[Munx]

1. Earlier this month, at Re/Code, Chen refuses to comment on whether BlackBerry will develop an Android phone.

2. Today N4BB posts that the entire app group is getting cut - 2000 people.

This leads me to believe that one possibility is that BlackBerry is going to test market an Android device. Maybe they will brand it as secured by BlackBerry and have a Blackberry protected area on the phone. Maybe it will be stock droid. Doesn't matter as the deal will secure access to Google Play for their BB10 devices and will totally eliminate the app problem.

Costs go down, apps go up, and they may even sell a bunch of Android devices.

This would be a huge move and in my opinion is not beyond the realm of possibility.

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[howarmat]

it wont solve google play on BB10. It would just be another android device in the sea of android devices.

[Munx]

I think it comes close:

BB10.3 + Google Play = better than anything they can offer now.

BB10.4 will hopefully be near native smoothness, compatibility, and experience.

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[vinniesworld]

They simply wont be able to compete in the sea of Android even if they have an Android trialled handset. I can't honestly see it's going to convince many having Android on a handset and still hold the security BlackBerry are famous for.
It's going to take a lot more than squirting Android on to a BlackBerry in order to sell it.

Sony and Samsung have huge marketing budgets and have all but saturated the Android market, then we have the best of the rest.

Give BB10 time to mature, it's barely just out of the first stage of diapers and look where it is already, the Android runtime is getting better each time and it's clear they are working hard on it. To suggest an Android BlackBerry goes against everything BlackBerry is and becomes just another Android handset with a corporate name on it.

Of course as per thread title speculation will always be rife and open to huge amounts of interpretation and debate.

[Glenn Biddle]

Funny I saw no such story on N4BB. I did see that in another thread on Crack berry Rumors.

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[howarmat]

I think it comes close:

BB10.3 + Google Play = better than anything they can offer now.

BB10.4 will hopefully be near native smoothness, compatibility, and experience.

Posted via CB10

google wont allow it, they would first need to be a part of the OHA and actually run android within bb10. Not just a "runtime"

[sentimentGX4]

I say that Blackberry will probably launch an Android handset if/before it exits the handset business for whatever reason. It really would have nothing to lose at that point and creating another stock Android is cheap.

[Munx]

The success of the Android device is not the end game, rather access to Google Play and the elimination of the single largest gap in the BB10 ecosystem: apps.

The android device may not sell well, I think there is a larger strategy at play. Chen gets Play access for BB10, and gets a free roll at an Android device, and gets to reduce his workforce by 1/4.

It's all in the negotiation.

The N4BB article is located under their forums.

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[lnichols]

Maybe they will keep BB10 and just have devs bring in our APK files. I've found some Android apps run better than native and get updated quicker too.

Posted with a BlackBerry Z10

[John Vieira]

If Blackberry build an Android phone, then it really is the end.

Even assuming that it COULD be secure. And function to the same standards as BB10, it will still be an awful idea.

Blackberry can't compete on hardware.

They make nice phones, with decent hardware, and can even make a special skin (eww, skinning android) to work better with hardware keyboards.

The other OEMs will eat Blackberry for lunch.

For BlackBerry to succeed, it has to be with its own OS, maybe not even on their own hardware.

Or drop the OS altogether and just run services. Would suck for the BlackBerry loyals, but sometimes you have to cut the branch to save the tree.

Releasing an Android phone would be a laughable experience. I for one would not bother, much better hardware out there, if I'm going to just flash stock Android on it anyway.

Welcome... to the world of TOMORROW!

[Witmen]

The success of the Android device is not the end game, rather access to Google Play and the elimination of the single largest gap in the BB10 ecosystem: apps.

The android device may not sell well, I think there is a larger strategy at play. Chen gets Play access for BB10, and gets a free roll at an Android device, and gets to reduce his workforce by 1/4.

It's all in the negotiation.

The N4BB article is located under their forums.

Posted via CB10

Get real people, Google will NEVER give BlackBerry 10 official access to Google Play. It won't happen. No scenario in the freaking world makes sense for that to happen.

If Google was going to tick off every single member of the OHA would they really do it to help out BlackBerry 10? A platform that is completely irrelevant in the current smartphone market. Why in the world would they do that? They wouldn't and that's really all there is to it.

The people still dreaming of Google Play on BB10 should perhaps cut their losses and get a Jolla Sailfish smartphone. It has a very similar UI to BB10 thanks to BlackBerry copying it from when it was still MeeGo and it has Google services including Google Play store. It's not BB10 with Google Play, but it will probably be the closest we can get to it.

[Munx]

If BlackBerry want to make an Android device they will indeed be granted access to Google Play.

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[howarmat]

If BlackBerry want to make an Android device they will indeed be granted access to Google Play.

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yes to run only on that android device...not bb10 devices

[Munx]

Blackberry will negotiate Play access for BB10 if they develop android.

