CEO Chen says BlackBerry will introduce three high-end models for "keyboard aficionados"

Three new high-end BlackBerry models are on the way, according to the Canadian manufacturer's CEO, John Chen. The executive also reveled that these models are going to be designed for "keyboard aficionados," and will be introduced over the next 18 months. One of the three models could be the BlackBerry Q20, which was revealed last month at MWC.

The BlackBerry Q20 is expected to be launched in the second half of the year, and will be equipped with a 3.5 inch screen. That would be the largest screen ever employed on a QWERTY-equipped 'Berry. The handset will also come with a larger battery and will bring back some "old-school" features like a touchpad and function keys.

Another possible model is the device currently code named the BlackBerry Windermere. This is an oddly shaped phone with a wide-body and a strange looking QWERTY keyboard. There is speculation that the keyboard will work by not only pressing on the keys like a regular physical QWERTY, but will also be touch-sensitive. BlackBerry is also believed to be working on a model that will be powered by a 64-bit octa-core processor. Originally thought to be ready in 2015, a later report had BlackBerry pushing up development of the phone in an attempt to rush it out by this September.


The CEO also brought up the possibility of offering a version of BBM for the desktop. "We are certainly going to take a very serious look at putting BBM on the desktop," said Chen. Last  month, the executive said that BBM could go "beyond handsets and the phone." Once a BlackBerry exclusive, BBM is now available for iOS and Android with a version for Windows Phone expected soon.

source: Reuters