Releasing PRIV, BlackBerry's First Powered by Android Secure Smartphone in Vietnam

Source: BlackBerry - Press Releases - November 27, 2015

PRIV Delivers the Best of BlackBerry Privacy and Productivity to the Largest App Ecosystem

Hanoi, BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in mobile communications, announced today the availability and full features of PRIV™ by BlackBerry®, the first-ever BlackBerry smartphone powered by Android™ in Vietnam. Combining the best of BlackBerry’s productivity, security and privacy features with the wide world of Google Play™ store apps, PRIV is the epitome of form and function. It has been engineered with the world’s finest technology and packaged in an ultra-thin device – including a dual-curved screen, touch and physical keyboards, state-of-the-art 18MP camera, and long-lasting battery – with unique tools that allow users to manage and control their privacy.

A New Standard for Security and Privacy  

PRIV was designed with security at its core, building on BlackBerry’s legacy of security and keeping private its customers’ data. Security highlights include:

·         Advanced Privacy Controls: The exclusive DTEK™ by BlackBerry® app for Android™ monitors and reports on application access to the microphone, camera, location and personal information, enabling users to be confident that their personal data is being kept private. Users can know at a glance when their privacy could be at risk so they can take action to improve it.

·         Secure Hardware: BlackBerry’s hardware root of trust, a unique manufacturing process, injects cryptographic keys into the device hardware, providing a secure foundation for the entire platform.

·         Verified Boot and Secure Bootchain: Keys have been embedded to verify every layer of the device from hardware to OS to applications in order to make sure they haven’t been tampered with. Additionally, thousands of modifications were made to harden the Linux kernel with numerous patches and configuration changes to improve security.

·         Fully supported on BlackBerry's EMM Solution: PRIV can be integrated with our leading EMM solution, BES 12, which offers cross-platform management of PRIV and other devices; providing a full end to end security solution and secure collaboration applications for business users like Secusuite for secure voice and WatchDox for secure file sharing.

A New Standard for the Slider Form Factor

As part of BlackBerry’s cross-platform strategy to provide a greater choice of secure solutions to its customers, users will see a seamless merging of key BlackBerry 10 productivity features like the BlackBerry Hub and BlackBerry Calendar into PRIV. Additional key features include:

·         Full Android App and Ecosystem Experience – PRIV brings incredible new features to the Android platform and gives users full access to over one million applications: whether it’s Instagram, Spotify, Uber or BBM®, you’ll find it on Google PlayTM.  

·         Best of Both Keyboards – offers the freedom to choose between a virtual keyboard or a physical keyboard for speed and accuracy.

·         Tough and Beautiful Screen – A stunning 5.4-inch immersive dual-curve OLED display offers plenty of room to work or play with rich colors, deep black levels and less power consumption. At a resolution of 2560x1440, it sports an incredible pixel density of 540 PPI – 4x the amount of pixels of a standard HDTV. Along the screen’s curved edge is the Productivity Tab that provides an “at a glance” view of the most pertinent info from BlackBerry Hub, Calendar, Task, and Contacts.

·         Full-day Battery Life – PRIV has a 3410 mAh battery with enough power to work up to 22.5 straight hours of mixed usage*.

·         State-of-the-Art Camera – Engineered to deliver professional looking photos with minimal effort, an 18MP camera, certified by Schneider-Kreuznach®, integrates technologies commonly found in DSLR cameras.

·         Powerful Performance and Expandable Storage – PRIV is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor, a premium-tier chipset designed to offer consumers a superior and compelling user experience along with peace of mind with Qualcomm® SecureMSM™ technology and Qualcomm® Snapdragon StudioAccess™ content protection. Plus, with 32 GB of onboard storage and support for micro SD cards up to 2TB, the new PRIV gives users the flexibility to add affordable and hot-swappable storage to download, install, capture and share as their needs evolve.

·         BlackBerry® Natural Sound - PRIV comes with powerful speakers and a three-microphone system that delivers a high-quality listening experience. BlackBerry® Natural Sound Technology is built in to adapt Wi-Fi and cellular call sound depending upon phone position and background noise, automatically adjusting volume so users don’t have to.

·         Android™ for Work – PRIV comes ready for work. Android for Work support allows for fast, simple and secure integration with the enterprise environment. Seamless integration with Google Play for Work enables easy access to IT-managed apps.

While PRIV will provide a choice in operating system to new and existing customers, the company remains committed to the BlackBerry 10 operating system, and will continue to release platform updates focused on security and privacy enhancements.

Availability and Pricing

PRIV is available at an RRP of VND 18,500,000 inclusive of local taxes. It will be available from December 5th, 2015. Retailers stocking PRIV can be found at www.vietnamblackberry.vn. From now until December 4th, 2015, customers who pre-order PRIV will be eligible for a free Smart flip case, valued at VND 1,200,000**.

For more information on PRIV, go to www.BlackBerry.com/PRIV. Follow all updates to PRIV on the Inside BlackBerry blog.

