Android smartphone owners will be able to experience BlackBerry core apps through Hub+ subscription.
On Aug. 3, the Canadian company announced that Hub+, a premium suite of BlackBerry mobile software, will be available for Android devices running on Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
"BlackBerry Hub+ is the first pure software offering from the new Mobility Solutions Group. Not only is it the latest example of BlackBerry's fast-emerging software business (already at a run rate exceeding $500 million a year), but it fulfills our promise to make the fruits of decades of R&D and software development as widely available to users of other devices and other platforms as possible," says BlackBerry.
Hub+ helps users centralize their communication in one unified interface. It also assists users to streamline productivity tasks like Passwords, Calendaring and more.
A trial version of Hub+ is available as a free download from Google Play Store. This includes applications such as BlackBerry Hub, Password Keeper and Calendar. Once the 30-day trial period is over, customers can opt to use it for free with occasional ads.
Customers also have the option to subscribe to the entire suite of apps by paying 99 cents per month. The paid subscription includes some extra applications such as Notes, Launcher, Tasks, Contacts and Device Search. BlackBerry Priv owners should be aware of these applications as they are integrated in smartphone. BlackBerry's second Android-based smartphone - the DTEK50 - also has these applications pre-installed.
A few Android device owners will be keen to try BlackBerry's app suite. This is because only 15.2 percent of all Android devices currently run on Android 6.0 Marshmallow, according to a previous report. The majority of Android devices have Android 5.0 Lollipop installed.
On the bright side, Android 5.0 Lollipop has some good news. Although Hub+ has been launched only for devices running on Android 6.0 Marshmallow for now, BlackBerry says it is working to expand access to smartphones running on Android 5.0 Lollipop. An exact release date of Hub+ for Android Lollipop remains unknown.
BlackBerry has also revealed its plans to roll out Hub+ for iOS in the near term. Android and iOS customers should also expect BlackBerry to bring more of its software for individual and enterprise customers soon.
The company has lost a major share of its mobile phone business to other companies such as Samsung, Apple and HTC, and this has severely affected its revenue. BlackBerry sure hopes Hub+ will help the company increase its revenue from ads and subscription fee.
