to anyone familiar with other phones released under the TCL or Alcatel name.

The new phone is immediately distinct from other devices, thanks to a unique design. The frame is aluminium with a glass back, but the glass on the front and rear doesn't quite cover the whole surface area, leaving an unusual lip banding the edges. There are other odd quirks too, like the fact that the charging port is in the right-hand corner of the bottom edge, rather than the middle.

It's refreshingly different to most of the glass and metal smartphones currently on the market, but it does have problems. Like most glass-backed devices, the DTEK60's rear picks up grubby fingerprints with depressing speed, and the camera housing sticks out by about 2mm like an unpleasant wart.

While it doesn't feel cheap or poorly made, BlackBerry's new phone isn't particularly visually exciting. It's not as smooth or slick-looking as the Galaxy S7 Edge or the Pixel, and while it looks perfectly professional, it's definitely not going to turn any heads. That may not be what you're looking for in a business device, but rival devices have proved that users no longer need to choose between functionality and style.

Security

Security is one of the company's core strengths, and BlackBerry is focusing heavily on this aspect with the DTEK60. The company says it has worked with the manufacturers to inject security and encryption at the manufacturing layer and has supposedly done a lot of extensive work on locking down Android's notoriously insecure software.

The kernel has been hardened, and BlackBerry has implemented a secure bootloader with multi-stage verification to stop some of the more common Android exploits. There's also remote device management features for overseeing enterprise deployments and continuous intrusion monitoring to try and ensure that any potential breaches are caught early.

BlackBerry devices had a reputation as one of the most secure smartphones in the business, but much of this reputation was based around the company's own-brand OS. Now that the company has moved to Android - an OS that has been plagued by a litany of zero-days, ransomware campaigns and other assorted vulnerabilities - some users could be forgiven for losing faith in its security credibility.

On the other hand, a large part of the Android's security woes stems from the fact that manufacturers have historically been slow to push out patches for the OS. Potential customers may be heartened to hear that BlackBerry has promised that fixes for any flaws will be pushed out to devices as soon as possible - meaning that users won't have to wait weeks to get gaping vulnerabilities plugged.

We're not qualified pen-testers, so we can't verify whether or not the DTEK60's security features back up BlackBerry's claim that it's the most secure Android smartphone on the market. Ultimately, whether or not it measures up to your security needs is likely to come down to whether your faith in BlackBerry's reputation outweighs Android's unfortunate history of vulnerabilities.

Features

Features are something of a let-down. There's no IP rating to speak of, which means that the DTEK60 isn't even splash-proof. Some form of water-resistance is now par for the course for virtually all new devices, so it's a shame to see BlackBerry so behind the curve.

There's a fingerprint reader mounted on the rear for biometric login. BlackBerry has followed the lead of most other Android devices by mounting it on the rear, and while it's becoming increasingly clear that we're in the minority, we still prefer the front-mounted versions.

There's a MicroSD slot for expandable memory up to a theoretical limit of 2TB, although no manufacturer has yet made a card that large. It's nice to know that the DTEK60 is future-proofed in terms of storage, though.

Perhaps the most unusual feature is the 'convenience key' - a physical button below the volume rocker on the side of the device that can be programmed with a whole host of different shortcuts. It can be set up to perform system functions like toggling the Wi-Fi, volume or torch on and off, as well as in-app actions like starting an email or playing a playlist.

It's an interesting little feature, but we're not sure how much time it's likely to save you unless you spend a lot of time repeatedly performing one action. We'd prefer it if you could assign it to do different things when different apps are open; composing a tweet when Twitter is open, for example, or pausing your music if you're in Spotify.

Hardware & specs

Performance is disappointing too. While on paper, the DTEK60's Snapdragon 820 processor and 4GB of RAM should offer flagship-quality power, we found it to be a frustrating experience.

Basic functions like answering emails, using simple applications and flicking through social media are fine, but if you start to overload the DTEK60 with too many open apps or demanding operations, it can start to seize up. We noticed frequent lagging, stuttering and freezing in practice, and the experience of swiping through menus and apps often felt sluggish.

Despite this, however, BlackBerry's device performed well in our tests. GeekBench had some problems with the DTEK60, so we couldn't run our usual suite of performance benchmarks, but alternative tests run with AnTuTu revealed that the DTEK60 was just behind the Pixel in terms of CPU speed, and even bested it in memory performance and 3D rendering. It can't touch the speeds of recent iPhones, but it's more than quick enough - on paper, at least.

Storage is great, with a 32GB internal storage allocation and the aforementioned MicroSD card slot providing a capable amount of space. Charging is provided via USB-C, and QuickCharge 3.0 support is enabled too.

BlackBerry claims that the DTEK60's 3,000mAh battery can power it through a full 24 hours of mixed use, but this proved to be decidedly over-ambitious; in real-world use (including music streaming, social media and emails), we found ourselves regularly having to charge it about halfway through the day. It clocked up a score of 14 hours and 35 minutes in our video streaming battery tests, which isn't a dreadful result, but lags behind the exceptional battery life of the OnePlus 3 and Galaxy S7 Edge.

Elsewhere, the DTEK60 has a 5.5in AMOLED display, with a QHD resolution and 534ppi. It's a great screen, with deep colours and sharp contrast, although the maximum brightness could be a tad higher.

Software

A brighter spot comes when we get to the software. BlackBerry has thankfully given up on its own-brand operating system and moved to the much more well-developed Android Marshmallow OS, and it's also loaded the DTEK60 with all the best features of the classic BlackBerry software.

This includes the BlackBerry Keyboard, the BlackBery Hub - which remains one of our favourite tools for dealing with a bustling inbox - and other flourishes such as pop-up widgets and gesture shortcuts.

Also included is security software such as the company's DTEK app, which lets you check how secure your device is at a glance, as well as a password manager to keep all of your various login credentials secure.

BlackBerry gets points for not messing with the Android layout or applying its own custom skin, and the company's software is excellent for business users. The company has a proven pedigree when it comes to productivity software, and looking at the DTEK60, it's easy to see why.

It's not really a reason to buy it, however. Most of BlackBerry's best software - including the BlackBerry launcher and BlackBerry Hub - is available via the Google Play Store, meaning you don't have to restrict yourself to a sub-par BlackBerry handset to take advantage of it.

Verdict

On paper, the DTEK60 is an excellent phone, with cutting-edge specs and buckets of enterprise features. However, we can't help but feel like there's something lacking. The experience of using the DTEK60 isn't as fluid or satisfying as other flagship devices, and the phone itself isn't as good as it could be.

The intermittent performance issues are a pretty major black mark against it, particularly for a phone that's targeted at prosumers and power-users. Many business users have come to expect lightning-quick performance from their phones, and the DTEK60 just can't deliver that.

The main selling-points of BlackBerry's latest device are its security and enterprise credentials, but most mainstream phones have caught up with (and in some cases surpassed) BlackBerry in these areas. iOS, notably, has become the OS of choice for the security community.

The DTEK60 isn't necessarily a bad phone, and there are worse picks for a corporate-issue handset. It feels like less than the sum of its parts, though, and pales in comparison to other, more robust rivals. Whether for business or personal use, there are far better options than the BlackBerry DTEK60.

Verdict

BlackBerry's latest Android phone features sub-par performance, a disappointing user experience and little to help it stand out from the crowd.

BlackBerry will no longer manufacture its own smartphones, choosing instead to focus on its software expertise.

The embattled mobile firm is finally abandoning its hardware production, which started in 1996 with a two-way pager.

Its announcement comes one year after CEO John Chen said he would close the handset division if it could not become profitable by September 2016.

In BlackBerry's Q2 2017 earnings report, released today, Chen confirmed the decision to stop making handsets.

"Under this strategy, we are focusing on software development, including security and applications. The company plans to end all internal hardware development and will outsource that function to partners," he said. "This allows us to reduce capital requirements and enhance return on invested capital."

BlackBerry lost $372 million in its latest quarter, the three months ending August 2016, including a $123 million writedown of assets for sale.

But Chen said the company will now focus on its security software and applications, saying BlackBerry remains on track to grow this division by 30% year-on-year for the full fiscal year.

The division's revenue grew 89% year-on-year in the latest quarter.

BB Merah Putih, a joint venture telecom firm in Indonesia, will now build BlackBerry-branded devices running the firm's own Android operating system overlay and applications for the Indonesian market.

The news comes after the Canadian firm retired its BlackBerry Classic model in July, though it was due to release three Android phones by 2017 it is not clear whether the production of the two unreleased models remains on schedule.

So far BlackBerry has maintained its own BB10 operating system alongside its switch to Android with the Priv and the DTEK50 models, despite speculation that it may retire the OS.

It has also branched out into IoT with BlackBerry Radar, a sensor technology for fleets of lorries that landed its first major customer in Caravan Transport Group earlier this month.

Chen concluded that ditching hardware development will allow BlackBerry "to reduce capital requirements and enhance return on invested capital", adding: "Our pivot to software is taking hold."

BlackBerry has launched its touchscreen-only Android-powered smartphone, the Dtek 50, despite critics predicting it will fail to succeed in the market.

"The real challenge is whether Blackberry can convince enough corporate buyers to buy a batch of mid-range phones," said Nick McQuire, analyst at CCS Insight told the BBC. "A lot of that comes down to the beauty of the device and what it has inside, but more importantly the price."

BlackBerry's Dtek 50 is based on the design of a similar Android-powered smartphone made by low-cost manufacturer Alcatel. It doesn't feature the Qwerty keyboard BlackBerry fans have come to love and its price tag is aimed at the lower-end of the market with a suggested retail cost of $299 (230).

The move is less of a risk than BlackBerry's flagship Priv smartphone that cost $700 (530) when it launched less than a year ago but has also cut many of the features from the company's first Android-powered device.

"It's certainly a low-cost, low-risk way of going about it," said McQuire continued. "It's a necessary move for the handset business and delivers on a promise Mr Chen has been making, about complementing the Priv with a number of other devices."

However, BlackBerry's strategy still presents a stumbling block for customers who don't realise the potential of the company's smartphone business. It needs to attract those customers who have been fans of the company's hardware keyboard devices since they were introduced almost 20 years ago.

"The biggest challenge Blackberry faces is that it has to consistently educate customers that it's not a dying company," continued McQuire. "Fundamentally its software business is good, and financially has been much stabilised in the last 12 months.

