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Previews of BlackBerry Passport Ignite Media and Consumer Interest

07.14.14 / Matt Young

Hand_BlackPhone2

The BlackBerry Passport is proving that it is hip to be square, as early glimpses of the device’s  massive, trend-bucking screen and innovative, touch-enabled keyboard last week attracted huge media attention and plenty of positive comments from readers (read: potential buyers).

“BlackBerry’s square-screened phone to free us from our ‘rectangular world,'” went the headline of Andrew Cunningham’s piece in Ars Technica, one of many pieces that propelled the BlackBerry Passport near the top of industry news aggregator, TechMeme

BlackBerry Passport’s boundary-breaking design and oversized 1,440×1,440 screen resonated with many writers. “One of the obvious reasons for BlackBerry Passport’s square form factor is the need for innovation,” wrote Softpedia’s Cosmin Vasile. “In a market where design matters a lot, BlackBerry found out that there weren’t too many square handsets available and has decided to go for it.”

TechCrunch’s Darrell Etheringon agreed. “BlackBerry is at least taking a different approach to the smartphone/tablet/whatever-mobile-computer, the design of all which has been largely normalized over the past few years.”

So did Jon Fingas of influential gadget blog, Engadget. “They’re interesting ideas, and the unusual form factor might just work for BlackBerry’s suit-and-tie audience.

Even BGR’s Brad Reed was moved to write that “the BlackBerry Passport wasn’t designed for iSheep and Fandroids who want to play Candy Crush all day — it’s for people who want to do real work, and that means having a physical keyboard that can fire off emails like no other phone.”

Predictably, some publications took a cautious approach to the BlackBerry Passport’s innovations, opting to defend a status quo dominated by an endless conveyor belt of entertainment-driven, homogenous devices.

But when everything tastes like chicken, maybe it’s time for a different flavor.

Clamoring Consumers

Besides the media coverage, the number of reader comments indicated the strong interest. BGR’s post drew 170+ comments; the Ars post drew more than 240 comments, while Engadget’s blog drew nearly 380 comments. Let’s not forget the 120+ comments at our blog as well as the combined 800 comments at CrackBerry!

These comments tended towards the passionate and insightful.

“As a matter of fact the touch-sensitive physical keyboard is certainly far more inventive than anything Apple or the Android camp so far managed to pull up when it comes to text entry,” commented one reader of The Register’s piece.

At ZDNet:

ZDNet Comment

Over on TechCrunch, commenters interacted via Facebook…

TechCrunch Comments

…while at CNET:

CNET Comments

Meanwhile, the Twitterverse had its say:

Even Android loyalists showed their interest in the BlackBerry Passport:

BBPassport Comment 1

BB Passport Comment 2

We look forward to following the conversation’s evolution as we reveal more information and people get over the shock of – gasp! – something different.

Read Other BlackBerry Passport Posts

BlackBerry Passport: Breaking Design Boundaries
Launch Recap: BlackBerry Passport is Your Ticket to New Era in Mobile Productivity (Photos)
The BlackBerry Passport Re-Invents the Mobile Keyboard. Here¹s How.
Previews of BlackBerry Passport Ignite Media and Consumer Interest
A Closer Look at BlackBerry 10.3: Introducing BlackBerry Assistant
Welcome Back! 12 Consumers Explain Why They¹re Switching to BlackBerry Passport
CONFIRMED: This is the BlackBerry Passport in White
Pre-Register Now for the Latest BlackBerry Passport Information
See More of what Matters with the BlackBerry Passport
Check it Out:BlackBerry Passport Rocks Leading Apps Via the Amazon Appstore on BB OS 10.3
Poll Shows, Buyers are Excited about the BlackBerry Passport
BlackBerry Passport: Designed for Serious Mobility
First Look: Meet the All-New BlackBerry Passport
Official BlackBerry Passport Unboxing Video
Hands on with the Innovative Touch-Enabled Keyboard on the BlackBerry Passport
BlackBerry Hub: Even Better Productivity with Instant Actions
Keep Organized and Productive with the BlackBerry Assistant
BlackBerry Passport: Two Incredible App Stores, One Powerful Smartphone
Introducing BlackBerry Blend: Power and Security of BlackBerry on your Computer and Tablet
Pricing and Availability for BlackBerry Passport
Getting Started with BlackBerry Passport
Matt Young

About Matt Young

Matt Young is a writer and editor with experience in tech, music, news and entertainment. A current Performance Evangelist for Radware, Matt has previous experience with BlackBerry, and Avaya. He has a degree in Journalism from San Jose State University. Follow Matt on Twitter @techunraveler.