BlackBerry Venice gets its full body glamour shots
It’s no secret that BlackBerry are developing their own Android device, given the number of renders and leaked specs that have made their way onto the internet, but to confirm that such a device exists, there’s some new images showing the unannounced BlackBerry Venice.
You’ll recall that the BlackBerry Venice is important because it’ll not only mark the company’s strategy to regain some sort of presence into the smartphone arena, and also signal the death of their own OS and adoption of Android, but because of the keyboard.
BlackBerry devices are famous for their keyboard and Android is crying out for a device that does it well, so the combination results in a device that could be extremely interesting. There appears to be keyboard shortcuts available, which has been confirmed by the source of these images, so there’s not much left to do but wait for the Venice to be announced and enjoy the leaked images.
Will you be in the market for the BlackBerry Venice?
Source: AndroidAuthority
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Clearest yet photos of the BlackBerry Venice appear, show well-organized Android UI
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It’s probably a sign of the times when an unreleased, Android-powered BlackBerry smartphone is one of the more anticipated devices in the smartphone world, though we’re not exactly complaining. Photos of the BlackBerry Venice have been released into the wild today courtesy of Android Authority and they’ve given us our clearest look at the upcoming device, and if nothing else, we can see that BlackBerry is very serious about its move to Android.
From the few photos we have here, we can see the themed appearance of the user interface (jury’s still out about those icons), as well as some improvements that BlackBerry have added to the Venice. Most notably for me is the addition of more options on the Home swipe-up action which normally just brings up the Google Now action. And in case you were still in some kind of denial that this device was just running some epically themed version of BlackBerry 10, here’s a photo of the boot-up screen of the Venice clearly showing the “powered by Android” logo:
We still have no official word as to when or where the BlackBerry Venice is going to be released, but all bets are on for a November release.
What do you think about these photos of the BlackBerry Venice? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Android Authority via TalkAndroid
The post Clearest yet photos of the BlackBerry Venice appear, show well-organized Android UI appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
BlackBerry Venice leaked in hands on images
The upcoming Android phone that BlackBerry is depending on to revive its fortunes is out is open. A few days ago, we informed you that the much anticipated device was spotted on the streets of Toronto, and now we are bringing the hands on images and specifications of the BlackBerry Venice.
The leaked images clearly show off a sliding keyboard mechanism, golden back panel as well as its operating system that looks like stock Android. As for the hardware specifications, the display of the Venice appears to be big, in coherence with previous leaks claiming that the handset would feature a 5.4-inch screen, Snapdragon 808, 18-megapixel primary camera and 3GB of RAM.
What is notable in pictures is how well BlackBerry has managed to categorize the apps, making the app widget more efficient. There is an added productivity feature on the long press of home button that brings a host of communication shortcuts such as BBM, texts, emails and various calendar shortcuts too.
The recent apps drawer appears appears to be quite intuitive as the size of the apps here will depend on how often do you use them. For example, if you use certain apps regularly, they will appear to comparatively bigger in size than the apps that you don’t use much.
In case, you are wondering when will you be able to get your hands on the new Blackberry Venice, the Canadian company is not saying anything about that. But our sources suggest that a November launch is imminent.
Source: Android Authority
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Exclusive: New leaked images of the BlackBerry Venice
It’s no secret that BlackBerry is developing its own Android-powered smartphone. Thanks to numerous renders, images and leaked specifications, we already have a pretty good idea as to what the phone might look like. In case you needed more proof, we’ve just obtained some new hands-on photos of the unannounced BlackBerry Venice, showing off the device’s chassis, sliding keyboard and some software features.
Taking a look at the images attached below, we’re getting a good look at the Venice’s display and slide-out keyboard. Although we can’t be entirely certain of the display size, previous rumors have pointed to a 5.4-inch screen size. As for the software experience, this device seems to stick very closely to vanilla Android, with some added BlackBerry features thrown in. For instance, our anonymous tipster tells us there will be keyboard shortcuts available for creating quick tasks and a few others. As you can see from the third image below, there also looks to be some software shortcuts when swiping up from the home button. Aside from the normal Google Now shortcut, you’ll also be able to perform a quick local search and create a new message with ease.
It should also be noted that while we don’t have any images, our sources tell us that when the phone boots up, you’ll see an image of a bugdroid holding up a shield. This is likely due to BlackBerry’s focus on the enterprise, showing users that the Venice is a secure device through and through.
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We also have a few photos of the new application switcher and shortcut/widget selection menus. As you can see from the first photo attached below, BlackBerry is making it easy for users to add communications shortcuts for composing new emails, BBM messages, texts and more. You’ll also easily be able to add new calendar events, schedule meetings and see the current day’s agenda right from your home screen. This should come as no surprise, as BlackBerry has always put a big focus on productivity.
