New BlackBerry keypad smartphone begins presales in U.K.

Presales are underway for the keypad version of the new BlackBerry 10 smartphone in the United Kingdom.

Two major U.K. retailers, Carphone Warehouse and Phones4u, began selling the device on their websites on the weekend.

The BlackBerry Q10 phone is scheduled to arrive in stores towards the end of April.

While a Canadian release date hasn't been announced yet, it's expected to arrive in the same time frame.

Many long time BlackBerry users have professed their loyalty to a keypad version of the device.

Some have chosen to wait for it rather than buy the touchscreen model that arrived in stores earlier this year.