BlackBerry flagship smartphone, the Z10, is now available as a limited period offer of Rs 17,990. That is almost a 60 per cent cut on its launch price and the second price cut in recent months. The offer is open for the next 60 days.
Running the latest BlackBerry 10 OS version 10.2.1 and with the best touch keyboard in the market, the Z10 is a good buy at this price. But you will have to live without the popular apps on other platforms, BlackBerry’s biggest pain point.
However, with the new OS you have the option of sideloading any Android app. So look at this phone as a top-end Android phone a mid-level price, with the added security and mail features of the Blackberry. Yes, this could be one of the best smartphone deals in the market at the moment.

Announcing the price cut, BlackBerry India MD Sunil Lalvani said:  “BlackBerry has a vast and loyal user base in India and we’re keen to provide these consumers with the unique communication experience that BlackBerry 10 offers. This commemorative offer puts the BlackBerry Z10 at Rs 17,990 and will ensure users are able to enjoy the cutting edge experience of a full-touch device combined with a revolutionary operating system – all at an attractive price point.”
The BlackBerry Z10 has the latest BlackBerry 10 atOS version 10.2.1, that supports Hinglish and Hindi typing and Android apps. it runs on 3G and 2G plans without a special BlackBerry Plan.  The phone has a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor with 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, and an expandable memory card slot that supports up to 32GB of additional storage. Plus, there is a superb screen, NFC (near field communications) and BBM service voice and video chats. Now get that in an Android phone for Rs 18,000.
The beleaguered Canadian smartphone company must be hoping that a lot of its loyal user will upgrade to the new phone with this offer.

BlackBerry Ltd unveiled a new, cheaper touchscreen smartphone and a "classic" model with a keyboard on Tuesday, as it tries to stem losses and win back a once devoted following by security-conscious business and government users.

The Z3 smart phone, which is to be priced at under $200, is being built under a partnership deal with FIH Mobile Ltd - the Hong Kong-listed unit of Taiwanese electronics giant Foxconn.

Code named Jakarta, it will go on sale in April in Indonesia, where BlackBerry's BBM messaging service is proving very popular, said John Chen, the group's new chief executive who took over late last year.

"It's going to be under $200 on retail price," he said at the annual Mobile World Congress trade fair in Barcelona.

"It's a 3G phone, and we have a plan to expand the phone to different parts of southeast Asia after Indonesia, and in addition we have a plan to go global with an LTE (high speed 4G) version of it some time in the future."

BlackBerry, once a must-have device for every business executive and government official because of its pioneering secure email service, has haemorrhaged market share to Apple's iPhone and rival devices running on Google's Android software.

Opening up its BBM messaging service to be available on other operating systems - with Windows Phone the latest addition - has further hit device sales, particularly in emerging markets.

BlackBerry Ltd. is abandoning a plan to find a buyer and will instead raise $1-billion of new funds and replace its chief executive and some directors, sources said.

The Waterloo, Ont.-based smartphone company had spent the past two and a half months seeking a buyer, and had received a letter of intent from investor Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. to purchase the company for $4.7-billion. Fairfax had until today to complete its detailed examination of BlackBerry’s books.

The new plan will involve raising roughly $1-billion by selling convertible notes to a group of investors, according to people familiar with the transaction. Chief executive officer Thorsten Heins will depart the company, and the company will announce changes to its board, the people said.

John Chen, the former chief of Sybase Inc., will be appointed executive chairman of the board, responsible for the company's "strategic direction, strategic relationships and organizational goals."

He will be interim CEO when Mr. Heins leaves.

Mr. Heins was named to the top job early last year, taking over from Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie, who had run the company since its earliest days.

Mr. Heins’ short tenure was marked by the rocky launch of BlackBerry’s new phone lineup. The new phones met tepid demand, and BlackBerry made the decision to officially put itself up for sale in August.

Fairfax had offered $9 a share in its tentative letter of intent, and was working to pull together a group of backers. The market was skeptical that Fairfax would be successful, and BlackBerry shares have been trading well below that price.

The process also attracted interest from various sources, including a potential group bid from private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, Mr. Lazaridis and chipmaker Qualcomm Inc.