A few years ago BlackBerry was absolutely everywhere. Literally everyone either had a BlackBerry or wanted one. Companies and governments opted to use the BB platform due to its high level of security and privacy and long before WhatsApp was around BBM (BlackBerry Messenger) ruled the world. However since the increasing rise and dominance of Android the lonely BB platform has dwindled more and more into obscurity. Since then BlackBerry did release some new devices in a last bid attempt to regain the dizzy heights they once enjoyed, but their offerings have quickly come and gone.
Nowadays it seems BlackBerry have (almost) accepted the smartphone market is not for them and instead has tried to increase their presence in the software market emphasising the integration of their technology onto other platforms. Not long ago the official BBM app was released offering those who miss their BBM pin another chance to relive the days. Recently it was even rumored that BlackBerry might be working on a smartwatch which would be highly interesting. It now seems BlackBerry is at it again. Blackberry recently announced the release of their newest smartphone, the BlackBerry Passport and along with this, their interesting new software BlackBerry Blend.
From today users can now download Blend. In short, Blend is a dashboard app that allows users to check and sync emails, BBMs, text messages and calendar information from their BlackBerry smartphone to other non-BlackBerry (including Android and iOS) devices. The sharing of data is encrypted and as such does not require a VPN (Virtual private Network) to keep the data safe. To clarify, this is not a cloud-based service as the original data is synced from and stored on the original BB device. If you are interested, then you can download the Blend software for your PC via the BlackBerry website or by clicking here. For Android based devices, Blend is now available for download via the Play Store. It’s worth noting that PC’s do need to be running on Windows 7 or later while Android devices need to be running on Android 4.4. Currently, the software is free although there are rumors that Blackberry are planning to introduce premium based subscriptions in the near(ish) future. At the moment there are no details on whether BlackBerry intend to make the software accessible to other non-BB smartphones. As always this will probably be largely based on how their devices continue to sell in both the short and long term future.
