BlackBerry OS 10 2013 Roadmap Leaked

Five new Blackberry devices have been confirmed for 2013, thanks to a leaked Research In Motion (RIM) roadmap, discovered by the BlackBerryOS website on Monday.

The “strictly confidential” document showed designs of six devices, including two smartphones, one of which is a full-touchscreen model, and at least one new tablet codenamed “Blackforest”. The Canadian manufacturer will release a 4G version of its PlayBook tablet before the end of the year, according to the document.

Last week, RIM announced it would delay the BlackBerry OS 10 release and cut 5,000 jobs, blaming strong competition for its misfortunes.

BlackBerry jam

RIM has had a rough year thus far. The past financial quarter saw a £333 million loss, whilst the company is cutting a third of its workforce, sales numbers in Europe are dropping and there are rumours of a possible alliance with Microsoft and its Windows Phone platform.

But next year could get better, as 2013 will kick off with the first BlackBerry OS 10 devices, codenamed ‘London’ and ‘Nevada’. Judging by their appearance, one will be a traditional QWERTY-keyboard smartphone, while the other will become the company’s first touchscreen-only smartphone.

Previously, RIM said it would launch BlackBerry 10 in Europe three to four weeks prior to the North American launch.

In the first or second quarter of 2013, RIM is also set to release an update that will make old PlayBooks run OS 10.

The update will be followed by the launch of two misterious devices, codenamed “Nashville” and “Naples”. BlackBerryOS speculated that these might be variations on the QWERTY N-Series.

Finally, the third quarter of 2013 will see the release of “Blackforest”, which has long been rumoured to be a 10-inch tablet.

Meanwhile, the CEO of the company Thorsten Heins has publicly denied RIM is in trouble. Speaking on the CBC’s Metro Morning radio show in Toronto on Tuesday, he said “there’s nothing wrong with the company as it exists right now,” according to Reuters.

In January, the leak of the previous BlackBerry roadmap caused quite a stir, when it revealed that the first devices running OS 10 would be delayed.

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