BlackBerry introduced a new smartphone called the Passport on Wednesday as it enters what may be the most critical phase of its long turnaround process.
At events in Toronto, London and Dubai, BlackBerry unveiled the new device, which is the size and shape of a closed passport. Its features include a large square touchscreen and keyboard.
Users can type on the Passport's keyboard to enter text, or swipe lightly across it to navigate through the phone, according to Reuters.
BlackBerry recently finished its three-year restructuring process, and it is now up to Chief Executive John Chen to prove the company's new devices and services are capable of generating sustainable new streams of revenue and returning the company to profit.
"BlackBerry is still fighting for survival. They still need to turn around and develop a viable ongoing business model," said Morningstar analyst Brian Colello, according to Reuters. "Their products are certainly pointing toward that and the new strategy makes sense, but there is still a lot of execution risk at this point in a very competitive market."
Chen brought out retired National Hockey League star Wayne Gretzky during the Toronto event to discuss the Passport's features.
The device is on sale now in some markets, with a suggested introductory retail price of C$699 ($629) in Canada and $599 in the United States.
BlackBerry said that it expects the price on contract to be around $249, depending on the carrier and that the device will be available in 30 countries by the end of 2014.
It will be carried in the U.S. by AT&T.
Passport users will be able to download apps from Amazon's app store.
"BlackBerry just needs one hit phone for now," Colello said. "It doesn't quite matter whether it is the Passport, the Classic or anything else, but they do need one device to jump-start the hardware business again."
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