In the third photo, we’re getting a good look at the recent apps menu. The applications in this menu will change size depending on how often you use each app, which is certainly a nice touch.
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Making our way to the back of the device, we’re seeing the camera, which happens to come in at 18MP. We unfortunately haven’t gotten our hands on any camera samples.
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That’s it for the pictures, but we also have a few more pieces of notable information to share with you. Apparently the Venice will carry model number STV100-6 and will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor. Previous rumors have stated the device will sport a Snapdragon 808 clocked at 1.8GHz, and will also feature 3GB of RAM.
The BlackBerry Venice is slated to launch sometime this November on all four major U.S. carriers. We’ll need to wait a little while before anything is official, but it’s always nice to see some more images prior to an official announcement. Now that we’re getting some more information on the new device, what are your thoughts? Would you be interested in the Venice when it comes to market, or will you pass? Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
BlackBerry’s ‘Venice’ caught roaming the streets of Toronto
Currently, the Toronto Film Festival is being held in Canada. Now through September 20, upcoming films are showcased prior to a larger release this year and next. But perhaps more interesting is that a phone from Canada’s most popular hardware manufacturer made multiple appearances.
That’s right, people spotted BlackBerry’s upcoming ‘Venice’ phone at the Toronto Film Festival.
The image above, provided by BerryFlow, shows what looks to be Google’s Messenger app running on the handset. What we cannot see is the physical keyboard that Venice has. As we all know, BlackBerry is known for sticking with physical keyboards to maximize productivity. Venice’s physical keyboard will actually be housed behind the display and slide out from the bottom when needed.
Alleged specifications:
- 5.4-inch Quad HD (2560×1440) display with curved edges
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor
- 3GB of RAM
- 18MP rear camera with optical image stabilization and dual-LED flash
BlackBerry’s Venice will reportedly be available through Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint in November. Although Android 5.0 Lollipop will be at its core, BlackBerry is definitely going to make adjustments to Venice’s software to provide a unique experience. Just how many elements of the BlackBerry 10 mobile operating system are coming over is unknown, but we can assume that similarities will exist.
Via: BlackBerryOS
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Several BlackBerry Venice handsets get spotted at Toronto Film Festival
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Most device leaks come from the manufacturer’s country of origin, so it stands to reason that leaks of a new BlackBerry device have come from Canada. The Android-powered BlackBerry Venice has been the subject of plenty of leaks over the last few weeks, however this time it wasn’t a particularly covert sighting – the device was seen being used by several people at the Toronto Film Festival and the slightly curved display can be seen even in the blurry photo.
If you look closely, it also looks like the device could be using Google’s Messenger app, signified by the blue header, though it could really be any app with the same header. With the device now being spotted regularly in the wild, we wouldn’t be surprised to see a device release on the horizon – before the Holiday season is practically a sure bet.
What do you think about the BlackBerry Venice? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: BlackBerry OS via XDA
The post Several BlackBerry Venice handsets get spotted at Toronto Film Festival appeared first on AndroidSPIN.
Blackberry continues security focus with Good Technology acquisition
Although Blackberry has fallen on some tough times since their heyday over a decade ago, they are still leaders in security solutions for enterprises that need to maintain mobile platforms for their workforce. Blackberry announced this week that they have acquired Good Technology for $425 million cash in order to continue their strategy of helping enterprises improve security no matter what kind of platform or operating system they deploy.
Blackberry CEO John Chen says the acquisition will:
“…better solve one of the biggest struggles for CIOs today, especially those in regulated industries: securely managing devices across any platform. By providing even stronger cross-platform capabilities our customers will not have to compromise on their choice of operating systems, deployment models or any level of privacy and security. Like BlackBerry, Good has a very strong presence in enterprises and governments around the world and, with this transaction, BlackBerry will enhance its sales and distribution capabilities and further grow its enterprise software revenue stream.”
Blackberry says the acquisition is expected to be completed toward the end of the company’s third fiscal quarter in 2016, subject to regulatory approvals. Blackberry anticipates Good will provide positive cash flow and $160 million in revenue during the first year. So the acquisition will not only be good for Blackberry in helping expand their mobile security offerings, it should help the company financially.
You can read the full press release from Blackberry below.
BlackBerry to Acquire Good Technology
Acquisition to expand BlackBerry’s leadership in secure cross-platform mobility management
Sep 4, 2015
Waterloo, Ontario and Sunnyvale, Calif. – BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in secure mobile communications, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Good Technology for $425 million in cash.
