The CES 2017 just happened and while laptops were given much attention during this year's tradeshow, new models of smartphones did not miss the spotlight. One of the phones that received a fair share of attention is BlackBerry Mercury.
Besides the confirmation from BlackBerry CEO John Chen that this will be the last smartphone from the company, Mercury got people talking because of its new exciting features. What are the specs of BlackBerry Mercury and when will it be out in the market?
At first glance, the new Blackberry Mercury looks like any ordinary BB with its classic QWERTY keyboard. It gives a blast of the past with a slight resemblance of classic BlackBerry phones. It quite looks like the BlackBerry Passport, although this one is a little less bulky.
However, Phone Arena's review of it suggests that this phone is a mishmash of classic BlackBerry look and modern technology. BlackBerry Mercury's hardware and software are both up-to-date.
BlackBerry Mercury will run on Android 7.0 Nougat, a first for a BB handset. Similar to the Priv, this one comes with grid-based app switcher. But unlike Priv, it does not have a sliding keyboard. Instead, its keyboard is a permanent fixture of the handset's face.
Other than this keyboard feature, it is noticeable that the speaker is now located at the top of the device alongside the front-facing camera. This is a far cry from previous BB phones that have the speaker at the bottom part.
Rumor has it that this new smartphone from BlackBerry will have a fingerprint scanner embedded in its keyboard's space bar. This revolutionary feature lets users unlock the phone promptly.
BlackBerry Mercury is set to launch during the latter part of 2017. After its release, BlackBerry will be leaving the smartphone business for good. This is due to the slow decline in market share, Express.co.uk noted.
Fans of the Canadian tech brand need not worry because Chen promised that they will continue to work with third companies around the world to outsource the design and building of smartphones. The exec assured that more BB phones will come out over time.