* Based on mixed usage scenario.  Many factors affect battery life, including network connectivity, application usage, feature configuration and battery age. Actual results may vary.

** While stocks last.

About BlackBerry

BlackBerry is securing a connected world, delivering innovative solutions across the entire mobile ecosystem and beyond. We secure the world’s most sensitive data across all end points – from cars to smartphones – making the mobile-first enterprise vision a reality. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Company trades under the ticker symbols “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange and “BBRY” on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.

Good Mobility Index Report Shows More Enterprises are Developing and Deploying Custom Secure Apps

Source: BlackBerry - Press Releases - November 24, 2015

Third quarter also shows increase in iOS activations, continuing trend previously seen with new iPhone releases

Waterloo, Ontario– BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in secure mobile communications, today released the thirteenth Good Mobility Index Report showing that organizations are increasingly building custom secure apps. Among Good Powered by BlackBerry (formerly Good Technology) customers who are building custom apps, the average organization has developed 3.74 custom apps to help mobilize key business processes. More broadly, the calendar Q3 report showed a 30 percent quarter-over-quarter increase in app activations and an increase in the number of organizations using multiple apps beyond email. 

“The Q3 Good Mobility Index Report validates that enterprises are moving forward to the next stage of their mobility journeys,” said Billy Ho, Executive Vice President, Enterprise Product and Value Added Solutions, BlackBerry. “The ability for organizations to develop compelling, secure cross-platform mobile applications using the Good Dynamics platform is one of the key benefits that made the acquisition of Good so important to our strategy.” 

For the fourth quarter in a row, secure browser led all app categories, growing 57 percent quarter-over-quarter to account for 37 percent of all apps deployed by organizations. This trend is likely to continue as Good Access™, the leading secure browser, adds support for Windows. Custom apps, secure IM, document access and document editing followed as the next most popular app categories.

Industries Show Diverse App Popularity Based on Unique Demands

While app deployments increased overall, certain industries demonstrated a need for specific apps to meet unique demands. The most aggressive adopter of custom apps was the retail industry, where custom apps were the most popular app category at 40 percent. For the third straight quarter, the insurance industry also aggressively adopted custom apps (31 percent), while other “knowledge industries” such as financial services (25 percent), business and professional services (15 percent) and energy and utilities (13 percent) also showed widespread use of custom apps. Furthermore, most organizations that build custom apps don’t stop at just one, as 58 percent have built two or more apps. 

Government agencies and other public sector institutions focused their mobile initiatives on the document-based workflows that are critical to many e-government processes. In total, 43 percent of all apps in government were either document access or document editing. Public sector also saw a 10 percent quarterly increase in secure browser app activations to 31 percent.

iOS Rides New iPhone to Regain Market Share

iOS rebounded to regain some of its previous losses in device activations, building its lead from 64 percent to 66 percent. This continues a trend among Good-activated devices where new iPhone launches result in an uptick in iOS market share. Android market share fell slightly to 31 percent, while Windows dropped to 2 percent.

Heterogeneity seems to have taken hold in the tablet market, as the dominant lead iOS once had now appears to have eroded despite taking market share back from Android and Windows. iOS rose from 64 percent to 71 percent  of all tablet activations, while Android and Windows fell to 21 percent and 8 percent, respectively.

iOS ruled in regulated industries for the third quarter in a row, maintaining or growing huge leads in public sector (83 percent), financial services (77 percent), education (77 percent) and insurance (68 percent). After pulling ahead of iOS in high tech for the first time last quarter, Android maintained its lead with 52 percent of all activations in high tech and emerged with a slight lead over iOS in transportation.

A free webinar detailing findings in the Q3 2015 Good Mobility Index Report will take place on December 2, 2015. Register at: https://www1.good.com/forms/enterprise-mobility-trends.html?cid=70116000000FoNa.

The full report is available to view in PDF.

About BlackBerry

BlackBerry is securing a connected world, delivering innovative solutions across the entire mobile ecosystem and beyond. We secure the world’s most sensitive data across all end points – from cars to smartphones – making the mobile-first enterprise vision a reality. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Company trades under the ticker symbols “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange and “BBRY” on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.

New SecuSUITE for Enterprise app protects businesses from electronic eavesdropping

Source: BlackBerry - Press Releases - November 13, 2015

BlackBerry enabling highly secure mobile voice and text messaging communications as an easy to use service for enterprises of any size

Düsseldorf, 13. November 2015 – BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in secure mobile communications, today announced the new voice encryption solution SecuSUITE for Enterprise that protects mobile calls with a maximum level of security and is a multi-OS offering to be used on iOS, Android™ and BlackBerry® 10 operating systems. The VoIP, software-based, cloud-hosted solution will be available through an annual licence and the monthly costs per user are low. The app will be available later this month for Android, BlackBerry 10 and iOS smartphones.

