14 DAY TRIAL // The next BlackBerry smartphone is expected to be officially launched sometime in September, but the device is not a mystery anymore. The so-called Passport was shown by the company's new CEO John Chen on a few occasions, so we know that this is going to be BlackBerry's “innovative” device to be released this year.
In fact, BlackBerry Passport full specs sheet has already leaked online, along with lots of pictures of the smartphone, and even a review of a testing unit.
According to previous info coming from sources close to the Canadian company, the Passport will pack a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera, the best that BlackBerry has ever put into one of its devices.
Apparently, the company has listened to its fans and decided to shift focus from exclusively making their products the perfect business tools to more versatile devices.
The 13-megapixel camera that should be embedded into the BlackBerry Passport should feature a 5-element f2.0 lens, back-side illumination and OIS (optical image stabilization). In addition, the camera would also feature LED flash and 5x digital zoom and full HD (1080p) video recording at 60fps.
Even though these specs look great on paper, it seems that BlackBerry plans to boost them even further, as newly emerged rumors claim that the Passport's camera may even offer 4K video recording.
The information comes via @Dhabkirk in the form of a screenshot taken from BlackBerry Passport's camera Settings menu where users can select the option to record 4K videos at 30fps.
The cited source claims that BlackBerry is now testing this feature more or less internally, which means that it might not make it in the final software when Passport goes official.
However, if tests prove to be successful, then BlackBerry Passport may receive the ability to record 4K videos through a software update that will be released soon after the phone goes on sale on the market.
One of the reasons BlackBerry may want to introduce this feature into the Passport is that it wants to appeal to even more customers, others then its usual pool of fans and business customers.
Keep in mind though that the 4K video recording support will only be added to BlackBerry Passport because the module camera inside the smartphone is eligible with this video format.
The 4K video support may not make it into a future version the operating system like BlackBerry 10.3.1 for example, as there do not seem to be other smartphones with the required module cameras for this feature to work.
Anyway, a BlackBerry Passport with 4K video support surely sounds a lot better for a new customer than a Passport with only full HD (1080p) video recording does.
