BlackBerry banks on QWERTY smartphones, lines up Passport and Classic for India

BlackBerry is back to its QWERTY formula that made the brand a success, and plans to launch its new Passport and Classic smartphones in India within the next few months. Apart from revealing this, the company has also announced its intention to keep its physical stores open instead of moving sales purely to the online medium.

Starting with the Passport handset, its interface does not stick to the whole BlackBerry format of a QWERTY keyboard paired with a trackpad. It adopts a 4.5-inch square touchscreen and a plain old physical QWERTY layout instead. The last mentioned is also built to support personalized commands by users.

The name of the odd-looking phone is inspired from, you guessed it right, the traveler’s passport which the company describes as a ‘universal symbol of mobility.’ It will be rolled out in two color options of black and white. Not much about the BlackBery Q20 has been unveiled so far, but we do know that it will be made out of premium materials.

BlackBerry Passport key specs list:

- 4.5-inch 1440 x 1440p IPS screen
- Quad core 2.2GHz Snapdragon 800 processor
- Adreno 330 graphics
- BlackBerry 10.3 OS
- 3GB RAM, 32GB ROM, 64GB expandability
- 13MP camera with flash
- 2MP front-facing lens
- 4G, 3G, 2G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS
- 3450mAh non-removable Li-ion battery

As for the BlackBerry Classic, you get a 3.2-inch 1440 x 1440p capacitive display, 2GB RAM, 64GB microSD card support and a 1.5GHz dual core Qualcomm chip. This smartphone runs on the same OS as its awkwardly shaped companion and was previously revealed as the Q20. The company maintains that users feel the hard buttons and trackpad are typical of the QWERTY experience provided by the brand, which explains the renaming.

There’s no word on pricing or exact release dates with regards to the roll-out of the BlackBerry Passport and Classic in India, but we’ll keep you updated as soon as we hear anything.

Uber slim Sony Xperia T3 outed at Rs 27990 in India

The Sony Xperia T3 has been launched in India with its price set at Rs 27990 pleasingly soon after the smartphone made its first appearance in June, ensuring fans over here aren’t left feeling like they got access to the device late. Equipped with the Android 4.4 KitKat OS, it kicks in mid-range specs and comes wrapped in a stainless steel frame.

The Xperia T3 features a 5.3-inch 720p HD displayand a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset bearing a 1.4GHz quad core processor. It’s a very slim device, with a thickness of just 7mm. An 8MP Sony Exmor RS camera forms part of its offerings as well, apart from a 1.1MP front-facing snapper.

Sony has granted this smartphone 8GB worth of internal memory which you can expand further by means of its microSD card slot that can accommodate up to 32GB. A 2500mAh battery has made its way into the Xperia T3 smartphone, providing it with 13 hours of talk time and 688 hours of standby time.

Here’s a quick glance at the full list of Sony Xperia T3 specs:

- Display: 5.3-inch, 720p HD
- OS: Android 4.4 KitKat
- Processor: 1.4GHz quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400
- Memory: 1GB RAM, 8GB storage (expandable up to 32GB)
- Camera: 8MP rear, 1.1MP
- Battery: 2500mAh
- Dimensions: 150.7mm x 77mm x 7mm
- Weight: 148gms
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Miracast, Bluetooth 4.0, DLNA, NFC, USB, GPS

Dubbed as the slimmest 5.3-inch smartphone right now, the Sony Xperia T3 will soon be seen arriving on store shelves in India. If you’re interested in purchasing it, be sure to set aside a sum of Rs 27990 before you charge forward.

HTC introduces Desire 616, HTC One E8 dual SIM in India

The HTC One E8 and Desire 616 dual SIM smartphones have been unveiled in India for Rs 34990 and Rs 16900, in that order. The former is a plastic-fantastic M8, while the other is the firstAndroid handset from the Taiwanese brand to run on an octa core processor.

Right off the bat, let’s get the differences between the HTC One E8 and the HTC M8 sorted out. The latest handset ditches aluminum for polycarbonate and replaces the Duo Camera setup for a 13MP snapper on its rear. Otherwise, having the new device on you is as good as owning the flagship.