By using SecuSUITE for Enterprise, company employees will be able to conduct secure conversations worldwide and, if required, over a Wi-Fi connection only, and will also be able to send encrypted text messages of any length. Voice and text messages are encrypted with 128-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) on the individual device level, meaning that even when, for example, the other party cannot be reached, the message is stored on the receiver´s smartphone and only sent to the recipient when they are available. SecuSUITE for Enterprise comes with a user-friendly, cloud-based admin portal that enables administrators to enroll or deactivate users and adjust settings. Companies do not need to set up additional IT infrastructure to use the app to secure their communications.

When developing SecuSUITE for Enterprise, Secusmart adapted technology that was originally created to overcome difficult security challenges faced by governments. Today, more than 15 governments have placed their trust in Secusmart’s security solutions using the current SecuSUITE® for BlackBerry® 10 solution.

Dr Hans-Christoph Quelle, CEO of Secusmart, said: “With SecuSUITE for Enterprise, we are adding a user-friendly and completely independent solution to our portfolio. Thanks to the globally secure BlackBerry infrastructure, governments – and now, companies – around the world can protect themselves from the threat of corporate espionage using flexible and extremely effective encryption technology ‘Made in Germany’.”

With the release of the SecuSUITE for Enterprise solution offering, the  current SecuSUITE for BlackBerry 10 solution will be referred to as SecuSUITE® for Government moving forward to affirm our commitment to the needs of priority government and enterprise segments.

SecuSUITE for Enterprise at a glance

•  App-based VoIP solution enabling end-to-end encrypted telephone calls
•  Available to all business customers, from small and medium-sized enterprises to large    corporations
•  Supported operating systems: iOS, Android and BlackBerry 10
•  High-security encryption using the 128-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)
•  The temporary encryption key is generated on the device and deleted immediately after the  telephone call, providing added security each time

Secusmart GmbH (www.secusmart.com), a subsidiary of BlackBerry® (BlackBerry – NASDAQ: BBRY, TSX: BB), is one of the world’s leading experts in the development and implementation of comprehensive solutions for protecting businesses and public authorities from electronic eavesdropping. Using its SecuSUITE for Enterprise security solution, the Düsseldorf-based company enables businesses to make secure mobile calls and send encrypted text messages regardless of the platform and device being used. Since the start of 2015, Vodafone Secure Call, one of the corporate solutions developed by Secusmart to protect voice communications, has been supplied to German business customers by Vodafone Germany, the system’s first marketing and distribution partner. With its SecuSUITE for Government high-security solution, Secusmart also protects the communications of governments outside of Germany as well as agencies and organisations responsible for providing emergency services. The trusted and well-established SecuSUITE for BlackBerry 10 continues to be responsible for securing the mobile communications of German government ministries and agencies.

BlackBerry is securing a connected world, delivering innovative solutions across the entire mobile ecosystem and beyond. We secure the world’s most sensitive data across all end points – from cars to smartphones – making the mobile-first enterprise vision a reality. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The company trades under the ticker symbols “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange and “BBRY” on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.

BlackBerry Releases Key Enhancements to Enterprise Software Platform

Source: BlackBerry - Press Releases - November 12, 2015

Expanded capabilities offer greater security, productivity and collaboration across iOS, Android and BlackBerry 10 and Windows 10

Waterloo, Ontario – November 12, 2015 – BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in secure mobile communications, today announced several updates to its enterprise software portfolio that define new levels of productivity, set new standards for secure communication and enable seamless access to data and applications behind the firewall or in the cloud – across any mobile endpoint or platform.

Building on BlackBerry’s leadership in enterprise mobility management and market-leading expertise in mobile security, the software updates are designed to help enterprises better collaborate across any device or OS platform in a productive, mobile-first, and cost-effective manner. Specific upgrades include:

Comprehensive multi-OS EMM with support for Windows 10 devices

· BES12, the foundation of BlackBerry’s enterprise portfolio, securely manages devices, apps and content across every major mobile platform, including iOS, Android™, Windows® and BlackBerry® 10

· Updates now available in v12.3 include support for Windows 10 phones, tablets, laptops and desktops, and additional deployment flexibility for Samsung KNOX Workspace and Android for Work

· In addition, BES12 v12.3 features the integration with BlackBerry WorkLife 1 to allow enterprises to easily manage corporate and personal phone numbers for split billing as bring-your-own-device (BYOD) becomes more prevalent

Protect, share and work with enterprise files

· WatchDox® by BlackBerry® is the most secure enterprise file-sync-and-share (EFSS) solution that allows users to protect, share and work with their files on any device

· New features and add-ons include productivity enhancements like the ability to annotate and track file activity on BlackBerry 10 devices as well as custom branding and multi-server capabilities for the WatchDox for Mac app

· The introduction of client and server localization in German and a refreshed admin console make the platform even more accessible and management simpler

