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NEW YORK • BlackBerry Ltd. played up the nostalgia with its new Classic smartphone — bringing back popular features such as the row of navigation keys and trackpad — but analysts say with a steep price point and limited distribution during the Christmas season, it’s unclear whether the throwback will be enough to lure back corporate customers.

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Lynn Greiner tests out the Classic and finds BlackBerry has done a good job of bringing its iconic phone into this century





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At a launch event Wednesday in New York, BlackBerry executives drew many comparisons between the Classic and the Bold 9900 — which many see as the Waterloo, Ont.-based technology firm’s last big smartphone hit.

The device — the first to be developed entirely under chief executive John Chen’s supervision — was the result of feedback while meeting with customers, he said.

“A lot of them pulled out their BlackBerry… the 9900s or the Curve, and they told me, ‘Don’t mess around with this’,” said Mr. Chen on stage at Cipriani in the heart of Manhattan’s financial district.