BlackBerry's new Passport smartphone in the spotlight

BlackBerry's new Passport smartphone in the spotlight

It is back to square one with BlackBerry, with the mobile phone company's new BlackBerry Passport smartphone.

Its design is a departure from the traditional brick shape used by the likes of Apple and Samsung, and sports a 4.5-inch high-definition square display.

Available here for $938 (without contract), the Passport also marks a return to the company's roots, as the phone bears the brand's classic Qwerty keyboard that also doubles as a trackpad.

The phone runs the latest version of the BlackBerry 10 operating system, and comes preloaded with the Amazon Appstore, which allows users to run Android apps on the BlackBerry device.

The Amazon Appstore is not available for download on local Android devices.

The BlackBerry Passport's specifications:

Processor: 2.26 GHzQualcomm Snapdragon 801 quad core
Display: IPS LCD, 1,440 x 1,440 pixels, 4.5 inches (453 ppi pixel density)
Operating System: BlackBerry 10.3
Camera: (Rear) 13MP, 4,128 x 3,096 pixels, autofocus, optical image stabilisation, LED flash. (Front) 2MP
Memory: 32GB (microSD expandable memory up to 64 GB), 3GB RAM
Battery: Non-removable Li-Ion 3450 mAh battery
Dimensions: 128 x 90.3 x 9.3 mm
Weight: 194g


This article was first published on Sept 30, 2014.
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