14 DAY TRIAL // TCL unveiled last week its first BlackBerry-branded smartphone since it acquired the license from the Canadian company, the KeyOne. The new high-end device will make its debut on the market in the coming weeks, but it won't be long until it will be joined by other BlackBerry-branded smartphones.
The Chinese company plans to launch at least two other BlackBerry smartphones by the end of the year, CNET reports. One of the phones that TCL is now working on is a spiritual successor to the affordable DTEK50 Android smartphone.
While one of the BlackBerry smartphones to be launched by TCL in the coming months seems to belong to the budget-friendly category, the other one could be a pure mid-range device.
The all-touchscreen version of the DTEK50 will be slightly better in terms of specs, but it will also be launched under a different name. Sources close to TCL claim the company plans to get rid of the DTEK branding, so we'll have to wait for more details on that matter.
TCL is mostly known in the smartphone industry for its Alcatel branding, but not many know the Chinese company had also purchased the rights to use the Palm name on its products.
Unfortunately for Palm fans, TCL doesn't plan to resurrect the brand anytime soon. According to TCL Communications Nicolas Zibell, his company plans to focus on expanding the BlackBerry portfolio this year.
However, he hasn't completely dismissed the idea of a new Palm lineup of products, though, not in the near future. When asked about the acquisition of Palm, Zibell said his company doesn't do things by mistake and that we should stay tuned.
The information provided by Zibell makes us believe that TCL will focus on reviving the BlackBerry brand throughout the year, but starting 2018 the company might change direction while maintaining a healthy BlackBerry smartphone roadmap for the years to come.