The acquisition of Good is aligned with BlackBerry’s strategy to offer customers the most complete, end-to-end solution that secures the entire mobile enterprise, across all platforms. Enhanced by Good, BlackBerry will expand its ability to offer a unified, secure mobility platform with applications for any mobile device on any operating system – supported with security that has been certified by governments around the world embedded in every component of the mobility infrastructure.
Good will bring complementary capabilities and technologies to BlackBerry, including secure applications and containerization that protects end user privacy. With Good, BlackBerry will expand its ability to offer cross-platform EMM solutions that are critical in a world with varying deployment models such as bring-your-own-device (BYOD); corporate owned, personally enabled (COPE); as well as environments with multiple user interfaces and operating systems. Good has expertise in multi-OS management with 64 percent of activations from iOS devices, followed by a broad Android and Windows customer base.(1) This experience combined with BlackBerry’s strength in BlackBerry 10 and Android management – including Samsung KNOX-enabled devices – will provide customers with increased choice for securely deploying any leading operating system in their organization. The proven Good Dynamics platform provides app-level encryption, advanced data loss prevention and secure communication between applications. The platform has more than 2,000 independent software vendor and custom applications built today.
“By acquiring Good, BlackBerry will better solve one of the biggest struggles for CIOs today, especially those in regulated industries: securely managing devices across any platform. By providing even stronger cross-platform capabilities our customers will not have to compromise on their choice of operating systems, deployment models or any level of privacy and security,” said John Chen, BlackBerry Executive Chairman and CEO. “Like BlackBerry, Good has a very strong presence in enterprises and governments around the world and, with this transaction, BlackBerry will enhance its sales and distribution capabilities and further grow its enterprise software revenue stream.”
Good’s technology will integrate with BlackBerry’s enterprise portfolio and trusted global network, creating a comprehensive management solution for all mobile devices that protects customers’ security and privacy. This holistic experience will provide customers with greater mobile enterprise productivity, including seamless integration of capabilities across multiple applications, including BBM, WatchDox, Good Work and other value added services.
“Enterprise customers today demand stringent security and the most flexible platform across all mobility strategies,” said Christy Wyatt, Good Chairman and CEO. “We are excited to join BlackBerry, where together we will be the most comprehensive mobile platform in the market. Good has worked hard to deliver the highest levels of security across operating systems and applications. Our trusted Good solutions will also help BlackBerry to accelerate its Internet of Things platform for managing endpoints beyond mobile devices.”
With Good, BlackBerry will expand its presence with global enterprise and government customers. Good serves more than 6,200 organizations, including more than half of the Fortune 100, all of the Fortune 100 commercial banks, aerospace and defense firms, and leaders across healthcare, manufacturing and retail. BlackBerry is the trusted mobility partner of all G7 governments, 16 of the G20 governments, 10 out of 10 of the largest global banks and law firms, and the top five largest managed healthcare, investment services, and oil and gas companies.
BlackBerry has provided the world’s most secure mobility solutions for more than two decades, and has earned more than 70 government certifications and approvals, greater than any other mobile vendor. The BlackBerry 10 platform is the first mobility solution to receive the coveted Full Operational Capability (FOC) certification to run on U.S. Department of Defense networks. Good is the only company certified as Common Criteria Evaluation Assurance Level 4 Augmented (EAL4+) for mobile collaboration on both iOS and Android. This is the highest certification level recognized internationally under the Common Criteria program, and is globally regarded as the standard of quality for handling sensitive government data.
BlackBerry expects the transaction to be completed toward the end of the company’s 2016 fiscal third quarter and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. The company anticipates the acquisition to be accretive to earnings and cash flow within the first year after closing. BlackBerry also expects to realize approximately $160 million in GAAP revenue from Good in the first year, including the impact of an expected write-down of certain deferred revenue of Good.
J. P. Morgan Securities LLC and Bank of America Merrill Lynch served as financial advisors to Good Technology, and each provided a fairness opinion to the board of directors of Good Technology.
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BlackBerry acquires Good Technology to expand its services to other platforms
It’s barely a secret that BlackBerry is working on expanding its influence to other platforms. And not only as a service provider, the company is said to be working on the BlackBerry Venice, an Android smartphone with a slide-out keyboard. But how will they keep this Google-powered handset as secure as their industry-leading BB10 products? Their latest acquisition could very well be part of the strategy.
BlackBerry has just purchased Good Technology for $425 million. This is a California-based company which focuses on mobile security. They currently have a bevy of apps in the Google Play Store, all dedicated to serving enterprise customers and keeping users’ devices safe. And this is exactly why BlackBerry has decided to welcome the team and its assets to the company.
