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Cape Town - BlackBerry has launched its latest smartphone in South Africa and signalled its intention to fight for increased market share with a competitive price.
The Canadian-based company announced on Thursday the availability of the Z3 (Jakarta) in the country and appears to be determined to increase its market share for the BlackBerry 10 platform.
BlackBerry has launched the Z3 at a recommended retail price of R2 999 or R249 per month on a Vodacom Smart S contract.
Globally, BlackBerry dominated smartphones as secure business communication devices, but have since been overtaken by the rise of Android phones and Apple's iPhone.
Despite that, the company remains popular in many developing economies like SA and BlackBerry has moved to take advantage of a well-known brand.
Security
When the Z3 launched in Indonesia - a key market - queues of people lined up at shopping malls to get their hands on the device.
In SA, BlackBerry may not easily dominate sales even with the lower price as a number of manufacturers have moved into the mid-tier segment.
On Thursday, Hisense launched the MAXE X1 Android-powered phablet for R4 999, and Zest Mobile has also disrupted the market with the launch of the South African Zest T1 smartphone sold for R1 999.
But BlackBerry has a trick up its sleeve. The company has touted its security, widely respected and regarded as superior to offerings on competing platforms.
"The BlackBerry Z3 smartphone gives users more ways to securely communicate and collaborate and extends the BlackBerry 10 platform experience to a new generation of South African customers at an attractive price point," said Yudi Moodley, managing director at BlackBerry for Africa.
The Z3 has a 12cm display and the company is offering apps worth R430 for people who buy the phone in July.
Despite this, the company remains aware that Android dominates the mobile ecosystem and the latest version of the BlackBerry 10 operating system is compatible with Android applications.
- Follow Duncan on Twitter
The Canadian-based company announced on Thursday the availability of the Z3 (Jakarta) in the country and appears to be determined to increase its market share for the BlackBerry 10 platform.
BlackBerry has launched the Z3 at a recommended retail price of R2 999 or R249 per month on a Vodacom Smart S contract.
Globally, BlackBerry dominated smartphones as secure business communication devices, but have since been overtaken by the rise of Android phones and Apple's iPhone.
Despite that, the company remains popular in many developing economies like SA and BlackBerry has moved to take advantage of a well-known brand.
Security
When the Z3 launched in Indonesia - a key market - queues of people lined up at shopping malls to get their hands on the device.
In SA, BlackBerry may not easily dominate sales even with the lower price as a number of manufacturers have moved into the mid-tier segment.
On Thursday, Hisense launched the MAXE X1 Android-powered phablet for R4 999, and Zest Mobile has also disrupted the market with the launch of the South African Zest T1 smartphone sold for R1 999.
But BlackBerry has a trick up its sleeve. The company has touted its security, widely respected and regarded as superior to offerings on competing platforms.
"The BlackBerry Z3 smartphone gives users more ways to securely communicate and collaborate and extends the BlackBerry 10 platform experience to a new generation of South African customers at an attractive price point," said Yudi Moodley, managing director at BlackBerry for Africa.
The Z3 has a 12cm display and the company is offering apps worth R430 for people who buy the phone in July.
Despite this, the company remains aware that Android dominates the mobile ecosystem and the latest version of the BlackBerry 10 operating system is compatible with Android applications.
- Follow Duncan on Twitter
