[VeryBumpy]

After watching the live streamed event, I was bummed right out. However I have been reading the brief hands on reviews of the Keyone and they are pretty good. So maybe the bad launch didn't do too much damage.

I felt the same exact way; presentation was very amature-ish.

However, the quick <5 min. youtube hands on reviews have really sold me on the device.

[Mikey_NNG]

What a surprise... nothing but complaints. 🙄

[Luke Beauchamp]

Underpowered and costs too much?

Give me a break. You want flagship but $399 right?

You people are insane.

Posted via CB10

I'd gladly pay more for a more powerful phone.

[ubizmo]

OnePlus seems to be able to do it. The 3T is the best Android phone on the market right now with flagship specs and a low price. And it is a fantastic device all around.

I think that's why people get upset at prices like these from BlackBerry.

Then they should be upset with just about every other phone maker, because OnePlus is underselling just about every Android phone on the market, spec for spec. In fact, OnePlus should be dominating the Android market. Perhaps they will soon but at the moment people are still finding reasons to get less spec for the buck from Samsung and many others.

The KEYone looks like a midrange niche phone with a niche price. When the early adopters' tax wears off it'll settle in at $500US for the long haul.

[europolska00]

Except they all say it is underpowered and costs too much. Besides that, they are okay.

They do? I've watched three reviews. Didn't see any of them say that. So can't be "all" trashing price and specs. Your statement is false.

[anon(6125289)]

Won't be buying this. Too little bang for my buck. Time to see how the S8 turns out.

Posted via CB10

[donnation]

Then they should be upset with just about every other phone maker, because OnePlus is underselling just about every Android phone on the market, spec for spec. In fact, OnePlus should be dominating the Android market. Perhaps they will soon but at the moment people are still finding reasons to get less spec for the buck from Samsung and many others.

The KEYone looks like a midrange niche phone with a niche price. When the early adopters' tax wears off it'll settle in at $500US for the long haul.

Not really. When you take into account they barely do any marketing, don't deal with carriers, and still manage to pack in everything they pack into a phone the price they charge is beyond reasonable.

And sales doesn't have anything to do with it. If sales were what demanded a price then BB's price should be around $199.

[ToniCipriani]

I will give you that it's much better than this. And frankly I am surprised there's a price and month. Was expecting something vague like "Spring of this year" and another date announcement late April.

[kitmo]

This is interesting and the author doesn't think TCL has over priced it. https://www.cnet.com/news/blackberry...elevant-again/

[littlebuff]

I will give you that it's much better than this. And frankly I am surprised there's a price and month. Was expecting something vague like "Spring of this year" and another date announcement late April.

Lol. Yep, at least there was something there. But let see what:s going to happen in April.

Posted from my  Passport

[ToniCipriani]

This is interesting and the author doesn't think TCL has over priced it. https://www.cnet.com/news/blackberry...elevant-again/

CNet seems to have a very bad case of bi-polar disorder. Just back at CES they sounded like they writing an obituary for BlackBerry.

[lilman202020012]

Agree. I own a Priv, even though it runs hot at times, it is my daily driver for all of my Real Estate transactions. I want the Keyone but after paying over $700 bucks for the Priv when it was first release, I watched the price drop significantly over the next couple of months. The more I watch Keyone reviews on you tube the more I want it. I do feel in my heart that I would be downgrading by purchasing the Keyone but I don't want to wait forever for blackberry to update the Priv to Android 7.

[EFats]

Underpowered and costs too much?

Give me a break. You want flagship but $399 right?

You people are insane.

Posted via CB10

You know, it doesn't take much work to do comparisons nowadays. I can pick up a Moto Z Play at Best Buy for $399. ($449 from Moto directly)
What people are going to see is that it has a larger screen, the same CPU and even larger battery and it is $150 less.

If you're looking for a flagship, what most people will see is that I can go out and get, for example, LG G5 or V20 class of device for less than $100 at the carrier. Some even $0! Faster processor, bigger, higher-res display, high-res camera, more RAM, etc. Most people don't care about being tied down by that contract. Good luck getting a KEYone from the carrier.

The problem is the KEYone is showing up when the other manufacturers are about to move to their next cycle of devices. Comparable devices have already dropped in price and BB Mobile are still trying to recoup their cost on this one. You're getting a keyboard and extra security. Well news flash for you, most people don't care.

Look, don't get me wrong, I think hardware-wise it's a wonderfully designed device. I value the battery life over outright performance, I value the keyboard, I think it has solid specs that will get the job done, it's a good looking, good handling phone. But I'm in the minority.
(I am also still not sold on Android, but that's another story...:-)

[zocster]

The Priv has security and a keyboard and was priced around $600 when it launched. How well did that sell?

I'd probably wait for a fire sale like the AT&T priv on eBay...

[EFats]

Not really. When you take into account they barely do any marketing, don't deal with carriers, and still manage to pack in everything they pack into a phone the price they charge is beyond reasonable.

And sales doesn't have anything to do with it. If sales were what demanded a price then BB's price should be around $199.

