Blackberry (BBRY, Financial), after having repositioned itself as a software provider, has teamed up with Samsung (SSNLF, Financial) and IBM (IBM, Financial) to reveal a new tablet – SecuTab. This latest offering is based on the Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S 10.5. This new tablet will be loaded with the new IBM and BlackBerry owned software called SecuSmart. This high-security tablet has been made especially for the users of the corporate and government sectors. The product is scheduled to hit the stores in the summer of 2015.
BlackBerry’s attempts to find a foothold
Blackberry, the Canadian smartphone maker, has been desperately looking to increase its business after losing its market share to Apple (AAPL, Financial) and Samsung. Currently, Blackberry holds a very small amount of market share in the global mobile devices market. This is the second time that the Canadian company is trying to enter the tablet market. Before this, Blackberry had introduced its PlayBook tablet in 2011, which failed to attract customers. It was highly criticized for lacking core features, and the company wrote down millions of dollars in unsold inventory.
How is the SecuTab helpful?
Experts claim that the new SecuTab will help Blackberry strengthen its market position by focusing on this niche market. In recent years, cyber security has been the priority agenda for both businesses and governments. For government officials and corporates alike, balancing of private security and personal life has been the foremost challenge, and SecuTab, powered by IBM and Blackberry, is an attempt to provide a secured device. As governments become more dependent on wireless networks to conduct their businesses, this feature will help them guard their networks and data against hackers. The device makers claim that no Android Tablet user will have any problem in operating this device.
According to a poll conducted by IBM: 63% percent of all officials need access to specific software for various purposes especially meant for controlling their devices. However, recently many government officials raised their voice against these devices, because these encrypted devices limit users in what they can do with them. For example, if someone has to make a call to another person, the other party should also have this technology installed on their phone. Users can also face problems in accessing some programs, as many of them aren’t allowed to run on these devices due to security issues. SecuTab is priced at $2,360, which is far more expensive than most of the high-end smartphones available in the global market. Obviously, security comes with an expensive price tag.
Concluding thoughts
Dr Hans-Christoph Quelle, chief executive officer of SecuSmart GmbH, claimed that security is an inherent part of the BlackBerry portfolio, and SecuTab includes both data and voice encryption solutions. Further, he stated that the SecuTab is undergoing certification by German Federal Office for Information Security, for Secure Rating.
This device’s security technology is based on the same technology previously used in SecuSmart Security Card. SecuSmart’s encryption technology is widely used by the German and Canadian governments to counter eavesdropping. At the start of this month, Blackberry said that its encrypted technology will be a part of Samsung smartphones installed with the Knox’s security platform. It will be a smart choice for buyers who have security as their first priority. Users will be a little disappointed as some programs aren’t allowed on this device due to security reasons.
Despite all these security functions, it is possible to use some of the popular applications such as Facebook and Twitter. So, it’s not that the device comes with no attraction points besides security, well more will be there to share after the new tablet hits the market.