"But news reporters only tend to touch the handset business, that's what people like to read about. Its software security business doesn't get the same headlines. It's a decent business, but it's boring."

BlackBerry's COO Marty Beard has sought to reassure customers that it will not be phasing out the keyboard, nor will it stop making BlackBerry software in favour of Android.

Following news that BlackBerry would be discontinuing the BlackBerry Classic with its hardware keyboard, Beard said that it is important for the company to listen to its customers and as they are still demanding 'real' keys, it will continue making such devices.

"Our customers also help us decide what type of keyboard we make for them. And what they ask for is choice in both a virtual and physical keyboard," Beard said.

"This means we'll continue to make our iconic BlackBerry keyboard...There is solid demand for physical keyboards and as long as that's the case, we'll continue to make them. For virtual keyboard fans, you have Leap and PRIV (just keep that slider down)."

He also explained the company would not be getting rid of its BlackBerry software on all devices, but it would be offering more Android devices as the looks for new opportunities outside of purely smartphones.

"We are committed to not just maintaining BB10 software, but advancing it to be even more secure and provide even greater productivity," Beard said. "You'll see that with the next 10.3.3 update coming within the next month, which will be focused on enhancing our already-stellar privacy and security features."

The Internet of Things is set to be a big trend for BlackBerry in future, but its own operating system doesn't offer the content currently available on Android, so the decision to bring Android and BlackBerry together was a strategic one, rather than a cop out.

"Our view is that the rapidly growing mobile environment is quickly being encompassed by an IoT world that requires‎ both strong security and connectivity," Beard explained, adding that the decision to leverage Android would allow BlackBerry to take advantage of that.

"We wanted to merge the best of BlackBerry with Android the notion of a new merged BlackBerry platform meant we would provide the security and connectivity BlackBerry is known for, with the content available in the Android ecosystem all in one environment."

He finished his statement by saying that BlackBerry is not a brand to fit into the industry standard mould, instead it is trying to break free and that means innovation is key.

"Besides our burgeoning enterprise software business, the new Mobility Solutions division has defined a strategy enabling us to agilely pursue opportunities in this new security-focused era," Beard said.

BlackBerry is killing off its well-loved keyboard model, the BlackBerry Classic.

Company COO Ralph Pini wrote in a blog post on Monday: "To keep innovating and advancing our portfolio, we are updating our smartphone lineup with state of the art devices. As part of this, and after many successful years in the market, we will no longer manufacture BlackBerry Classic."

Released in 2014, the Classic (previously known as the Q20) is a touchscreen phone also featuring BlackBerry's popular QWERTY keyboard, and running BB10 as its operating system.

It is the last existing BlackBerry model to feature the company's signature keyboard, and its demise signals a shift in strategy from BlackBerry as it plans to introduce more Android smartphones in addition to the Priv, released in November 2015.

"For many years, Classic (and its BBOS predecessors) has been in our portfolio," Pini wrote. "It has been an incredible workhorse device for customers, exceeding all expectations.

"But, the Classic has long surpassed the average lifespan for a smartphone in today's market. We are ready for this change so we can give our customers something better entrenched in our legacy in security and pedigree in making the most productive smartphones."

BlackBerry's adoption of the Android operating system comes as it tries to diversify to improve its market share.

At the launch of the Priv, Creative Intellect UK founder and analyst Bola Rotibi told IT Pro: "At the end of the day it is a recognition that BlackBerry is losing its community and the fact that even the BlackBerry messaging platform is not sufficient enough to entice clients.

"However, if they supported the Android OS then that opens up the way to leverage their value proposition and what they have been famous for to a much wider community."

BlackBerry plans to build on this strategy with the release of three new Android smartphones, the BlackBerry Neon being the first to hit the market this August, according to VentureBeat.

The demise of the Classic does not necessarily spell the end of BlackBerry's physical keyboard, though, with VentureBeat reporting that one forthcoming Android model, the Mercury, will feature it.

COO Pini told Classic users the device's BB10 operating system will continue to be supported with software updates version 10.3.3 is due to be delivered next month, and another update is set for release next year, but gave no official retirement date for the device.

He said: "For now, if the Classic is still your device of choice, please check with your carriers for device availability or purchase Classic unlocked online. We continue to actively support BlackBerry 10 with software updates and are on track to deliver version 10.3.3 next month with a second update to follow next year."

BlackBerry’s red flashing light can be a useful notification or a source of annoyance - here’s how you can turn it off

The red blinking light found on BlackBerry handsets is almost a trademark feature, but not everyone wants a constant reminder that they have an email or text message waiting for them. Certainly, during working hours it might be a useful visual indicator but out of office hours or overnight it can prove incredibly annoying. The red light has even been known as a source of undue stress in many.

Fortunately, it’s possible to turn the red light of doom off with just a few simple steps meaning you can finally get some peace. The steps are slightly different depending on which BlackBerry model you own, and which version of the BlackBerry operating system you’re running.

BlackBerry OS 10

Step 1:

Find the Notifications settings

Navigate to the Settings menu either by finding the Settings app or by swiping down from the top of the screen and selecting Settings. Now you’ll want to find the Notifications option as this lets you control notification behaviour, which includes sounds, vibrations and the blinking LED light.

Step 2:

Edit Profiles

You’re able to configure profiles based on different scenarios such as Meeting and Bedside. If you find yourself swapping between different profiles, you’ll have to edit each one separately. For this example, we can edit the Normal profile, which you will probably be using most of the time. Select this by tapping it in the list.

Step 3:

Disable the LED toggle

The next screen gives you all of the options you can adjust based on that profile. These include turning on vibrations and notification sounds when during a call. The one you’re most interested in is the LED toggle right at the bottom of the list. Tap this so the toggle switch turns grey and this will disable the flashing red light.

Older BlackBerry 7 and earlier handsets

Step 1:

Find the Notifications settings

Like above, you’ll need to amend individual profiles to disable the blinking light. From the home screen, select the Sound and Alert Profiles icon. Now select Advanced and highlight the profile you want to change. Press Menu followed by Edit.

Step 2:

Change alert behaviour

You’ll have to change the behaviour for each incoming type of alert, such as email or call. Change the Repeat Notification type for LED Flashing to None. After this, the red light should blink no more.

Step 3:

Disable the flashing lights for wireless coverage and Bluetooth

On certain handsets there’s another set of blinking LEDs that indicate your BlackBerry is connected to a wireless network or through Bluetooth. You can disable these by selecting the Options icon on your home screen. Select Display followed by Screen Display. Select the LED Coverage Indicator checkbox to remove the tick, press the menu button and select Save.

To disable the Bluetooth notification you need to select Manage Connections from the home screen. Now navigate to Networks and Connections followed by Bluetooth Connections. Press the menu button and select Options. Then clear the LED Connection Indicator checkbox. Press the menu button again and select Save.

It’s not always straightforward knowing how to make a copy of your phone’s screen, but this two-step guide will show you how

Taking a screenshot, or ‘screen grabbing’ on your mobile device is the new copy and paste. And why? Because it’s by far one of the easiest ways to replicate information on your smartphone without going to fuss of selecting specific amounts of text, or images, and pasting them somewhere else. The lazy man’s copy and paste dream, basically.

Whether it’s for your own personal reference or to send on it someone else, by simply taking a screen shot, you can easily record exactly what’s on your screen, be it text or images, with a simple button press.

However, phone makers don’t necessarily tell you how to do it, and the key press combination required to perform the action isn’t exactly easy to work out if you don’t know how. Good job then that this quick and easy to-step guide is here to show you how easy it is to take a screenshot on a Blackberry. And guess what, it’s probably easier than you think.

Step one: There’s something on your Blackberry screen that you want to make a note or copy of for safe keepings. Arrange the content on the screen however you like, remembering that whatever you see is exactly what your screen shot will look like once an image is made.

Step two: To take an exact copy of this and send it to your phone’s storage, simply press the Volume Up key and the Volume Down key at the same time. You’ll hear your phone make a camera shutter button type sound to confirm it has worked. And that’s it; you’re done!

Locating the screen shots: To view your screen shot you’ve just taken, head to the BlackBerry Pictures app, tap the more tabs icon (three horizontal lines) and then tap the date icon (a camera and calendar image). The screen shots should be there waiting for you.

If you have BlackBerry Balance on your device, switch to your work space. In the Pictures app, perform the same action as above.

Anyone who’s ever owned a smartphone (pretty much everyone then) has accidentally phoned someone in their pocket without knowing at least once. And it’s always the person you’d least want to contact: your mother-in-law, your boss, your old school friend you haven’t spoken to for years. Knowing how to prevent this is pretty crucial, especially if the conversation they happen to overhear you saying happens to be about them.

The problem with BlackBerrys is that while they include a screen lock option, which disables the touch screen and keys, many people think this stops pocket dialling. But that’s not always the case. This is because BlackBerry phones include an option allowing you to dial numbers with screen lock enabled, something that can be handy sometimes, but not if you don’t want to call every man and his dog accidentally.

The good news is this can be prevented via a disable option which stops it all together and means no-one will ever be called and greeted by the rustling sound of your pocket ever again. Check out our step-by-step guide below to find out how.

Step 1: Press the "Back" key until your Home screen opens.

Step 2: Press the "Call" button, donning a green phone icon. The Phone application loads.

Step 3: Select "Security." Options appear.

Step 4: Select "Password."

Step 5: Remove the check next to "Allow Outgoing Calls While Locked."

Step 6: Press the "Menu" button.

Step 7: Select "Save."

Taking a screenshot, or ‘screen grabbing’ on your mobile device is the new copy and paste. And why? Because it’s by far one of the easiest ways to replicate information on your smartphone without going to fuss of selecting specific amounts of text or images, and pasting them somewhere else. The lazy man’s copy and paste dream, basically.

Whether it’s for your own personal reference or to send on it someone else, by simply taking a screenshot, you can easily record exactly what’s on your screen, be it text or images, with a simple button press.

However, phone makers don’t necessarily tell you how to do it, and the key press combination required to perform the action isn’t exactly easy to work out if you don’t know how. Good job then that this quick and easy step-by-step guide is here to show you how easy it is to take a screenshot on a Blackberry. And guess what, it’s probably easier than you think.