· Additionally, WatchDox is expanding its EMM platform support with Good Dynamics-enabled mobile apps for iOS and Android. This is the first element in the integration of the Good Technology product portfolio

Secure calling and text messaging now also protecting Enterprises from eavesdropping

· The new SecuSUITE® for Enterprise provides secure calling and text messaging on mobile devices, safeguarding an organization’s sensitive conversations against electronic eavesdropping

· With multi-OS support, SecuSUITE for Enterprise adapts technology that was designed for Governments and optimized it for an easy to use service to secure communications for enterprises of any size

· Additionally, it provides best-in-class voice quality and is built to conform to the principles of NIAP Protection Profiles for Secure VoIP & SIP

“With the mobility needs of enterprises becoming increasingly complex, BlackBerry is focused on delivering solutions that help solve business challenges and allow for new levels of productivity – without compromising security and control,” said Billy Ho, Executive Vice President, Enterprise Product and Value Added Solutions, BlackBerry. “Our latest platform updates support our commitment to providing market-leading mobile security and enterprise productivity while – most importantly – helping enterprises to protect private and sensitive information from threats.”

For more information on BES12 visit: www.blackberry.com/bes12

For more information on SecuSUITE for Enterprise visit: www.blackberry.com/secusuiteforenterprise

For more information on BlackBerry WorkLife visit: www.blackberry.com/worklife

For more information on WatchDox visit: www.blackberry.com/watchdox  

1) WorkLife by BlackBerry is available through mobile operators. Enterprises wishing to purchase it should do so through their operator.

About BlackBerry
BlackBerry is securing a connected world, delivering innovative solutions across the entire mobile ecosystem and beyond. We secure the world’s most sensitive data across all end points – from cars to smartphones – making the mobile-first enterprise vision a reality. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Company trades under the ticker symbols “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange and “BBRY” on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.

BlackBerry’s First Powered By Android Secure Smartphone In Hong Kong

Source: BlackBerry - Press Releases - November 12, 2015

PRIV Delivers the Best of BlackBerry Privacy and Productivity to the Largest App Ecosystem

Hong Kong, NBlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in mobile communications, announced today that PRIV™ by BlackBerry®, the first-ever BlackBerry smartphone powered by Android™ will be available in Hong Kong in mid-November. Combining the best of BlackBerry’s productivity, security and privacy features with the wide world of Google Play™ store apps, PRIV is the epitome of form and function. It has been engineered with the world’s finest technology and packaged in an ultra-thin device – including a dual-curved screen, touch and physical keyboards, state-of-the-art 18MP camera, and long-lasting battery – with unique tools that allow users to manage and control their privacy.

“Building our first BlackBerry smartphone powered by Android is one of the boldest and most exciting steps BlackBerry has taken to expand and diversify our strategy to help professionals and organizations around the world operate more productively, effectively and securely across a wide range of platforms,” said Gallant Leon, Managing Director, North Asia, BlackBerry. “For the first time, users will have the best of BlackBerry while enjoying the access and flexibility of Android. This step shouldn’t be a surprise as we’ve been quickly expanding BlackBerry’s product portfolio across all operating system platforms – as we have done with BES12, BBM messaging and the rest of our enterprise software and services portfolio.”

A New Standard for Security and Privacy 

PRIV was designed with security at its core, building on BlackBerry’s legacy of security and keeping private its customers’ data. Security highlights include:

· Advanced Privacy Controls: The exclusive DTEK™ by BlackBerry® app for Android™ monitors and reports on application access to the microphone, camera, location and personal information, enabling users to be confident that their personal data is being kept private. Users can know at a glance when their privacy could be at risk so they can take action to improve it.

· Secure Hardware: BlackBerry’s hardware root of trust, a unique manufacturing process, injects cryptographic keys into the device hardware, providing a secure foundation for the entire platform.

· Verified Boot and Secure Bootchain: Keys have been embedded to verify every layer of the device from hardware to OS to applications in order to make sure they haven’t been tampered with. Additionally, thousands of modifications were made to harden the Linux kernel with numerous patches and configuration changes to improve security.

· Fully supported on BlackBerry's EMM Solution: PRIV can be integrated with our leading EMM solution, BES 12, which offers cross-platform management of PRIV and other devices; providing a full end to end security solution and secure collaboration applications for business users like Secusuite for secure voice and WatchDox for secure file sharing.

A New Standard for the Slider Form Factor

As part of BlackBerry’s cross-platform strategy to provide a greater choice of secure solutions to its customers, users will see a seamless merging of key BlackBerry 10 productivity features like the BlackBerry Hub and BlackBerry Calendar into PRIV. Additional key features include:

·  Full Android App and Ecosystem Experience – PRIV brings incredible new features to the Android platform and gives users full access to over one million applications: whether it’s Instagram, Spotify, Uber or BBM®, you’ll find it on Google PlayTM. 

·  Best of Both Keyboards – offers the freedom to choose between a virtual keyboard or a physical keyboard for speed and accuracy.

