News that BlackBerry's new Z10 handset had set sales records in Canada and the UK gave most the impression that the company had perhaps found the path back to prosperity. Those hopes, however, are rapidly falling to the wayside as at least one analyst has slashes sales estimates by a massive 83 percent.

Canaccord Genuity analyst T. Michael Walkley said the Canadian handset maker was originally estimated to sell around 1.75 million BlackBerry Z10 smartphones during the February quarter. Up to this point, the company has only managed to move 300,000 handsets in Canada and the UK. The reason for the disparity is supply issues, not overwhelming demand, he said.

Walkley further noted that follow-up checks have indicated steady but modest sales levels. He said that with BlackBerry 10 smartphones launching in the US by mid-March at the earliest at subsidies similar to Apple and Samsung handsets combined with the belief that the Galaxy S IV will launch in the same time frame, they had no choice but to lower sales estimates for the February quarter and the rest of 2013.

He said the BlackBerry Z10 will be a T-Mobile exclusive when it first launches and that the Q10 will only be coming to Sprint. As such, the firm anticipated that carriers will not stock large quantities of BlackBerry 10 handsets given the weaker demand. They expect the device to face increased pressure from the competition such as the aforementioned Galaxy S IV and possibly a new iPhone later this year.