BlackBerry is back, sort of. Mobile keyboard maker Clicks Technology last week announced its debut phone with a physical keyboard, the $499 Communicator. The company also offers a separate $79 sliding physical keyboard that fits any device.
At CES, TechCrunch spoke with Jeff Gadway, chief marketing officer and co-founder of Clicks, and got a hands-on look at the latest prototypes of the upcoming smartphones.
The device features a BlackBerry-like keyboard and messaging-focused touchscreen, and runs Android 16 under the hood. This means Communicator can run any Android app. The company partnered with Niagara Launcher, a minimalist launcher, to display apps on the home screen. Easily access other apps from a scrollable list.
Gadway told TechCrunch that reception for the new device has been better than expected. He declined to release sales numbers, but said that over the past week, the company was making a sale every 6.5 seconds between both devices.
The prototype we tried wasn’t a fully functional phone, but it’s the same size and weight as the device we’re preparing to ship later this year, and it gave us a first feel for what it’s like to use Communicator. Onboard storage is 256 gigabytes with expandable microSD storage that can store up to 2 terabytes of data. The device also has a 4000mAh silicon carbon battery and currently weighs around 170 grams (6 ounces). The nano-SIM card is inserted under the back.
The phone also comes with a replaceable back cover that can be removed to change its appearance. Although not present in the prototype, there is a small notch on the top of the cover, and a small scratch on the bottom that you can pick with your fingers.
In our hands-on testing, the phone felt comfortable to hold, not too heavy, not too light, and easy to grip. Gadway told me that the company 3D printed dozens of shapes before settling on the final shape of the device. This phone’s great design features a contoured back that makes it easy to pick up and hold.
The device’s screen is also slightly raised above the body, and the chin curves upward to create a recess to protect the keys when placed face down.
That’s where your device’s light-up side button comes in handy. Dubbed a “signal light,” this button can be set to glow in different colors and patterns when you receive a message from a specific person, group, or app. Therefore, you can always respond to calls from your boss or children, and ignore less important notifications.
The tactile physical keys feel good, but the prototype version may actually be a little less “clicky” than the final product. (There’s some debate as to whether the key pressure should be 110 grams, 120 grams or 130 grams, and so far the feedback we’ve gotten is that the latter number wins.)
The keys feel softer with less pressure, which may make them easier to use even for people who have never used a BlackBerry before. However, people who type quickly tend to prefer keys that have a clicky feel because they have more feedback.
“This is something that Michael Fisher and I and Kevin Michaluk always fight about,” Gadway said, referring to his co-founders. “We’re fighting over grams.”
The vertical height of the keys and screen are also the same, so you can move seamlessly from keyboard to touchscreen.
Clicks Communicator comes with a fixed-focus hole-punch front camera that can take 24 megapixel photos. The rear camera has optical image stabilization and electronic image stabilization for videos, and can capture 50-megapixel images.
The phone is powered by a 4-nanometer MediaTek 5G IoT processor with 8 gigabytes of RAM.
The Communicator comes with a 4.03-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 1,080 x 1,200. Wired charging is supported up to 18 watts and wireless charging is supported up to 15 watts. The device is Qi compatible and also supports Android Strongbox, making it attractive to security-conscious customers.
The phone also has other standard features like GPS and NFC, and comes with five years of security updates and Android updates up to Android 20.
The device is expected to ship in late 2026.