·  Tough and Beautiful Screen – A stunning 5.4-inch immersive dual-curve OLED display offers plenty of room to work or play with rich colors, deep black levels and less power consumption. At a resolution of 2560x1440, it sports an incredible pixel density of 540 PPI – 4x the amount of pixels of a standard HDTV. Along the screen’s curved edge is the Productivity Tab that provides an “at a glance” view of the most pertinent info from BlackBerry Hub, Calendar, Task, and Contacts.

·  Full-day Battery Life – PRIV has a 3410 mAh battery with enough power to work up to 22.5 straight hours of mixed usage*.

·  State-of-the-Art Camera – Engineered to deliver professional looking photos with minimal effort, an 18MP camera, certified by Schneider-Kreuznach®, integrates technologies commonly found in DSLR cameras.

·  Powerful Performance and Expandable Storage – PRIV is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor, a premium-tier chipset designed to offer consumers a superior and compelling user experience along with peace of mind with Qualcomm® SecureMSM™ technology and Qualcomm® Snapdragon StudioAccess™ content protection. Plus, with 32 GB of onboard storage and support for micro SD cards up to 2TB, the new PRIV gives users the flexibility to add affordable and hot-swappable storage to download, install, capture and share as their needs evolve.

·  BlackBerry® Natural Sound - PRIV comes with powerful speakers and a three-microphone system that delivers a high-quality listening experience. BlackBerry® Natural Sound Technology is built in to adapt Wi-Fi and cellular call sound depending upon phone position and background noise, automatically adjusting volume so users don’t have to.

·  Android™ for Work – PRIV comes ready for work. Android for Work support allows for fast, simple and secure integration with the enterprise environment. Seamless integration with Google Play for Work enables easy access to IT-managed apps.

While PRIV will provide a choice in operating system to new and existing customers, the company remains committed to the BlackBerry 10 operating system, and will continue to release platform updates focused on security and privacy enhancements.

Availability and Pricing

PRIV will be available at an MSRP of HK$6,488 and will be available at China Mobile Hong Kong Company Limited, csl. and 1O1O under CSL Mobile Limited, SmarTone and 3 Hong Kong; as well as authorized resellers including Broadway Photo Supply Ltd, Chung Yuen Electrical Co, Ltd, Fortress, Hong Kong Suning, Nuance-Watson (HK) Limited and Wilson Communications Ltd and authorized distributor Qool International Ltd.

For more information on PRIV, go to www.BlackBerry.com/PRIV. Follow all updates to PRIV on the Inside BlackBerry blog.

* Based on mixed usage scenario.  Many factors affect battery life, including network connectivity, application usage, feature configuration and battery age. Actual results may vary.

About BlackBerry

BlackBerry is securing a connected world, delivering innovative solutions across the entire mobile ecosystem and beyond. We secure the world’s most sensitive data across all end points – from cars to smartphones – making the mobile-first enterprise vision a reality. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Company trades under the ticker symbols “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange and “BBRY” on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.

Epic 12.9-inch iPad Pro Available to Order Online Wednesday & Arrives in Stores Later This Week

Source: Apple - Press Releases - November 9, 2015

iPad Pro Arrives in Over 40 Countries Including the US, UK, China & Japan

CUPERTINO, California — November 9, 2015 — Apple® today announced iPad Pro™ is available to order online on Wednesday, November 11, from Apple.com and will arrive at Apple’s retail stores, select carriers and Apple Authorized Resellers starting later this week. Apple Pencil™ and Apple’s new Smart Keyboard, also available to order on Wednesday, bring breakthrough levels of precision and utility to iPad Pro.

“The early response to iPad Pro from app developers and our customers has been incredible, and we’re excited to get iPad Pro into the hands of customers around the world this week,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “iPad Pro is the most powerful iPad we’ve ever made, giving users the ability to be even more creative and more productive with the epic 12.9-inch Retina display, powerful 64-bit A9X chip and groundbreaking Apple Pencil and new Smart Keyboard. We can’t wait to see what they do with iPad Pro.”

The new, larger iPad Pro features a stunning 12.9-inch Retina® display with 5.6 million pixels, the most ever in an iOS device, and groundbreaking performance with the new 64-bit A9X chip, rivaling most portable PCs. It is thin, light and delivers all-day 10-hour battery life* that users have come to expect from iPad®. Apple Pencil for iPad Pro makes drawing and sketching feel remarkably fluid and natural, and delivers incredible accuracy for activities like fine art illustration and detailed 3D design. A built-in Lightning® connector on Apple Pencil makes for quick and easy pairing and charging. Apple’s new Smart Keyboard further extends the utility of iPad Pro, offering a full-sized keyboard in a thin, durable design so you can take it anywhere. The Smart Keyboard attaches to iPad Pro’s innovative Smart Connector port, eliminating the need for a separate battery, on/off switch or Bluetooth pairing.

iPad Pro has already inspired developers of the next generation of advanced apps for everything from productivity, design, illustration, engineering and medical, to education, gaming and entertainment. 

