BlackBerry phones famously broke new ground at the helm of the professional mobile movement. Now, in an ironic twist of fate, the company has retired the original suite of BlackBerry software for good.
This development has been framed as a security measure, a re-branding effort that many view as one huge stride toward a much more modern BlackBerry in general.
BlackBerry Shut Down BlackBerry OS on January 4th, 2022
Legacy service for the original BlackBerry operating system ended officially on January 4th, 2022.
While the news was shocking to the platform's few remaining users, the vast majority of current BlackBerry patrons will have noticed no difference after the day came and went—current BlackBerry phones actually now run off of Android, plain and simple, and have been since 2016.
If you're still clinging helplessly to a BlackBerry device that utilizes BlackBerry 7.1 OS or earlier, BlackBerry 10 software, or BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.1 or earlier, you can no longer reliably use the phone through either Wi-Fi or carrier data.
User service has also ended for the following peripheral BlackBerry applications and features:
- Enhanced Sim Based Licensing (ESBL)
- Identity Based Licensing (IBL)
- BlackBerry-hosted email addresses
- BlackBerry Link
- BlackBerry Desktop Manager
- BlackBerry Blend
- BlackBerry Protect (this change won't impact the new, unrelated BlackBerry Protect, of course)
A word of warning to those who still regularly rely on their BlackBerry device out in the field: calls, texts, mobile data service, and even mobile emergency service calls no longer function reliably.
BlackBerry: We're Not Done Yet, We're Just Evolving
If you're still using your old BlackBerry email address or phone, there is no time like the present for a fresh, new start.
We've all got a special place in our hearts for the one that started it all, but times are changing. Out with the old and in with the new. We're excited to see where this move takes the brand next.