In a bid to stay competitive in a market dominated by Google (GOOG)’s Android platform, BlackBerry’s (BBRY) Chief Executive, John Chen, gave a glimpse Tuesday at a new low-cost smartphone aimed for Southeast Asia.
Speaking at a news conference at the yearly Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Mr. Chen, who took the reins at the company late last year, said the device, dubbed the BlackBerry Z3, will first go on sale in Indonesia in April for less than $200, before expanding to the rest of Southeast Asia.
“We are excited to introduce the new BlackBerry Z3, the first smartphone to emerge from our strategic partnership with Foxconn, which was announced in mid-December, 2013,” said Chen. “The BlackBerry Z3 embodies all that BlackBerry 10 offers, with its exceptional productivity features and reliable communications, in a stylish, all-touch design made affordable for customers in Indonesia.”
According to Reuters, the new smartphone, which featurs a 5-inch display, long lasting battery and comes with BlackBerry 10 OS version 10.2.1, is being built under a partnership deal with FIH Mobile Ltd – the Hong Kong-listed unit of Taiwanese electronics giant Foxconn.
BBRY closed at $9.83 on Monday and is currently trading up 3.56 percent in pre-market hours.
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