Blackberry doesn’t seem to be in high motion presently but that didn’t stop the TCL-controlled company from launching the Blackberry Motion about four months back. The device is a mid-range smartphone that comes with a touchscreen display, water-resistant chassis and huge battery. A teardown video created by JerryRigEverything has emerged, showing the internals of the device and it calls to question one key attribute of the BB Motion which is a waterproof build.

Blackberry touts the Motion as coming with an IP67-rated waterproof and dustproof body. The device is advertised as featuring a build that can withstand water submersion up to a meter (3.28 feet) for a maximum of 30 minutes. But the teardown shows the device might not actually survive being submerged in water that long. The video (see below) may have been a promotion of the device but it is turned out to be another unwanted controversy for the ailing brand.

Read More: BlackBerry Keyone Bronze Edition Is Official, 2 More BB Phones To Launch in 2018

Now to the teardown, the Blackberry Motion just like most smartphones lacks any physical screws on the outside and can only be safely opened with a combination of a heat gun and a prying tool. From here, the waterproof feature becomes suspect. The adhesive holding the back panel of the device to its frame was found to be surprisingly weak for a supposedly waterproofed smartphone. Also, the charging port doesn’t have any rubber seal which would prevent water from seeping through the port. However, Blackberry seems to have done a good job making the 3.5mm headphone jack and SIM tray heavily guarded against water. You can check out the teardown video for more details below.

(source)

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In bid to survive fierce competition from rival brands, BlackBerry had introduced BlackBerry 10 operating system by its QNX division in 2013. Neither the OS nor the smartphones built to run on it had helped the Canadian company to increase its dying market share. To prevent the demise of the BlackBerry brand, the company’s CEO John Chen applied a new strategy in 2016 that has assisted in rebuilding the popularity of the brand.

In 2016, BlackBerry Limited officially confirmed that it will not be competing in the smartphone market directly. The company now focuses on licensing its software and brand. TCL is now manufacturing and selling smartphones with BlackBerry branding. The first BlackBerry phones made by TCL include DTEK50 and DTEK60. In this year, it has released BlackBerry KEYOne and BlackBerry Motion. These smartphones have been well-received by critics and consumers.

In Q2 2016, BlackBerry had earned $15 million in licensing fees. By generating $56 million, it has earned around fourfold licensing fees in the same quarter this year. BlackBerry is now focusing on providing secure software for financial institutions in order to protect them from cyber threats. The company is also concentrating in automotive industry as it is providing software for infotainment systems and self-driving vehicles. BlackBerry’s apps are also available on Google Play Store.

In 2010, Chen the then CEO for Sybase had struck a $6 million deal that allowed SAP to acquire Sybase. With a reputation of a turnaround artist, Chen had joined BlackBerry as an interim CEO in 2013. The BlackBerry brand was about to die, but under the supervision of Chen, the company had launched Android phones like BlackBerry Priv and BlackBerry Passport that received good reviews from critics.

Read More: BlackBerry and Timex May Collaborate to Launch a Smartwatch

At present, the company’s stock has jumped to 66 percent in this year and since the company is generating revenue, it appears that Chen’s strategy has helped in regaining popularity of the BlackBerry brand in the smartphone market. Since the customers of BlackBerry are mostly companies that are listed with New York Stock Exchange, Chen has moved the shares of the company from NSADAQ to NYSE with BB ticker symbol. He has also stated the transformation of BlackBerry is complete.

Do you like the new BlackBerry phones made by TCL? Share us your thoughts by adding your comments below.

(source)

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TCL has officially introduced the BlackBerry Motion smartphone today. It was unveiled through the GITEX Technology Week that is going on in Dubai, UAE.  The BlackBerry Motion is a mid-range smartphone that comes with an all-touch display, water-resistant chassis and huge battery.

BlackBerry Motion Specifications and Features

The BlackBerry Motion does not feature a physical QWERTY keyboard.  Hence, the frontside of the phone is occupied by a premium anti-scratch LCD display of 5.5 inches that produces a full HD resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels. The power-efficient Snapdragon 625 chipset is present under the hood of the phone along with 4 GB of RAM. The native storage available on the phone is 32 GB.

