BlackBerry plans to launch two more Android smartphones this year, and the company CEO confirmed they will come in the mid-range segment of the smartphone market.
The company launched its first-ever Android smartphone last year, when it released the BlackBerry Priv. Despite the hype it created at first, however, the Priv failed to see much success. The hype was mainly related to the novelty of an Android BlackBerry, but the high price of the smartphone didn't attract many buyers.
BlackBerry ultimately admitted that its Priv was too expensive for enterprise customers, but the OEM plans to make up for it with its upcoming mid-rangers.
Speaking to The National, BlackBerry CEO John Chen says that two mid-range BlackBerry smartphones running on Android will indeed hit the market in 2016. One handset will feature a physical keyboard, while the other will have a full touchscreen.
The executive did not mention when the two smartphones will become available, but previous leaks offered some clues. Just last week, news surfaced that BlackBerry had two Android smartphones in the pipeline - BlackBerry "Hamburg" and BlackBerry "Rome." The former was tipped to arrive this fall, while the latter will allegedly launch toward the end of the year.
It remains to be seen whether the leaked timeline turns out to be accurate, but one thing's for sure: BlackBerry needs to adjust its strategy some more and come up with good devices priced affordably.
Price Matters
"The fact that we came out with a high-end phone [as our first Android device] was probably not as wise as it should have been," Chen tells The National, referring to the expensive BlackBerry Priv.
"A lot of enterprise customers have said to us, 'I want to buy your phone but $700 is a little too steep for me. I'm more interested in a $400 device.'"
BlackBerry recently slapped a permanent price cut on the BlackBerry Priv, but the device would have surely been more successful if it launched with a decent price tag from the get go.
Having learned this lesson, it will be interesting to see what BlackBerry has planned for its upcoming Android mid-rangers, especially since it desperately needs to become profitable.
Make It Or Break It
Chen further reckons that BlackBerry's handset business did see some progress in the last quarter, but it still has a way to go. If it fails to become profitable, BlackBerry will exit the smartphone market altogether.
"If I can't make it profitable because the market won't let me, then I'll get out of the handset business," says the CEO. "I love our handset business, but we need to make money."
In other words, it seems that if the two Android-powered BlackBerry smartphones set to launch this year don't hit the jackpot and bring BlackBerry some money, BlackBerry smartphones will be no more. The company could well focus on software and enterprise, its strongest suits.
