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Here's your first look at the latest BlackBerry smartphone, the BlackBerry Key2
Here's your first look at the latest BlackBerry smartphone, the BlackBerry Key2
Avery HartmansJun 9, 2018, 19:00 IST
TCL
The latest BlackBerry phone has arrived - and it has a physical keyboard.
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TCL, the Chinese electronics company that manufactures BlackBerry phones, on Thursday announced a new premium smartphone called the BlackBerry Key2, which features a dual camera, a nearly edge-to-edge display, and, of course, a keyboard.
The BlackBerry Key2 is intended to be an update to last year's BlackBerry KeyOne, and there are some upgraded specs and features. The camera is better, the keyboard is bigger, and it's thinner and lighter than last year's model.
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Here are all the new features of the BlackBerry Key2:
It has a 4.5-inch LCD display above a full physical keyboard.
The BlackBerry Key2 has a larger screen than its predecessor. The "forehead" of the phone is now 25% smaller, and the device has a nearly edge-to-edge display.
The BlackBerry Key2 has an aluminum frame and a "soft touch" back, which should make it easier to grip.
There's a new key on the keyboard, too: the Speed Key, which is located next to the "symbol" button.
The Speed Key is a dedicated shortcut key that lets you quickly switch to a different app. To use it, hold down the Speed Key and press the letter you assigned to an app — like "I" for Instagram or "T" for Twitter.
The keyboard's space bar is also a fingerprint sensor.
The BlackBerry Key2 has a 12-megapixel dual camera on the back. The camera has portrait mode, optical zoom, and multi-frame capture.
The camera also has Google Lens built in, which means you can use Google's visual search engine without having to download a separate app.
There's also an 8-megapixel camera on the front. The phone's screen can be used as a selfie flash.
There are two storage options: 64-GB or 128-GB.
That's an upgrade from the BlackBerry KeyOne, which was available in either 32 GB or 64 GB.
The BlackBerry Key 2 has USB-C charging. It may seem like there's no headphone jack ...
... but that's because it's on the top of the phone.
The BlackBerry Key2 will get more than a full day of battery life, TCL says.
The BlackBerry Key2 runs Android 8.1 Oreo, but there's also a lot of the standard BlackBerry software on the device.
TCL says it's the most secure smartphone you can buy thanks to a built-in app called DTEK, which will alert you to any suspicious activity on your device.
TCL will also release security patches on a monthly basis, which should help keep the device more secure.
The BlackBerry Key2 will start at $649 and be available for preorder in seven countries — including the US — starting later this month.
The BlackBerry Key2 will become available globally beginning in July.
