5 Winning Features of the BlackBerry KeyOne

BlackBerry has released a new TCL-made Android smartphone in the form of the BlackBerry KeyOne. It’s also the newest BlackBerry smartphone to feature a physical QWERTY keyboard after the PRIV. So what makes the KeyOne the smartphone to get? Take a look at its top five features.

1. Premium build

Although a mid-ranger, the KeyOne’s body is made of premium materials that are mostly found in more powerful flagship devices. It has an aluminum frame, impact resistant Corning Gorilla Glass 4, and a soft textured back. Not to mention, it also has an attractive design.

2. QWERTY Keyboard

TCL has definitely made an interesting smartphone with the KeyOne by giving it a physical QWERTY keyboard just below the screen. It’s a winning feature especially those who prefer a more tactile method of composing messages. In addition, it’s a smart keyboard as well as it comes with very handy features like programmable shortcut keys, Flick Typing with predictive text and contextual auto-correction, and touch navigation for scrolling through web pages or emails.

3. Small, but high-resolution screen

At 4.5-inches with 3:2 aspect ratio, the KeyOne is sporting a smaller screen than most Android smartphones out there. However, it features a resolution of 1620 x 1080 or equal to 433ppi. That’s pretty packed display even in today’s standards.

4. Android 7.1 Nougat w/ BlackBerry Security software

The KeyOne is shipping with the latest Android OS, Android 7.1 Nougat. That means you’re getting all the features of the latest OS, plus BlackBerry’s own Android apps like BB Hub. The best part is that the whole software is hardened by the BlackBerry Security software which makes it one of the most secure Android devices around.

5. Large battery

Powering the KeyOne is a 3,505mAh non-removable battery. It may not be in the same level of “large” as a 4,000mAh battery, but given that it’s paired with a power-efficient Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor, we’re expecting the KeyOne to last longer than most smartphones of the same caliber. In addition, it also supports Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 which BlackBerry says can achieve a 50% charge in 36 minutes.

BlackBerry KeyOne specs:
4.5-inch IPS LCD display @ 1620×1080 pixels, 434ppi
Corning Gorilla Glass 4
Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 2.0GHz octa-core chip
Adreno 605 graphics
3GB RAM
32GB internal storage
Up to 256GB via microSD card
4G LTE
WiFi 802.11ac
Bluetooth 4.2
NFC
12MP f/2.0 PDAF rear camera (Sony IMX378 sensor), dual-LED, dual-tone flash
8MP front-facing camera
GPS with aGPS support, GLONASS
FM radio tuner
USB Type C
Fingerprint sensor
3505mAh Li-Ion battery
Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0
Android 7.1 Nougat
149.3 x 72.5 x 9.4 mm
180 g

These are just some of the notable features of the BlackBerry KeyOne. We’ll know more once we get our hands on the device itself, so stay tuned.

TCL is set to release the KeyOne globally this April with a suggested price of $549 (~Php27,500).