“iPad Pro enables new forms of mobile creativity that will help transform how creatives work,” said Scott Belsky, vice president of Products at Adobe. “With the larger iPad Pro screen and lightning-fast performance, creatives will be able to take full advantage of Adobe’s family of Creative Cloud mobile apps. For example, the ability to manipulate a 50-megapixel image right on iPad Pro in Photoshop Fix and then send that image to Photoshop CC on a desktop, for further refinement, is the kind of industry-advancing collaboration that millions of Adobe and Apple customers will benefit from.”

“Creative thinkers worldwide use Paper as part of their workflow, designing everything from flow charts, to storyboards, to wireframes, to architectural sketches. iPad Pro is the ultimate platform for Paper, with a powerful 12.9-inch Retina display and A9X chip that deliver performance rivaling most portable PCs,” said Georg Petschnigg, CEO and co-founder of FiftyThree. “iPad Pro gives Paper users an even bigger and more dynamic canvas on which to rapidly capture ideas however they strike — as notes, photos, sketches or diagrams.”

“Procreate 3 is designed for iPad Pro to give artists a more immersive experience than ever before,” said James Cuda of Savage Interactive. “iPad Pro’s gorgeous 12.9-inch Retina display lets you create massive artworks: up to an incredible 16K in resolution. This new level of definition allows for large format printing and exceptionally detailed artworks. Procreate 3 is also built for Apple Pencil. Its remarkable accuracy, pressure sensitivity, tilt detection and palm rejection make Apple Pencil the tool we’ve been waiting for.”

“iPad Pro and Apple Pencil are the new pad and pen,” said Evi Meyer, CEO of 3D sketching app UMake. “With its simple use and powerful computing capacity, designers can leverage these tools to reimagine their sketching experience and finally elevate their flat work to 3D. UMake, iPad Pro and Apple Pencil finally empower professional designers to embrace innovation, along with their creativity.”

Pricing & Availability

• iPad Pro starts at $799 (US) for the 32GB with Wi-Fi model and $1079 (US) for the Wi-Fi + Cellular 128GB model and comes in three gorgeous metallic finishes including silver, gold and space gray and can be purchased at Apple.com, Apple’s Retail stores, select carriers and select Apple Authorized Resellers.
• Apple Pencil will be available for $99 (US) and Smart Keyboard will be available in charcoal gray for $169 (US).**
• iPad Pro will be available in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Cayman Islands, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greenland, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Isle of Man, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Russia, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, UAE, US, UK, Uruguay and US Virgin Islands.
• New, Apple-designed polyurethane iPad Pro Smart Covers will be available for $59 (US) in charcoal gray and white. New iPad Pro Silicone Cases will be available for $79 (US) in charcoal gray and white.
• Every customer who buys iPad Pro at an Apple Retail Store will be offered free Personal Setup to help them customize their iPad Pro by setting up email, showing them new apps from the App Store® and more, so they’ll be up and running with their new iPad Pro before they leave the store.
• Anyone who wants to learn more about the new iPad Pro or iOS 9 can register for the free workshops offered at every Apple Store®. 

* Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results may vary.
** Smart Keyboard for iPad Pro is available in a US English keyboard layout.

Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV. Apple’s four software platforms — iOS, OS X, watchOS and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay and iCloud. Apple’s 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

BlackBerry's PRIV Secure Smartphone Powered by Android now Available

Source: BlackBerry - Press Releases - November 6, 2015

Groundbreaking new device brings the best of BlackBerry security and productivity to the Android ecosystem 

Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in mobile communications, confirmed today its first-ever BlackBerry smartphone powered by Android is now commercially available from carriers in North America. PRIV is available starting today in AT&T retail stores in the U.S. and online. PRIV can also now be purchased through BlackBerry’s carrier partners in Canada: Bell, Rogers, SaskTel,TELUS, and WIND. Consumers can also continue to place PRIV orders through ShopBlackBerry.com.

Combining the best of BlackBerry’s productivity, security and privacy features with the wide world of Google Play™ store apps, PRIV is the epitome of form and function. It has been engineered with the world’s finest technology and packaged in an ultra-thin device – including a dual-curved screen, touch and physical keyboards, state-of-the-art 18MP camera, and long-lasting battery – with unique tools that allow users to manage and control their privacy.

“I have said many times that BlackBerry would not release an Android smartphone unless we could make it private and secure. I’m pleased to say that day has arrived,” said John Chen, Executive Chairman and CEO, BlackBerry. “With BlackBerry’s patented keyboard and the full complement of applications found in Google Play, this device expands our cross-platform strategy and gives end users the best in security, privacy and productivity, with no compromises on applications.”

