nokia and blackberry should stay where they belong – in the past
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

Nokia and BlackBerry should stay where they belong – in the past

Arab Today, arab today

Arab Today, arab today Nokia and BlackBerry should stay where they belong – in the past

The Nokia 3310
London - Arab Today

The big early news coming out of this year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona is a new feature phone from Nokia and another BlackBerry with a keyboard.
Pardon me for recycling an old joke, although it seems very appropriate in this case, but the early aughts called to say they want their phones back.
Aside from sharing an obvious appeal for nostalgia that no one seems to have asked for, the devices are coming from new interlocutors in the mobile phone business. The resurrected Nokia 3310, due globally this spring, is being manufactured by HMD, a Finland-based company that has licensed the right to use the former phone giant’s name on its products.
The BlackBerry KeyOne, also set to launch globally in the spring, is the first licensed device from China’s TCL, which has a similar arrangement with the former Canadian smartphone maker.
The newcomers are trading on the names of former market stars in an effort to make their own respective splashes. It was only 10 years ago that Nokia and BlackBerry were global super­powers in mobile phones, but then Apple came along with the iPhone and turned the two companies into also-rans.
HMD and TCL are betting on an element of fatigue affecting phone buyers. They’re hoping that consumers have either become wary of always being connected and that they want to go back to a simpler time, or that they’re tired of paying exorbitant amounts for high-end technological features that are of dubious usefulness.
The Nokia 3310, in particular, is a hardcore throwback that hearkens back to one of the Finnish company’s most successful products. The new device connects at only 2.5G speeds and its camera has just two megapixels. It’s the quintessential "dumb" phone that isn’t intended for data usage, but rather just calling and texting.
It has an alphanumeric keypad for that purpose, which means you’ll need to go back to pressing each number a few times to get the letter you want. Either that, or you’ll have to revert to sending text messages that resemble Prince song titles (I Would Die 4 U).
The 3310 is also going to sell for only US$50, so it’s got that going for it.
The BlackBerry KeyOne, mean­while, is a full-on smartphone that packs more expected specifications. It has a 12-megapixel camera, a decent quality screen, runs Android and is selling for $549, which is considerably less than most dev­ices on the market, including several unveiled at MWC by LG, Motorola and Huawei.
The KeyOne’s differentiator is BlackBerry’s trademark QWERTY keyboard, which promises faster and smoother typing than can be found on all-touchscreen devices.
Early impressions from Barcelona suggest this is the BlackBerry device that the faithful have wanted for many years – a phone with a solid keyboard that doesn’t cost a bundle. BlackBerry itself floundered with its last-chance, overpriced keyboard phone, the Priv, in 2015.
While there may be a small contingent of consumers who will be interested in either the Nokia 3310 or the BlackBerry KeyOne, it’s wishful thinking to believe that HMD or TCL will post any sort of meaningful sales numbers with their respective products.
The number of people who want to go back to using keypads – whether alphanumeric or QWERTY – is probably very small. Keys also take away valuable real estate from screen size. "Switching from physical to digital keyboards was a big switch for many," Shawn Dubravac, chief economist for the Consumer Technology Association, said on Twitter. "Going back to physical would be an even bigger switch."

Source : The National

arabstoday
arabstoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

nokia and blackberry should stay where they belong – in the past nokia and blackberry should stay where they belong – in the past

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

nokia and blackberry should stay where they belong – in the past nokia and blackberry should stay where they belong – in the past

 



GMT 11:28 2017 Saturday ,15 April

President Al-Bashir's visit to Kuwait and Bahrain

GMT 07:51 2017 Sunday ,26 November

HRH Crown Prince condoles with Egyptian President

GMT 14:35 2018 Friday ,12 October

Bahrain's media history documentation hailed

GMT 11:45 2017 Friday ,29 December

10 bodies found in mass grave in Myanmar

GMT 08:44 2016 Monday ,19 December

Hopeless Afghan struggle to save boy sex slaves

GMT 15:15 2013 Friday ,05 July

I breathe freedom in Jordan

GMT 12:55 2016 Sunday ,18 December

Kerry in likely last visit with Saudi king

GMT 05:49 2017 Wednesday ,24 May

Indian police make arrests after mobs lynch 8

GMT 12:12 2017 Sunday ,19 February

More South Sudanese officials quit unity gov't

GMT 09:25 2017 Wednesday ,09 August

Ghada Abdel Raziq prefers exciting drama

GMT 15:03 2017 Saturday ,14 October

HM King congratulates French President

GMT 22:10 2017 Wednesday ,03 May

Boosting Bahraini-Czech relations discussed

GMT 12:43 2017 Thursday ,30 November

Saudi prince freed in 'billion-dollar deal'

GMT 03:55 2017 Friday ,17 November

Al-Hilal's Eduardo looking to lead from the front

GMT 03:26 2017 Saturday ,18 November

Tesla's all-electric semi truck
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday