[water_rodent]

For various reasons, I recently decided to move from my PRIV to the DTEK60, rather than the new KeyOne, mainly because I don't use a pbk much anymore and because I also use VR apps in the classroom. Nothing against the KeyOne itself, but my wife has the 60 and loves it.

Suddenly, though, the DTEK60 seems to have fallen off the radar to buy new, at least in the US, just one month after a sale price on ShopBlackberry. B&H Photo has it listed at $449, which is a good price, but neither Amazon nor Best Buy carry it new anymore and that is where ShopBlackberry sends you when you look there now.

I don't really want to buy a discontinued phone, but is the KeyOne the only option if I want to stay with Blackberry?

[Uzi]

You can buy other brands phone but still stay with BlackBerry, install the bb suite apps

[Bertie Bear]

I don't really want to buy a discontinued phone, but is the KeyOne the only option if I want to stay with Blackberry?

Well, the Dtek60 (along with the Priv and the Dtek50) are still receiving monthly security updates from BlackBerry so they are still being supported. Its open to question whether any of them will be upgraded to Nougat (my view is not).
Going forward, if you want a phone with the BlackBerry logo and one which will have its Android OS upgraded, its pretty much just the KEYone at the moment.
There was talk of at least one new slab phone coming later this year, but after all the problems with the KEYone, TCL will need to up its game and IMO review its pricing policy.

[lou2969]

There was talk of at least one new slab phone coming later this year, but after all the problems with the KEYone, TCL will need to up its game and IMO review its pricing policy.

What problems the Keyone is having??!

Posted via CB10

[thurask]

What problems the Keyone is having??!

Posted via CB10

Some people have speaker issues, others have dead keys out of the box, apparently holding the device by the bottom kills the cell signal, but most infamously, some devices have little to no adhesive holding the screen to the body, causing the screen to fall off. That last one is known enough that BlackBerry Mobile made a statement.

[Macdtek]

is it just BB phone that get hammered? or is it all manufacturers?

just bought a motog5 for my daughter's first phone, straight out of the box no issues or problems.

[Bay 13]

That is a question that I have been asking too. The 60 was released with the old O.S. It is less than a year old and rumor has it that it will not get Android N. At the time of this post it doesn't have the June security update. BlackBerry Mobile can do whatever they want...good thing we as consumers have choices to buy from other manufacturers who will support products they sale.

[conite]

BlackBerry Mobile can do whatever they want...good thing we as consumers have choices to buy from other manufacturers who will support products they sale.

As the KEYᵒⁿᵉ is the first ever device by BlackBerry Mobile, it is yet to be seen what the support will be like. It is completely unrelated to what BlackBerry chose to do with its own devices in the past.

[Bay 13]

As the KEYᵒⁿᵉ is the first ever device by BlackBerry Mobile, it is yet to be seen what the support will be like. It is completely unrelated to what BlackBerry chose to do with its own devices in the past.

I agree with you on that. From Info from other threads it seems that BlackBerry Mobile customer support has been hit or miss and some people cannot separate BlackBerry Mobile from BlackBerry when it comes to the Dtek phones because TCl made them. It would leave a bad taste in the mouth if 60 is abandoned this soon.

[lou2969]

Wow. 0|0

Didn't know about these. Problems
Thanks for the clarification

Posted via CB10

[valer466]

Well at the risk of sounding like an ignoramus, is the SD 625 chip future proof for receiving Android O? I mean sooner or later we'll have those threads on CB and to make matters worse people would think Keyone is defo from BlackBerry the keyboard company and not the vkb tcl BlackBerry mobile company, & lament that bb the keyboard company didnt future proof it... Oh the joys of being a Crackberry of the Vkb BlackBerry company..

[conite]

Well at the risk of sounding like an ignoramus, is the SD 625 chip future proof for receiving Android O? I mean sooner or later we'll have those threads on CB and to make matters worse people would think Keyone is defo from BlackBerry the keyboard company and not the vkb tcl BlackBerry mobile company, & lament that bb the keyboard company didnt future proof it... Oh the joys of being a Crackberry of the Vkb BlackBerry company..

No problem for O.

[thurask]

Well at the risk of sounding like an ignoramus, is the SD 625 chip future proof for receiving Android O? I mean sooner or later we'll have those threads on CB and to make matters worse people would think Keyone is defo from BlackBerry the keyboard company and not the vkb tcl BlackBerry mobile company, & lament that bb the keyboard company didnt future proof it... Oh the joys of being a Crackberry of the Vkb BlackBerry company..

I think the OEM's policies matter more than the chip inside. Still, for example, Moto is good with Android updates and the G5 Plus launched with Nougat and the 625 earlier this year, that's extremely likely to get O.

[bhoqeem]

You can buy other brands phone but still stay with BlackBerry, install the bb suite apps

Nah, it's really not the same. Especially on performance and stability. I've tried that on Zenfone 6, Max, and Vivo, before finally getting the Aurora. And DTEK only available on blandroid devices. So, really, it's not the same.

[RCM78]

Nah, it's really not the same. Especially on performance and stability. I've tried that on Zenfone 6, Max, and Vivo, before finally getting the Aurora. And DTEK only available on blandroid devices. So, really, it's not the same.

Agreed. While I like Samsung's hardware, their phones are so loaded down with bloatware that they are borderline unusable after coming from the super clean BB Android build. Unless you can load stock Android onto other devices (which I'm not sure of) I won't be using anything but BB devices even if that means going back to the PKB (currently loving the DTEK60).