1: Arrange the screen

There’s something on your Blackberry screen that you want to make a note or copy of for safe keepings. Arrange the content on the screen however you like, remembering that whatever you see is exactly what your screen shot will look like once an image is made.

2: Take the screenshot

To take an exact copy of what's on screen and to save it, simply press the Volume Up key and the Volume Down key at the same time. You’ll hear your phone make a camera shutter button type sound to confirm it has worked. And that’s it; you’re done!

3: Find the screenshot

To view your screenshot that you’ve just taken, head to the BlackBerry Pictures app, tap the more tabs icon (three horizontal lines) and then tap the date icon (a camera and calendar image). The screen shots should be there waiting for you. If you have BlackBerry Balance on your device, switch to your workspace. In the Pictures app, perform the same action as above.

BlackBerry phones ruled the roost when it came to safe and secure business phones. While many have made the jump to Apple’s iPhone or maybe even one of Microsoft’s Windows Phones, BlackBerrys still have a place in many organisations.

The trouble is, despite coming equipped with a keyboard, many of them just aren’t as intuitive as our personal Android or iOS phones are. It’s actually quite easy to end up locking your phone one way and discovering you can’t actually unlock it again. Thankfully, no matter which BlackBerry phone you’re using – be it a Curve, Bold or Torch, unlocking them all uses the same process.

How to use the unlock key

It used to be the case that you’d have to press down a set of button combinations to unlock your BlackBerry device, but thanks to software updates and new models, you can unlock your phone in seconds. Turn your phone on and lock the keypad by pressing and holding the ‘k’ button (Q10 only) or tapping the Lock button at the top of the BlackBerry. You can unlock your BlackBerry by pressing the Lock button at the top of your phone again. Voila, you’re in!

What to do if the Lock key doesn’t work

Trying to open your BlackBerry phone when the top lock key doesn’t work anymore isn’t such a simple task. Worry not, there’s one way in, although it’s not the smartest way to break your way back into your Blackberry.

Turn your phone on and lock the keypad by pressing and holding the ‘a’ button. Now, to unlock your phone you need to activate an “Emergency Call”. This varies from device to device, but press the Menu/BlackBerry key and then click “Emergency Call” (it should work even with a locked keypad).

As the call is about to be made, swoop in and cancel it as your keyboard and phone will now be entirely unlocked. It’s very risky, and not an ideal solution, so it’s probably worth changing your device as soon as you can.

Unwanted calls can be a real pain, whether it’s someone cold-calling about unclaimed PPI or a distant relative that insists on blabbering on at you for hours on end. If you want to put an end to such annoying, or even, harassing calls, here’s how to block calls and texts on BlackBerry phones.

BlackBerry has a nifty little feature that allows you to block phone calls and messages from anyone not in your contacts list. Annoyingly, however, it’s buried in the parental controls submenu, rather than being a dedicated option within BB10’s privacy settings.

How to block unknown numbers

1) Open security settings

Open the settings menu, and tap on the ‘Security and privacy’ tab.

2) Activate Parental Controls

Go into the ‘Parental controls’ tab, and use the slider to activate parental controls.

3) Set up password

If you’re activating parental controls for the first time, you’ll be asked to set up a password and optional recovery question.

4) Block unknown numbers

Once you’ve done that, you can tick the boxes to block calls or texts from numbers not already in your contacts.

How to block specific numbers

Unfortunately, BlackBerry doesn’t allow users to blacklist specific numbers from contacting them. If you want to block, for example, a particularly persistent ex, then you’ll have to do so via a third-party app.

There are plenty to choose from on the company’s BlackBerry World app store, so you can pretty much take your pick. There are various examples, including free and paid-for apps and almost all of them feature personal blacklists, along with other useful features.

Whether you’re jump starting a frozen phone or restoring a handset to factory defaults before passing it on, sometimes you need reset your Blackberry to get it working again.

There are a number of simple ways to do this, from removing the phone’s battery to wiping its settings. These methods should cover most BlackBerry devices, but there may be specific ways to reset your device’s particular model. You can find these in your phone’s instruction manual.

How to perform a hard reset on a BlackBerry

A hard reset on your phone retains all of its settings and data, but it completely shuts it down, removing anything running from system memory. This is a good option if your phone has crashed and is not responding to any commands. The easiest way to do this is to remove the battery.

To do this, open the back cover of the phone to expose the battery. Slide the battery out: you may need to get a fingernail underneath one edge of the battery to lever it out. With the battery out, wait for 30 seconds, so that the RAM can discharge and forget its contents. Re-insert the battery, put the cover back on and turn the phone back on.

How to perform a soft reset on a BlackBerry

A soft reset will just restart your BlackBerry, keeping all of your data intact. This is a good option if you've got a misbehaving app or the phone's no longer responding the way that it should do. To follow this method, you'll need a BlackBerry with a QWERTY keyboard.

Press the Alt key and hold it down, then press the Right Shift key and hold it down, and then hit the Delete and hold it down (you should now have all three keys pressed together). After a short wait, your screen should go black and your phone will restart, reloading the operating system from scratch.

How to reset a Blackberry to factory settings

The other methods will restart your phone, but if you want to dump your data and start with a clean slate, here’s what to do. First, go to Options on the home screen. Next go to Security Settings and select Security Wipe.

Choose what you want wiped from the list of options, such as emails, contacts, etc. If you want to get rid of everything, ensure that all the boxes are checked. Enter the confirmation code, shown to you on the screen of your handset. Twiddle your thumbs as you wait for the phone to finish the wiping process. You’ll see the handset reset a number of times during this time, but let it do its work. After it has finished, your personal data should be gone.

BlackBerry Priv review: Could it be Blackberry's saviour?

Technology companies should yield to law enforcement and government requests, BlackBerry's CEO believes.

John Chen's comments on the sensitive dispute between the privacy of individuals and the needs of law enforcement come in the wake of WhatsApp's decision to implement end-to-end encryptionfor text, video, voice and image messages.

But the chief executive positioned BlackBerryon the opposite side of the dispute to fellow technology firmsApple and WhatsApp, asserting that tech companies should be "good corporate citizens".

"When it comes to doing the right thing in difficult situations, BlackBerry's guiding principle has been to do what is right for the citizenry, within legal and ethical boundaries,"wrote Chen.

"We have long been clear in our stance that tech companies as good corporate citizens should comply with reasonable lawful access requests. I have stated before that we are indeed in a dark place when companies put their reputations above the greater good."

His comments follow a recent report by Vicethat claimedthe Canadian government has been able to intercept messages from BlackBerry's encrypted messaging service since 2010.

Chen refuted claims made by the Vice story that the servers for its BlackBerry Enterprise Service (BES) were involved as part of a criminal investigation into mafia between 2010 and 2012.

He said: "Regarding BlackBerry's assistance, I can reaffirm that we stood by our lawful access principles. Furthermore, at no point was BlackBerry's BES server involved. Our BES continues to be impenetrable also without the ability for backdoor access."

However, in its report, Vice pointed out that BlackBerry encrypts its BBM messages using a single "global encryption key", which is loaded on every handset during manufacturing. Cracking this key is what is thought to have enabled Canada's federal police force to intercept and decrypt more than one million BBM messages during its 2010-2012 investigation.

Chen's comments are also a swipe at Apple CEO Tim Cook, who was vocal in Apple's refusal to submit to a court's demand that his company help the FBI break into an iPhone 5c belonging to one of the killers in the San Bernardino shooting.

The court case, which eventually saw the FBI hack into the phone without Apple's help, sparked a global debate about data privacy.

Meanwhile, Microsoft founder Bill Gates believes the US government should notify users when it is requesting their data from companies and services they use.

Speaking at aReuters Newsmaker event in Washington, Gates supported Microsoft in its decision to take the US government to court in a bid to make it more transparent about its data requests.

"There probably are some cases where [the government] should be able to go in covertly and get information about a company's email," said Gates. "But the position Microsoft is taking in this suit is that it should be extraordinary and it shouldn't be a matter of course that there is a gag order automatically put in."

BlackBerry has hit back at WhatsApp's decision to drop support for the BB10 operating system after 2016, telling users to express their disappointment via the #ILoveBB10Apps hashtag on Twitter.

Facebook announced last month that WhatsApp would no longer support older smartphones such as Nokia and BlackBerry, pushing users towards Android, iOS and Windows Phone, which it said the 'vast majority' of people now use.

Lou Gazzola, senior marketing manager for developer relations at BlackBerry, wrote in a blog post: "We are extremely disappointed in their decision as we know so many users love these apps. We fought back to work with WhatsApp and Facebook to change their minds, but at this time, their decision stands.

"Despite this, we have worked hard to ensure our end users have the best experience in light of this decision, and are continuing to search for alternate solutions."

In response, BlackBerry will make a concerted effort to promote native apps created by its developer community with a 'Great Apps on BlackBerry' list, and invest in apps popular among its users with updates and new features.

"We look forward to new apps and new customers on BlackBerry 10 and thank our developer community for their continued strong support," Gazzola added.

When announcing the move on the seven-year-anniversary of WhatsApp, the messaging platform said: "This was a tough decision for us to make, but the right one in order to give people better ways to keep in touch with friends, family, and loved ones using WhatsApp.

"If you use one of these affected mobile devices, we recommend upgrading to a newer Android, iPhone, or Windows Phones before the end of 2016 to continue using WhatsApp."

29/02/16: WhatsApp drops support for BlackBerry and Nokia

WhatsApp will no longer support older smartphones such as BlackBerry and Nokia after 2016, urging affected users to move to an Android, iOS or Windows Phone operating system.

The messaging app reached its seven-year anniversary last week, and took the opportunity to announce the changes, claiming that the "vast majority" of people now use at least one of the three major mobile operating systems, with others rapidly decreasing in popularity.

At the time of WhatsApp's original launch, before being acquired by Facebook in 2014, BlackBerry and Nokia accounted for 70 per cent of smartphone sales, with Google, Apple and Microsoft selling to less than 25 per cent of the market. Now, those latter three providers account for 99.5 per cent of sales.

In an official blog post, the firm said: "When we started WhatsApp in 2009, people's use of mobile devices looked very different from today.

"This was a tough decision for us to make, but the right one in order to give people better ways to keep in touch with friends, family, and loved ones using WhatsApp. If you use one of these affected mobile devices, we recommend upgrading to a newer Android, iPhone, or Windows Phones before the end of 2016 to continue using WhatsApp."