The presence of 4,000mAh battery makes it the largest battery smartphone from BlackBerry. With Quick Charge 3.0 onboard, the handset can be charged to 50 percent in 40 minutes. The Home button present below the display is embedded with a fingerprint scanner.

The BlackBerry Motion comes pre-installed with Android 7.1 Nougat OS and it is going to receive the latest Android 8.0 Oreo update in 2018. A feature called Locker allow users to securely store their documents and photos on the native storage and make use of a PIN code or fingerprint scanner to access them. The Locker Mode allow users to save captured photos to the internal storage without sending to the cloud.

The Convenience Key is enabled with four customizable profiles such as Home, Car, Office and User. These can be automatically activated through a home Wi-Fi network, in-car Bluetooth, BlackBerry Hub synced meetings or frequently used apps.

For photography, the BlackBerry Motion is fitted with a f/2.0 aperture 12-megapixel snapper. The frontside of the phone includes an 8-megapixel selfie camera. It is the first BlackBerry branded phone to come with IP67 certified body. The handset features an aluminum frame and soft texture on its rear for better grip.  It includes connectivity features like 3.5mm audio jack, USB-C, dual-SIM support, 4G and Wi-Fi.

Read More: BlackBerry and Timex May Collaborate to Launch a Smartwatch

BlackBerry Motion Pricing and Availability

Starting from today, the BlackBerry Motion is available on pre-orders in UAE with a pricing of Dh 1,699 (~$462) and in Saudi Arabia for 1,699 Riyal (~$453). As far as the global release of the smartphone is concerned, TCL has only revealed that it will be made available to select markets.

(via)

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The rumor mill has been talking about the upcoming BlackBerry Krypton phone since the past few weeks. Fresh information that has been leaked by well-known tipster Evan Blass reveals that the upcoming Krypton phone may debut as BlackBerry Motion. He has also shared an image of the BlackBerry Motion. Another leakster Roland Quandt, has revealed the U.S. carriers that will be selling the BlackBerry Motion.

During the IFA 2017, TCL that owns BlackBerry Mobile confirmed that it would be releasing a new all-touch phone with a large-sized battery and a durable body in October. Since then the rumors are claiming that the BlackBerry Krypton would be the phone that will be arriving in this month.

Around two weeks ago, BlackBerry Krypton was also seen in leaked images which revealed that the phone features a brushed metal bar that houses the rear camera. The images did not show the frontside of the phone. However, the following tweet from Blass shows what to expect on the design of the BlackBerry Motion.

Goodbye, Krypton.

Hello, BlackBerry Motion pic.twitter.com/lBsdpORHW4

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) October 5, 2017

The above tweet suggests that Krypton could be the codename of BlackBerry Motion phone. The image shows that the smartphone that is designed and built by TCL will indeed feature an all-touch design at the front. The smartphone is unlikely to feature a physical keyboard. Speculations have it that the BlackBerry Motion would be coming with an IP67 rated chassis.

The BlackBerry Motion seems to feature a metallic frame. Below the large display is the physical Home button that may be embedded with a fingerprint sensor. It also includes a 3.5mm audio jack.

Previous reports have revealed that it may feature a huge 4,000 mAh battery that will deliver an impressive battery life of 26 hours. It is also pegged to arrive with BlackBerry’s enterprise-friendly software and security features that will make it an ideal phone for business-centric consumers.

Another reason why it seems that the BlackBerry Motion’s arrival could to be close at hand is that has been certified by Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Wi-Fi Alliance. The device is expected to feature a 5.2-inch or a 5.5-inch FHD display. The Snapdragon 625 chipset along with 4 GB of RAM is pegged to power the BlackBerry Motion. It is expected to arrive preinstalled with Android 7.0 Nougat OS.

TCL is also rumored to be working on another smartphone is allegedly codenamed as BlackBerry Juno. This phone is likely to arrive with a physical QWERTY keyboard.

Read More: Blackberry KEYone offer on Gearbest, $75 off (coupon)

BlackBerry Motion’s Launch

The launch date of BlackBerry Motion is not known. However, Quandt has revealed that it will be available through AT&T, Verizon and Sprint are likely to carry it in the U.S. In some markets like China, TCL will be selling its dual-SIM variant.

(source 1, 2)

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