Hammad Siddiqi rues the day he sold his iPhone.
For almost three years, he carried both an Apple handset and a BlackBerry everywhere he went. Just three months ago, he sold the iPhone for Dh1,300 - barely a third of what he paid for it less than a year ago.
But now, following the announcement on Sunday by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority that BlackBerry services were to be suspended from October 11, the 25-year-old Pakistani architect finds himself needing a phone once more.
"I should have just kept it," he says. But he is not just upset about the money - he says the bigger problem will be giving up his "crackberry" habit.
"I can't believe I will have to let go of my BBs. The very reason that made the BlackBerry special, the BB Messenger, is now gone. I am constantly on it. It is not that I can't live without it, I just enjoy life more with it."
He can't resist checking who sent the message causing his device to vibrate and "ping" or what the "mesmerizing blinking red light" is trying to tell him. He is one of about 500,000 BlackBerry users in the UAE that may have to wean themselves off their Blackberrys if the TRA suspends services. The country has one of the highest penetration rates for the device in the world - adored by teenage girls and high-flying business executives alike.
"The jokes, the rumours, the photos and the news, everything and anything is sent for free and can be broadcast to your contacts with the press of a button," he says. "I just never imagined that this could happen."
He is a big fan of BlackBerry Messenger [BBM], the unlimited messaging service included with every subscription. Whenever he or any of his five cousins hear an Indian song on the radio that the rest might appreciate, they record it and send it to each other via BBM.
"The BB Messenger makes you feel closer to the loved ones that are far away," he says. "It helps to build relationships by always keeping you in touch and letting you know each other's latest news by simply looking at their status update."
For some, the BBM offers a lifeline to a loved one living abroad.
"It is the only way I get to keep in touch with my husband as he works away for many hours inside a biology lab," said Fatema Kazim, 24, an Emirati from Dubai.
Her husband is often away studying for his PhD in molecular Biology in the US, and Mrs Kazim, who is studying for her MBA, finds that the BlackBerry has helped keep their romance alive.
"He sends me cute little photos of test tubes and anything else he might be working on," she says. "It is like I am there with him."
Mrs Kazim's mother, too, makes the most of the BBM service and e-mails, sending "sheets and sheets" of messages and updates.
"She loves it," says Mrs Kazim. "Whenever I am away in the US with my husband, she writes me messages every day and updates about the rest of the family."
While the decorated, often bejewelled BlackBerry is a firm favourite of many women, Mrs Kazim says she resists going to extremes. Even so, she has seven jackets for the device, in all colours of the rainbow, and switches them every two weeks.
"Everywhere you look, you are bound to see someone with a BlackBerry. And in my field of business, it is really important to have this kind of access," she says.
"It is a real shame, and I hope it gets resolved somehow."
Not all are so unhappy at the suspension, however.
"My father and mother are glad this is happening," says Waqar Ahmed, 24, one of Mr Siddiqi's cousins. "It will stop me from typing out messages while driving."
Mr Ahmed works in banking, and is completely dependent on the BlackBerry, although he also carries a Nokia mobile phone. The BlackBerry, he says, "has lots of important services and options for businesses. It will be a great loss in terms of productivity.
"It was the very fact that the information shared in the BB Messenger was secure and private that made me comfortable enough to send sensitive information like credit card and account numbers through it."
Indeed, BBMs are almost too useful, he says. "Once you add someone on your BB Messenger, they stop calling you. But that could be a good thing with certain people that you are not particularly close to or want to talk to on the phone.
"Now, we will be going back to calling and sending text messages, and complaining about the costs."
rghazal@thenational.ae
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Company%20profile
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Results:
CSIL 2-star 145cm One Round with Jump-Off
1. Alice Debany Clero (USA) on Amareusa S 38.83 seconds
2. Anikka Sande (NOR) For Cash 2 39.09
3. Georgia Tame (GBR) Cash Up 39.42
4. Nadia Taryam (UAE) Askaria 3 39.63
5. Miriam Schneider (GER) Fidelius G 47.74
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Company%20profile
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
'Munich: The Edge of War'
Director: Christian Schwochow
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
Company%20profile
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Inside%20Out%202
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WISH
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Other promotions
- Deliveroo will team up with Pineapple Express to offer customers near JLT a special treat: free banana caramel dessert with all orders on January 26
- Jones the Grocer will have their limited edition Australia Day menu available until the end of the month (January 31)
- Australian Vet in Abu Dhabi (with locations in Khalifa City A and Reem Island) will have a 15 per cent off all store items (excluding medications)