The mobile platforms being dropped are BlackBerry including BlackBerry 10 Nokia S40, Nokia Symbian S60, Android 2.1/Android 2.2 and Windows 7.1.

Latest news and updates:

08/02/2016: BBM Meetings will go ahead and shut its doors this week.

According to this article on Blackberry's Knowledge Base website, the service will end on 10 February, this Wednesday. As previously stated, Customers will be pointed to a similar service run by Zoom Communications.

"We believe a direct connection with Zoom Communications will provide you with a comparable web conferencing solution that is both efficient and cost-effective. Customers have the option to convert to the Zoom web conferencing solution or a vendor of their choosing over a 10 week transition period," the article stated.

The news comes after the firm axed 200 staff, including a third of its employees at its headquarters. Most notable of the layoffs is Gary Klassen, the developer behind BlackBerry Messenger. He had been with the company since 2000.

"As BlackBerry continues to execute its turnaround plan, we remain focused on driving efficiencies across our global workforce," the company said in a statement.

04/12/2015: Blackberryis to shut its BBM Meetings service, used on the Blackberry Passport and other devices in February next year, it announced in a blog post.

The service, billed as an alternative to Cisco's Webex, used the features on a Blackberry device to make setting up a conference call easier. The firm gave no reason as to why the service will shut. Customerswill be offered help to transition to another product offered by Zoom Communications. It has offered US customers a10 per cent discountoff of Zoom.

02/12/2015:Blackberry has unveiled a new ad campaign featuring Piers Morgan. In the ad, Morgan talks about the features he likes in the Passport.

05/08/15: Despite failing the capture the imaginations of smartphone users in recent years, including with the Leap, BlackBerry has announced a revamped Silver Edition of its Passport device.

As reported by CNet, the phone is slightly taller (131mm) and wider (30.5mm) than the original BlackBerry Passport, but other specifications have been kept largely the same.

In May, BlackBerry announced plans to cut jobs from its software, hardware and applications departments, after a fall in revenue and usage figures.

"We have made the decision to consolidate our device software, hardware and applications business, impacting a number of employees around the world," a statement from the company read.

Recently, devices such as the Passport, Classic and Leap have failed to catch on with users, and thus have not produced the profits needed by the company.

09/07/15: IT Prohas now had the chance to review the BlackBerry Leap, successor to the BlackBerry Passport.

Despite hopes that the BlackBerry Leap would reinvigorate the company's flagging hardware sales, we doubt it will do much to boost the company's profile among the iPhone-loving startup demographic it's targeting.

Announced at Mobile World Congress 2015, the Leap isBlackBerry's latest all-touch smartphone. Designed with a low price-point and much-vaunted productivity and security solutions, it's aimed at 'young, mobile professionals'.

However, the squat, unappealing design is a far cry from the sleek flagships it's competing with, and the performance largely failes to compete with even budget Android devices like the Moto G.

The once-mighty native apps like BlackBerry Hub are all present and correct, but they're frankly a bit redundant now; the App and Play stores are both awash with alternatives that do the job at least as well, if not better.

That said, for those familiar with the OS, or if you're especially security-conscious, the Blackberry Leap could prove to be a winner.

The BlackBerry Passport, however, was branded a success for the company by CEO John Chen, who said the device has sold much better than it expected. (Click here for our review of the device).

In an interview with Reuters, Chen said: "I'm happy in the receptivity of the design. I'm happy that this product is a successful product, but we did not make that many of them, so it is in limited supply almost everywhere."

Contemplating what the success of the smartphone could mean for the company long-term, he continued: "We will survive as a company and now I am rather confident.

"We're managing the supply chain, we are managing inventories, we are managing cash, and we have expenses now at a number that is very manageable. BlackBerry has survived; now we have to start looking at growth."

The company has also revealed plans to launch a mobile diagnostic tool, developed in associated with NantHealth, for the handset in early 2015, which will allow doctors to access cancer patient data securely.

The tool is thought to be part of BlackBerry's renewed efforts to court enterprise customers back from rival handsets from Apple and Android, offering more mobile security software and developing more services aimed directly at business users.

The BlackBerry Passport is on general release in the UK. It's available to buy through the firm's website and directly from networks and suppliers (costing around 529 SIM-free).

The much-hyped device was unveiled at the Canadian phone maker's worldwide launch event in Toronto.

During the event, Chen described the device as "iconic", while the Passport's launch was repeatedly billed as marking the big "Canadian comeback" of BlackBerry.

"We're determined to win our home country back. This is one of our first moves to do that," he said.

Chensaid the device is "squarely aimed "at the 30 per cent of smartphone users who choose their devices based on the productivity benefits they have to offer.

Apps

Blackberry has confirmed that Passport and BlackBerry 10.3 users will have access to software offered by the Amazon App Store, to broaden the range of services at their fingertips.

The company claims this means users should have access to "hundreds of thousands" of additional apps, including consumer offerings such as Minecraft, Pinterest and Cut The Rope 2.

Meanwhile, they'll also be given the chance to download one free, paid-for app from the Amazon App Store every day for free.

This will be in addition to those offered through the BlackBerry World app store.

This article was first published on 08/07/14 and has been updated multiple times (most recently on 04/12/15).

We believe a direct connection with Zoom Communications will provide you with a comparable web conferencing solution that is both efficient and cost-effective. Customers have the option to convert to the Zoom web conferencing solution or a vendor of their choosing over a 10 week transition period.

The dramatic fall of Blackberry (formerly known as RIM) in the smartphone market has been well documented. From a market share of around 20% at its height during 2009, it's now well under 1% in the second quarter of 2015.

The company's last home-grown operating system, the QNX-based Blackberry 10, had some good ideas but it wasn't enough to turn around indifferent consumers and businesses alike. In an unprecedented move for the company, Blackberry has now turned to Android as the OS for the Priv smartphone.

With the Priv, Blackberry has attempted to marry the flexibility and broad app selection of Android with its own strengths in security and keyboard design. Despite our initial scepticism, Blackberry has, for the most part, succeeded.

The keyboard

Unlike the vast majority of other smartphones, the Priv is a slider phone with the screen sliding up. It glides up with just the right amount of resistance to reveal Blackberry's trademark a physical keyboard. Although not exactly identical to Blackberry keyboards of old, it is very similar.

The keys don't have quite the same amount of travel and feedback as those on older Blackberries, but they are reasonably large and work well. Longtime Blackberry fans will like the ability to press and hold any key to launch an app of your choice or quickly access a function such as emailing a frequent contact or adding an event to the calendar.

Like the Blackberry Passport, the Priv's keyboard has some touch sensitive tricks such as swiping from right to left to delete whole words one at a time. You can also swipe up on the keyboard to accept autocorrect suggestions. One feature we would like to see is to have the onscreen keyboard available even when using the physical one. That way we could access symbols such as ampersand, the percentage sign and accented letters etc without having to fiddle with the Shift and Alt keys on the hardware keyboard to type them out.

There are inherent usability limitations of an Android slider phone with a physical keyboard though. You'll either have to constantly stretch your fingers up and down or incessantly shift the phone in your hands when tapping back and forth between the hardware keyboard and the touchscreen. This was inconvenient enough that we used the excellent onscreen keyboard inherited from Blackberry 10 for short bursts of text such as URLs, texts and short notes, only switching to the physical keyboard for emails and long documents.

If you've never adapted to onscreen keyboards then the Priv's hardware keyboard will be a godsend. It's far less compelling if you're a fast, competent onscreen typist though.

The casing

One unavoidable consequence of the slider mechanism and physical keyboard is that the Blackberry Priv is noticeably thicker and chunkier than competing phones. It's not too unwieldy though and you soon get used to the extra thickness.

Although there was a hint of creakiness on the phone's back panel, it was still far from flimsy. Indeed, it was a very sturdy-feeling phone overall. We especially liked the soft-touch pinstripe rear which looked classy and felt especially grippy in hand.

Unusually, the screen is gently curved on the right and left hand sides. It looks similar to the Galaxy S6 Edge range, but the curve is even less pronounced here. It doesn't really serve any function other than ensuring there are no sharp, angular or jutting edges. If you're distressed by Samsung's decision to jettison Micro SD slots from its flagship Galaxy phones then you'll be pleased to see that the Priv still has one.

Android, Blackberry-style

Another difference separating the Priv from the Samsung Galaxy range is that Blackberry has avoided cluttering up the Android Lollipop interface with lots of gimmicky add-ons laid on top. There are still plenty of alterations, but they can easily be avoided if you don't find them useful.

There's more than just the aforementioned single-press keyboard shortcuts and well-designed onscreen keyboard. You can populate your homescreen with one-tap shortcuts such adding a task to your to-do list, composing a BBM or checking your data usage.

Swipe in from the right-hand side of the touchscreen and you'll see a Windows Phone/iOS-style overview of your day. By default, you'll see all your appointments and tasks for the day, but tapping the icons on the right hand side will show you any unread messages as well as your favourite contacts. It's great for getting a quick bird's eye view of your day.

Cleverly, the Priv will automatically enable Do Not Disturb during any meetings as long as you've entered the meeting details on your calendar. This Meeting Mode, as Blackberry calls it, could be smarter though. For example, if you have a shared group calendar then Meeting Mode will enable itself for all the meetings on the shared calendar even if they're for someone else.

We're also fond of Blackberry Hub which has been ported over from Blackberry 10 as a standard app. Although you can, of course, use any email app you want, there's plenty to like about Hub. It can manage all your communications in one place texts, BBMs, social media and calls not just your emails.

The core email functionality hasn't been ignored with the now near-universal swipe gestures present for quickly triaging your inbox and the Dropbox Mailbox-style ability to snooze' emails so that they temporarily disappear from your inbox and reappear later. This can be at a more convenient time, such as during your lunch break or commute home, or even at a location of your choosing such as your office.

Android Lollipop devices can be encrypted by default, although few manufacturers take advantage of this option. Blackberry does, giving IT administrators peace of mind. They'll also be assuaged by the locked bootloader which is double checked every time the phone boots up.

The oddly-named Dtek app gives users a security overview of their phone, such as whether they've set a passcode or not and whether remote management is enabled. Oddly though, you can't change any errant settings from Dtek it's up to you to ferret them out in the Settings app.

