Akiba Spilling] IOSYS Akiba Chuodori Store Offers Special Prices for 3 Consecutive Holidays: Japanese SIM-free "BlackBerry Passport" (unused) at 39,800 yen, etc.

Akiba Koho" is an irregular column introducing PC parts and digital gadgets that the Akiba Research Institute staff found interesting during interviews.

The unused BlackBerry Passport (black), a Japanese version of the BlackBerry SIM-free smartphone (with 6-month warranty), will be on sale at a special price of 39,800 yen (including tax) from tomorrow, Saturday, March 16, to Monday, March 18, 2012.

The "BlackBerry Passport," as the product is called, is equipped withQualcomm's Snapdragon 801 (clock speed: 2.2GHz/quad-core), a square-shaped 4.5-inch display (1,440 x 1,440 pixels), and a physical QWERTY keyboard. BlackBerry 10 smartphone, which is roughly the same size as a passport.

On the onboard OS BlackBerry 10, Android applications can also be used by installing APK files (some applications may not work properly, according to the company), and other gimmicks that tickle the fancy of enthusiasts.

The main specifications are as follows: theonboard OS is BlackBerry 10; the onboard CPU is the Qualcomm "Snapdragon 801" (clock speed: 2.2 GHz/quad-core). The display is a 4.5-inch LCD (1,440 x 1,440 pixels). Memory is 3 GB, internal storage is 32 GB, and cameras are front (2 megapixels)/rear (13 megapixels). Other features include wireless LAN (IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac), Bluetooth 4.0, micro SD card slot (up to 128GB), micro USB, GPS, and NFC.

The main unit measures90.3 (W) x 128 (D) x 9.3 (H) mm and weighs 196 g.

Supported communication standards are LTE ( 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/13/17/20 ), 3G (2,100/1,900/1,700/850/900 MHz), GSM (850/900/1,800/ 1,900 MHz), and also supports Docomo's FOMA Plus area and Y! Mobile's platinum bands.