BlackBerry plans to expand its comprehensive mobile security services to other devices and operating systems. Since Good Technology already has experience in other platforms, as well as applications, the acquired company will be of great help to BlackBerry’s goal to further cater to global enterprise and government customers.
“By acquiring Good, BlackBerry will better solve one of the biggest struggles for CIOs today, especially those in regulated industries: securely managing devices across any platform. By providing even stronger cross-platform capabilities our customers will not have to compromise on their choice of operating systems, deployment models or any level of privacy and security. Like BlackBerry, Good has a very strong presence in enterprises and governments around the world and, with this transaction, BlackBerry will enhance its sales and distribution capabilities and further grow its enterprise software revenue stream.” – John Chen, executive chairman and CEO of BlackBerry
Chen once said he would be willing to build an Android device if it was possible to make it as secure as its own BB10 handsets. It’s now evident the company is very well invested in this idea. By following this path, BlackBerry can both make more enticing handsets, as well as providing the necessary services to keep them secure.
The investment is said to bring fruits very soon. The company expects to make about $160 million in GAAP revenue from Good Technology only within the first year. Now all that’s left to see is whether BlackBerry’s plans will take them out of the hole they have put themselves into the past few years. I would say they are on the right track. What do you think?
BlackBerry bids farewell to its hardware past by acquiring Good
If you had any lingering doubts that BlackBerry’s days as a hardware-first company are over, they’ve just been eliminated. BlackBerry has acquired Good Technology for $425 million, giving it one of the better-known names involved in making smartphones work-friendly. The crew in Waterloo isn’t shy about the reasons behind its move, either. Good is well-known for helping corporations and governments keep tabs on non-BlackBerry platforms, especially iOS. While BlackBerry already has some tools for this, the deal both improves its weak points and gives it a foot in the door at places where Good may be the only way to secure Android or iOS gear — the firm has certifications that even BlackBerry lacks.
The buyout is unusually large for BlackBerry (its acquisition of QNX was worth ‘just’ $200 million), and shows that the company’s future rests more in supporting devices than making them. Not that John Chen and friends are completely ignoring their own handsets, mind you. The Good acquisition conveniently primes the pump for BlackBerry’s inaugural Android smartphone. Provided the big-screened slider launches, BlackBerry will be in the uncommon position of selling both a business-friendly Android phone and the services needed to make it soar.
Filed under:
Cellphones, Mobile, Blackberry
Source:
BlackBerry
Tags: acquisition, android, blackberry, byod, good, goodtechnology, ios, mobilepostcross, smartphone
BlackBerry Venice rumor roundup
Are pigs about to start flying? After begging for years and losing all hope, BlackBerry has reportedly turned around and finally decided that making an Android smartphone wasn’t such a bad idea. BlackBerry CEO even mentioned he wouldn’t be opposed to building a secure Android handset.
Rumors and leaks have intensified since then. The tech world has all eyes on the keyboard king as we eagerly wait for an announcement, but for now all we can do is give you a rundown of all the rumored details that have managed to hit the inter webs. The upcoming handset is said to be named the BlackBerry Venice. Want to learn everything there is to know about this rumored phone? Keep reading.
Keep in mind most of this information is based on leaks and murmurs, and therefore you shouldn’t hold your breath on any of these. We are only putting all the information together for you. Take everything with a grain of salt. Oh, and don’t forget to keep this article bookmarked, as it will continue to be updated as more details on the BlackBerry Venice appear.
Design
The whole tech world is raging about the BlackBerry Venice design. While we have had pretty good keyboards in the Android realm, none of them have quite matched BlackBerry quality. This is why our eyes turned wide open and our hearts dropped when we first heard the rumors that an Android BB smartphone was probably coming.
Thankfully, all rumors have kept us satisfied. And I believe we can put a certain level of trust on the general idea surrounding the Venice’s design, as all leaks have been consistent.
On the surface, the BlackBerry Venice looks like your regular black slab. One of the earlier images from @evleaks shows a phone with a speaker below the screen, a microUSB port and a 3.5 mm headset jack, as well as what seems like a curved screen displaying a rather clean version of Android. This information was great and all, but it was the leaks to come that would really get the conversation going.
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This thing has a keyboard, and it’s hidden right under the screen! You can literally slide the screen section upwards to the beautiful button layout. The image showcasing this part of the phone also came from Evan Blass, who then decided to treat us with an actual video of the phone.
