Images of two BlackBerry smartphones running Android have leaked. One of the devices appears to be based off of the current Passport, and the "Venice" will feature a quad-HD display and slide-out QWERTY keyboard.
BlackBerry 10 was supposed to be the OS that would allow the former smartphone king to compete with Apple's iPhone and Google's Android handsets. The OS made its debut on the BlackBerry Z10 and Q10, which were released in 2013, but the new smartphones and OS never took off with consumers and developers. In an effort to appeal to both groups, BlackBerry added support to run Android applications with the release of BB10.2.1. Now, the company is taking things one step further and is rumored to launch two new smartphones that will drop BB10 for Android.
We recently reported that BlackBerry is planning to release its first completely Android-based smartphone, and like previous devices, would include the company's iconic and much-loved physical QWERTY keyboard to the mix. The smartphone, which is codenamed Venice, is said to include a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and high-end specs that will allow it to compete with current flagship Android smartphones. It looks like we can expect two new BlackBerry smartphones that will run Android, thanks to a new report from a reliable tipster.
@evleaks has posted an image of what is reportedly the BlackBerry Venice, as seen above, and another image of what appears to be the BlackBerry Passport running Android. This is the first time we've heard about a second Android-based smartphone from BlackBerry, and you can clearly see the Passport's familiar keyboard and Android navigation buttons in his tweet.
The BlackBerry Venice image does not show its slide-out QWERTY keyboard but provides a look at the smartphone's home screen, Android navigation buttons and BlackBerry logo at the top of the device. He says that the Venice will be making its way to AT&T, and current reports suggest it will make its debut on the network in November.
The BlackBerry Venice is expected to feature a 5.4-inch 2560 by 1440 quad-HD display, 16 megapixel rear camera, 5 megapixel front-facing camera and a hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor.
As always, we'll keep you posted on any new information regarding the BlackBerry Venice and Android-based Passport.
