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BlackBerry says the DTEK60 can go head to head with the iPhone 7 Plus and Google Pixel XL

By Florin Troaca

Updated: Oct 27, 2016, 10:49 AM

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BlackBerry says the DTEK60 can go head to head with the iPhone 7 Plus and Google Pixel XL

Available in the US and other markets since earlier this week, the BlackBerry DTEK60 is a high-end smartphone that costs less than your typical high-end handset from major companies. The DTEK60 is priced at $499 unlocked, and offers quite a lot for that kind of money, including an aluminum and glass body, a 5.5-inch Quad HD screen, a Snapdragon 820 CPU, 4 GB of RAM, and so on.

In a video interview, BlackBerry COO Marty Beard said that the company's "very proud" of the DTEK60, and that the handset can go head to head with other 5.5-inch phones like the iPhone 7 Plus and Google Pixel XL. In fact, Marty Beard argues that the DTEK60 has some advantages. Besides being about $200 cheaper, the BlackBerry DTEK60 is a bit smaller and thinner than the iPhone 7 Plus and Pixel XL, and, thanks to BlackBerry's software (integrated into Android), it's also an "incredibly secure phone." Moreover, Mr. Beard says the DTEK60 has better battery life than the iPhone 7 Plus, being able to offer up to a day and half of use on a single charge.

We haven't tested the BlackBerry DTEK60 yet, so we can't say if it can indeed stand next to the iPhone 7 Plus and Google Pixel XL. But this does seem to be a worthy alternative to these Apple and Google devices, especially if you want to save a few hundred bucks.

You can check out a detailed specs comparison between the BlackBerry DTEK60, iPhone 7 Plus, and Google Pixel XL below. You could also chime in in the comments section to let us know what you think about this new BlackBerry smartphone - which will certainly not be the last BlackBerry-branded handset.


BlackBerry DTEK60	Apple iPhone 7 Plus	Google Pixel XL

Design

Dimensions
6.06 x 2.97 x 0.28 inches 153.9 x 75.4 x 7 mm	6.23 x 3.07 x 0.29 inches 158.2 x 77.9 x 7.3 mm	6.09 x 2.98 x 0.34 inches 154.72 x 75.74 x 8.6 mm
Weight
5.82 oz (165.0 g)	6.63 oz (188.0 g)	5.93 oz (168.0 g)
Materials
Back: Glass Frame: Glass	Back: Aluminum	Back: Aluminum, Glass
Resistance
	Water, Dust; IP67	Splash, Dust; IP53
Biometrics
Fingerprint (touch)	Fingerprint (touch)	Fingerprint (touch)
Features
Notification light		Notification light
Keys
Left: Lock/Unlock key; Right: Volume control	Left: Volume control; Right: Lock/Unlock key	Right: Volume control, Lock/Unlock key
Colors
Black	Black, Gold, Silver, Red, Rose gold, Jet black	Black, Gray, Blue

Display

Size
5.5-inch	5.5-inch	5.5-inch
Resolution
2560x1440px, 534 PPI	1920x1080px, 16:9 ratio, 401 PPI	2560x1440px, 16:9 ratio, 534 PPI
Technology
	IPS LCD	AMOLED
Screen-to-body
71.82 %	67.58 %	71.22 %
Peak brightness
	625 cd/m2 (nit)
Features
Scratch-resistant glass, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor	Pressure-sensitive, Oleophobic coating, Scratch-resistant glass, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor	Oleophobic coating, Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 4), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor

Hardware

System chip
Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 MSM8996	Apple A10 Fusion APL1W24 (16 nm)	Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 MSM8996 Pro
Processor
Quad-core 2150 MHz Kryo	Quad-core 2340 MHz	Quad-core 2150 MHz Kryo
GPU
Adreno 530	PowerVR 7XT GT7600 Plus	Adreno 530
RAM
4GB (LPDDR4)	3GB (LPDDR4)	4GB (LPDDR4)
Internal storage
32GB	256GB	128GB
Storage expansion
microSDXC up to 2000 GB	not expandable	not expandable
OS
Android (6.0 Marshmallow)	iOS (15.x, 14.x, 13.x, 12.x, 11.x, 10.x)	Android (10, 9.0 Pie, 8.1 Oreo, 8.0 Oreo, 7.1 Nougat)

