AT&T subscribers can now purchase the BlackBerry Q10, a little over two weeks after the US mobile operator introduced the QWERTY smartphone for pre-order. The Canadian maker's device is available today for $199.99 alongside a two-year agreement.
The BlackBerry Q10 is available on one-year contracts and month-to-month plans as well, for $449.99 and $584.99, respectively. AT&T subscribers can also trade-in "their current smartphone" to the mobile operator to receive a $100 discount off the purchase of the BlackBerry Q10 (the offer also applies to other new handsets in AT&T's lineup).
Some of the BlackBerry Q10 highlights include: 3.1-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 720 by 720 and a 330 ppi (pixels per inch) density; 1.5 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor; 2 GB of RAM; 2,100 mAh battery; 8 MP camera on the back and 2 MP shooter on the front (1080p video recording with the former, 720p video capture with the latter); 16 GB of internal storage; microSD card slot (can accommodate 32 GB cards); 4G LTE connectivity; Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n; Bluetooth 4.0 and BlackBerry 10.1 operating system. The smartphone comes in at 4.7 x 2.62 x 0.4 inches and 4.9 ounces.
According to an IDC report for Q1 2013, BlackBerry is in a tough spot, barely managing to surpass Windows Phone's market share. The Canadian maker moved 6.2 million units, but most of the shipments were comprised of older devices (prior to the BlackBerry Z10). AT&T's support will undoubtedly boost BlackBerry's numbers (when it comes to its new lineup), but is the market ready to move back to a QWERTY smartphone?