Texas Company Promises to Release 5G BlackBerry With Physical QWERTY Keyboard in 2021

Texas-based startup OnwardMobility today announced that it plans to release a new Android-based BlackBerry smartphone with a physical QWERTY keyboard and 5G support in the first half of 2021 in North America and Europe.

5g blackberry
The device will really only be a BlackBerry in spirit, as part of a brand licensing agreement with the Canadian company. Once a dominant player in the smartphone industry, BlackBerry exited the business in 2016 following years of declining sales, falling victim to the rise in popularity of the iPhone and Android smartphones.

While details are slim, OnwardMobility claims that its BlackBerry will sport a "world-class design" with a focus on security and productivity for "enterprise professionals."

Chinese company TCL reached a similar agreement with BlackBerry to manufacture BlackBerry-branded devices in 2016. That partnership is set to expire at the end of August, paving the way for OnwardMobility to step in.

BlackBerry briefly experimented with an Android-based smartphone of its own in 2015, the Priv, which combined a 5.4-inch display with a physical QWERTY keyboard.

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Top Rated Comments

4jasontv Avatar
61 months ago
I hear it will have Push-to-Talk and the most advanced WAP browser ever seen.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SharkeyStormcrow Avatar
61 months ago
Remind me again who would want a blackberry phone in 2021?
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JM Avatar
61 months ago

I hear it will have Push-to-Talk and the most advanced WAP browser ever seen.
Uhhhhh... WAP?



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Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Zaft Avatar
61 months ago
Dead on arrival
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AngerDanger Avatar
61 months ago

Texas Company Promises to Release 5G BlackBerry With Physical QWERTY Keyboard in 2021
Nice, promise to deliver something well after the apocalypse.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Morgenland Avatar
61 months ago

Bring back the Blackberry please.
For my sweet
Follow me into the garden of innovation, desire and passion

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Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)