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Classic BlackBerry Smartphones Are Officially Dead

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As of January 4, 2022, all classic BlackBerry smartphones running versions of BlackBerry OS will no longer work for calls, text messages, data, and emergency functionality, essentially making them unusable.

blackberry-dead-smartphones.jpg

BlackBerry announced the news in September 2020 as part of a broader company shift to focus on enterprise security and solutions. "As another milestone in the BlackBerry journey, we will be taking steps to decommission the legacy services for BlackBerry 7.1 OS and earlier, BlackBerry 10 software, BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.1 and earlier versions, with an end of life or termination date of January 4, 2022," the company said at the time.

BlackBerry was once a titan of the smartphone industry, but that changed after Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007 and upended the market. A decade after the iPhone launched, BlackBerry's smartphone market share was effectively wiped out.

BlackBerry made a few attempts to reenter the smartphone market over the years by selling Android-based smartphones rather than those running its own operating system. Those devices failed to reach mainstream adoption, however, leading BlackBerry to announce that the company would focus on cybersecurity software for enterprise customers instead of making hardware.

For customers still using classic BlackBerry smartphones, the company is providing some information on how the January 4 decommission may impact you and steps you can take to prepare.

Article Link: Classic BlackBerry Smartphones Are Officially Dead
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2022/01/04/classic-blackberry-smartphones-dead/
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BootsWalking said:
As another milestone in the BlackBerry journey, we will be taking steps to decommission the legacy services for BlackBerry

Business speak for you've been taken for a ride.
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Oh, I don't know. I think it's fair to say that BB users have had good legacy support for their money. This has been on the cards for 10+ years now and BB gave over two years notice of this shutdown.
 
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NightFox said:
Empires rise, and empires fall. It's strange to think that one day in the future we'll be talking about the demise of the iPhone.
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Right around the time when we will be talking about the demise of Rolex, Levi’s and Coca Cola. Just because some companies eventually fail doesn’t mean that all of them do. Some companies actually do live to be a hundred. I believe Apple is better suited to do that than any other tech company. But they are not alone, certain others have built up a broad enough portfolio and solid business models that they won’t just be tipped over. Microsoft comes to mind. RIM and Nokia were one-trick ponies. Although at one point it was popular to say that about Apple, they have proven that they are not. The key is in the video linked to above: Put the customer first*, not competitors, not even the product itself.

*”Customer first” does NOT mean always do what the customer wants! It’s about focusing on how to monetize best on the things the customers actually focus on. Apple is better at this than anyone, and if you look at the stock value and still claim otherwise, you are a moron. To bet on Apple failing some time in the future is to make a blind bet that Apple will put a moron in charge. Which is a lot less likely.
 
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Wow, an era finally (officially) ended.
Blackberry was super popular in my country, to the point that people are still using them in the age of Android phones. Imo the real downturn was when Whatsapp stopped supporting BBOS (circa 2017??). Having access to Whatsapp is more critical than using a Blackberry OS for many.
 
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MrGimper said:
TBH it started before the iPhone when Exchange got Active Sync and licensed it to other vendors for their phones. BES started going downhill, and the phones with it.
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That's definitely the starting point, and when everybody can do push email, Blackberry's strength was diminishing. Without better hardware and OS/UI, the nails on the coffin were lining up quickly. Apple just accelerated everything with the iPhone.
 
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ian87w said:
That's definitely the starting point, and when everybody can do push email, Blackberry's strength was diminishing. Without better hardware and OS/UI, the nails on the coffin were lining up quickly. Apple just accelerated everything with the iPhone.
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Yep, and the advent of BB Messenger competitors, like iMessage, just hammered away more.
 
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