Could BlackBerry make a wearables splash?
BlackBerry is exploring the possibility of launching a smartwatch - or at least bringing its BBM app to existing wrist-mounted devices.
Speaking to reporters, the Canadian company’s president of enterprise solutions John Sims said the firm was currently researching options surrounding wearables.
Computer World reports Sims as saying: “We're doing internal research on different wearables.”
The executive touted the possibilities for the popular and groundbreaking BlackBerry Messenger app to appear on wearables.
It’s unclear whether a wrist centric BBM experience would be for a BlackBerry-branded smartwatch or a re-purposed version of the app for Android Wear and Apple Watch devices.
Sims added: "I would love to have...BBM on a wearable. It's definitely an area of research for us."
Under the leadership of CEO John Chen, the company has pledged to continue building hardware while there is still demand for it, but a pricey plunge into wearable tech with the market still in its infancy is a risk the Waterloo-based firm may be unable to take.
The company is planning a launch later this month where is it expected to unveil the square-screened Passport smartphone, but we wouldn’t expect a smartwatch to be along for the ride.
It is likely that BlackBerry will monitor the wider adoption of wearables before committing to such a device.
Let the jokes about BlackBerry launching a Casio Databank calculator watch clone with a tiny full QWERTY keyboard begin in earnest.
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