BlackBerry KEYone Available Today In The U.S. And Canada

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The BlackBerry KEYone is now available in the United States and Canada. The handset is being sold at select Best Buy stores and on Amazon for $549.99. Sprint will also be offering the handset in its stores and online, but not until later this summer.

BlackBerry KEYone is tough, durable and secure

On Amazon, the GSM and CDMA versions are both available for $549. The GSM version will be work on networks such as T-Mobile, AT&T and some other carriers such as Cricket Wireless. The CDMA version will work on the Verizon network.

“BlackBerry fans in the U.S. will be extremely excited to have the KEYone available in their market,” said Alex Thurber, Sr. Vice President and General Manager of BlackBerry Mobility Solutions.

Further, Thurber stated that anyone looking for a secure mobile running on Android will love this handset.

The BlackBerry KEYone, which was showcased at MWC in Spain in February, comes encased in an aluminum frame and soft textured back for a better grip. The handset has Gorilla Glass 4, which is known for its toughness and durability, and runs on Android 7.1 Nougat, offering users access to the Google Play Store and more than 1 million apps.

Many potential buyers are excited about the BlackBerry KEYone’s physical keyboard and outstanding battery life. The KEYone’s QWERTY keyboard doubles as a makeshift trackpad, just like those in older BlackBerry phones. The 52 buttons on the keypad can be customized as shortcuts as well. The spacebar also doubles as a fingerprint scanner, increasing the security of the device.

Powerful specs make a strong case

The BlackBerry KEYone has a 4.5-inch 1620×1080 display with retro keys and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor. The phone, which has a 3,505 mAh battery, is the first device to come with “Boost charging technology,” which is capable of charging 50% of the battery in 36 minutes. The handset comes with 32GB of internal memory, which sounds sufficient for those using cloud services to save important documents. But if it’s not enough, you can always expand it by up to 2 TB with a microSD card.

The smartphone sports a 12MP main camera with a top-notch camera sensor (Sony IMX378) that takes sharp, crisp photos in all types of lighting. For superior color and clarity, the camera has a wide aperture lens with a dual-tone flash. The 8-megapixel front camera comes with focus, an LCD flash and an 84-degree wide angle lens.

When it comes to security, BlackBerry stands out, and the KEYone is no exception. Users will be able to identify risks and eliminate them by taking the appropriate actions. The handset will also get monthly Android updates for a safe and secure Android experience.

BlackBerry shares were down Tuesday after Raymond James downgraded them to Market Perform from Outperform. The research firm’s analysts stated that they are only “tapping the brakes,” as the shares have already surged 42% since they upgraded them in August 2016, and they now see “limited return to target.”

Recently, the Canadian firm announced that it will get $940 million from Qualcomm as part of an arbitration settlement. This fund, according to the analysts, can be used by BlackBerry for acquisitions to boost its software revenue.

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