Oddly, the Priv doesn't have a fingerprint reader we would have loved to have seen it used as part of two-factor authentication. An alternative is a very odd but useful variant of the pattern unlocking method. Once you've picked a number and a part of a coloured box of your choice, you then have to line them up using a scrolling onscreen grid to unlock your phone. An example would be placing the number 9 in the bottom right hand corner of a yellow box. It sounds complex, but works simply and well in practice. Plus, unlike a passcode, it's hard for someone peeping over your shoulder to make out the combination.

One minor security feature we couldn't get working was Blackberry's unique take on widgets. On supported apps, such as Blackberry's own calendar and to-do list apps, you can swipe up on the icon on your home screen to quickly peek into the widget. The advantage of this over standard widgets is that sensitive data isn't left out in the open on your home screen where someone peeking over your should could see it. We couldn't get these special widgets to work though, even after several software updates.

Blackberry has used Android 5.0 Lollipop with an upgrade to 6.0 Marshmallow promised for the New Year'.

Battery life and camera

Battery life was lengthy. It lasted just over 11 hours when browsing the web when connected to WiFi and it lasted just under 15 hours when playing locally-stored video on a loop. All this should assuage long-time Blackberry users still pining after a removable battery.

We weren't expecting much from the 18 megapixel camera, so we were pleasantly surprised. Colours were captured faithfully and details were sharp when used outdoors. It struggled when taking photos indoors though, with skin tones coming out mottled and with lots of noise. The latter was also a problem in low-light shots, where the sluggish and somewhat buggy camera app also struggled to get the exposure right. It's a good camera, but it's not in the same league as the Galaxy S6 or iPhone 6s.

Screen and performance

The 5.4in screen was almost painfully bright with top-notch image quality, while the high resolution of 2560x1440 pixels means text is very sharp. The large width of the screen means the Priv is definitely a two-handed phone though, whether or not you're using the physical keyboard.

Surprisingly, our review unit had trouble connecting reliably to a 802.11n 5GHz network at a distance of 30m a feat which other phones had no trouble accomplishing. We suspect this was a one-off flaw though as a second review unit had no such difficulty.

We had no complaints about performance the six-core Snapdragon 808 processor and 3GB of memory raced through our benchmarks.

Conclusions

The Blackberry Priv has an unenviable task ahead of it it not only has to be a good phone its own right, but it also has to be good enough to turn around the fortunes of an entire company. Thankfully, it is a good phone with plenty to like. Physical keyboard aside, there's the grippy casing, the bright and high-resolution screen and the thoughtfully-modified version of Android. If the Priv had arrived three or four years ago then it wouldn't just be a good phone, but a superlative one. As it is though, you'd have to either be irredeemably attached to physical keyboards or extremely concerned about security to choose the Priv over competing smartphones. It's by no means bad, far from it, but with most of the world long used to touchscreen keyboards, the Priv feels like a niche product rather than one with mass appeal.

Verdict

Not everyone will care about the hardware keyboard and other phones are good enough for business, but the Priv is nonetheless a surprisingly good smartphone

OS: Android 5.0 Lollipop

Display: 5.4in, 2560 x 1440 pixels (544ppi)

Processor: 1.8 + 1.4GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 six-core

RAM: 3GB

Storage: 32GB, MicroSD slot

Camera: 18-megapixel with autofocus, flash, two-megapixel front-facing

Connectivity: 802.11 ac/a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.1 LE, NFC, 4G, GPS/GLONASS

Ports: Micro USB 2.0

Dimensions: 147 x 77 x 9.4 mm (HxWxD)

Battery: 3410mAh

Weight: 192g

The Blackberry Priv has gone on sale in the UK as of today. The Android-based device comes with a physical keyboard which slides out from underneath the device.

In addition to the Android operating system, it boasts a number of privacy and security features. One such feature is ann app that rates the security of your device on factors such as passcode enablement and what other apps are transferring personal information to third parties.

The Prive promises battery life of 22.5 hours of mixed use nd comes with a 5.4-inch display.

There are also a number of apps specific to the Priv, such as BlackBerry Launcher, Keyboard, Camera, and Services, as well as Password Keeper, DTEK by BlackBerry, and MicrosoftexFAT for BlackBerry.

"Priv will be the solution for smartphone users who are learning daily of the lack of privacy they have on their current devices. Priv will be the answer for former BlackBerry users who miss the physical keyboard but needed apps. And, we're responding to current and prospective BlackBerry users who need it all: choice, innovation, security, privacy and productivity," said BlackBerry CEO John Chen in a blog post.

The handset was referred to in BlackBerry's Fiscal 2016 Second Quarter Results report, although it didn't detail a whole lot more apart from its name, which stands for 'privacy and privilege'.

Chen said the name refers to the "heritage and core mission of protecting our customers' privacy", and the Android-based device will feature "the best of BlackBerry security and productivity with the expansive mobile application ecosystem available on the Android platform."

However, Chen did showcase the BlackBerry Priv to Canadian news website BNN, showing it has a slide out QWERTY keyboard (with capacitive touch) as one would expect from a phone made by BlackBerry.

It also features a curved touchscreen, the camera (although no firm specs given) and the Chrome browser preinstalled. However, it seems Chen may have been a little new to the Priv handset, with the CEO struggling to launch many of the apps in a live demo and stumbling around when providing the specs.

When asked by the presenter if the Priv will be the smartphone that brings back BlackBerry users, Chen replied: "I think everybody loves BlackBerry 10, they really do, but there's not enough apps. So if I could provide all the apps on BlackBerry 10 then it would be a smashing success.

"Unfortunately I can't put the two things together for all the practical, logistical and financial reasons so this is really the best thing we can do and the early indications from the carriers and some of the customers is great. They really love it."

This article was published on 28/09/2015. The latest update was on 06/11/2015.

I've been a fan of BlackBerry for years. I loved the ethos and idea behind BlackBerry 10 and used the BlackBerry Q10 for a good six months. I was also very impressed by the BlackBerry Passport, as you can see in our BlackBerry Passport Review, and the updates BlackBerry made to its BB10

platform

in 2014/15 -- most notably the AWESOME BlackBerry Blend and full support for Android applications.

I remember chatting to ex-CEO Thorsten Heins at the bar after BlackBerry World 2012. He'd done a major keynote speech earlier that day, one that featured Lewis Hamilton, of all people, and was clearly on something of a high. He'd nailed the concept of how a mobile platform should work, delivered us BB10, and the future had began to look rather less dreary for the company. Even the new handsets were looking great.

But there was always one hole in BB10 -- applications and a viable alternative to Google Play and Apple's App Store. Granted, this isn't all the important to enterprise users, BlackBerry's traditional bread and butter, but for a phone maker to prosper in today's market it's basically corporate-suicide not to appeal to a multitude of users. You need college kids, teenagers, young adults, older people -- basically, everybody.

Hardware and software have never been BlackBerry's problem, though. The company excels at both and has done for a good many years now. Where BlackBerry falls short is applications and content. And in today's mobile space this is a bad thing to suck at --

consumers

expect and want to be able to access popular applications and content on their mobile devices. If they cannot they will simply go elsewhere.

Apple and Google have this side of things nailed. iTunes and the App Store, and Google Play are excellent media stores jam-packed with movies, TV shows, apps and games. You can switch between an iPhone and an Android phone with minimal fuss -- the apps and services (say, Google's) look, feel, and work the same. And when something new comes out -- an application or game, for instance -- you KNOW it will come to Android and iOS first.

For the longest time BlackBerry has been the mobile space's whipping boy but unlike Microsoft the company has consistently refined its mobile

software

over the years, adding in new features and capabilities, like BlackBerry Blend and full support for Android apps inside BB10. Granted, a lot of this has gone under the radar of most people but those who are accustomed to BB10's inner workings can attest that, save for the application void, the platform is one of the best in its class.

The decision to adopt Android is, I believe, a simple fix to an ongoing problem every handset maker, that isn't Apple or one of Google's Android partners, faces: they do not have the apps or content to keep up with the space's biggest players. BlackBerry has now completely solved this issue, placing itself in a rather advantageous position compared to Microsoft's Windows 10 platform which, once again, is starting from scratch. The only downside is that BlackBerry didn't do it sooner.

And because this is a BlackBerry we're talking about, you get excellent security features, all the best aspects of BB10 -- BlackBerry Hub and BlackBerry Blend, for instance -- and a beautiful, full-on QWERTY keyboard which, if the Passport's was anything to go by, should make emailing and texting a thoroughly enjoyable and rapid affair.

"On top of that," says CrackBerry, "BlackBerry has also added their own security suite of apps to the device, better known as BlackBerry Safeguard, though the leaks thus far haven't laid out exactly what that all consists of. On BlackBerry 10, it's just a combination of safeguards built to the OS such as Picture Password, Password Keeper, BlackBerry Protect but BlackBerry may have built some additional tools now that they can make use of Android options."

"So, that's the security side of things. What else has BlackBerry done to the software? After all, it does largely look like a stock Android device. Well, there's a few BlackBerry touches as well including preloading BBM as well as their own Calendar, Tasks, Notes apps and more. They've also adjusted how the launch screen works so instead of just being offered Google Search; you'll also have the option to use BlackBerry Device Search and access to the BlackBerry Hub."

I'm picking up my BlackBerry PRIV review unit on Wednesday and, honestly, I could not be more excited. I can't wait to check out Android running on BlackBerry hardware and see how some of BB10's features and software work inside Google's software. I'm also really interested in seeing how the design of the handset works in practice. I've been using the iPhone 6 Plus on and off for the past 12 months, so the idea of switching to something completely different is now very appealing.

I do love a good physical keyboard and I had a blast testing out the BlackBerry Passport, so I'm expecting very BIG Things for the PRIV. Personally, I think this handset could be one of 2015's best releases. The hardware is there, ditto design, and with Android at its core BlackBerry no longer has to worry about the app-gap. All very good things.

I've kind of been praying BlackBerry would do something like this since about 2012. I get the idea and the principles behind BB10 and I do enjoy using it but every time I use a BlackBerry handset I miss certain applications or services, things that are integral to my working day, which I really cannot afford to be without. Solving this issue is a HUGE deal for me as it means I can use a BlackBerry for everything, all the time and not have to switch back to my iPhone or Android phone.

