This Sad Tweet May Be The End For BlackBerry Phones

Dhir Acharya - Feb 04, 2020

Since the launch of the Key2 LE, which was released in 2018, there haven’t been any new BlackBerry phones, and we may never have one.

Since the launch of the Key2 LE, which was released in 2018, there haven’t been any new BlackBerry phones. However, today is when we start questioning if there will be a new BlackBerry phone at all with an official Tweet from BlackBerry Mobile that has just surfaced.

this-sad-tweet-may-be-the-end-for-blackberry-phones-1 — The Key2 LE is the last BlackBerry phone, released in 2018. Since then, the brand hasn't launched any new mobile devices

According to the tweet, from August 31, TCL will not sell mobile devices with BlackBerry branding, effectively putting an end to this brand’s handsets. After poor sales of the DTECK50 and Priv, in 2016, BlackBerry Limited licensed the global rights to make phones with BlackBerry branding to TCL. TCL then released several phones like BlackBerry Motion, the KeyOne, the Key2, as well as the Key2 LE.

However, with this tweet, it appears that TCL will no longer have the right to design, produce, ore sell BlackBerry phones starting this summer, ending its stewardship of the brand’s phone legacy.

Technically, BB Merah Putih and Optiemus Infracom are two other firms that have licenses to produce phones with BlackBerry branding. But those are restricted to devices design to the Indian and Indonesian markets, which BlackBerry Aurora and similar devices are not popular outside these countries. And those deals may end when TCL’s license expires too.

this-sad-tweet-may-be-the-end-for-blackberry-phones-2 — BlackBerry phones as we know may be dead forever

If you are using a BlackBerry phone that’s made by TCL, the company will provide its support for existing devices until August 31, 2022. It seems unlikely that TCL and BlackBerry Limited will forge a new licensing agreement before August 31.

Prepare to say goodbye guys.