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newly announced smartphone, the colorful Q5, is coming to
select markets this summer.
The device is being referred to as a cheaper version of the Q10 and includes a number of key features, including:
- Time Shift and Story Maker
- BBM Video with Screen Share
- BlackBerry Hub
- Access to more than 100,000 apps
- A classic BlackBerry keyboard with "discrete keys" that, according to the company's official blog, have been "re-engineered and elegantly designed to help you type fast, accurately and with the least amount of effort."
The device is slated to go on sale in July. Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia (including the Asia Pacific region) and Latin America are among the territories that are expected to receive the Q5.
"The Q5 could be a very significant device for the company, as there is a significant opportunity for high-quality low-cost smartphones," Adam Leach, principal device and platforms analyst at Ovum, wrote an e-mail to the press today. "Emerging markets accounted for roughly 17% of the nearly 450 million smartphone shipments globally in 2011 and Ovum projects that emerging markets will account for nearly 40 percent of the 1.7 billion smartphone devices shipped globally in 2017."
Leach thinks that BlackBerry is trying to "replicate the success" of the BlackBerry Curve in emerging markets.
"…Doing so will help the company establish the Blackberry 10 platform in the market," Leach continued. "However, Blackberry has significant competition in this area with a number of handset manufacturers championing an array of low-cost Android devices as well as Nokia's Asha 501.
"The crucial aspect of the Q5 launch will be its price and if Blackberry can address the sub-$100 smartphone opportunity."
Thus far, BlackBerry has not announced how much the Q5 will cost.
In the
, BlackBerry avoided the price topic and redirected users to its website,
www.blackberry.com/blackberry10.
In January the company
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to see what its own fans thought of BlackBerry 10. Not surprisingly, the majority of respondents gave it a five-star rating.
- 5 Stars 72.56 percent (1,703 votes)
- 4 Stars 16.4 percent (385 votes)
- 3 Stars 5.28 percent (124 votes)
- 2 Stars 1.66 percent (39 votes)
- 1 Star 4.09 percent (96 votes)
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