Kim Kardashian's gonna have to wait a little longer to get the new BlackBerry KEYone
April's almost over, so where the hell is Kim Kardashian's next phone, the BlackBerry KEYone?
Originally slated to launch by the end of this month, the Android-powered KEYone, will now arrive in the U.S. starting on May 31. U.S. carriers -- Sprint's the only one confirmed so far -- will carry the QWERTY keyboard-equipped phone this summer.
The KEYone will cost $549.99 unlocked and BlackBerry, or TCL Communications Technology (TCT), rather, says the phone will be available in GSM and CDMA unlocked versions.
In Canada, the KEYone will be available on Bell, Bell MTS, Rogers, SaskTel, and TELUS Business starting at $199 with a two-year contract, with pre-orders starting on May 18.
The KEYone's still another month out, but should you wait for it when phones like the Samsung Galaxy S8 and LG G6 are now available?
That really depends on how much of a BlackBerry fan you are, and how much you care for having a physical QWERTY keyboard.
The KEYone is almost like an anti-2017 smartphone. Sure, it runs Android 7.1 Nougat and it's got a touchscreen, but it's still got a bunch of BlackBerry software, and again, that keyboard.
Last I saw, the KEYone actually looked pretty good, though. The phone felt solid -- it's not pretending to be anything but thick -- and I dug the aluminum body. The 4.5-inch 3:2 touchscreen was bright and sharp, and the keyboard seemed sturdy, too.
I also liked many of the features that make the KEYone a BlackBerry, including the Convenience button located on the right side and the 52 programmable buttons.
The cameras appeared decent from what I saw -- the 12-megapixel camera on the back uses the same image sensor as the Google Pixel. However, without testing the cameras in the real world, it's hard to say if the photos are up to par with the competition.
The processor's a midrange Qualcomm Snapdragon 625, but from what I could tell it can hold its own. It might not provide the best performance, but how much do you really need if you're gonna be using the KEYone to pound out emails and texts most of the time?
Obviously, things like battery life are still up in the air as far as real life usage goes, but overall the KEYone at least appears to be one of the best -- if not the best -- BlackBerry in years. We'll hopefully have a review soon, so stay tuned.
Topics Android
Raymond Wong is Mashable's Senior Tech Correspondent. He reviews gadgets and tech toys and analyzes the tech industry. Raymond's also a bit of a camera geek, gamer, and fine chocolate lover. Before arriving at Mashable, he was the Deputy Editor of NBC Universal's tech publication DVICE. His writing has appeared on G4TV, BGR, Yahoo and Ubergizmo, to name a few. You can follow Raymond on Twitter @raywongy or Instagram @sourlemons.
