Classic BlackBerry Phones to Stop Working January 4

BlackBerry company will stop running support for its classic devices running BlackBerry 10, 7.1 OS, and earlier starting Tuesday, January 4.

This means all of its older devices not running on Android software will no longer be able to use data, send text messages, access the internet, or make calls.

The company originally announced the news in September 2020. The move represents the end of what was once considered bleeding-edge technology.

BlackBerry (BB) has been mostly out of the phone business since 2016, but continued in the past years to license its brand to phone manufacturers, including TCL and more recently OnwardMobility. The old devices with physical keyboards from the late 1990s and early 2000s were once so popular people nicknamed them "CrackBerries".

 At its peak in 2012, BlackBerry had more than 80 million active users.

However, Apple's touchscreen revolution with the iPhone in 2007 made the phone offerings appear lacking.

The company tried touch screens and slide-out keyboard models, with little success. It eventually gave up on its software, embracing Android and layering its security software on top and found some success in enterprise security software and automotive software.