Down but not out: BlackBerry still has projects up its sleeve
In spite of meager sales figures, BlackBerry could soon release a new smartphone, once again running Google's Android OS and with a physical keyboard. The firm has also developed an innovative Internet of Things security solution for business.
Pictures of what could be a BlackBerry DTEK 70, due for release in 2017, have leaked on social media. However, since BlackBerry recently announced plans to pull out of smartphone manufacturing, it's not clear who exactly will be building the phone. The BlackBerry DTEK50, which launched this summer, for example, was, in fact, an Alcatel Idol 4 with a software overlay and a series of in-house encryption and security solutions.
The DTEK 70, codenamed "Mercury," could see the return of a classic keyboard to BlackBerry, underneath a 4.5-inch screen (1080p). The handset is thought to be equipped with 18Mpx and 8Mpx cameras, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of memory and the Android OS.
Rumors also point to the presence of a fingerprint sensor and a data encryption system, as seen in all of the manufacturer's smartphones.
Reality is harsh for BlackBerry, which only maintains a tiny market share in global smartphone sales (approximately 0.1% according to Gartner). To address the situation, the firm is refocusing its core business strategy on services, notably for businesses, the brand's historic clients.
Having lost the battle on the hardware front, BlackBerry's turnaround is increasingly reliant on software. On that front, the firm recently presented BlackBerry Secure, a new security management platform covering all of a company's connected devices (computers, smartphones, tablets, etc.).
