Smartphone, based on the BlackBerry Bold design from May 2011, is available to buy more than a month after it was originally due for release
The BlackBerry Classic has gone on sale at Carphone Warehouse. It is now available from the retailer’s high street and online channels for free on contract from £26.50 a month and £329.99 SIM free.
The smartphone (pictured) was officially announced on December 17, with shipments beginning two weeks later.
BlackBerry CEO John Chen had stated earlier last year that it would be available in November, but the manufacturer told Mobile News the delay was a result of BlackBerry’s decision to put a “greater gap” between the launch of the Passport in September and the new device.
The 3.5-inch touchscreen Classic is based on the BlackBerry Bold design. The last handset in this range. the Bold 9900, was launched in May 2011.
It also features a 8MP camera, 2MP front-facing, 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 2GB RAM, 16GB of internal storage and a HD display. It will run on the latest version of BlackBerry’s software, 10.3.1.
The manufacturer says the battery will last up to 22 hrs. Other features include BlackBerry Blend, first seen on the Passport, which allows users to check notifications, BBM, text messages, e-mails, documents and more, via a desktop computer.