BlackBerry R10 Latest Leaks: Budget Phone, Red Body, QWERTY Keypad & More
Can the BlackBerry R10 be the company's next promised phone for 2013? It seems to be the case, given the many leaks that have been circulating the web recently.
From the reported specs of BlackBerry's rumored phone to the surprising price tag that it comes with, here are some of the latest rumors surrounding the R10.
A budget phone from BlackBerry
But just because the R10 is rumored to be the budget phones does not mean you would have to settle for something far inferior compared to the likes of Q10.
EndGadget reports that the R10 has pretty much the same features as its predecessor, starting with the 3.1-inch screen and 2 GB of RAM. The feel of the R10 is said to mimic how you would enjoy a Q10, but you do have some features that you have to compromise.
Among these include the camera, which will be a downgrade to a 5-megapixel camera, 8GB of storage, and 1,800 mAh. And all of these features are included in the $300 to $400 no-contract cost.
Mimicking the Curve
What's very noticeable about the Q10 is that the keyboard itself had a makeover from the once curving ergonomic design to its current set of straight physical keys. But according to the leaked photos of the R10, Gotta Be Mobile reports that it may be sporting a similar look to the BlackBerry Curve.
Unlike the keyboard of the Q10, the leaked photos of the supposed R10 showcase island-style keys, now much more crowded to give way to the 3.1-inch screen.
While the design may mimic the BlackBerry Curve, Digital Trends reports that the screen itself is revamped to be like the Q10, so a touch screen with a 720x720 pixel display should be part of the features list.
Expected launch date and color
BlackBerry may also be taking the chance to explore ad deliver more than just the usual two-color versions of the R10, black and white. Perhaps this is what's already in the drawing board, as another leak showed a red R10 being sported around, reports TechRadar.
Given how red is one of the more common colors after white and black department, it can be that this is just the first color version that it will release. Consider how the Nokia Lumia series is building its foundation on eye-candy Windows 8 phones, this can be BlackBerry's chance to own colorful phones it with the QWERTY keyboard.
So far, only the black, red, and white versions have been leaked. With the lack of confirmation from BlackBerry regarding the leaks, and from the fact that the Q10 is still in the middle of its launch phase, it won't be a surprise to find the R10s release date pegged somewhere near the third quarter 2013 or around summer.
As far as speculations on the release date of the next two BlackBerry go, at least it's already confirmed by BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins that the other BlackBerry 10 phones will be revealed and released this year.