Following the announcement that BlackBerry was teaming up with Foxconn to develop and manufacture budget-level BlackBerry smartphones for the next five years (if not more), the company cancelled the entry-level devices codenamed Cafe and Kopi that it was developing in-house for 2014. Details are now emerging about the first BlackBerry smartphone that Foxconn will launch instead in emerging markets such as Indonesia in early 2014.
Earlier rumours suggested that it would come with a physical QWERTY keyboard but a new report suggests otherwise. According to BGR, the BlackBerry Jakarta will be an all-touch BlackBerry 10 device. It is also expected to be a 3G device.
It sounds like the Jakarta will be a very similar device to what the BlackBerry Cafe would have been. While BlackBerry may have stopped development, it is likely to have shared the work done to date with Foxconn to help them get their first device ready as quickly as possible.
Assuming that the famed BlackBerry keyboard is history (at least for now), BlackBerry may well have just given up on one of the key features that still distinguishes its devices from its competition. It remains to be seen if BlackBerry fans will flock to the new BlackBerry Jakarta to replace their aging BlackBerry 7 devices.
Source : BGR