BlackBerry Q10 pre-orders have officially kicked off and it looks as though the addition of a physical QWERTY keyboard has bumped up the price, with the device set to cost more than its BlackBerry Z10 sibling.
With Carphone Warehouse becoming one of the first to open its BlackBerry Q10 pre-orders in the UK, the high street retailer has revealed that the first QWERTY keyboard hosting BB10 handset will come at a premium, with the device listed a full £100 more expensive that its full touchscreen counterpart.
With the handset set to be made available for free when taken out on a £36 per month, two year contract, Carphone Warehouse has revealed that the BlackBerry Q10 price will see the handset cost a whopping £579.95 on a SIM-free basis. The flagship BlackBerry Z10 costs just £479.95 on a similar deal.
As well as costing more than the BlackBerry Z10, this lofty SIM-free price tag sees the BlackBerry Q10 line up more expensive than the 16GB iPhone 5 and just a few quid shy of the Samsung Galaxy S4, a handset expected to cost £600.
Set to be offered across a selection of leading UK networks, those keen to snap up the eagerly awaited device from Carphone Warehouse will be able to pair the handset with contracts from O2, Orange, T-Mobile, Vodafone and EE. As currently the UK’s only 4G network provider, EE will exclusive maximise the BlackBerry Q10’s 4G capabilities.
Although a precise BlackBerry Q10 release date has yet to be confirmed, a BlackBerry spokeperson has today informed TrustedReviews that ‘The Q10 will be available in the UK from the end of April. Details on availability in other markets will follow soon.’ A potential BlackBerry Q10 release date was recently teased as April 26, the same day as the Samsung Galaxy S4 is set to hit UK shores.
BlackBerry Q10 Specs
Hosting a 3.1-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen display with a 720 x 720p resolution, the key selling point of the BlackBerry Q10 specs sheet is undoubtedly the handset’s trademark BlackBerry QWERTY keyboard.
Aside from the physical keyboard, the first to be included on a BlackBerry 10 device, the Q10 features list sees a 1.5GHz dual-core processor given the nod.
Measuring in at just 10.4mm thick and a reasonable 139g in weight, the BlackBerry Q10 features 2GB of RAM and 16GB or integrated storage, expandable via microSD As its name suggests, the January launched BlackBerry 10 operating system runs the show.
Set to launch in both black and white colour forms, the BlackBerry Q10 specs collection is rounded off by an 8-megapixel rear-mounted camera, a second, forward-facing snapper and 1080p Full HD video recording capabilities. An 1800mAh Lithium-Ion battery supplies the BlackBerry Q10 staying power.
