Bphone B40 and Bphone B60, BKAV’s budget and mid-range models, have officially been removed from the company’s main website after being stuck in a “coming soon” limbo for months.
At an event back in May last year, alongside the near-premium Bphone B86, BKAV unexpectedly announced two more models: the Bphone B60 and Bphone B40, priced at 6.99 million VND and 5.49 million VND respectively. These phones shared some key features with the Bphone B86, like a glass back with metal edges, a bottom bezel-less screen, and water resistance. However, they had downgraded specs and cameras.
At launch, BKAV promised these models would hit shelves “in June 2020.” But soon after, the release was pushed to July 2020. July passed, and BKAV updated the status again, this time dropping any specific date and simply stating “Coming Soon.”
In September 2020, during a livestream Q&A with users, BKAV CEO Nguyen Tu Quang was asked about the delay. He explained the hold-up was due to BKAV working on Google Play Protect certification. He also mentioned BKAV planned to release another budget Bphone in 2020, “if the plan doesn’t change.”
By late January 2021, the Bphone B86 finally received Google Play Protect certification. But since then, BKAV has been silent on the B40 and B60. Now, both models have been officially removed from BKAV’s homepage. They still appear in the Bphone lineup, but are grayed out and inaccessible.
While not officially confirmed, BKAV likely discontinued these models. Their outdated Snapdragon 636/660 chips from 2017, single cameras, and low battery capacity make them uncompetitive against current market offerings.
Another BKAV product stuck in limbo is the AirB wireless earbuds. Announced in May last year with a promised launch two months later, AirB has also remained in a “coming soon” status for nearly a year.
In his latest update from January, CEO Nguyen Tu Quang explained that “active noise cancellation technology development has faced many challenges” but promised “premium AirB models are coming soon.”
AirB shares a similar fate with the Bphone B40 and B60, with launch dates pushed back repeatedly and no firm release in sight.
Whether the “coming soon” that Mr. Quang mentions now means the same as the “coming soon” that BKAV used for the B40 and B60 remains to be seen. We’ll just have to wait and see what the “near future” holds.
