BlackBerry Stops Production Of Its Classic Phones

BlackBerry announced on Tuesday that it would no longer make the BlackBerry Classic -- a model that used the old QWERTY keys and was popular before the age of touchscreen smartphones.

Ralph Pini, chief operating officer and general manager for devices at BlackBerry, wrote in a blog post Tuesday that the Classic and its predecessors were an "incredible workhorse device for customers, exceeding all expectations."

"But, the Classic has long surpassed the average lifespan for a smartphone in today's market. We are ready for this change so we can give our customers something better," Pini wrote ... in what essentially is the device's obituary.

The title of the post was "Change is Only Natural: A Classic Model Makes Way."

Pini began it by touchingly (pun intended) writing that "Sometimes it can be very tough to let go. For BlackBerry, and more importantly for our customers, the hardest part in letting go is accepting that change makes way for new and better experiences."

BlackBerry (BBRY, Tech30), the Canadian tech company formerly known as Research in Motion, has been struggling for years due to increased competition from Apple (AAPL, Tech30) as well as Samsung and other companies that make phones running on Google's (GOOGL, Tech30) Android software.

Pini said that BlackBerry will continue its new focus on smartphones that run its BB 10 operating system as well as ones that run on Android, such as the BlackBerry Priv.

BlackBerry said that current Classic owners should check with their wireless carriers about whether they will continue to support the device.

The company also said that customers looking to buy an unlocked version of the Classic can do so at BlackBerry's online store.