RIM Developers Still Waiting for BB10 Keyboard Prototypes - Bloomberg

Software developers for Research In Motion Ltd. (RIMM)'s BlackBerry 10 smartphones have yet to get models with physical keyboards, the latest sign RIM is de-emphasizing its once-signature feature in favor of touch screens. RIM will distribute prototypes with physical keyboards after the new software platform's official debut on Jan. 30, said Victoria Berry, a company spokeswoman. Developers were given touch-screen versions months ago, letting them design applications for the phones. The pending keyboard prototypes will be known as Dev Alpha C devices, she said. RIM is concentrating on smooth glass handsets that resemble Apple Inc. (AAPL)'s iPhone 5 or Samsung Electronics Co. (005930)'s Galaxy S III, shifting away from the raised black keypads that inspired the BlackBerry name. While RIM will sell a BlackBerry 10 model with a physical keyboard to cater to e-mail traditionalists, Chief Executive Officer Thorsten Heins has said he expects the touch version to account for most orders. The company, based in Waterloo, Ontario, began handing out test models of the new BlackBerry 10 smartphones to developers last May. Though RIM stressed then that the prototype would differ from the final product, the glass slab was designed to give developers a tool to approximate the surface of the BlackBerry 10 touch-screen model. Chief Marketing Officer Frank Boulben said in an interview earlier this month that there are now more than 70,000 apps available for BlackBerry 10, a sufficient number to make RIM competitive with more widely adopted platforms offered by Apple and Google Inc. (GOOG), whose Android system is used by Samsung. Separate Kits Separate software developer kits, known as SDKs, will be distributed with the Dev Alpha C devices to help programmers tailor their apps to the smaller screen and different button controls on the keyboard models, RIM's Berry said. As with the touch-screen versions, these prototypes will look different from the products that go on sale, she said. BlackBerry fans must wait until the Jan. 30 debut for the first official glimpse of both the touch and keypad models. To prepare for the rollout, more than 120 U.S. companies, including 64 members of the Fortune 500, are doing advanced testing of BlackBerry 10 devices -- thus far solely with touch-screen models, RIM said. RIM shares were little changed in New York today, trading at $14.75 at 12:03 p.m. The stock has more than doubled since late September on optimism that BlackBerry 10 can reverse declining sales and help RIM win back market share lost to Apple's iOS and to Android. RIM was poised to finish 2012 with a 4.7 percent share of the global market, compared with almost 90 percent for Apple and Android combined, research firm IDC said last month. 'True Multitasking' In recent demonstrations to journalists and analysts, RIM executives have shown features they say offer "true multitasking" that distinguish BlackBerry 10 from rivals, including the ability to peek at your e-mail or calendar without leaving the app you're running. The Hub feature aggregates a user's e-mail, text messages and social-media alerts in one place. RIM has also built features into the virtual keyboard to persuade skeptics to convert from traditional Qwerty models. It offers word suggestions above the key the device thinks you'll type next, and learns over time where on a given key your finger strikes to reduce mistyping. To contact the reporter on this story: Hugo Miller in Toronto at hugomiller@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net via Technology - Google News http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNFYZlmsog0LyUAMj000E30Fh38Ktg&url=http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-17/rim-developers-still-waiting-for-bb10-keyboard-prototypes.html

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