A New Standard for Security and Privacy 

PRIV was designed with security at its core, building on BlackBerry’s legacy of security and keeping private its customers’ data. Security highlights include:

·         Advanced Privacy Controls: The exclusive DTEK™ by BlackBerry® app for Android™ monitors and reports on application access to the microphone, camera, location and personal information, enabling users to be confident that their personal data is being kept private. Users can know at a glance when their privacy could be at risk so they can take action to improve it.

·         Secure Hardware: BlackBerry’s hardware root of trust, a unique manufacturing process, injects cryptographic keys into the device hardware, providing a secure foundation for the entire platform.

·         Verified Boot and Secure Bootchain: Keys have been embedded to verify every layer of the device from hardware to OS to applications in order to make sure they haven’t been tampered with. Additionally, thousands of modifications were made to harden the Linux kernel with numerous patches and configuration changes to improve security.

·         Fully supported on BlackBerry's EMM Solution: PRIV can be integrated with our leading EMM solution, BES 12, which offers cross-platform management of PRIV and other devices; providing a full end to end security solution and secure collaboration applications for business users like Secusuite for secure voice and WatchDox for secure file sharing.

A New Standard for the Slider Form Factor

As part of BlackBerry’s cross-platform strategy to provide a greater choice of secure solutions to its customers, users will see a seamless merging of key BlackBerry 10 productivity features like the BlackBerry Hub and BlackBerry Calendar into PRIV. Additional key features include:

·         Full Android App and Ecosystem Experience – PRIV brings incredible new features to the Android platform and gives users full access to over one million applications: whether it’s Instagram, Spotify, Uber or BBM®, you’ll find it on Google PlayTM. 

·         Best of Both Keyboards – offers the freedom to choose between a virtual keyboard or a physical keyboard for speed and accuracy.

·         Tough and Beautiful Screen – A stunning 5.4-inch immersive dual-curve OLED display offers plenty of room to work or play with rich colors, deep black levels and less power consumption. At a resolution of 2560x1440, it sports an incredible pixel density of 540 PPI – 4x the amount of pixels of a standard HDTV. Along the screen’s curved edge is the Productivity Tab that provides an “at a glance” view of the most pertinent info from BlackBerry Hub, Calendar, Task, and Contacts.

·         Full-day Battery Life – PRIV has a 3410 mAh battery with enough power to work up to 22.5 straight hours of mixed usage*.

·         State-of-the-Art Camera – Engineered to deliver professional looking photos with minimal effort, an 18MP camera, certified by Schneider-Kreuznach®, integrates technologies commonly found in DSLR cameras.

·         Powerful Performance and Expandable Storage – PRIV is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor, a premium-tier chipset designed to offer consumers a superior and compelling user experience along with peace of mind with Qualcomm® SecureMSM™ technology and Qualcomm® Snapdragon StudioAccess™ content protection. Plus, with 32 GB of onboard storage and  support for micro SD cards up to 2TB, the new PRIV gives users the flexibility to add affordable and hot-swappable storage to download, install, capture and share as their needs evolve.

·         BlackBerry® Natural Sound - PRIV comes with powerful speakers and a three-microphone system that delivers a high-quality listening experience. BlackBerry® Natural Sound Technology is built in to adapt Wi-Fi and cellular call sound depending upon phone position and background noise, automatically adjusting volume so users don’t have to.

·         Android™ for Work – PRIV comes ready for work. Android for Work support allows for fast, simple and secure integration with the enterprise environment. Seamless integration with Google Play for Work enables easy access to IT-managed apps.

While PRIV will provide a choice in operating system to new and existing customers, the company remains committed to the BlackBerry 10 operating system, and will continue to release platform updates focused on security and privacy enhancements.

Availability and Pricing
PRIV is available starting today in AT&T retail stores in the U.S. and online, as well as through BlackBerry’s carrier partners in Canada: Bell, Rogers, SaskTel, TELUS, and WIND. PRIV orders can also be placed through ShopBlackBerry for $699USD.

For more information on PRIV, go to BlackBerry.com/PRIV. Follow all updates to PRIV on the Inside BlackBerry blog (blogs.BlackBerry.com).

* Based on mixed usage scenario.  Many factors affect battery life, including network connectivity, application usage, feature configuration and battery age. Actual results may vary.

About BlackBerry

BlackBerry is securing a connected world, delivering innovative solutions across the entire mobile ecosystem and beyond. We secure the world’s most sensitive data across all end points – from cars to smartphones – making the mobile-first enterprise vision a reality. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Company trades under the ticker symbols “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange and “BBRY” on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.

BlackBerry Completes Good Technology Acquisition

Source: BlackBerry - Press Releases - November 2, 2015

Waterloo, Ontario – November 2, 2015 – BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in secure mobile communications, today announced it has completed the acquisition of Good Technology. BlackBerry will integrate Good’s software solutions and services with its own software suites to offer the industry’s most complete end-to-end solution that secures the entire mobile enterprise, across all platforms and applications while protecting personal privacy.

