BlackBerry to end production of Classic smartphone just 18 months after launch

Swift said that staffers within the USA senate received notice that the BlackBerry Z30, BlackBerry Passport and BlackBerry Classic are beign discontinued.

A letter sent to those affected by the decision, the senate’s action came after BlackBerry informed Verizon and AT&T that it would no longer manufacture BlackBerry 10 OS powered handsets.

Smartphone pioneer BlackBerry will stop making its Classic model, the company said on Tuesday, some 18 months after launching the device it had hoped would entice users who prefer a physical, rather than touchscreen, keyboard.

While it is being left behind by Samsung and Apple, and is falling out of fashion for smartphones, BlackBerry says they will still remain and will also continue to support devices on its own mobile operating platform.

Blackberry initially offered the Blackberry Classic, its latest and now last traditionally-designed handset-in December 2014, noting at the time that customers “demanded” they release such a device.

It’s unlikely that BlackBerry’s news will change Capitol Hill’s push toward Android and iOS devices.

Canadian smartphone maker BlackBerry has clarified that recent reports on the company discontinuing its BlackBerry 10 operating system (BB10 OS) were misinterpreted and incorrect. It could certainly be argued that Blackberry effectively divorced itself when its CEO announced in January at CES that BlackBerry’s new devices would be running Android if the company indeed made two new devices this year.

Seidel said that approach could become profitable for the company as it is still perceived to have a competitive advantage in security software, but it would have to move quickly as they face a lot of competition in that area. Blackberry’s chief executive officer, John Chen, said since the enterprise is much more than smartphones, its future was working on multi-platform solutions.

Senators and staffers will no longer be administered BlackBerry smartphones and will instead receive the iPhone SE or one of Samsung’s S6 devices. Last year, BlackBerry’s smartphone market share fell below 1 per cent. It sold less than 500,000 mobile devices in its latest quarter; while Apple sold 51.2 million iPhones during the same quarter. Sure, stocks are up marginally, and its YoY loss less than expected, but it has had to rework its image as a smartphone-first company.

Still, the BlackBerry has been a staple in Congress for a decade due to its long battery life, prominence of e-mail and easy-to-use keyboard.