OnwardMobility, which is licensed by BlackBerry Mobile, has announced that the company will not proceed with the development of its “ultra-secure” 5G smartphone. The BlackBerry mobile maker announced plans to launch a 5G smartphone with keypad later this year after ending support for its older phones. Which once dominated the phone market. OnwardMobility did not explain why plans for its next 5G smartphone were cancelled, nor did the company announce further plans. Prior to Honored Mobility, TCL Corporation looked after the development of BlackBerry smartphones.
BlackBerry mobile licensee OnwardMobility said in a statement, “We would like to thank all of you for the tremendous support you’ve given us since we first launched OnwardMobility. However, it is with great sadness that we announce that OnwardMobility will be discontinued, and we will no longer proceed with the development of an ultra-secure smartphone with a physical keyboard. Please know that this was not a decision we took lightly or hastily. We share your disappointment in this news. and assure you that this is not the result we worked for and hoped for.”
The ultra-secure 5G Blackberry smartphone was said to be launched last year, but the company had to delay the plans. OnwardMobility had claimed that the official launch did not happen as of last year as “2021 was a challenging year to launch a really new phone”. However, it reiterated that the plans were “not dead” earlier this year.
In January, support ended for all classic BlackBerry and BlackBerry-powered devices. This essentially means that the phone will not receive the required software updates, and users cannot use essential services like calls, SMS and emergency calls. The company had advised users to switch to a new smartphone. The company was also experimenting with Android OS but failed to gain market lead. BlackBerry launched BlackBerry Key2 in 2018 with Android OS and a physical keypad. There was also a dual 12-megapixel rear camera and an 8-megapixel front snapper.
