BlackBerry Likely To Roll Out Android Based Smartphone ‘Prague’ In August; Aims To Target Emerging Economies

BlackBerry is reportedly working on a smartphone that will run on the Android operating system, according to reports.

According to unconfirmed reports, BlackBerry’s first Android based smartphone will be named ‘Prague’ and will be launched in August, reports Tech Times. A report on Australian Business Review says, Prague would be a relatively low end market device and will target emerging economies. BlackBerry’s first Android based smartphone is likely to have similar specifications found in the BlackBerry Z3, which means that the new smartphone would sport a dual core processor, a 5-inch display sans physical keyboard.

Since few years, BlackBerry has been going through tough time in the smartphone market as it lost a substantial chunk of its market share to devices running on iOS and Android platforms, reports Tech Times. According to a Reuters report, BlackBerry had evaded Android as it believed that its BlackBerry 10 line of phones would be able to get back its market share that it had lost to Apple’s iPhone and other devices powered by the Android platform. Blackberry that used to rule the smartphone segment now holds a market share of less than one percent

BlackBerry could launch a smartphone named ‘Venice’, which would be a high end device and is likely to sport a curved display, reports the Australian Business Review. As per the publication, Venice that will run on Android could be launched in November this year.

Will The Android Based BlackBerry Bring Back The Good Times?

According to the Australian Business Review report, Crackberry.com, a BlackBerry enthusiast website published a poll that said a majority of current BlackBerry users wouldn’t buy an Android based BlackBerry smartphone.

But considering, BlackBerry’s plans to launch the low-end Android based Prague in emerging markets, it can expect to see some positive outcome. The Prague will enter the smartphone market as a low-end smartphone and Android is still the most popular OS in low end smartphone lineup, reports Tech Times.

A 2014 report presented by International Data Corporation (IDC) says that smartphone shipments in emerging markets are growing continuously and emerging markets will represent 79.5 percent of worldwide smartphone shipments, or 1.4 million in 2018, of which majority of the devices will run on Android platform, according to the Tech Times report.

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