Back in the day, it was anathema to think that Apple computers would run on Intel processors, and Apple machines would have Microsoft Office running on them. Well, those days have long since arrived and gone, and it looks like to hear of a BlackBerry device running on Android? Now that’s what is going to happen with the BlackBerry Priv, where the folks over at Vietnam-based Karalux have something special up their sleeves for this handset, that is, by offering a gold-plating service.

It is going to be more challenging than usual though, as Karalux shared, “Unlike the previous generations, it is a little bit more difficult to disassemble BlackBerry Priv. Karalux engineers took nearly 2 hours to ‘operate’ its details, and spent 4 more hours with more than 10 different procedures to complete the first gold-plated BlackBerry Priv in Vietnam.”

The handset and gold-plating will cost $1,111 thereabouts, whereas international customers will have to fork out more at approximately $1,350 to bring one of these puppies back home. [Press Release]

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It looks like BlackBerry has not decided to call it quits just yet where the smartphone market is concerned, and this time around, their unannounced smartphone has been given the codename BlackBerry Venice. What makes the BlackBerry Venice special is the fact that this could very well be one of BlackBerry’s very first devices that will run on the Android mobile operating system.

In recent times, we have heard that the BlackBerry Venice ought to be made available some time down the road over at AT&T. Apparently, @evleaks claims that this new handset, too, will be sold by T-Mobile, although there is no exact word on availability.

Whispers on the street point to the BlackBerry Venice arriving later this November. I guess all that we can do now is to sit tight and wait.

[MWC 2015] BlackBerry might not be the tour de force that it once was in the world of smartphones, but this does not mean that the company is a pushover, either. We have learned that this particular edition of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, has seen a new BlackBerry device introduced – the all new BlackBerry Leap smartphone for 4G LTE networks. Touted to be an affordable all-touch smartphone that is housed in a modern and powerful design, it will specially target career builders as well as companies who value both security and privacy when bringing productivity to a whole new level.

Hardware and software specifications include a 5” edge-to-edge HD display, a 2,800mAh battery life, BlackBerry OS 10.3.1, a best-in-class BlackBerry keyboard, BlackBerry Blend, BlackBerry Assistant, dual app storefronts that come preloaded for access to a huge selection of apps for work and play (BlackBerry World and Amazon Appstore), among others. [Press Release]