Just a few hours after its first pictures leaked out, BlackBerry has announced its second Android smartphone: the DTEK50. The mid-range handset shares its specifications and design with the Alcatel Idol 4, but it comes with added security measures which is why BlackBerry is calling it the “world’s most secure smartphone.”
The device sports a 5.2-inch Full HD display in an aluminium chassis with a rubber back. Inside the DTEK50 sits Qualcomm’s octa-core Snapdragon 617 chipset that is known for its overheating issues. Other specs include 3GB RAM, 13MP rear shooter, microSD card slot, and a 2610mAh battery. There is also a 8MP front shooter on the handset.
Out of the box, the handset runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow with BlackBerry’s suite of apps and services running on top of it. There is also a Convenience key located on the right side of the handset to quickly open the BlackBerry hub.
BlackBerry pointed out some key security features of the DTEK50 in its press release:
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Rapid Security Patching: BlackBerry has a record of being the quickest to deliver security patches, setting the bar in incident response and patch management to protect your device from malicious threats.
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DTEK™ by BlackBerry App: Enables users to automatically monitor their OS and apps to know when their privacy could be at risk and to take action to improve it. The DTEK app also tracks applications and notifies you when someone is: taking pictures or videos without your knowledge, turning your microphone on, sending a text message, or accessing your contacts or location.
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Hardware Root of Trust: BlackBerry’s manufacturing process uses a proprietary technique that adds security from the start, allowing for the tracking, verification and provisioning of DTEK50.
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Secure Boot Process: Starting with the root of trust, each stage of DTEK50’s secure boot chain must first verify that the next component is fully intact before proceeding, ensuring your device has not been tampered with since the last restart.
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Android OS hardening: BlackBerry provides additional security patches, improved random number, address space generation and certificate pinning to make it more difficult for attackers to target a device by scrambling application/system memory.
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FIPS 140-2 Compliant Full Disk Encryption: Protects your private information, like pictures or bank information, from being stolen if you were to lose your phone.
Learning from the mistake that it made with the Priv, BlackBerry has priced the DTEK50 at a reasonable $299.99, though for the features its offers, the handset still feels overpriced. Pre-orders of the unlocked version of the handset start from today in the US, which will work on both T-Mobile and AT&T’s network. The handset will also be available in Canada, UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands in the coming weeks.