Eye candy. pic.twitter.com/GtJwOfOus8
— Evan Blass (@evleaks) August 19, 2015
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Other illustrations include cartoon-like press renders from CrackBerry and @evleaks (yes, again), but those are a little more basic. What has me more excited are the leaked shots we saw hitting the internet last weekend. These are true photos of the phone, not press renders or fancy animations. The phone looks just as we expected, and we can finally see it from all angles.
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The Venice looks like it will be made mostly of plastic, which is a usual characteristic for BlackBerry handsets. We can tell you no BlackBerry phone really feels cheap, though, so you should keep your mind open about going back to “inferior” materials. We have yet to see how good the slide-out mechanism works, too. Keyboard-bearing handsets haven’t been around for a while; here’s to hoping BlackBerry can put them back in style!
Display
We can’t go too much into detail about this information just yet, as not enough about the handset’s internals has been strongly corroborated. The latest rumors do state the phone will come with a 5.4-inch QHD (2560x1440p) display, though. This would put the BlackBerry Venice up there with the big guys. It’s said to be a power house, so we should expect no less.
It’s also important to note that some of the images make it seem like the screen is slightly curved on the sides, a la Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge. It’s a cool little treat if you are into that kind of stuff, but it shouldn’t really make much of a difference. It’s said the display will feature a Super AMOLED panel, though, and that is definitely something to celebrate. At least for those of us who like deep blacks and vibrant colors.
Performance
As mentioned right above, the rumored spec list is still not yet worthy of too much trust, mostly because it’s not backed by many other sources or separate rumors. These specs come from N4bb, which claims the handset will feature a 1.8 GHz hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor and 3 GB of RAM.
Sure, it may not have the almighty Snapdragon 810 and the 4 GB of RAM that’s starting to become the standard, but this phone will certainly not disappoint. The Snapdragon 808 is plenty powerful, and 3 GB of RAM is great for multi-tasking. In fact, these specs seem to be identical to those of the LG G4, so you should expect similar performance. And the G4 happens to be a great smartphone!
Camera
I will say it right off the bat – BlackBerry has always been infamous for its sub-par smartphone cameras. Seriously… this stuff can get pretty bad, even with the newer handsets! Will a change in the operating system improve the situation? It’s hard to say, but we can only hope so.
At the very least we know the pixel count on photos will be pretty high. Rumors suggest the phone will come with an 18 MP rear-facing camera. The images also show some engraving around the lens with the words “OIS” and “FAST FOCUS”, so we can assume the camera will tout both mentioned features. On the front side, the Venice is said to feature a 5 MP camera. Nothing out of the ordinary, but it should definitely be good enough for those good ol’ selfies.
Software
We know the BlackBerry Venice is coming with Android, but we are not sure just yet which version it will tout. With Android 6.0 Marshmallow right around the corner, we certainly hope the new handset will adopt the latest and greatest mobile OS iteration from Google.
What’s interesting is that this phone’s software will be more than just about Android and its benefits over BB10. BlackBerry CEO John Chen previously mentioned that “if he could find a way to secure an Android phone, he will also build that”, and this seems to hold true for the Venice.
A list of installed apps acquired by Evan Blass (aka @evleaks) shows us a bevy of BlackBerry apps being pre-installed on the Android handset. This would include popular services like BlackBerry Messenger, Hub, Calendar, Tasks, Notes, Emails and more.
BlackBerry has been meaning to offer its services to Android users. That leads us to one big question – is the Venice about showcasing the services BlackBerry can offer to other Android users, or is it more about making an awesome device?
Price and availability
Evan Blass swears this phone will be launching in November, and that it’s coming to all 4 major USA carriers. Other than that, details on availability are scarce.
No rumors on pricing have emerged either, but don’t expect the BlackBerry Venice to be cheap. It has high-end specs and likely a high focus on security, which will make it a valuable asset to many enterprise users. Not to mention, this smartphone will be all the hype among previous BlackBerry users.
Wrapping up
BlackBerry plans to make its big return to the market with a phone they could actually manage to sell in larger quantities. The Venice looks like a winner, with specs that seem to be great and software that is even better. The great part is users will enjoy all the benefits Android has to offer, all while not needing to sacrifice their BlackBerry features, as most of the main BB10 services seem to be coming with it.
It will all make more sense once more details show up. We understand there’s not enough information to really make a decision right now, but the announcement is on its way and more rumors will continue coming in! Remember to keep this post bookmarked and an open eye on Android Authority for all your BlackBerry Venice and Android news. We will continue to report on the mysterious phone, and this post will be updated continuously.
Hit the comments and let us know what you think! The real question is whether users will put their money where their mouth is. I honestly wouldn’t mind giving the BlackBerry Venice a chance. Would you?
AIVAnet 