The once dominant smartphone maker Research in Motion announced that as of February 4th it would officially change its name to BlackBerry as part of its plan to regain standing among the other players in the consumer products industry. Its stock ticker name will be BBRY replacing RIMM.
This announcement was made as it unveiled its latest software version, BlackBerry10, and two new phones the Z10 and the Q10.
The software balances a bit of catch-up to iOS, Android and WindowsPhone and some innovative new features such as the BlackBerry Hub (which integrates all of your messages and notifications from social media all in one place) and the BlackBerry Balance feature which allows you to keep your work and personal profiles separate. Initial media reviews seem to be most excited about a feature in BlackBerry10 that allows you to share your screen while messaging.
The two phones described were the Z10 (available in March from Verizon and from ATT at some point near that) and the Q10 (coming in April).
The Z10 has a virtual keyboard with a completely new way of typing called BlackBerry Flow. The Q10 has a QWERTY keyboard that was such a popular feature of earlier BlackBerry models.
Whether or not these phones will bring former BlackBerry fans back or move their stalwart fans onto a new experience remains to be seen.
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