Whether you like BlackBerry’s Android devices or not, you have to give the company credit where it is due and that’s certainly in the software. BlackBerry’s near-stock take on Android Nougat is solid, and the company has a good track record of keeping the phone up to date on monthly patches.
Now, we’ve gotten confirmation that Oreo is coming to the Keyone, which is great, even if that comes along with the news another BlackBerry device won’t get the same treatment…
The UTB Blogs podcast (via Crackberry) recently had the chance to interview BlackBerry’s GM of Mobility Solutions, Alex Thurber, and asked him quite a few questions surrounding the company’s various smartphones. Thurber confirmed previous information regarding the Keyone’s update to Oreo, but gave some sad news at the same time.
BlackBerry’s previous flagship device, the BlackBerry Priv, won’t see another major update. The phone launched with Marshmallow and hasn’t seen an update even to Nougat, but Thurber is now confirming that it won’t see any further version updates. The company is continuing to support the phone through security patches, but Thurber cites that resources and partners limit the ability to push Nougat, or Oreo for that matter, to the device.
While that’s unfortunate to see, the Priv certainly wasn’t the most popular device and, at the very least, customers who want newer updates at least have an option to move to in the Keyone. However, it’s also unfortunate to hear that the company’s DTEK series may also not be updated to Oreo.
The DTEK series consists of a few different smartphones without physical keyboards, all manufactured by TCL. Thurber hasn’t totally ruled out an update to Nougat or Oreo (depending on device), but based on what he has said, it doesn’t seem likely.
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