Yes and no. RIM will let developers try out their new software in May. Well that means they must be ready to soon debut some new devices and they need to hurry because they have been stuggling in the smartphone race. Details on the new Blackberry software after the jump.
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Research In Motion Ltd. plans to give software developers prototypes for its new BlackBerry smartphone platform in early May, signaling RIM is a step closer to debuting a handset it’s betting on to lift sales.
As many as 2,000 of the BlackBerry 10 test models will be given out to developers at RIM’s BlackBerry Jam conference in Orlando, Florida and they are designed primarily to allow developers to build applications using the underlying operating system, Alec Saunders, RIM’s vice-president developer relations, said in an telephone interview today.
“It’s a huge step forward on our path to eventually launching BB10,” Saunders said. “It’s tangible evidence of the company making progress to finally shipping the device.”
RIM is counting on the BlackBerry 10 lineup, based on software called QNX it bought in 2010, to revive sales that have slumped in recent quarters, particularly in the U.S., its biggest and most competitive market. RIM’s market share has dropped as consumers abandoned the BlackBerry for Apple Inc.’s iPhone and touch-screen devices built on Google Inc.’s Android software that offer a wider range of consumer apps.
Saunders said the design of the test model and the screen’s look and navigation will be very different from what eventually goes on sale to consumers.
“The experience on this device from a consumer’s perspective is not in any way indicative of what the final experience on BlackBerry 10 will be like,” he said. “We are holding that back to create the interest around that at launch time.”