"Never going to happen" is the opinion of some and I understand that. But I've seen a lot stranger/more difficult deals occur.

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[birdman_38]

Not sure what the entire "app group" being cut means but that would have implications for BlackBerry Android as well. Unless they plan to use stock vanilla Android, BlackBerry will still need people to build Android apps and skins to personalize it to BlackBerry.

[Witmen]

Blackberry will negotiate Play access for BB10 if they develop android.

"Never going to happen" is the opinion of some and I understand that. But I've seen a lot stranger/more difficult deals occur.

Posted via CB10

Negotiate? Do you really think BlackBerry is negotiating this with Google? What, do you think Google is just sitting around hoping that BlackBerry will make a device that runs Android, and if they do, Google will be so thankful that they will just give BB10 access to the Google Play store in return?

Come on, just typing that stuff up made me laugh. It will never happen. Google will never, ever, give BB10 access to Google Play and I have no idea why anyone would believe that there is even a remote chance of that happening.

Hasn't BlackBerry even said that they wasn't trying to get Google Play on BB10?

EDIT:

Here is the quote -

“We can confirm that there is no planned support for Google Play on BlackBerry. BlackBerry World remains the primary source for trusted and curated BlackBerry applications and we continue to support open standards and open source tools so BlackBerry developers can continue to create apps on any of the development platforms we support.”

[FR33MAN]

Maybe they will try to do like Nokia, coming with a custom hybrid android phone. Could be an idea. A successful one, nobody knows.

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[lawguyman]

Negotiate? Do you really think BlackBerry is negotiating this with Google? What, do you think Google is just sitting around hoping that BlackBerry will make a device that runs Android, and if they do, Google will be so thankful that they will just give BB10 access to the Google Play store in return?

Come on, just typing that stuff up made me laugh. It will never happen. Google will never, ever, give BB10 access to Google Play and I have no idea why anyone would believe that there is even a remote chance of that happening.

Hasn't BlackBerry even said that they wasn't trying to get Google Play on BB10?

EDIT:

Here is the quote -

�We can confirm that there is no planned support for Google Play on BlackBerry. BlackBerry World remains the primary source for trusted and curated BlackBerry applications and we continue to support open standards and open source tools so BlackBerry developers can continue to create apps on any of the development platforms we support.�

"No planned support."

True at the time.

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[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

Trial

You don't layoff 2000 engineers and the whole App Developers department if you are testing the waters.

IF that tumor is true.... how ironic would it be if the Classic is an Android?

Just don't see it happening....

Posted via Android CrackBerry App

[018125]

BlackBerry would please a lot of hardcore users if they allowed us to sideload a fully compatible google play services apk.

Doesn't need to be official, but what we do with our phones is not BlackBerry's fault.

[crazigee]

BlackBerry would please a lot of hardcore users if they allowed us to sideload a fully compatible google play services apk.

Doesn't need to be official, but what we do with our phones is not BlackBerry's fault.

That's pretty much what Snap is.

Posted using my Z10 via CB10

[crazigee]

Negotiate? Do you really think BlackBerry is negotiating this with Google? What, do you think Google is just sitting around hoping that BlackBerry will make a device that runs Android, and if they do, Google will be so thankful that they will just give BB10 access to the Google Play store in return?

Come on, just typing that stuff up made me laugh. It will never happen. Google will never, ever, give BB10 access to Google Play and I have no idea why anyone would believe that there is even a remote chance of that happening.

Hasn't BlackBerry even said that they wasn't trying to get Google Play on BB10?

EDIT:

Here is the quote -

�We can confirm that there is no planned support for Google Play on BlackBerry. BlackBerry World remains the primary source for trusted and curated BlackBerry applications and we continue to support open standards and open source tools so BlackBerry developers can continue to create apps on any of the development platforms we support.�

Yeah, I'm with you. A negotiation involves something being offered that the other party wants. I don't really know what BlackBerry has to offer Google.

Posted using my Z10 via CB10

[018125]

That's pretty much what Snap is.

Posted using my Z10 via CB10

No, it pretty much isn't. I said Google Play Services.

[birdman_38]

If that tumor is true.... how ironic would it be if the Classic is an Android?

"It's not a tumor!" ~ Kindergarten Cop

[ShaneVich1]

I could see Google giving BlackBerry access to Google Play just to **** off Apple and Microsoft, especially the latter. The best way to revive BlackBerry for consumers would be to give each 10 device available access to the Play store and services. That gives BB10 a massive advantage over Windows Phone. That chips away at WP's growing market share and Apple's dwindling numbers compared to Android. Google wants access to everyone so why not bring BlackBerry back to third and have their nose in the iron door while they're at it? In return, BlackBerry makes a line of Android or "hybrid" devices both touch and qwerty.

All signs are pointing to either an Android by BlackBerry or Google Play on BlackBerry. That or fear/wishful thinking is getting the better of people.

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