Blackberry 10 devices won’t have physical keyboards

The first BlackBerry device running Research In Motion’s new operating software will not have a physical keyboard, only a touchscreen one.

The BlackBerry 10 software will be offered on devices with physical keyboards in the future, but RIM spokeswomen Rebecca Freiburger declined to say when. RIM is expected to start selling BlackBerry 10 touch-screen devices this year.

RIM’s hopes hang on the BlackBerry 10 system, which is meant to offer the multimedia, Internet browsing and apps experience customers now demand. The Canadian company is preparing to launch the new software later this year, just as North Americans are abandoning BlackBerrys for iPhones and Android devices.

If those keyboard-loving customers haven’t already jumped ship, I doubt a couple of months is going to make a huge difference. It’s better for RIM to focus one piece of hardware–one that represents where the industry is headed–than launch Blackberry 10 with a lackluster keyboard model just to appease a fraction of its shrinking customer base.