[AmritD]

And things are getting extremely interesting.
Well it sure is a rumor but all things add up very well to make me believe this could actually be happening. And if it is, they shouldn't price it $399 I feel. At the max $299 for all security BlackBerry brings.

Z30STA100-2/10.3.2.2639

[ChainPunch]

That makes since for the Hamburg, as Chen has stated many times he does not see how he can make money on full touchscreen phone given the well developed market in that area. Outsourcing the full touchscreen device may given Chen what he needs to make a profit on a slab phone and it may allow alcatel to reach wider markets given blackberry sales channels.

Posted via CB10

[bbafdad]

BlackBerry has such a loyal fan base because of their uniqueness. If they continue to conform and blur the lines from what's original BlackBerry and what's added on or merged tech...first BlackBerry let's android gut their OS and now another manufacturer is gutting their hardware...after the dust settles will what ever is left even be a BlackBerry?? To answer your question, I definitely wouldn't be interested for the above reasons.

Posted via CB10

[jrsilver00]

Aside from both phones being slabs, they don't look anything alike? I realize one is just a rendering, but there is just no similarity between those two phones. You can put an iphone, htc, or whatever in place of that alcatel phone and it will look no more, or no less similar.
Having said that, the rendering is a pretty classy looking phone. And it looks very much like it would belong in the BB family.

What would be the purpose of rebranding someone else's phone? Are they just going to harden the kernel and everything else is essentially as is? We already know security doesn't mean much at the consumer level, or BB's other phones would have had some success. So why wouldn't someone just purchase the Acatel phone at what I am guessing will be a lower price?

[ChainPunch]

It would save blackberry money in hardware cost, as Alcatel would use their supply chain to get the parts and put the phone together. Of course the blackberry alcatel device would have all of the blackberry software like the Priv and hardware chip for security.

It is a win-win situation for both companies, as each company is bringing something to the table that the other one does not have by themselves.

Posted via CB10

[jrsilver00]

Sorry, I should have been more clear in my question. I understand why they would, in theory, do this. But how does it result in consumer sales? Most of that BB software is available in google app store, if i'm not mistaken. The hardened chip doesn't seem to be something the consumer market cares about. So if they can get literally the same phone for $200 less, why would they purchase a BB phone? I'm a BB fan and even I wouldn't see the merit in that. I guess if it is intended mostly for enterprise customers it makes some sense, but they can secure any BYOD with BES/Good at this point. Just seems like if they don't really have much to offer in the way of innovation, they should just get out of devices and focus on security and IOT.

[Bbnivende]

So I was wondering about the dimensions. The render has dimensions closer to the PRIV. Perhaps this is a test mule for some aspects but not the final prototype. Maybe the screen might be 5.4 inches .

Maybe the render was a educated guess based on viewing the device rather than measuring it.

Regardless, I could see Enterprise paying more for a BlackBerry product.
I am not surprised that BlackBerry might share internals with another manufacturer .

Two points:

BlackBerry had better put in a larger battery.

The phone can not be made in China by Alcatel.

Posted via CB10

[brookie229]

Nokia has or is in the process of BUYING Alcatel. Will they have any input if any of this is true?

[early2bed]

[valer466]

OT: Can these android blackberry's record voice calls?

Or have they disabled this facility too which is intrinsic to most androids because of their non-existent privacy halo.

Sold the passport. Pending priv purchase. Just need a confirmation.

[IndianTiwari]

Credible information from Bla1ze carries lot of weight.

[Matty]

I am not surprised that BlackBerry might share internals with another manufacturer .

Two points:

BlackBerry had better put in a larger battery.

The phone can not be made in China by Alcatel.

Posted via CB10

The battery won't be smaller than 3,000mAh. That seems to be the baseline for 2016.


A Berry A Day Keeps The Apple Away

[ToniCipriani]

Nokia has or is in the process of BUYING Alcatel. Will they have any input if any of this is true?

Nokia only bought the Alcatel-Lucent bit. Alcatel's handset division became wholly owned by TCL. But in turn Nokia's former handset division is being sold by Microsoft to Foxconn and a partnership held by Nokia and some former employees.

[uncle_numpty]

If it's a rebadged unit will it still include BBRY's id/serial no chip ??

Becasue if it doesn't then it's no more secure than any other android and the only value BBRY would have added to it will be sticking their name on it - which I could argue should lower it's perceived value.

[NG888]

Are they rebranding the device as is, or only internals, or does the external lean more towards renders? Idol 4 is very typical android looking device. I hope they differentiate slightly external device or I'm gonna pass.

Posted via the CrackBerry App for Android

[slagman5]

Aside from both phones being slabs, they don't look anything alike? I realize one is just a rendering, but there is just no similarity between those two phones. You can put an iphone, htc, or whatever in place of that alcatel phone and it will look no more, or no less similar.
Having said that, the rendering is a pretty classy looking phone. And it looks very much like it would belong in the BB family.

