BlackBerry Krypton leak shows carbon fiber-patterned back

A new BlackBerry smartphone has been rumoured for a few months already. And now we get a sneak peek of what’s being dubbed as the BlackBerry Krypton. The latest leak shows a carbon fiber-patterned rear with a camera sensor and single LED flash (unlike the KEYone which had a dual LED flash, as you see in the picture above). It’ll supposedly be the successor to the DTEK50/60 with its 16:9 1,920 x 1,080 resolution full screen display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 or 626 processor, 4GB of RAM, and a sizeable 4,000mAh battery. As a nod to its name, it’ll supposedly have an IP67 rating.

A fingerprint reader is integrated into the home button and it’ll supposedly house all its buttons (including the Convenience Key on the same side). Its speaker, USB Type-C port, and 3.5mm audio jack will supposedly all be placed at the bottom. The BlackBerry Krypton is rumoured to be coming out next month for US$499 (around CA$615).

Source: Android Police 

BlackBerry inks licensing deal with Timex

BlackBerry might no longer be in the hardware market but it has been busy signing licensing agreements with other companies. Its latest deal is with Timex, which gives the watchmaker access to over 40,000 patents. Android Authority speculates this could possibly lead to a BlackBerry-branded smartwatch. But this must be taken with more than just a grain of salt. BlackBerry has patents all over, including “wireless communications, networking infrastructure, acoustics, messaging, enterprise software, operating systems, virtualization, and cybersecurity.” The deal could lead to other products. BlackBerry is keeping mum about the possibility of a smartwatch in our future.

But we at least know it might focus on mobile communications. According to BlackBerry senior director of intellectual property licensing Jerald Gnuschke, “This license agreement with Timex demonstrates the strength of BlackBerry’s patent portfolio, and will enable us to focus on further patent licensing opportunities in the mobile communications market.”

TCl unveils BlackBerry KEYone Black Edition with updated specs

TCL has revealed a new BlackBerry KEYOne which is all black and has twice the storage and even more RAM. The BlackBerry KEYOne comes with 64GB of storage as well as 4GB of RAM for improved multitasking and overall speed improvements. This version goes tactical by replacing the silver accents with matte black finish added to the device's aluminum frame offering. The new device will be available to Canadians for $799 

TCL following up KEYOne with touchscreen BlackBerry handset

TCL has seen great success with the BlackBerry KEYOne which brings the venerable QWERTY keyboard to a modern and capable Android-powered smartphone.

"Two months from now, we will have a touchscreen solution to show," François Mahieu, head of global sales for TCL, said in a briefing at the IFA tech conference in Berlin on Tuesday. Expected to ship in October, the newest BlackBerry handset. The new device is expected to carry the same high quality build and materials as the KEYOne and should entice users who love their BlackBerry devices but aren't particular about having a QWERTY keyboard.

"The message here is very clearly: Don't write us off as a vendor who has good success with KeyOne so far, but has nothing more to talk about," said Mahieu. "We're here to stay and we're going to roll out more BlackBerry products in the coming years, starting this year."

 Source: CNet