After teasing its work-in-progress smartphone codenamed ‘Mercury’ at various events over the last few months, BlackBerry and TCL have finally revealed the device’s full technical specifications and official name, ‘KEYone.’
BlackBerry says the KEYone features a 4.5-inch 1620 x 1080 pixel 434 ppi display with a 3:2 aspect ration that’s constructed of Gorilla Glass 4. The device also comes equipped with a physical keypad, similar to the Priv, the Waterloo-based company’s last QWERTY keyboard Android device. Furthermore, just like all of BlackBerry’s recently released devices apart from the Priv — the DTEK50 and DTEK60 — the KEYone is manufactured through the company’s partnership with TCL.
The KEYone’s frame is constructed of aluminium and the device features a soft textured back, which Blackberry says is built for “durability, style and design.” Processor wise, the KEYone is set to feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 625 with an Adreno 506 GPU, coupled with a 3,505mAh battery and Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 3.0 technology.
When it comes to camera functionality, the KEYone features a 12-megapixel back shooter that utilizes Sony’s IMX378 image sensor with 1.55um sized pixels. BlackBerry also says the smartphone will launch with Android Nougat 7.1 pre-installed on the device.
One of the features is that the QWERTY keyboard, which also works as a trackpad, has 52 programmable letter keys for quick access to your most used app or favourite functions.
Other unique features include keyboard flick typing and touch gestures designed to mimic the functionality of a traditional BlackBerry trackpad.
The BlackBerry KeyOne is set to cost $549 USD — which amounts to approximately $718 CAD — and is currently set to be released in April. In terms of specific Canadian availability and pricing, BlackBerry has yet to release specific details.
BlackBerry KEYone Specs
- Display: 4.5-inch, 1620 x 1080 pixels, 434 PPI IPS LCD, 3:2 aspect ratio, Corning Gorilla Glass 4
- Design: 5.87-inch x 2.85-inch x 0.37-inch
- Keyboard: Touch-enabled backlit keyboard with fingerprint sensor and 35-keys
- Rear camera: 12-megapixel (1.55um) IMX378, dual-ton LED flash, HDR, 4K video recording at 30fps, 4x digital zoom, f/2.0 lens, video/image stabilization
- Front camera: 8-megapixel (1.125um), 1080p video at 30 fps, HDR, video/image stabilization
- Battery: 3,505mAh, Quick Charge 3.0
- Processor: Snapdragon 625 Octa-Core 2.0 Ghz 64-bit Adreno 506
- Sensors: GPS, Accelerometer, Magnetomer, Gyroscope, Proximity, Ambient Light
- Bands: LTE1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 19, 20, 28, 29, 30 | TDD LTE: 38, 39, 40, 41 | Canada, LATAM, APAC
- Sound: Integrated speakers with dual microphones and active noice cancellation, 3.5mm headphone jack
- Operating system: Android Nougat 7.1
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