BlackBerry announcing new device in Malaysia next week

BlackBerry Malaysia has sent us an invite to an event happening next week and by the looks of it, it’s almost certain that they will be talking about the Passport. The local announcement is likely to coincide with the international announcement that’s scheduled to happen on September 25.

If the rumours are true, the Passport will be the most different BlackBerry since the Storm that was launched six years ago. Like the Storm, BlackBerry will be looking to strike a balance between having a physical QWERTY keyboard for its die-hard fans and a large touchscreen display to entice new users to jump on board the BB bandwagon. Considering that the device is also spotted on the SIRIM database earlier this week, you can expect the new phone to be available in Malaysia soon after its announcement.

Based on leaks, the Passport features square 4.5-inch display 1440×1440 pixel pushing an impressive 452ppi. Underneath the display is a simplified 3-row QWERTY keyboard with an integrated hidden touchpad for quick one-handed navigation. There’s an extensive hands-on here if you’re curious. Other rumoured specs include a quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor with 3GB of RAM, there’s also a 13MP main camera and a 2MP front facing unit, and a large 3,450mAh battery. On the software side, the Passport is expected to be released with BlackBerry 10.3 complete with BlackBerry Assistant voice navigation.