BlackBerry on Thursday launched the Q10 smartphone, based on the BB10 platform, priced at Rs 44,990.

While the company said the product is premium and so the price, many in the industry say it might not sell well in the market.

According to some analysts, even BB loyalists may not buy the new smartphone, as many of them have already upgraded to the Z10 model, which was launched recently. While the Z10 has only a touch-screen, the Q10 includes a physical QWERTY keyboard, a popular feature of earlier BlackBerry models.

Premium price

“We don’t see new users entering into BB if the company continues launching such premium priced products. Between 2007 and 2010, many users, especially youth, got used to mobility through BB handsets. But, at such prices, it is tough for those buyers to switch over to Q10,” Faisal Kawoosa, Senior Manager - Research & Consulting (Telecoms Practice) at CyberMedia Research, said.

He said to survive in India, the company has to bring in some low-cost devices as selling only premium products might not serve the purpose as many youngsters can spend only up to Rs 20,000 for such smartphones.

Kawoosa said though the company sold some million units of Z10 worldwide, it was too early for them to launch this product as Z10 users won’t switch over to the Q10 just for a keypad facility.

The company is also out of the top 10 list of smartphone companies in India from early this year (January-March quarter). It figured in the top 3 last year.

Also, the users on BB7 might not want to shell out such a huge premium for an OS upgrade and might instead hold back their purchase till the Q5 launch in India, Manasi Yadav, Senior Market Analyst - Mobile Phones and Tablets at IDC India said.

“Even though the phone does boast of compelling specifications but the price point remains a downer. Also, with the growing inclination towards a large-screen size or phablet-ish form factor, the 3.1-inch display may not interest a majority of the audience,” she said.

She said as India remains a market driven by low-cost smartphones - focusing only on premium or high-end products might not make a lot of sense for any brand.

The company also has to provide some decent interface products like tablets as around 95 per cent of BB users have a tablet (of another make) but no interface as Apple has for iPhone and iPad, said Kawoosa.

“The company had shipped PlayBook only in the first quarter of last year in India, but not a single tablet was shipped in the country in the second and third quarter,” he added.

However, the company says the Q10 has some unique features that combines both keyboard and touch-screen display – the largest ever on a BlackBerry QWERTY smartphone.

“The BlackBerry Q10 smartphone gives customers the assurance of typing on a classic BlackBerry keyboard, which combines with BlackBerry 10 to offer them a powerful and unique mobile computing experience,” Sunil Lalvani, Managing Director, BlackBerry India, said.

Other features

It has features such as BlackBerry Hub, BB Balance and BB Remember for quick access to contents.

The company said it has advanced hardware, communications and multimedia features, along with long battery life.

ronendrasingh.s@thehindu.co.in

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