Obviously the proof will be in the pudding. The handset will have to be decent in order to persuade people away from the likes of Samsung, Google and Apple. But as I said earlier, hardware has never been an issue for BlackBerry -- it builds great handsets and always has done. How the software will function also remains to be seen, but from what I can gather it is a bespoke fork of Android, complete with all the usual BB services, that runs in a relatively stock configuration.

Nevertheless, BlackBerry -- despite its past failings -- still has a very strong brand appeal with consumers, as well as a very loyal and dedicated fanbase all over the globe. Now, we're not talking iPhone levels of sales or acknowledgment here, but I'd bet decent money on plenty of existing Android and BlackBerry users switching over to the PRIV, mainly because it's a BlackBerry handset running Android, but also because it packs in most of BB10's best software and features.

The specs of the handset are also great: QHD display, 3GB of RAM, Snapdragon 820 or Snapdragon 808, removable battery and SD-support. Taken together the BlackBerry Priv -- I really do hate that name, though -- sounds like a winner on paper. It also looks gorgeous, too.

Basically, BlackBerry is going to have to seriously mess something up badly for me not to absolutely love this device.

Let's just hope that doesn't happen!

This article was first published on our sister title Knowyourmobile

BlackBerry's $425 million acquisition of former unicorn' Good Technology demonstrates how start-up stories often "end in tears", according to one analyst.

The phone maker confirmed it will buy the smartphone security platform last Friday as it moves further away from device hardware to concentrate on providing secure software for mobile devices, which remains one of BlackBerry's strongest selling points.

Good Technology CEO Christy Wyatt called the acquisition "the next exciting chapter of our journey".

However, analyst group TechMarketView argued the news is a sign of how far Good Technology has fallen from a billion-dollar valuation received only two years ago, classing it as a unicorn' (a start-up valued at at least $1 billion).

Claiming most young tech firms are valued too highly, TechMarketView chairman Richard Holway said: "It can only end in tears. A good example of this was Good Technology (public financial data). It was once a unicorn as a result of some $291 million raised from private investors.

"But on Friday it was acquired by Blackberry for $425 million. Good Technology had revenues of $212 million but losses of $93 million and was burning cash. Someone must be nursing some interesting losses."

Good Technology had filed for an IPO in May last year, but losses had increased from $89 million in 2012 to $115 million in 2013, before dropping back to $84 million in 2014, according to a filing.

BlackBerry expects to complete the acquisition by the third financial quarter of next year, adding that the purchase could bring in $160 million within the first year.

BlackBerry has announced plans to cut an unconfirmed number of jobs from its software, hardware and applications departments.

The company has decided to consolidate these key divisions, meaning staff from across those groups risk losing their jobs, it admitted in a statement.

"As we continue executing our plan for BlackBerry's turnaround, we remain focused on driving efficiencies across our global workforce. As the company moves into its next stage of the turnaround, our intention is to reallocate resources in ways that will best enable us to capitalize on growth opportunities while driving toward sustainable profitability across all facets of our business," the statement read.

"We have made the decision to consolidate our device software, hardware and applications business, impacting a number of employees around the world."

Blackberry has around 7,000 employees worldwide, although the majority are based in the company's Canadian homeland.

The smartphone maker is also considering closing its Swedish base of operations, according to Reuters, which could result in up to 100 redundancies.

These layoffs follow news that despite a net profit, the company's revenue fell 32 per cent in the last quarter, according to results.

Devices like the Passport and the Classic have so far failed to drive profits, and the company's share of the global smartphone market now sits at around 0.3 per cent, according to IDC figures.

Instead, CEO John Chen has made it clear that business software such as BlackBerry Enterprise Server 12, the BlackBerry Experience Suite and BBM are where the company is going to refocus its efforts.

BlackBerry has said that it plans to bring in new talent to bolster "areas of strategic focus", including software, enterprise, security and Internet of Things.

This decision is likely based on the fact that software and services now comprises almost 60 per cent of the company's revenue.

This new direction has seen a partnership with Samsung via its Knox system, and the purchase of encryption company Secusmart, both of which have helped cement BlackBerry's claim on being a leader in mobile enterprise security.

BlackBerry is a once-mighty mobile titan whose dominance is no more.

However, while others likeNokia, Palm, and Ericsson have fallen into relative obscurity, the Canadian firm is still fighting to turn its fortunes around.

While the company's enterprise software arm is alive and well, the hardware side of the business has been languishing of late in a quagmire of poor results, reporting itslowest quarterly sales in more than eight years back in March.

It has also been toppled from the throne of the smartphone market by rivals Apple and Google, andto a lesser extent Microsoft'sWindows Phone,who now fight among themselves for supremacy.

The BlackBerry Leap -a budget device marketed to "young mobile professionals" -is the company's latest attempt to reclaim its former place.

It emphasises mobile connectivity, long battery life and BlackBerry's signature range of native apps in an effort to appeal to start-ups and new customers.

But will the strategy pay off? We put the firm's latest device, the BlackBerry Leap, throw its paces to see if it passes muster as a business device for the busy professional.

BlackBerry Leap: specs and hardware

The BlackBerry Leap's internal hardware runs on the same Snapdragon processor and graphics chip as 2013's BlackBerry Z10. Unfortunately, the fact that both the CPU and GPU are two years old is painfully obvious.

The device feels noticeably sluggish in use. Open up more than a few apps at once and you're likely to start noticing some slow-down. Swiping through the UI menus feels less responsive than it should, and the experience doesn't seem as slick as we've come to expect from even budget devices.

What's surprising is that the Leap comes with 2GB of RAM. It's not top-of-the-line, but it should be more than enough to ensure smooth operation. The fact that it doesn't is a little baffling and likely to prove frustrating for users who need to be as productive as possible on the move.

This is usually the point where we would benchmark the device. However,our usual benchmark apps - GeekBench 3 and GFXBench - are built and optimised for Android devices, which means we couldn't benchmark the Leap as stringently as we'd like.

From what we could tell, the Leap performs fine, assuming you're not putting too much strain on it.

In the end, the only benchmark we could put the Leap through was the Sunspider browser test. The end result of 1447.9ms was less than impressive, but not surprising, given its relatively old components.

As a comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S6 got a result of around 355ms, and while no-one expects the Leap to match a device that's three times the price, it's still quite a bit slower than anticipated.

BlackBerry Leap: design

The BlackBerry Leap is not an attractive phone. It's bulky and heavy, at 9.5mm thick and weighing in at 170g. Rather than the usual glass or metal body, the Leap has a rubberised plastic back that makes it quite slippery. Like a cartoon bar of soap, it feels like it's going to shoot out of your hand at any moment.

The design somehow appears rounded and angular at the same time, with sharp corners at the front but curved sides around the back.

The control buttons are a plus point for the device. Although the Power/Sleep button's placement at the top is infuriatingly unintuitive, the side buttons allow a nice level of playback control.

The top and bottom side buttons control volume and can be held down to skip tracks, while the centre button controls the play/pause function, and can also be held down to summon the BlackBerry Digital Assistant.

Even when compared to the squarishPassport, the Leap doesn't look like a phone that C-level executives would be toting on the train to work. The build quality feels cheap and plasticky, and it looks outdated from the get go.

BlackBerry Leap: display

BlackBerry has ditched its famous physical keyboard for the Leap.

Instead, it's opted for a 5in touch display. It's a method the company has tried in the past, but it's a misguided move the physical QWERTY keypad is a strong USP for the company, and ditching it means losing one of the quintessential elements of a BlackBerry device.

At 720p, the screen isn't bad for a budget device, and in day-to-day use, you're unlikely to be disappointed. The brightness is a particular high point; a maximum level of 539 cd/m2 ensures that the screen will remain readable even in bright, direct sunlight. The contrast ratio is similarly good, especially considering it's a budget device.

The Leap packs a decent display, overall. It's not up there with the iPhone, andHD movies and TV won't be as sharp an experience as on higher-resolution screens, but it's respectable nevertheless.

BlackBerry Leap: camera

The BlackBerry Leap's 8MP rear camera is nothing to write home about. For anything more professional than the odd holiday snap, it'll be almost totally unsuitable - the resulting snaps tend to be a little on the fuzzy side, and colours can appear muted.

It's the same story with the front-facing selfie camera as well. Pictures will likely come out as grainy and low-resolution, and while it's fine for utilitarian tasks like video conference calling, the BlackBerry Leap won't make you look your best.

BlackBerry Leap:price

BlackBerry is asking for almost 200 for the Leap. Considering you can pick up the Nexus 5 for the same price or the Moto E for around half this sum, it's doesn't offer the best value.

BlackBerry Leap:OS and software

BlackBerry has long been strong on software, with users keen on its BlackBerry Hub and its inbuilt security.

Despite the inclusion of Android apps via the Amazon storefront, the company's third-party library is still leagues behind those of Android and iOS, though, with many popular productivity and communication apps entirely absent.

The jewel in BlackBerry's crown used to be its BBM software, which provided free messaging between BlackBerry users. However, cross-platform successors like WhatsApp have since improved immeasurably on the original BBM model, rendering it all but irrelevant.

Enterprise security features are really the device's main strong point, but they're no longer the only choice on the market. Although the Leap boasts encryption capabilities, remote backup, wipe and restore options and a raft of data privacy settings, they're all available in one form or another on rival operating systems.

For instance, Android 5 supports full device encryption as a base feature, as well as including VPN options.

Android and iOS users can also downloadencrypted voice and text apps too, such as Silent Suite for Android and iOS.

However, the much-loved BlackBerry Hub remains a strong point - having one central, consolidated inbox for all messages and notifications is very handy.

Those used to the gesture controls for Windows Phone, iOS and Android may have trouble getting used to BlackBerry operating system's set-up, with the commands just different enough to trip up migrating users.

Fans of previous models like the Z10, however, will find themselves on familiar ground. Those with fond memories of the company's heyday will likely be perfectly at ease.

BlackBerry Leap: connectivity and features

As a business smartphone, the Leap could have been helped by a full armoury of advanced connectivity features. Unfortunately, while it comes with Bluetooth 4.0 and 4G support, there's only single-band Wi-Fi, with no NFC transfer or payment capability.

Neither is the Leap equipped with any form of waterproofing. While budget handsets generally aren't fully protected, (obtaining a full IP67 rating is liable to drive up the price), there'sno mention of water-resistance to protect it from accidental dunks, a feature many of its budget competitors do have.

