It is all official now, BlackBerry will be launching an Android-powered smartphone and it will be called Priv. This new information comes in an official company statement only hours after Evan Blass leaked the name online.

BlackBerry’s statement proves the existence of the slider, previously named Venice. Ever since we caught a glimpse of the unit at MWC 2015, it has been shrouded in a lot of mystery and we had to only make do with speculations. CEO John Chen says he has kept his promise to only do an Android if it can reach the high security standards of the company:

Today, BlackBerry is announcing two new additions to its handheld device roadmap. First, the company will launch a flagship slider device, Priv, which will run on the Android operating system, bringing together the best of BlackBerry security and productivity with the expansive mobile application ecosystem available on the Android platform. In combination with BlackBerry’s efforts to support Android for Work on the BES12 platform, the new device will offer best in class security for enterprise customers. BlackBerry expects the device to be available late in the calendar year in major markets in-store and online, and will release further details in the coming weeks.

But, despite this new and exciting change of pace, BlackBerry also made it clear that it is not giving up on its BES12 platform and all it has accomplished and will keep building products and services upon it:

While the new device will provide a choice in OS to new and existing customers, the company remains committed to the BlackBerry 10 operating system, which enables industry-leading security and productivity benefits. Second, the company will continue to develop and enhance the BlackBerry 10 operating system and is confirming plans to release platform updates focused on security and privacy enhancements, with version 10.3.3 scheduled to be available in March 2016.

From what is known till now, the BlackBerry Priv is expected to be powered by a Snapdragon 808 chipset, and come with 3GB of RAM. It is said to feature an 18MP rear camera with dual-LED flash, and run Android…

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1YFw76s
via IFTTT

Engulfed by all the mobile tech innovations, amidst a hectic and ever-so-dynamic realm, we often tend to overlook the business side of things. Operating on an international scale is no mundane task and quarterly market reports tend to reveal trends and processes on a bigger scale that can make or break an OEM.

The latest Counterpoint research numbers are now in and from the looks of things Samsung is still king of the smartphone world. It seems that the Korean giant has managed to skillfully counter declining sales of its current Galaxy S6 flagship, thanks to a wide variety of other offers, both in the premium and mid-range segments. Samsung managed a 19 % global share, compared to 10% for Apple, which is a distant second and 7% for Huawei in the third spot.

There are, however, a few clarifications to be made. The aforementioned numbers are for mobile phones as a whole, when we narrow things down to smartphones only, which currently have about 75% market share, Samsung shines with an even more respectable 21% globally, followed by Apple with 14% and Huawei with 9%.

Breaking things down by continent reveals an identical picture, except for North America, where Apple leads with a 31% share and Samsung is second with 24%. Also, bear in mind that the new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus have just hit user markets today and their sales in the following weeks are sure to change the picture in Q3.

But, apart from Apple and Samsung, this batch of sales report does offer insight on a few other trends. Most notably, the impressive growth from various Chinese OEM’s on international markets.

Huawei has really been doing great for itself, while Xiaomi is another major success story as it already has a 5% share in the global smartphone market. In fact, in Asia alone, Xiaomi managed to surpass Apple with 11% of the market, compared to Cupertino’s 10%.

This trend will likely continue in the following months. Asian brands are on the rise – Asus, for instance, has been the fastest growing brand with 500% raise in shipments, followed closely by vivo with a growth of 400%. This, combined with major market expansions in India and Africa, where growth rates can exceed global values by as much as seven times, means that Chinese manufacturers are quickly becoming a strong force in the mobile realm.

Source |…

from GSMArena.com – Latest articles http://ift.tt/1YFw5vj
via IFTTT