White House considers dropping BlackBerry for Android

President Obama may abandon his beloved Blackberry in favor of an Android device before he leaves office. White House officials are in the early stages of testing new smartphones, including handsets from LG and Samsung, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. Citing a source familiar with the plans, the report says teams who oversee technology and communications within the White House are in the process of testing new mobile devices for “internal use.”

The White House is testing smartphones from Samsung Electronics Corp.005930.SE +0.16% and LG Electronics Inc. 066570.SE +0.96% for internal use, a person familiar with the matter said, threatening one of the last and most high-profile strongholds of BlackBerry Ltd. BB.T -1.30% The devices are being tested by the White House’s internal technology team and the White House Communications Agency, a military unit in charge of President Barack Obama‘s communications, the person said. The tests are in the early stages, the person said, and any implementation of Samsung or LG phones is still “months away.” There was no indication that Mr. Obama is switching from his modified BlackBerry.