Remember the alleged BlackBerry prototype that was leaked earlier? It was suggested that the phone might be a developer handset or perhaps even an early prototype of the BlackBerry Q10, but now according to a report from BGR, they claim that the handset is actually a prototype of a BlackBerry phone that is reportedly still in the works which has been given the codename, Windermere. Now based on the earlier leaked photos, the device certainly looks a bit odd and if we didn’t know better, it almost looks like a photoshop job where someone decided to squash the keyboard section of the phone.
However there is a reason why BlackBerry has decided to go with 3 rows of keys instead of four. This is apparently because BlackBerry will be incorporating gesture-like features to the keyboard. The keys are physical and can be pressed down on, but according to BGR, the keys will also have some kind of Swype-like capability where users will be able to swipe gestures over them to access numbers, symbols, accent keys, and more. Also due to the rather odd design of the phone which seems pretty wide, BlackBerry has apparently toyed with the idea of letting two apps run side-by-side, which would definitely be interesting.
BGR’s sources also claim that BlackBerry is working with a “large partner” on the Windermere, although no names have been mentioned. The full production of the device is also said to move forward only if BlackBerry’s partner decides to go ahead with it. As it stands, we know that BlackBerry has partnered with Foxconn and that their first device will not have a physical QWERTY keyboard, so perhaps we can rule out Foxconn for the Windermere. Either way it sounds like an interesting device, although we’re not sure about practicality or function just yet, but what do you guys think?
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