Battery

Capacity
3000 mAh	2900 mAh	3450 mAh
Type
Li - Ion	Li - Ion	Li - Ion
Charging
Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0		USB Power Delivery

Camera

Rear
Single camera	Dual camera	Single camera
Main camera
21 MP (PDAF) Aperture size: F2.0	12 MP (Sapphire crystal lens cover, OIS, PDAF, BSI sensor) Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 28 mm Sensor size: 1/3" Pixel size: 1.22 μm	12.3 MP (Laser and PDAF) Aperture size: F2.0 Sensor size: 1/2.3" Pixel size: 1.55 μm
Second camera
	12 MP (Telephoto, Sapphire crystal lens cover, Autofocus) Optical zoom: 2.0x Aperture size: F2.8 Focal Length: 56 mm Sensor size: 1/3.6" Pixel size: 1 μm
Flash
Dual LED	Quad LED	Dual LED
Video recording
3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD), 1280x720 (HD) (120 fps) EIS, Video calling, Video sharing	3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (120 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (240 fps) OIS, Time-lapse video, Continuous autofocus, Video calling, Video sharing	3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (120 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (240 fps) Video calling, Video sharing
Front
8 MP (Wide Angle, Flash, HDR), Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD)	7 MP (HDR), Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD)	8 MP, Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD)

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
4.2, Yes	4.2	4.2
WLAN
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot	802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band MIMO, Hotspot	802.11 b,g,n,ac,dual-band MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
USB
Type-C, USB 2.0	Lightning	Type-C, USB 3.0
Hearing aid compatible
		M4/T4
Location
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, BeiDou, E911	GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning	GPS, A-GPS, Glonass
Sensors
Accelerometer, Pedometer, Compass, Hall (for flip covers)	Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer	Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer
Other
NFC, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync	NFC, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling), Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync	NFC, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling), Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync

Multimedia

Headphones
3.5mm jack	No 3.5mm jack	3.5mm jack
Speakers
Earpiece, Loudspeaker	Earpiece, Multiple speakers	Earpiece, Loudspeaker
Features
Album art cover, Background playback	Album art cover, Background playback	Album art cover, Background playback
Additional microphone(s)
Yes		Noise cancellation

Cellular

4G (FDD)
Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 28(700 APT)	Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS)	Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 17(700 b), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS)
4G (TDD)
Bands 38(2600), 40(2300), 41(2600+)	Bands 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+)	Bands 41(2600+)
3G
Bands 5(850), 8(900), 4(1700/2100), 2(1900), 1(2100)	Bands 2(1900), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 8(900)	Bands 5(850), 8(900), 4(1700/2100), 2(1900), 1(2100)
Data Speed
LTE-A Cat 6 (300/50 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA	LTE-A Cat 12 (600/100 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s	LTE-A Cat 11 (600/75 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA, UMTS
SIM type
Nano SIM	Nano SIM	Nano SIM
HD Voice
		Yes
VoLTE
	Yes

Regulatory Approval

FCC approval
Date approved: Sep 26, 2016 FCC ID value: L6ABBA1001	Date approved: Sep 07, 2016 FCC ID value: BCG-E3087A	Date approved: Feb 12, 2017 FCC ID value: NM8G-2PW2100
Measured SAR
Head: 0.36 W/kg Body: 1.17 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg Wireless Router: 1.19 W/kg	Head: 1.09 W/kg Body: 1.10 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.52 W/kg Wireless Router: 1.13 W/kg	Head: 0.89 W/kg Measured in: 1900 MHz Body: 0.56 W/kg Measured in: 1900 MHz Simultaneous Transmission: 1.15 W/kg Wireless Router: 0.56 W/kg