Earlier last month, BlackBerry announced BlackBerry KEY2 – successor to the BlackBerry KEYOne that was announced last year in February. The BlackBerry KEYOne was launched in India last August with a price tag of ₹39,990, and now today, BlackBerry has launched the KEY2 in India as well.
Being a successor to the KEYOne, the KEY2 looks similar to its predecessor. It comes with a backlit physical QWERTY keyboard which is its biggest highlight. However, the keyboard does come with some improvements like increase in height by 20% for more comfortable experience, and, a ‘Speed Key’ that gives shortcut access to different functions. The keyboard also comes with a fingerprint scanner that’s embedded on the space bar. Moreover, it’s also touch-sensitive which lets you use it for navigation.
The BlackBerry KEY2 features a “diamond grip” textured back that provides better grip to prevent the phone from slipping-off your hands. The frame of the KEY2 is also built out of Series 7 aluminium for better durability and protection.
Under the hood, the BlackBerry KEY2 comes with Snapdragon 660 SoC which is paired with 6 GB RAM. The smartphone also sports a 4.5-inch IPS display that has a resolution of 1620 x 1080 pixels with Gorilla Glass atop.
For photography, the BlackBerry KEY2 comes with dual cameras at the back instead of one on KEYOne. This dual camera setup consists two 12 MP cameras – one having f/1.8 aperture and the other having f/2.6 aperture. That said, for selfies and video calls, there’s an 8 MP snapper on the front which supports Selfie Flash via display.
The BlackBerry KEY2 runs Android 8.1 Oreo out-of-the-box and ships with a 3500 mAh battery that keeps the entire package up and running.
Commenting on the India launch of BlackBerry KEY2, Alex Thurber, SVP and GM of Mobility Solutions at BlackBerry, said, “BlackBerry is excited to expand our partnership with Optiemus to bring more of the world’s most secure Android smartphones to customers in India. We have been perfecting our approach to mobile security for decades, and are excited that the BlackBerry KEY2 is being made locally in India by Optiemus, designed for security from the inside out with the iconic productivity features that BlackBerry smartphones are so well known for.“
BlackBerry KEY2 Specifications
- CPU: 2.2 GHz Snapdragon 660 octa-core processor
- RAM: 6 GB
- GPU: Adreno 512
- Operating System: Android 8.1 Oreo
- Display: 4.5-inch IPS lCD display with 1620 x 1080 pixel resolution, 3:2 aspect ratio, 2.5D Curved Gorilla Glass and 433 ppi pixel density
- Rear Camera: 12 MP (f/1.8 aperture, Dual PDAF, 1.28 μm pixel size) + 12 MP (f/2.6 aperture, PDAF, 1.0 μm pixel size) with dual-tone LED flash, HDR, 4K video recording at 30 FPS, Portrait Mode and Optical Superzoom
- Front Camera: 8 MP with Selfie Flash via LCD display
- Internal Storage: 64/128 GB
- External Storage: Expandable up to 256 GB via microSD card
- SIM: Dual SIM
- Connectivity: 4G LTE, GPS, Bluetooth 5.0 LE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac, NFC, USB OTG, FM Radio, 3.5 mm headphone jack, USB Type-C 3.0
- Other: Fingerprint Scanner on physical keyboard, Speed Key, Backlit Keyboard, BlackBerry DTEK Security Suite
- Colors: Silver, Black
- Battery: 3500 mAh with Quick Charge 3.0
BlackBerry KEY2 Price in India and Availability
- Price: Starts at ₹42,990
- Availability: Goes on sale from July 31 through Amazon India
BlackBerry KEY2 Offers
- Cashback of ₹4450 from Reliance Jio
- Cashback of 5% on purchases made using ICICI Bank cards
