BlackBerry will die on January 4 – for real this time

Dear friends, we are gathered here today to mourn the death of this once beloved monarch of the mobile world: BlackBerry. And, yes, I realize that it is not the first time we’ve announced the death of the company or its devices (and, for reasons I’ll explain below, it probably won’t be the last), but this is a very definitive end for BlackBerry hardware. inherited.

As of January 4, all phones or tablets running BlackBerry’s own software – i.e. BlackBerry 7.1 or earlier, BlackBerry 10 or its tablet operating system BlackBerry PlayBook – “will no longer work from reliably “, says the company. Whether over Wi-Fi or cell phone, there is no guarantee that you can make phone calls, send text messages, use data, establish an SMS connection, or even call 9-1-1. Seems damn dead to us.

If for some inexplicable reason you or someone you love is still using an original BlackBerry, we recommend that you make it a New Year’s resolution to gently but firmly remove it from their hands. From January 4, it will be just a clipboard. (Although BlackBerry devices running Android will continue to function normally.)

Image: The edge

As mentioned above, however, this may not be the last BlackBerry death that we are announcing. The company has experienced a slow and torturous decline since its dominant era in the late 2000s, when its QWERTY keyboards and reputation for security gave it a 50% market share in the United States, but such a legendary brand. must be wrung out for its last dregs. valuable. (Its parent company, BlackBerry Limited, changed to cybersecurity software sale.)

BlackBerry tried to restart itself in 2013 with a new operating system, BlackBerry 10 (which failed), and in 2015 switched to manufacturing Android devices (which also failed). Then, in 2016, it started licensing its brand to third-party manufacturers like TCL. This is how the name BlackBerry still persists, and in 2020 a Texas company called OnwardMobility has said it will manufacture a 5G Android-powered BlackBerry device with a full QWERTY keyboard that will be released in 2021.

Well, time is running out on that one (OnwardMobility hasn’t shared any news or updates on their website since January 2021), but whether that particular effort lives or dies, it will at least give us a chance to reunite. again for another funeral. We really have to get together for a while under milder circumstances. How are your aunt and uncle doing anyway?