BlackBerry’s upcoming device has been in rumors since it was shown off at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January. Now a character named Michael Baxter (played by Tim Allen) in the show Last Man Standing was seen using one in an episode, according to Android Headlines.
Exposure through product placement
TCL will launch the BlackBerry-branded Mercury device at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona in February. However, it appears that the company is not shy about showing off the device before the big reveal.
Allen is known to be fond of BlackBerry devices, especially those with a keyboard. The latest BlackBerry devices such as the Passport and Priv have been seen in his hands, both off and on camera. Also other characters on the show can be seen using other models from the Canadian firm such as the DTEK60, notes Android Headlines.
It is good to see that BlackBerry is getting some exposure, even through clever product placement.
BlackBerry Mercury: what to expect?
Very little information about the Mercury is available at this point. Based on reports and leaks, the device’s specifications include a 4.5-inch display with a 4:3 aspect ratio, although the resolution is not officially known. The device reportedly sports a front-mounted, touch-sensitive QWERTY keyboard which can be used as a trackpad even. A fingerprint sensor has been incorporated in the device as part of the space bar, notes Android Headlines.
It is believed that the device has a 3.5mm headphone port and a USB Type-C port as well. It could come with a mid-range Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chipset, 3GB of RAM and a powerful 3,400 mAh battery. The onboard storage is expected to be 32GB, but nothing is known about a microSD slot as of now.
A new leak about the Mercury device claims the handset will sport the same camera sensors as Google’s Pixel smartphones. In a tweet, Roland Quandt said the smartphone will sport a 12-megapixel rear camera with Sony IMX378 sensors. The handset could come with an 8-megapixel selfie camera with either a Samsung S5K4H8 or an Omnivision OV8856 sensor
Google’s Pixel smartphones boast of having the best cameras, and whether BlackBerry is able to emulate them will be worth watching. More details about the device can be expected on February 25 when TCL and BlackBerry are hosting a pre-MWC 2017 event.
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Correction: the article has been updated to say that it will be TCL launching the BlackBerry-branded Mercury device, and not BlackBerry.