What would be the purpose of rebranding someone else's phone? Are they just going to harden the kernel and everything else is essentially as is? We already know security doesn't mean much at the consumer level, or BB's other phones would have had some success. So why wouldn't someone just purchase the Acatel phone at what I am guessing will be a lower price?

I like how you're 100% focused on the looks and would completely ignore the hardware specs and other possible unique hardware features, lol.

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

[ToniCipriani]

I like how you're 100% focused on the looks and would completely ignore the hardware specs and other possible unique hardware features, lol.

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

Well he has a point... slabs will always be slabs, lol.

[ubizmo]

What would be the purpose of rebranding someone else's phone? Are they just going to harden the kernel and everything else is essentially as is? We already know security doesn't mean much at the consumer level, or BB's other phones would have had some success. So why wouldn't someone just purchase the Acatel phone at what I am guessing will be a lower price?

The purpose would be to make the phone attractive as a corporate fleet phone, not a consumer phone. As you point out, we already know that the hardened kernel and other security features mean little to consumers. If anything, the locked bootloader is an anti-feature to many consumers.

So yes, the average consumer will just get the equivalent Alcatel phone without BlackBerry's add-ons, because the average consumer isn't interested in those add-ons--at least not interested enough to pay more for them.

[aha]

I don't like the design but it's an interesting business model... if it's true

[ToniCipriani]

And things are getting extremely interesting.
Well it sure is a rumor but all things add up very well to make me believe this could actually be happening. And if it is, they shouldn't price it $399 I feel. At the max $299 for all security BlackBerry brings.

Z30STA100-2/10.3.2.2639

FWIW, competitors include the Huawei Honor 5X at $199, Moto G4 with the same specs is $225. Also the Galaxy C series is incoming, this segment is going to get very crowded.

[pstrusi]

If the rumor is true, under current conditions, I don't see any motive to buy a mediocre BB hardware specs android phone. I wish really that Blackberry will begin its comeback as long loyal customer, but I've been feeling disappointed from its bad decisions abandoning constantly its loyal customer with ditched products. I'm aware that the abysmal apps gap is impossible to close with the excellent OS10, so they're forced to go android, but in such competitive market they have to offer high specs, extra BB features, good prices, durable, and the security that the company won't close any time soon.

I have a classic, pretty satisfied with it, but in a year or when I have to do the jump to another device, if I don't see Blackberry really with a smart attitude in the smartphone market, I'd probably buy another brand: nexus, samsung, lg..etc

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

interesting indeed. Does BB have the balls to actually sell this device for $400 when you can get the real Idol 4 for like half that price? Guess time will tell

TIME... that is the real problem. The Idol 4 was released Feb of 2016, the Hamburg is suppose to be the later of the two new Android device... we are guessing at Feb 2017 or sometime just before the end of this fiscal year. By then Alcatel will have the Idol 5, the Idol 4 will be $100 - $150.

BlackBerry is a middleman with very high overhead, thus they are adding a big markup on any device they touch. I think Chen is going to try to account for this by replacing the retailers... but that too will add to their cost of selling these devcies. You will pay a premium to own a BlackBerry...

[gizmo21]

Now, remember all that talk of there being a 'special key'? Well, guess what, the Idol 4 has a special key as well. It's called the Boom Key and as Android Central notes, it's similar to that of what we would know as a convenience key on BlackBerry.

Alcatel's also introducing a new programmable button in its latest devices. The "Boom" key, located on the right edge, can perform a variety of tasks depending on what the phone's currently doing. With the screen off, a quick press launches you directly into the camera app. At the launcher, the Boom key fires up an animation reflecting current weather conditions. And within Alcatel's video app, you can press the key to trigger special video effects.

Needless to say, along with the specs, looks, and that special key mention, this rumor is starting to carry a lot of weight.

If only the PRIVs (atm) useless middle volume button will get those special (self)-programmable features on MM, i'm OK with this rumor

[jrsilver00]

I like how you're 100% focused on the looks and would completely ignore the hardware specs and other possible unique hardware features, lol.

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

Uh, that's because I was replying directly to Blaize's post insinuating that the two handsets look alike. You should pay more attention.

And beyond that, the specs are run of the mill, and there is nothing "unique" because they are just rumored to be rebranding someone else's phone. So why would I focus on that?

[slagman5]

Well he has a point... slabs will always be slabs, lol.

Lol, true. I make that joke all of the time if one of my friends try to talk crap about iPhones and how they are "sheep." I would say, "Yah, good thing you got this glass slab that's not that glass slab because it's just like the other glass slab, but your glass slab is not that glass slab." lol

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