A new BlackBerry has been revealed -- but it's not for you. Unless you're a developer that is, because the new Qwerty-packing phone is a prototype for people to test their apps with the next-generation BlackBerry 10 software.
Unveiled by BlackBerry-builder Research in Motion at a developer event in Bangkok, the testy phone has a Qwerty keyboard and will be doled out on a points system.
1,500 devices will be handed out to developers based on criteria such as the number of apps they offer, and whether their apps were built specially for BlackBerry. Developers will then swap their testing device for a production phone at a later date.
A previous Dev Alpha device only had a touchscreen, so now developers can see how their apps work on traditional be-keyed BlackBerry phones. When BlackBerry 10 lands in the new year, it'll make its debut on two phones, one with a clicky keyboard and one without.
BlackBerry 10 devices have no home button, because you move directly between apps instead of hopping out to the home screen all the time.
RIM has also renamed its app store BlackBerry World. Formerly known as BlackBerry App World, the store has been renamed to reflect the fact you can also buy music, films and TV shows from the store.
BlackBerry 10 has plenty of work to do: RIM's share of the mobile phone market has gone off a cliff faster than Wile E Coyote in the last year, freezing in mid-air, blinking twice and then hurtling earthwards with a whistling sound effect. But if it's successful, RIM reckons BB10 will kill the laptop.
Do you think BlackBerry 10 will save BlackBerry or has Apple and Android got the smart phone market sewn up? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.
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davefromwales 29 November, 2012 16:32
`a previous dev alpha device`
err, i believe what you meant to say was `both previous dev alpha devices`. nothing like having the facts i guess eh lol.
As for has apple and android (aka samsung) got the smartphone market sewn up, what if you`d asked that same question of mobile phones in 2006 with whomever was top then? you`d of seemed rather shortsighted when apple launched the iphone in 2007. To suggest that the market is `stuck` with the 2 OS`s and wont move is to comletely deny all the previous history showing that tech markets can change overnight should the right product come along.
A case in point, people say RIM (and for that point MS) are `too late`, was the Blu-ray too `late` even though it killed off the hd-dvd? was the dvd `too late` when it replaced vhs tapes?
Also, while the `marketshare falling off a cliff` line is great for sensationalistic journalism, its worth noting that in the last quarter RIM added an extra 2million subscribers worldwide, and to date hasnt had even one period of negative subscriber growth.
but while we`re throwing figures around, the same report shows in germany iOS marketshare has dropped by 5% in the last year, while in germany BB marketshare has risen 1% in the last year. hardly evidence apple is dead, although you have to question why drops in marketshare for RIM are reported, and this drop for apple wasnt.
Matt Winston. 29 November, 2012 21:26
Im actually quite optimistic about RIM. They have got a very loyal fan base and every former BB owner I know has kept their device and still use it because of their messaging services.
But it needs to remember to include BBM on all devices they release, including tablets. And the January to April period is a very important period for many Android manufacturers because they are gonna unveil their flagship, which are likely to be cheap to respond to the Nexus 4 and Samsung's Galaxy range. The next generation of BB's need to be cheap to compete with its rivals.