[Dmd74]

It is surprising to me as well that it seems like the DTEK60 is being phased out. Perhaps that is not the situation but it sure seems that way. In regards to not wanting a discounted phone, I don't necessarily understand your viewpoint. I am the owner of a Idol 4s for Windows and a KeyOne. Both are great phones in my opinion. I purchased the Idol for $250 new. It has some flaws but all in all a great phone. For what I paid for it I consider the phone a steal. That phone is probably further from being phased out than the DTEK60 is, despite them being sister phones. I would love to have a DETK60 too but like you, they are becoming increasingly difficult to find. Especially for what I would like to pay. I wouldn't think that you would have anything to worry about though. The 60 should be a viable phone for the immediate future I think, 12-18 months. To me that is typical of how long a phone should last nowadays.

[Willieray3]

It is surprising to me as well that it seems like the DTEK60 is being phased out. Perhaps that is not the situation but it sure seems that way. In regards to not wanting a discounted phone, I don't necessarily understand your viewpoint. I am the owner of a Idol 4s for Windows and a KeyOne. Both are great phones in my opinion. I purchased the Idol for $250 new. It has some flaws but all in all a great phone. For what I paid for it I consider the phone a steal. That phone is probably further from being phased out than the DTEK60 is, despite them being sister phones. I would love to have a DETK60 too but like you, they are becoming increasingly difficult to find. Especially for what I would like to pay. I wouldn't think that you would have anything to worry about though. The 60 should be a viable phone for the immediate future I think, 12-18 months. To me that is typical of how long a phone should last nowadays.

I wouldn't invest in the Dtek60, a 7 month old device that is phased out already and is not slated to get nougat along with spotty security updates is a waste of money. Save up a few more dollars and get a Pixel that will have a guaranteed 2 years of support.

[GendelPrime]

as long as the Dtek series and PRIV are receiving security updates you can't say they are abandoned. Remember BlackBerry always required a new phone to upgrade the os OS 5 phones didn't get OS 6; OS 6 phones didn't get OS 7. All of those phones still received updates but they did not get the next major release. This maybe a return of that strategy from BlackBerry. I don't like it. I will be sticking with Nexus and Pixels for the future

[Willieray3]

as long as the Dtek series and PRIV are receiving security updates you can't say they are abandoned. Remember BlackBerry always required a new phone to upgrade the os OS 5 phones didn't get OS 6; OS 6 phones didn't get OS 7. All of those phones still received updates but they did not get the next major release. This maybe a return of that strategy from BlackBerry. I don't like it. I will be sticking with Nexus and Pixels for the future

That's the problem, they are not receiving security updates, they skipped April and now no June update. The writing is there K1 will be the same in 6 months

[conite]

That's the problem, they are not receiving security updates, they skipped April and now no June update. The writing is there K1 will be the same in 6 months

It's not "their" KEYᵒⁿᵉ. That's a TCL device, and only TCL controls how long the support will be.

[nuff_said]

It's not "their" KEYᵒⁿᵉ. That's a TCL device, and only TCL controls how long the support will be.

Agreed but IIRC doesn't BlackBerry control the software aspect of the device? If yes, TCL is at the mercy of BlackBerry providing software support that ultimately dictates how long the device will be supported. Given the track record with the DTEK lines I don't see the K1 being supported into 2018.

Having said that JC is focused on developing software for enterprise and most don't care for the latest iteration of Android, and many have the minimum amount of security they need for their business (BES, MobileIron) so monthly patches need not apply.

Consumers, like most of us on this site, are not a priority and given how much attention BlackBerry has provided to supporting consumers (e.g. directing to CB for support, lack of answers to questions etc.) the consumer market for them is marked as dead. The writing is on the wall but many just don't want to believe it.

[conite]

Agreed but IIRC doesn't BlackBerry control the software aspect of the device? If yes, TCL is at the mercy of BlackBerry providing software support that ultimately dictates how long the device will be supported.

No, that's not how licencing works.

The contract between TCL and BlackBerry would state precisely both the term and breadth of BlackBerry's obligation to support a particular product. It is TCL's job to negotiate that clause, and TCL's responsibility alone to determine what support it will offer to its customers.

[nuff_said]

No, that's not how licencing works.

The contract between TCL and BlackBerry would state precisely both the term and breadth of BlackBerry's obligation to support a particular product. It is TCL's job to negotiate that clause, and TCL's responsibility alone to determine what support it will offer to its customers.

OK makes sense but said licencing agreement would have clauses and language that dictates justification and penalties to break the agreement. I'm confident BlackBerry would exercise this if they no longer see a benefit, for them, to continue proceeding with supporting software on TCL consumer devices.
In all fairness BlackBerry taking this action is pure, undeniably, 100% speculation on my part but I still stand by my earlier statement the K1 won't be supported in 2018.

[conite]

OK makes sense but said licencing agreement would have clauses and language that dictates justification and penalties to break the agreement. I'm confident BlackBerry would exercise this if they no longer see a benefit, for them, to continue proceeding with supporting software on TCL consumer devices.
In all fairness BlackBerry taking this action is pure, undeniably, 100% speculation on my part but I still stand by my earlier statement the K1 won't be supported in 2018.

If that is the case, then that would be on TCL for making a poor agreement. If I was licencing, I would make 100% positive my support was bulletproof.

TCL is spending big bucks, and it would be astonishing if they allowed a "weasel" clause.

[chi-town311]

If that is the case, then that would be on TCL for making a poor agreement. If I was licencing, I would make 100% positive my support was bulletproof.

TCL is spending big bucks, and it would be astonishing if they allowed a "weasel" clause.

There are no 100% bulletproof agreements. There are always ways to end an agreement. TCL can sue if BB breach the agreement, but what are the damages? It's BlackBerry's brand on the line here. If BB Mobile doesn't work out, BlackBerry can cut support and TCL will move in a different direction. Damage to TCL will be limited and they can continue building phones under a different brand. BlackBerry can scale back their involvement in hardware even further... to zero most likely.