BlackBerry phones could be nearing their end, and this could benefit Microsoft’s Lumia line-up, says a report from PCmag by Sascha Segan. By combining the rising popularity of Windows 10 and the upcoming Lumias, Microsoft could make substantial gains in the smartphone market.
BlackBerry transition an opportunity for Microsoft
BlackBerry CEO John Chen said the company’s sales were “bottoming out,” but the company could sell just 800,000 handsets in the last quarter. Chen introduced the new Android-powered BlackBerry Priv, and it truly befuddled.
BlackBerry will be out of the handset business, but it won’t disappear as a company, believes Segan. The company is making a smooth and gradual transition to becoming the leading provider of business management and security software for all kinds of mobile devices. The Canadian firm’s QNX platform has a very important role to play in cars and the Internet of Things (IoT) segment.
This transition of BlackBerry could be a huge opportunity for Microsoft, and the tech firm must take advantage of it when it unveils its Lumia 950 models on Oct. 6, says Segan.
Upcoming Lumias hold the key
Microsoft has lacked high-end phones in its line-up for about a year now, and the upcoming devices Lumia 950 and Lumia 950XL could fill in the gap. Several leaks of the two devices suggest that they are not pushing any boundaries and are keeping pace with state-of-the-art technology. Microsoft’s new Lumias are rumored to come with quad-HD screens and sport a 20-megapixel camera. They are expected to run on the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor. Such features will put these two devices in the same league as the Samsung Galaxy S6 and iPhone 6s Plus.
Microsoft’s new Lumia line-up will give it an opportunity to sweep up clients that are still with BlackBerry and also block corporations from making the transition to Android. VPN and mobile device management support, full-device encryption, and enterprise Wi-Fi support are some of the enterprise-friendly features that come with the Windows Phone.
Despite being useful, the Lumia’s adoption came to a halt because all users who can afford more than a mid-range device do not opt for Windows phones. Instead, they either choose to cling with their BlackBerry devices or they switch to the iPhone. App developers, who prefer carrying flashy devices, look to Windows Phone as a “low-end afterthought rather than a major target platform,” says Segan, adding, “That’s where the 950 and 950XL come in.”