The HTC Desire 616 Dual SIM is happy to make do with an octa core MediaTek chipset since it keeps the price low, one of prerequisite aspects needed to make a successful push into the Indian market. The other key specs are noted down below for your reading convenience.

HTC One E8 features list:

- Chipset: Quad core 2.5GHz Snapdragon 801
- Display: 5-inch, 1080p resolution
- OS: Android 4.4 KitKat
- Cameras: 13MP and 5MP rear
- Memory: 16GB internal storage, 2GB RAM
- MicroSD card support: Up to 128GB
- Dual SIM support
- Power house: 2600mAh battery

HTC Desire 616 Dual SIM specs at a glance:

- Processor: 1.4GHz octa core MediaTek
- Platform: Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
- Touchscreen: 5-inch 720p LCD
- Cameras: 8MP and 2MP
- Memory: 4GB ROM, 1GB RAM
- Expandability: 32GB
- Dual SIM support
- Battery: 2000mAh

HTC has noted MRPs of Rs 35990 and Rs 17200 for the HTC One E8 and Desire 616 Dual SIM smartphones, respectively. The more expensive of the two will hit India in the end of July and its companion will be up for grabs in white and gray, starting from next week.

HTC One M8 receives Android KitKat 4.4.3 update in India, 4G LTE support added too

If you live in India and are an HTC One M8 user, then get ready for the Android 4.4.3 KitKat OS update which has started rolling out to your smartphone with software changes and support for 4G LTEservices. This new firmware version appears to be sized at around 660MB and can be grabbed in an OTA fashion.

The One M8 was launched with the 4.4.2 version of Google’s OS onboard, but its successor was outed recently with no huge changes but some system and security improvements. HTC has decided to infuse this update with a number of its own additions.

Prime among them is support for 4G LTE networks in India which was promised beforehand by the Taiwanese company. Moreover, performance optimizations and updates to proprietary apps also form part of this download.

The HTC One M8 smartphone was released in the country back in April this year. It ships with a 5-inch 1080p full HD display and runs on a quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor. This smartphone is highlighted by its Duo Camera setup which allows users to adjust focus on their images even after they’ve been clicked.

Here’s a quick look at the specs of the HTC One M8:

- 5-inch full HD 1080p display
- Android 4.4 KitKat OS
- 2600mAh battery
- 2.3GHz quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor
- 2GB RAM, 16GB storage options (expandable)
- Duo Camera including Ultrapixel camera and depth sensing secondary camera, 5MP front
- 146.36mm x 70.6mm x 9.35mm
- 160 grams

HTC Butterfly 2 coming to India and South Asian nations soon

The HTC Butterfly 2 smartphone has been announced to reach availability in India soon as well as in other South Asian nations. While pricing for this device is unknown at the moment, we do know that it will hit the country sometime this September.

Prior to this, the phone had been unveiled as the J Butterfly in Japan where it is sold exclusively bycarrier KDDI. Its South Asian invasion will commence on September 2 when it will be launched in Taiwan and after that, outings in Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand will follow.

This Android 4.4 KitKat smartphone features a 5-inch display onboard, showcasing its visuals in 1080p full HD resolution. It runs on a 2.5GHz quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor that’s granted assistance in its operations by 2GB worth of RAM.

The water-resistant HTC Butterfly 2 smartphone kicks in the company’s famed Duo Camerasetup as well. However, instead of the Ultrapixel snapper that’s present on the One M8, this device grabs a 13MP camera which combines its prowess with a 2MP depth sensor that completes the Duo Camera pairing.

A neat look at the specs of the HTC Butterfly 2:

- OS: Android 4.4 KitKat with Sense 6 UI
- Display: 5-inch, 1080p full HD
- Processor: 2.5GHz quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801
- Memory: 2GB RAM, 16GB/32GB storage (expandable up to 128GB)
- Camera: Duo Camera on rear (13MP and 2MP), 5MP front
- Weight: 151gms
- Dimensions: 145.4mm × 70.2mm × 9.99mm

We know now that the HTC Butterfly 2 will be seen making its way into India sometime next month. We’ll have more on it when additional details are out.