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Update 22 October: The BBM app for Android and iPhone is finally out —
click here for the official links to download the long-awaited app now!
BBM for Android is scheduled to launch today, but missed the release time. Originally, BlackBerry planned to make the BlackBerry Messenger app on your Android phone available today to chat with your long-lost BBM buddies, with the BBM iPhone app set to come in a few hours.
“Thanks for your patience Android users!” says BlackBerry. “Working hard to get you the real BBM ASAP. We’ll let you know when it’s live.”
Head over to the Google Play app store and you should be able to download BBM for Android at some point today. Install the app and you’ll be chatting with your old BlackBerry buds before you can say “WhatsApp? What’s that?”
The BBM app for other devices lets you swap instant messages with other app users, with voice chat to come at a later stage. If you’ve defected from BlackBerry to Apple, the iOS app will be available from the Apple App Store at midnight.
BlackBerry has certainly made us wait for the instant messaging app to arrive on other phones. Sadly scammers have taken advantage of the wait to fill Google Play with fake BBM apps, targeting eager ex-BlackBerry owners with ads, spam or worse.
BlackBerry Messenger was the main reason that teens became as addicted to their BlackBerrys as the most business-minded executive, mainly because — unlike texting — it’s free. You can also write much longer messages and see when someone’s read your missive.
But with the rise of the iPhone and more affordable Android phones, the shine wore off BlackBerry devices — especially with the arrival of IM services like WhatsApp or Samsung ChatOn that work across different devices, so you can chat with friends and family even if they have different phones to you.
Are you excited to get back on BBM? Will this encourage people to come back to BlackBerry, or have the folks at BlackBerry just killed off the last reason to actually buy one of their phones? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or chat away on our Facebook page.
Update: The BBM app was scheduled to appear at noon, when this story was first posted. We’ve updated the story to reflect the delay.