One plus is that the phone still features expandable storage via MicroSD, while many others have opted for an Apple-esque tiered storage structure. This is good, as the 16GB of default memory isn't the most generous allowance in the world.

BlackBerry Leap:battery

One of the main features touted by the BlackBerry Leap is its supposed 25-hour battery life. The company claims that this is based on a "heavy usage scenario". Indeed, a battery life this good would be a real killer feature in today's world of constantly-depleting devices.

However, if it looks too good to be true, it probably is, and this is no exception. From a full charge, the Leap lost more than half its charge in four hours of moderate usage - 53 per cent, to be exact.

It fared no better in our HD video playback test, either. The Leap's battery drained at a rate of 18 per cent per hour, which isn't great.

BlackBerry Leap: verdict

There's a great deal about this phone that is just is average, unfortunately. The app selection is sub-par,the design is unappealing and the battery claims were overly optimistic for the model we tested.

What the Leap does have to recommend it is a decent display and the BlackBerry Hub. But for a device trying to compete in a crowded market, it remains to be seen whether this will be enough to tempt users.

Even BlackBerry aficionados may not be all-embracing of this phone it can't match the iPhone for quality or Android for price, while many of the key strengths the company brought to smartphones in the first place, like security and messaging, have now been built upon by third-party competitors.

NB: If we awarded half stars, the Leap would have scored 2.5/5. There's not enough on offer here to merit bumping it up to 3 stars (and we worry that would be misleading to readers) so our verdict remains 2/5.

Verdict

BlackBerry's latest device is a disappointment in virtually every way. The native apps that used to be a strong point are now outdated and outclassed, its battery life is far worse than claimed, and it's unattractive to the eye. Far from being the silver bullet BlackBerry needed, the Leap pales in comparison to similarly-priced Android rivals.

Processor: Qualcomm MSM 8960 dual-core 1.5 GHz CPU

Display: 5in 720p HD display

Memory: 2GB RAM

Storage: 16GB expandable

Battery: 2800 mAh

Connectivity: 802.11b/g/n, 4G, Bluetooth 4.0

Ports: MicroUSB 2.0, 3.5mm headphone jack, MicroSD, Micro SIM

Dimensions: 144 x 72.8 x 9.5 mm

Weight: 170g

BlackBerry has today launched BES12 Cloud. A fully cloud-based enterprise mobility management solution, BES12 Cloud offers employers the chance to capitalise on growing BYOD trends by allowing secure administration of a huge range of business smartphones and tablets.

Announced at last month's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the launch sees BlackBerry's successful SaaS lineup continuing to grow. BES12 Cloud joins Secusuite and the BlackBerry 10 OS itself as one of the company's flagship software services.

As part of a partnership announced at MWC, BlackBerry has also integrated Samsung's range of secure Knox devices into EMM solutions such as BES12 Cloud. The system will also incorporate Android for Work, iOS and Windows smartphones and tablets.

Controlled entirely via browser interface, BES12 Cloud is designed to have all of the advantages of on-premise EMM solutions whilst also using the public cloud for enhanced mobility and scalability. Hosted entirely on off-site servers, it also means that CIOs don't need to invest in costly server stacks.

The tiered pricing structure is based on annual per-device subscriptions, and ranges from $23 to $90. Lower price tiers will have less support available, with more security and management options for premium customers.

BlackBerry is the latest in a long line of companies that are utilising the power of the cloud to improve their B2B offerings. J. Gold Associates predicts that by 2016, three-quarters of Enterprise Mobility Management will be based in the cloud, with similar numbers quoted by analysts in regards to application workloads and data storage.

BlackBerry's fourth quarter results show the company is finally on an upwards hike after its move away from consumer devices towards business services - where its roots once lay.

BlackBerry reported a net profit of $28 million (18 million) in its fourth quarter that ended February 28 2015, compared with a year-earlier loss of $148 million (100 million).

Service success made up for almost half (47 per cent) of the profitability, while 42 per cent came from hardware sales - including revenues from sales of 1.3 million BlackBerry smartphones - and 10 per cent from software.

BlackBerry chief executive John Chen said: "Our focus this past year was on getting our financial house in order while creating a multi-year growth strategy and investing in our product portfolio. We now have a very good handle on our margins, and our product roadmaps have been well received."

However, the company's focus will shift in the next year, as it continues to build its user base and make money.

Chen explained on the company's results conference call: "The second half of our turnaround focuses on stabilisation of revenue with sustainable profitability and cash generation."

He said the secret of the company's 2014/2015 success was high margins on its business-centric services that allow organisations, including governments, to securely manage multiple employee devices.

However, BlackBerry's revenues were lower than predicted by analysts who estimated the company would post $790 million (530 million). However, its total revenues came in at $660 million (443 million)

BlackBerry said it will continue making some hardware, including the BlackBerry Leap smartphone that was announced at Mobile World Congress, but it will clearly focus them on business users and startups rather than consumers.

The BlackBerry Leap will launch this Spring with a sub-200 price tag, targeting entrepreneurs and start-ups.

The mid-tier device is designed to act as an entry-level business smartphone, and while its specs can't match those from the likes of Sony or Samsung, its battery could be one of its biggest assets.

Cash-strapped startups interested in the phone could come to rely on the 25-hour battery life - if the Leap can deliver on BlackBerry's promises, that is - especially when compared to the underwhelming performance of devices such as the iPhone.

Despite having a 5in touchscreen (1280 x 720), the mid-tier price has necessitated compromises elsewhere. The Leap uses a two-year-old dual-core, 1.5GHz CPU, 2GB of RAM and aforementioned 720p display.

Other core features include 4G connectivity and 16GB of onboard flash memory, which can be increased through micro SD (up to 128GB).

One area where BlackBerry is making full use of its pedigree is in security. The company's Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) arm has been gaining steam, with Mobile World Congress witnessing a partnership between Samsung Knox and BlackBerry Enterprise Server 12.

This expertise will be transferred to the Leap, with encryption support, malware protection, and the ability to backup, wipe and restore your data all built-in. This puts the Leap in the same niche as the recently announced Blackphone 2, which also bills itself as a fully-secured smartphone.

The Leap will be pre-loaded with BlackBerry's latest operating system, OS 10.3.1. In addition to native apps and the much-loved BlackBerry Hub, the OS also comes with BlackBerry's Blend software for sharing files and notifications across different devices and BlackBerry's take on a Siri-style digital assistant.

The company has also announced plans to produce a further three handsets this year, including a keyboard-based smartphone and has also teased a slider model.

This article was originally written on 3 March 2015, and was updated on 23 March 2015 to reflect the latest specs and news.

Google and BlackBerry are teaming up on security for Android for Work, as the search giant gears up to win over more of the enterprise market with its mobile offerings.

Devices using Google's Android for Work a platform that allows enterprise customers to separately secure their phone's business and personal data and apps will have BlackBerry's BES12 cross-platform EMM security solution enabled.

Billy Ho, executive vice president of enterprise products and value added solutions at BlackBerry, said: "BlackBerry is working with Google to provide customers with solutions they can confidently deploy on all major mobile platforms within their organisation.

"Android for Work with BES12 will provide customers with another option to enhance their mobile security and the productivity of their employees, and the peace of mind that they will not have to relinquish any control over corporate data, sacrifice user experience or introduce more complexity into their environments."

The platform caters towards the rise of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) schemes, with users able to create and secure unique profiles for home and work on their Android phone or tablet.

"Together with a wide range of management, application and device makers, we believe the Android for Work programme provides businesses and workers with the choice and flexibility they need to get things done at work," said Rajen Sheth, director of product management for Android for Work and Chrome for Work.

Users will be able to download a dedicated Android for Work app (if not running on Android Lollipop), and explore a suite of business apps that includes email, contacts and calendar tools.

The number of non-business users of BlackBerry devices looks set to sink below the one million mark by the end of 2015, new figures show

eMarketer told The Guardian the company's customer base could fall to as little as 700,000 users outside of businesses and, by 2017, this could drop even further to around 400,000.

For business use, BlackBerry has held on to its popularity for longer, and this has led the company to adjust its branding to target enterprise users over general consumers.

Bill Fisher, UK analyst at eMarketer, said: "BlackBerry's fall from grace has been spectacular, but these latest figures show that even its previously loyal core seems to be leaving in droves. Its market share has been decimated by Android and iOS, and more recently by Windows Phone, which is slowly gaining a foothold in the UK market."

In addition to this, research company Kantar Worldpanel told the publication that BlackBerry currently has 1.4 million non-business users, but this number is steadily falling with the company shedding around 56,000 users each month.

"I'd expect we would see fewer than a million people with a BlackBerry as their primary handset around September 2015," Dominic Sunnebo, global consumer insight director at Kantar, added.

BlackBerry faces stiff competition from Apple, Android and Windows Phone, which make up 32.2 per cent, 56.2 per cent and 8.6 per cent of the UK market, respectively (according to eMarketer). BlackBerry's share, meanwhile, amounts to 1.9 per cent.

"What this does mean is that easy wins' in the UK market are coming to an abrupt end," Sunnebo continues. "With only 2.1 million customers of old platforms like BlackBerry, Palm, [Nokia] Symbian and [Samsung] Bada left, brands can only really win significant numbers of new customers from consumers already suing modern, competitive platforms."

BlackBerry has denied reports it's in discussions with Samsung over a possible acquisition for $7.5 billion.

John Chen, BlackBerry CEO, was rumoured to have met with Samsung representatives last week, during CES 2015.

Shares in BlackBerry briefly jumped by 30 per cent when the story broke, but dropped down after a strong denial was issued.

"BlackBerry has not engaged in discussions with Samsung with respect to any possible offer to purchase BlackBerry. BlackBerry's policy is not to comment on rumors or speculation, and accordingly it does not intend to comment further," the smartphone maker said in a statement.

Sources close to the company claim multiple takeover offers have been rejected as the board is happy with its turnaround strategy, which is focused on enterprise and public sector customers.

"This is not a company for sale," a source told Canadian newspaper, The Globe and Mail.

Samsung is the world's largest smartphone maker but due to increased competition, its profits dropped by 60 per in the last quarter (2.5 billion).

Acquiring BlackBerry would make sense for Samsung, which is looking to establish itself as an enterprise player and also reduce its reliance on the Android operating system. BlackBerry also has over 44,000 patents.

