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Brian Bennett/CNET
Say hello to the BlackBerry Classic.
BlackBerry CEO John Chen confirmed to a roundtable of reporters that the phone previously known as the Q20 will be renamed the “BlackBerry Classic.”
Chen teased the Q20 at Mobile World Congress, and referenced it several times as the BlackBerry Classic (his handler kept correcting him on the name) because of its traditional keyboard and Bold-like look. It turns out, he won the argument to deviate from the company’s current naming scheme.
The Q20 is BlackBerry’s big push to get back into the corporate and government world as the struggling company looks to turn its devices back around. The hope is that existing customers used to the BlackBerry keyboard experience will stick with its next-generation version. BlackBerry retains a loyal, if small, base of users.
BlackBerry plans to mostly build keyboard-centric devices, but Chen said he would produce a touchscreen phones as well. The Z3, for example, is a touch-screen device that is headed toward the emerging markets.
Unsurprisingly, Chen said he personally prefers a Qwerty keyboard on his phone.