It is quite well known that pretty much all the Chinese manufacturers are selling their gear at cost or even slight loss. It is not a sustainable strategy, they're hoping they can grab enough marketshare before it becomes untenable, then they will have no choice but to raise prices or quit. Right now Samsung et al. are still in the game because often you can't get the Chinese brands outside of the country or the carriers won't subsidize it for $0 (honestly, most users are quite happy to be tied to their contract to get that $100 S7). If every phone were available only unlocked at unsubsidized prices, Samsung would be losing marketshare faster than you can say "Blackberry is dead"!

Look, all these phones are made in the same factories in China with the same components, same suppliers, there is near ZERO cost advantage for any of the Chinese brands. If anyone is selling for lower cost, there are only 2 reasons: i) They are willing to make smaller profit (or none at all) or ii) they are cutting corners somewhere
Apple is the only one that can command a premium.

[consv93]

CNet seems to have a very bad case of bi-polar disorder. Just back at CES they sounded like they writing an obituary for BlackBerry.

That was actually a relatively positive article. Every time there's news about BlackBerry, that Cheng guy writes a nasty article, but this one was pretty fair.

[ubizmo]

And sales doesn't have anything to do with it. If sales were what demanded a price then BB's price should be around $199.

Expected sales have something to do with pricing. The KEYone costs more to make, due to its BlackBerry distinctives (licensing fees, hardware root-proofing, keyboard) and at the same time can be expected to appeal to fewer Android buyers than TCL's usual product. The end result is a product that costs more than other devices with similar generic specs but appeals to fewer. That's the very definition of a niche product. Niche products are inherently riskier than mainstream offerings. Unlike BlackBerry, TCL is not married to the BlackBerry brand. They're gambling that they can make some money in this niche, but if they can't they'll forget about it and move on. As a licensee I doubt very much that they're interested in reducing their margin as a kind of investment in future releases. That's what OnePlus did but I don't think TCL is walking the same path with BlackBerry, when they have their own Alcatel line as their main business. And I do expect that margin will drop by $50 per unit by September or so.

We don't know their revenue target for KEYone of course but I imagine it's modest. I don't think any sane person could expect to make a killing selling PKB phones in 2017. But it doesn't have to be a killing to be a success.

The video reviews I've watched convey a couple of points to me. First, the reviewers seem to get what this phone is all about. That's a refreshing change from some reviews of previous BlackBerry phones. Second, with that understanding in mind, they're pretty positive. That is, they see the phone as a successful attempt to appeal to a niche audience. And a few seem to think it's cool to have something like this in the Android mix, which could signal a bit of uptake outside the niche, but that's very speculative. Well, it's all speculative but that's what we're here for.

[Pez1983]

Correct me if i'm wrong, but the price of the handset is not simply about the specs of it, but all the ongoing behind the scenes stuff that comes with it... Is that fair to say or do BB / BBMobile / TCL generate a separate source of income for that??

A lot of people talk about the One+ brand. I'm sure I have read articles about shocking after sales, customer service and issues with software updates etc. That I believe is because they are selling these handsets at just above cost, making slight margins, so not being able to invest in the back office / behind the scenes infrastructure.

The device is priced acceptably for me. I will pay the £499 GBP that it will eventually go for here in the sunny UK. Yeah compare that to other handsets for similar price and their device specs sheets do read higher... And? I don't understand the importance of having the highest number on the sheet. Surly it's about the hardware / software optimisation, coupled with the build quality just as much as raw specs. Just because it has higher processing power, doesn't mean that the end user experience will be any better.

I like all the other services that BB offer. That's the 'extra' I will be paying for...

[slagman5]

I'd gladly pay more for a more powerful phone.

Wow, so they would have the sales of like the 14 of you here who would be willing to. Damn, missed opportunity...

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

[slagman5]

This is interesting and the author doesn't think TCL has over priced it. https://www.cnet.com/news/blackberry...elevant-again/

Well, people here like to compare it to phones that do not have the same features and without the updates/support. Anyone who thinks you can compare the KeyOne to one of these other phones apples to apples is out of their mind.

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

[u4ria]

Well, people here like to compare it to phones that do not have the same features and without the updates/support. Anyone who thinks you can compare the KeyOne to one of these other phones apples to apples is out of their mind.

Posted without the aid of AutoCorrect with my physical keyboard via CB10

Did you get a chance to try the following:

Play some media. Be it music or whatever. On the volume rocker, in the middle were you able to pause what was playing like you could on BlackBerry 10 devices?

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

Many of the reviews I've seen have been very positive.... I think most see the KeyOne as TCL and BlackBerry envisioned it. An Enterprise workhorse that isn't suppose to compete with the OnePlus, Huawei or Moto phones on the market.

This is NOT a phone that is going to crack open the CONSUMER MARKET! Wasn't meant to be.

I do agree it would have been nice to see two version... on a real Flagship ($900) and the other the workhorse. But volume for a PKB just is too much of an unknown. Probably not enough of a market for two PKB phones at one time.

If you want a BlackBerry branded phone, you want the security, you want the few features that can't be had via an app subscription, and you want a Keyboard... you'll pay a $150 premium to get it.

[slagman5]

Did you get a chance to try the following:

Play some media. Be it music or whatever. On the volume rocker, in the middle were you able to pause what was playing like you could on BlackBerry 10 devices?

Unfortunately that's one thing this phone is missing, but there is an Android app out there called Frinky Music Controller that can allow you to use the volume keys to control the music. There might be others as well.