The BlackBerry KEY2 will launch on June 7

BlackBerry Mobile tweeted today on its official @BBMobile Twitter account that theBlackBerry KEY2 – the follow-up to the surprisingly well-receivedBlackBerry KEYone – will launch in New York on June 7.

The image below was sent out with the tweet. The new BlackBerry KEY2 logo (with a numeral “2” rather than “two” spelled out, like the company did with the KEYone) is in the lower right-hand corner, and the date and time are near the center.

BlackBerry

Along with the image, BlackBerry included three Emoji in place of text: a key Emoji (:key:), a numeral “2” Emoji (2⃣), and the eyes Emoji (:eyes:). We assume the company is trying to say, “Here’s some KEY2 news, look over here.”

We got our first glimpse of the KEY2 viasome leaked images of a person using what looks to be a prototype device. However, with the launch date coming so soon it is possible the leaked images were of a test unit of the final design, rather than an early prototype. Of course, until the official launch, we can’t be sure either way.

The BlackBerry KEYone wasa hit for the beleaguered smartphone manufacturer. After smartphone design went the way of the touchscreen, the BlackBerry physical keyboard went out of style. However, there are still people out there who prefer a physical keyboard, and the KEYone was pretty much the only device on the market to offer that feature.

BlackBerry was quoted saying that the company was very happy with the performance of the KEYone, saying “mission accomplished” after selling less-than-a-million units. The company even released a variant called theKEYone Black Edition – a souped-up, classier version of the KEYone.

There’s no official word yet on the KEY2 specs, but it’s not expected to be a massive upgrade over its predecessor. But between now and June 7 there will likely be plenty of leaks. Stay tuned!

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