Lenovo was previously touted as a potential buyer of BlackBerry, but questions were raised over whether the Canadian government would have authorised the sale to a Chinese firm. The world's largest PC maker went on to acquire Motorola from Google instead.

BlackBerry's messenger app, BBM, has been announced and demonstrated for Android Wear at the CES show, marking the company's first foray into wearable technology, reports Computer World.

The new app will offer allow communication without relying on a mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet. It will also apparently incorporate Internet of Things devices, with users able to react to problems or alerts based on messages sent to the device through BBM.

BBM for Android Wear devices will be available by spring 2015, director of enterprise products Jeff Gadway said at the event, adding: "The smartwatch is great for me if I'm in a meeting and get a notice on my wrist, then I can swipe right and hit a pre-set to send back a response, Why don't we connect once we're done?'."

The company has recently seen success with the BlackBerry Passport, which has sold well in the UK following a significant rough patch. Speaking about the consequences of this, CEO John Chen said:"We will survive as a company and now I am rather confident... BlackBerry has survived; now we have to start looking at growth."

The Android Wear smartwatch line was launched in March, with LG, Asus, HTC, Motorola and Samsung all signing up to produce devices.

BBM currently has 90 million active users, according to BlackBerry.

"It's early for smartwatches," Gadway continued, "but BlackBerry decided it's definitely worth exploring. This is our move beyond smartphones to wearables."

HP's original Z1 is one of the most innovative all-in-one desktops we've seen. Its screen tilts horizontally thanks to a folding stand, and the panel lifts up on hydraulic cylinders to reveal the components beneath.

The second generation keeps the same core design, which means replacing broken parts or upgrade obsolete hardware is possible. The downside is the high price, with devices going to cost you upwards of 2,000.

Fully Upgradeable

It's easy to get inside the Z1. Push the top of the panel and the stand folds down. Releasing two catches on the front of the screen allows the 27in screen to lift upwards.

Everything is arranged neatly, much like under the bonnet of your car. The power supply and graphics card span the entire width of the PC, with the hard disk caddy and processor heatsink occupying the central section. On the right-hand side is the memory, more heatsinks and the optical drive module.

HP has redesigned every component to aid accessibility. The PSU is long and thin, and the graphics card attaches to special connections that transfer its signals to the screen. The hard disk sits inside a caddy hewn from plastic and metal, and the processor sits beneath a flat, broad heatsink.

Major components are marked with green tabs, which allow them to be popped out with one movement, and anything not marked with a tab can be removed with a few screws.

Whilst components can be replaced, there's no room for extras. The one 3.5in hard drive bay and the two mSATA slots are already occupied. The four memory sockets are all filled, and the Z1 can only handle up to 32GB of memory considerably less than proper desktop workstations. The graphics card uses an MXM connection, so you're stuck with HP's selection of GPUs you can't install your own.

The exterior is all business. There's a speaker grille beneath the screen and a plain black bezel around the panel, and there are no concessions to style.

Build quality is top-notch, which stands the HP in good stead for a long office lifespan but the Z1's strength does have downsides. Its 21kg weight is high and, from front to back, the HP spans 419mm. Its mechanisms can be tricky to use moving the screen up and down requires a fair amount of elbow grease.

Nothing about the Z1's design has changed in this second-generation system it's the components that have been upgraded but that's no bad thing. The Z1 might be heavy, but it's the market's most accessible and innovative all-in-one.

Specification

It's not just the design that's geared up for hard work. Processing grunt comes from Intel's Xeon E3-1245 chip, which deploys the Sandy Bridge architecture inside a quad-core chip with Hyper-Threading and lashings of cache. It's clocked to 3.3GHz and, using Turbo Boost, one of those cores tops out at 3.7GHz. The silicon is paired with 8GB of ECC DDR3 RAM.

Nvidia's Quadro K4100M graphics core is a mobile part that's been transplanted into a desktop-style case inside the Z1, and it comes with ISV certification, so it's guaranteed to work with numerous business applications. Under the hood it uses the GK104 core, which debuted in Nvidia's mid-range desktop cards in 2012 and has since found a new lease of life in mobile chips.

Storage is divided between a 256GB Micron RealSSD mSATA drive and a 1TB hard disk. Connectivity is good: an Intel Gigabit Ethernet controller and future-proofed dual-band 802.11ac WiFi alongside Bluetooth 4.

Exterior port selection is passable. HP provides 2 x USB 3 ports, 4 x USB 2 connectors, audio connectors and a DisplayPort 1.1 socket. There isn't an optical drive, though. On this model we had two Thunderbolt ports instead.

Performance

The potent components delivered high-end performance. Our overall benchmark result of 110 is superb, faster than the 102 scored by the original Z1. It's got more power than fellow all-in-one, the iMac with its 4K display, but not quite challenging the Mac Pro workstation.

The graphics card proved its worth in the video rendering test, where it scored an excellent 128. That bodes well for graphically demanding software, and theoretical benchmarks also illustrate the GPU's power: in 3D Mark's Ice Storm benchmark it scored 115,053 points, which is more than twice the pace of systems that use Intel's HD Graphics 5000 integrated core.

The Micro RealSSD drive returned sequential read and write results of 434MB/s and 262MB/s. That's faster than any hard disk and it'll help applications remain nippy, but it's still unable to match the top tier of solid-state storage.

All-in-one systems often have thermal issues, but HP's smart design kept the components in check. The processor's top temperature of 85C is high without causing concern, and the GPU's peak of 72C is comfortable. Despite demanding stress-tests the noise was kept down even a modest office will drown out the minute fan noise and the chassis didn't get too hot, with warm air ejected through vents on the rear.

The bottom line is that, when it comes to all-in-one machines, few are as powerful as the HP Z1 but, as ever, a proper desktop tower will still be more powerful.

The Screen

The Z1's 27in IPS screen has a resolution of 2,560 x 1,440. That's a great choice: enough pixels to allow for multi-window working and plenty of flexibility, and without the eye-squintingly tiny icons or upscaling required of 4K. It's not a touchscreen, and it's got a matte finish both attributes that we appreciate in an office system.

The Z1's factory settings were good, but the screen wasn't without issues. The 978:1 contrast ratio was great, but that's formed by a 411cd/m2 brightness and a 0.42cd/m2 black point both of those figures are too high.

Those factory results mean the Z1 can't compete with the best work screens, but some of HP's screen modes help redress the balance. The Movie option is the top choice: it dropped the average Delta E to a stupendous 0.53, although colour temperature remained high and the brightness was still overwhelming.

We achieved the best results by dropping the HP's brightness to 211cd/m2 ample for the average office. With the lower brightness activated the black point dropped and contrast improved so blacks were deeper blacks and colours richer colours across the scale. This also made the Z1's screen ready for advanced colour work.

The Z1's screen can handle an impressive 99.3 per cent of the sRGB colour gamut, and its uniformity rarely faltered: the brightness varied by an average of less than 5 per cent across the screen, with the colour temperature altering by even less. The only negative here is the Adobe RGB gamut coverage of 73 per cent - a middling figure.

Alternative Specifications

The model we've reviewed here is expensive but numerous alternatives are available, with prices that range between 2,013 and 2,431. Every one of those machines comes with an Intel Xeon processor of varying speed, and they all have 8GB of RAM. None of those cheaper configurations have discrete graphics cards, and they mix and match components elsewhere: some have optical drives, others have SSDs, while others make do with standard hard disks.

Every specification can be customised with an admiral number of alternative components. That Thunderbolt module can be replaced with a DVD or Blu-ray drive, and our powerful graphics card can be traded down for more modest models. More memory is available, different hard disks can be purchased, and numerous external accessories are offered.

The Z1 has a three-year parts, labour and next-business-day on-site warranty as standard, which is a generous package, but that's upgradeable. Defective media retention can be added for 23, and the same deal can be extended to five years for 106.

Verdict

Certain aspects of HP's Z1 workstation haven't changed since we saw the first generation system, and that's fine by us: the exterior is still strong, the interior is still accessible and innovative, and the updated components still provide more power than you'll find inside any other all-in-one.

The Z1 remains almost prohibitively expensive, though at 3,491, it's more than a thousand pounds pricier than Apple's iMacs, including those with 5K displays, and it's got less power than traditional desktop towers that are also much cheaper.

This system is an impressive PC, but it's an undeniable luxury option when stacked up against its rivals. The Z1 remains a stunner but, for most people, the price of such versatility and accessibility will be too high.

Processor: 3.4GHz Intel Xeon E3-1245 v3

GPU: Nvidia Quadro K4100M

Memory: 8GB 1,866MHz ECC DDR3

Storage: 256GB Micron RealSSD SSD, 1TB hard disk

Connectivity: Gigabit Ethernet, dual-band 802.11ac WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0

Ports: 2 x USB 3, 4 x USB 2, 6 x audio, 2 x Thunderbolt 2, 1 x DisplayPort

Dimensions: (WxDxH): 660 x 419 x 523mm

Weight: 21.3kg

Rumours are re-circulating that BlackBerry is about to be acquired by PC manufacturer Lenovo.

Three separate sources have claimed the deal may be signed once and for all in the coming weeks. CBC, the Toronto Sunand theFinancial Post all said the acquisition may be completed this week, although it's only speculation and neither company has commented.

Suggestions that Lenovo will buy BlackBerry were made in early 2013, although no deal occured. At the time, Wong Wai Ming, CFO of Lenovo, said: "We are looking at all opportunities - RIM [Blackberry's former company name] and many others. We'll have no hesitation if the right opportunity comes along that could benefit us and shareholders."

The deal was never sealed because the Canadian government blocked the acquisition over national security concerns. Much of Canada's national infrastructure relies on the smartphone platform.

BlackBerry has experienced a turbulent couple of years, ever since its market share dive-bombed as iOS and Android exploded in popularity.

The company has tried to rekindle consumer and business interest but to little avail.

The company released its BlackBerry Passport smartphone earlier this year, which reverts to some of the older-style BlackBerry devices with a full Qwerty keyboard. It does, however, include a touchscreen but the square design will no doubt have the Marmite effect on users - people will either love it or hate it.

In an attempt to regain some interest in its services, which were always the company's USP, BlackBerry also launched its BBM free messaging service on Android and iOS to compete with other cross-platform services such as WhatsApp and Viber.

Neither BlackBerry nor Lenovo have made a statement about whether the acquisition will be going ahead this time.