BlackBerry Venice images leak, could land in November

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Over the past few weeks, we’ve heard a lot about BlackBerry’s upcoming Venice slider smartphone and further renders of the device have leaked along with more information about when we can expect BlackBerry’s new flagship hit the shelves.

According to perennial tipster Evan Blass (aka @evleaks), BlackBerry’s slider will hit the shelves in November and will be stocked by all four major US carriers. If true (which is likely, given Evan’s pedigree for leaks), it’s interesting that all the carriers are willing to back the handset and it could be a key step in making sure BlackBerry’s new device sells in volume.

The Venice is expected to have a large display that slides up to reveal BlackBerry’s iconic hardware keyboard and based on previous leaks, along with today’s images, we’re expecting the Venice to have curved edges on the display like Samsung’s Galaxy S6 Edge.

After revealing the release date and carrier plans, Blass went on to leak some more renders (including a couple that have previously leaked), which reveal that Google Play will be a key part of the handset, which is expected to run on a mostly-stock Android OS. With Android M (aka Android Marshmallow) set for release in the coming weeks, the Venice may even run Google’s new OS at launch and we’d certainly hope so given it will launch a couple of months after Android M.

Alongside the Android OS, the BlackBerry Venice is expected to sport a flagship feature set that includes a 5.4-inch Quad HD (2560×1440) pixel display – likely an AMOLED panel if the curved display is being provided by Samsung – and a Snapdragon 808 processor – like the LG G4 – coupled with 3GB RAM.

The BlackBerry Venice is without doubt a throwback to the past in a modern device and as we’ve seen from Samsung, the keyboard might be dead but it isn’t stopping manufacturers from trying to bring it back. Samsung has already launched a “BlackBerry-inspired” keyboard cover for the S6 Edge but based on the final image that Blass shared, the Venice keyboard looks simply fantastic.

Many people claim that BlackBerry should have adopted Android years ago and the Venice aims to right this; the handset looks to offer a sleek unique design and will be one of the few flagship handsets to feature a keyboard. With Android on-board, a premium specs list and the choice of touch or physical keyboards, this could be a handset that makes BlackBerry popular again.

Personally, I can’t wait for this device to be officially announced but what do you think? Do the Venice leaks entice you enough to potentially be on your buy list? Would you use the keyboard? Let us know your views in the comments below!