Canadian smartphone manufacturer BlackBerry recently unveiled a new device, the BlackBerry DTEK 50. While the device is relatively cheaper compared to the BlackBerry Priv, it ditches one key feature that has made the company known in the market, and that is the physical keyboard.
Unlike the BlackBerry Priv, the new DTEK 50 opted out for a full screen display. The DTEK 50 is still powered by the Android operating system and will sell for $299.
BlackBerry is hoping that the DTEK 50, with its slashed price tag, will appeal to consumers. One key factor that made the BlackBerry Priv unpopular is its massive $700 price tag. BlackBerry has picked up the blunders of the Priv and hopefully fixes it with the DTEK 50 as part of the company's effort to reinvigorate its deteriorating smartphone business.
According to CNet, BlackBerry, as usual, is banking in security features as the key selling point of the DTEK 50. Even BlackBerry head of devices division Alex Thurber went as far as calling the DTEK 50 "the world's most secure Android smartphone."
In terms of hardware specs, the BlackBerry DTEK 50 has a 5.2-inch full high definition display. At its heart is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor with 3GB of memory. It comes with 16GB of storage space which can be expanded to as much as 2TB via a memory card. The DTEK 50 will run on Android 6.0 Marshmallow, according to The Verge.
In the camera aspect, the BlackBerry DTEK 50 has 13-megapixel rear facing camera with autofocus. It also has an 8-megapixel front facing shooter for selfies. Powering the device is a 2,610mAh battery pack.
With its promise of security, BlackBerry assures consumers that it will quickly and regularly offer security patches to make sure that it is one step ahead of malicious attacks. BlackBerry also highlighted that the DTEK 50 solely manufactured by the company, therefore eliminating possible third-party flaws.