With the acquisition of Good, BlackBerry has expanded its ability to offer a unified, secure mobility platform with applications and services for any mobile device on any operating system – supported by security that has been certified by governments around the world embedded in every component of the mobility infrastructure. 

“The Good and BlackBerry solutions are very complementary. Combined, BlackBerry solves one of the biggest challenges for CIOs – to securely manage all types of deployment models for any device operating system platform, whether on-premise or in the cloud,” said John Chen, BlackBerry Executive Chairman and CEO. “We are creating a higher-value solution with the capability to extend across enterprise mobility management, collaboration and application enablement in order to provide customers with the best and most secure products, services and support to meet their enterprise mobility objectives.”

“BlackBerry’s completion of the Good acquisition brings two leading companies in the mobile security space together to offer a secure cross-platform EMM solution,” said Stacy Crook, Research Director, Enterprise Mobility at IDC. “Good brings additional value to the BlackBerry platform by offering strong application containerization on iOS and Android, and will provide solutions to containerize custom and third-party applications.”

BlackBerry and Good have natural platform synergies that will be integrated, offering the best of containerization and enterprise mobility management (EMM), and will leverage BlackBerry’s global network infrastructure. Customers and partners can expect easily managed migration options and seamless, uninterrupted integration with the combined platform. Customers can look forward to:

The broadest set of options to meet the full cross-platform needs of an enterprise for EMM, including support for iOS, BlackBerry, Windows, and Android including Samsung KNOX™ Workspace and Android™ for Work.
Support for varying deployment models such as bring-your-own-device (BYOD); corporate owned, personally enabled (COPE); corporate owned, business only (COBO); as well as environments with multiple user interfaces and operating systems.
The most secure container solution in the market; used on millions of devices around the world to meet the highest security requirements, protecting data independent of device, app, user or location.
The widest portfolio of secure enterprise productivity applications in the industry, including over 2,000 Independent Software Vendor (ISV) and custom applications with software development kit (SDK) support.
Secure mobile applications such as WatchDox for secure sync and file share, AtHoc for crisis communication and BBM Protected for messaging.
Secure mobile collaboration applications like Good Work, Good Access, and Good for Salesforce1 CRM.

BlackBerry anticipates the acquisition to be accretive to earnings and cash flow within the first year after closing. BlackBerry also expects to realize approximately $160 million in GAAP revenue from Good in the first year, including the impact of an expected write-down of certain deferred revenue of Good.                                                                                                                             
For more information, please visit www.blackberry.com/good. 

About BlackBerry

BlackBerry is securing a connected world, delivering innovative solutions across the entire mobile ecosystem and beyond. We secure the world’s most sensitive data across all end points – from cars to smartphones – making the mobile-first enterprise vision a reality. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Company trades under the ticker symbols “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange and “BBRY” on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.

PRIV by BlackBerry is now Available for Pre-Order in Hong Kong

Source: BlackBerry - Press Releases - November 2, 2015

Hong Kong – BlackBerry Limited (NASDAQ: BBRY; TSX: BB), a global leader in secure mobile communications, today announced that PRIV™ by BlackBerry®, the first-ever BlackBerry smartphone powered by Android™ is now available for pre-order in Hong Kong through local carriers and major chain stores.

PRIV combines the best of BlackBerry’s productivity, security and privacy features with the wide world of Google Play™ store apps. Featuring an elegant, slim design with a slide-out physical keyboard, 5.4-inch dual-curved screen and powerful 18MP camera, PRIV is the epitome of form and function and builds on BlackBerry’s vaunted legacy of securing and keeping data private.

Highlights of PRIV include:

• Stunning 5.4” dual-curved screen
• Long lasting 3410 mAh battery
• Both touch and physical keyboards
• Schneider-Kreuznach® certified camera
• Extraordinary audio quality

PRIV also introduces the exclusive DTEK™ by BlackBerry warning system app to provide you with the power of privacy.

For more information on the PRIV, please visit www.BlackBerry.com/PRIV. 

Pricing and Availability

PRIV is available at an MSRP of HK$6,488 and is currently available for pre-order through csl. and 1O1O under CSL Mobile Limited, China Mobile Hong Kong Company Limited, SmarTone Mobile Communications Limited and 3 Hong Kong; as well as authorized resellers including Broadway Photo Supply Ltd, Chung Yuen Electrical Co, Ltd, Fortress, Hong Kong Suning and Nuance-Watson (HK) Limited and our distributor Qool International Ltd.


*Android is a trademark of Google Inc.

About BlackBerry

BlackBerry is securing a connected world, delivering innovative solutions across the entire mobile ecosystem and beyond. We secure the world’s most sensitive data across all end points – from cars to smartphones – making the mobile-first enterprise vision a reality. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, BlackBerry operates offices in North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The Company trades under the ticker symbols “BB” on the Toronto Stock Exchange and “BBRY” on the NASDAQ. For more information, visit www.BlackBerry.com.