Test Conclusion: You must know
Even if the technical inner life is not yet officially confirmed, the BlackBerry Mercury makes a good figure at the first try. This is due above all to the successful integration of the physical keyboard, which is nowhere else to be found in today's smartphone era. The better the pressure point and the response of the buttons are. And the rest? Also! The display is extremely sharp, the optics for a first prototype noble and comparatively high-quality. A cracking point could be the price, which would be comparatively high thanks to the keyboard and, in particular, Android-specific Android interface.
BlackBerry's phasing out of the smartphone business has been officially sealed since September 2016 - the Canadians forgo a long mobile phone era at least to manufacture their own hardware. In the future, China manufacturer TCL will take care of the production, distribution and service of smartphones. Based on Alcatel's Idol 4, the BlackBerry DTEK 50 was the first Chinese-Canadian community project. At BlackBerry, this was a novelty: for the first time, the company known for the highest mobile security measures used Google's particularly open operating system Android. Another obvious change: the physical keyboard disappeared from the screen - an affront for many BlackBerry supporters. This is to change with the BlackBerry KEYone, which will be available from April 2017, again - one last time! COMPUTER BILD has already taken a look at the smartphone.
Fingerprint sensor in the keyboard
In times when a smartphone is like the other, the first look at the KEYone technology and nostalgic heart beat fast. On the lower half of the front, a keyboard with the complete alphabet and some special keys squeezes under the display. A total of 35 keys have been installed by the TCL Chinese, which makes the buttons small. At the sample tap, however, a quick and precise writing with both thumbs was not a big hurdle - on the contrary! Anyone who has ever had a BlackBerry in their hands feels the same under the new Android look right back home. The rest quickly gets used to the unfamiliar arrangement. Clever function: The usual long drawn empty key serves as a fingerprint sensor. However, the unlocking method did not respond to the pre-production device tested.
BlackBerry Mercury tried: Back to the future! A rare sight: under the 4.5-inch display, BlackBerry has a genuine keyboard installed.
The physical keyboard calls for their victims. Thus, the screen shrinks to today's standards tiny 4.5 inches, which corresponds to a diagonal of 11.5 centimeters corresponds. With its somewhat different HD resolution - the 1620x1080 pixels correspond to the full HD standard in the width, but are cut off by 300 pixels at the height - the KEYone with its 433 ppi (pixels per inch) is especially sharp. With its rounded sides, the new BlackBerry looks not only smart, but is also well in the hand. The rubbery back cover covered with a plastic layer did not yet please the first try. On the other hand, the frame made of aluminum looks very elegant. The metal layer also surrounds the rear camera.
»BlackBerry DTEK50 tested:" Safe android of the world "- sure?
Technically pure middle class
Technically speaking, the Blackberry KEYone offers android mid-range: In addition to the already mentioned 4.5-inch display, the smartphone is equipped with a Snapdragon-625 processor. The Adreno 506 graphic chip is joined. In addition to 3 gigabytes of memory, 32 gigabytes of data storage are available. The memory card can be drilled by a further 2 terabytes. Connection to the outside world is via the USB-C port. Two cameras are on board: the rear shoots with 12 megapixels, Selfies shoot you with the 8 megapixel front camera. The Blackberry KEYone, which weighs about 180 grams, is powered by a 3.505-millimeter-hour battery, which can be charged up to 50 percent within half an hour by means of a quick-charging function, promises Blackberry. On the other hand, the operating system: The KEYone comes with Android 7.1 nougat - with the BlackBerry-typical, customized interface and additional security software.