"They still make BlackBerrys?" It's the question we're asked 98 percent of the time when people see our Buff phone. They usually follow that up with, "I haven't seen one of those for years." What's next? "I used to have one. I loved it." Alas, they didn't love it enough to stick with it!
Well, we have. And the disclosure for that is BlackBerry was an early advertiser in our parent company's syndicated radio programming. For years, they supplied our Canadian team with new phones every year, while providing devices for on-air giveaways – in addition to tons of advertising money.
After BlackBerry itself stopped making handheld devices, it licensed the name to other companies in an attempt to keep the once-favorite phone alive. And they did -- for a few years.
BlackBerry Key2 is one of the last smartphones made with the BlackBerry name. It has the physical keyboard that BB users past and present have always appreciated. It operates as an Android device which is a major change from early BBs. That has many benefits but also some downsides.
For us, we use the Key2 for Buff email, social media, web surfing and phone/video calls. Aside from roasting coffee beans, packaging product and shipping, we essentially run the business -- including this app -- from the phone.
While many workplaces request (require, really) employees to use their personal device for work, we have a dedicated Buff phone that we take turns operating. We have certain days and times when we're the contact for all of you and we hand off the phone throughout the week. None of us would've thought, especially in 2025, that we'd be using a BlackBerry more than our work computers to run a company.
Since we started Buff in 2021, our company phone has always been a Key2. Only one device has crashed. So, over the course of nearly four years we're only on our second phone. And, keep in mind, it's different than one person using their phone day after day. We're handing the phone between upwards of five people so it takes a beating in pockets, in cars, in hands, in gym bags.
We start the day with a fully charged phone and it lasts all day. On rare occasions it needs a power-up in the early evening depending on how much it was used throughout the day. Generally, it can go two days before being at 0 percent power. Point being, it's not a phone that needs constant charging for a drained battery over and over again.
Key2 is a powerhouse for what we need it to do. It quickly opens, operates and closes apps with touches and swipes. It loads programs fast and doesn't lag when doing multiple tasks at the same time. The camera is amazing. While we have professional camera equipment for photoshoots, a lot of our visual content is captured on BlackBerry Key2. Only very experienced graphic designers and photography experts have been able to tell the difference between traditional digital camera photos and those taken on our phone.
The downside is that BlackBerry support no longer exists. Not formally, at least. Meaning, if you need help with it, you're likely only getting it from diehard BB users online -- if you can find them. The phone no longer has software updates so you're stuck with what the device had a couple of years ago. That hasn't been a problem for us, though we have noticed that some updates to downloaded apps in the Google Play store no longer work with this model of phone. We have found, however, that old versions of apps still work even though the Google store says to update when it doesn't allow us.
Our boss has three phones -- all BlackBerry. His main device, believe it or not, is the BlackBerry Classic. It's over 11 years old and still functions like it's new. Now, it's obviously not up to date with apps and current phone technology, but for what he does -- email, text and phone -- the Classic is perfect. This device has never crashed, never had any operational issues -- nothing. And that's something BlackBerry was always known for: a solid and secure user experience.
Our boss also has two Key2 phones for using mainstream apps and more involved smartphone functionality. This is the one used for web surfing, social media, banking, etc. As a syndicated radio host, the phone has even been used for live broadcasts without anybody realizing he was using a BlackBerry.
While it's a reliable phone, he has had three of them gradually crash on him. Two of them, were fried because of a faulty power cord that was ordered from the internet. A technician was able to conclude that a non-BlackBerry-brand cable was to blame because each died within a week of using the charging cord.
The third, which had only been used for approximately two years, began powering off randomly and restarting on its own. Once it's back online, it can shut off without warning so the reliability has prompted him to not use it and use his fourth device of this model. The good thing about being on the Android system, is that he's never lost all of the data from a phone because it's constantly backed up. That's not a feature old-school BlackBerrys can boast.
All in all, everyone loves BlackBerry Key2 even though it's considered a relic in phone technology. Each of us has a personal phone that isn't BlackBerry but appreciate using it for work purposes. (Typing is a helluva lot easier with the physical keyboard.)
Would I recommend it? Absolutely. Can I see myself using it until the bitter end of app updates and its eventual death? Totally. (Would I see us getting another one when this one crashes? Definitely.)