Meet the 5-Tiles Keyboard, (yet) another contender taking aim at disrupting Qwerty — and hoping to increase its chances by first targeting smaller wearable devices, such as smartwatches. The rational being that’s a more realistic way to drive a wedge between Qwerty and its users’ fingers. As challenges go, disrupting Qwerty is akin to attempting to pass… Read More
The Trewgrip mobile QWERTY keyboard for iOS and Android devices is absurd. It’s a handheld keyboard that puts the keys behind the board but arranges the letter in a weird way that somehow makes sense. So you hold the keyboard like you would a game pad and type by pressing keys on the back. It tries to make sense without making sense.
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Remember that BlackBerry keyboard-looking case for the iPhone that popped up at the tail end of 2013? Looks like BlackBerry saw it too, and they weren’t too happy about how … Continue reading
Fans of hardware keyboards have at least one reason to keep rooting for Motorola’s Droid line, and these leaked pics suggest it will continue on. Posted on Weibo, these supposed Droid 5 pics show a QWERTY slider that seeming drops the capacitive buttons of its predecessors, and brings wireless charging, NFC and a “shockproof” water / dust resistant design. The laser cut 5-row keyboard we appreciated on the Droid 4 appears to be intact, along with a screen in the 4.3-inch to 4.5-inch range. The conveniently placed Verizon 4G LTE logos also places it as a higher-end companion to the just-announced LG Enact as Android options for fans of hardware keyboards. Any other details are still up in the air, if you have a login for the Chinese social networking service you can check out the source for yourself at the links below.
Via: NewCellPhonesBlog
It’s not as if the LG Enact was the last device on the planet to offer a full physical keyboard with Android software – though the most recent entry with Verizon was the BlackBerry Q10. This LG device brings a sliding front panel that reveals a full QWERTY keyboard much in the same way that […]
Verizon isn’t just releasing its variant of the HTC One today — it also has a treat for fans of the oft-neglected QWERTY slider smartphone. The carrier has just launched the once-rumored LG Enact, which hides a landscape keyboard underneath its 4-inch WVGA screen. As you might gather from the display, though, this device is no flagship. The combination of a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, a 5-megapixel rear camera, a VGA front camera and 8GB of expandable storage puts the Enact at the low end. What’s more, it’s also stuck on Android 4.1. When LG’s new device costs $20 on contract, however, it’s inexpensive enough that many fans of hardware keys can afford to take a look.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Verizon, LG
Source: Verizon (1), (2)
According to serial leak merchant @evleaks, the LG Enact is days away from making an official appearance on Verizon, a carrier that reckons there’s still life in the ‘ole keyboard-packed form factor, with a phone that looks a whole lot like the Android sliders of the past. Yep, LG’s new Android smartphone houses an increasingly rare full QWERTY keyboard, a pretty old-school four-key capacitive button layout, and a mix of Verizon and LG-skinned app icons. However, we’re already wary of how the Enact’s keyboard will handle — with space at a premium on these keyboards, that substantial border either side of the keys could result in some cramped thumbs. However, at this stage we’re not certain of the screen-size and dimensions of the slider, so we’ll hold our judgement until we get to tap away on it in real life.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Verizon, LG
Source: @evleaks (Twitter)
We certainly saw this coming, but while BlackBerry is focused on its new BlackBerry 10 mobile operating system, the Waterloo-based company is still working on BlackBerry 7. Case in point: they just officially announced the 9720, a BB7.1-equipped QWERTY smartphone with a 2.8-inch display — a new phone for those wanting an older BlackBerry experience. […]
BlackBerry confirmed that despite the launch of BB10, it’ll still deploy one handset running BB7 later this year. We’re almost certain that phone will be the 9720, and while the Thai site that got an initial look called it a Bold, it might actually be a new member of the Curve family, according to a fresh leak from our Vietnamese friends at Tinhte. They’ve given the unannounced QWERTY model a brief video hands-on and taken a bunch of thankfully sharp snaps, including some side-by-side shots with the old Bold 9790. A disclaimer in the translated text states the device is a “trial version,” so the final hardware may be slightly different, but it’s said to have a 480 x 360 resolution touchscreen and a 1,450mAh removable battery. Our Vietnamese is a little rusty, so while we can’t tell you what the narrator is saying, you’ll still get a good overview of the hardware in the three-minute vid below.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Blackberry
Source: Tinhte
With the Samsung Galaxy Folder, a smartphone from this worldwide manufacturer will single-handedly bring back the fashionability of physical QWERTY keyboards. At least that’s what the tip is from Korea along manufacturing lines where the smartphone is said to be being built. There it’s rumored that large amounts of reports of “discomfort” have been rolling in on the backs of their massively successful touchscreen-only device lines – and it may be time to create yet another Galaxy handset.
The Samsung Galaxy Folder is said to be coming with a 4.2-inch display with mid-tier display resolution. This machine will have a flip-screen allowing it to work with a full QWERTY keyboard in place of a traditional flip-phone’s 9-digit keypad, and the whole handset line will be prepped for full data support and 4G LTE right out of the gate. This is different from most traditional flip-phones as the form factor all but died out at the dawn of the smartphone.
ABOVE: Samsung’s dual-screen W2013 flip-phone designed for Jackie Chan, straight from Android Community and released back near the end of 2012.
This tip comes from DDaily where the publication reports the device to be appearing as soon as the 16th of August internationally. While it’s unclear when – or if – the smartphone will be hitting the USA on stateside carrier bands. This publication also suggests Samsung has reached out to them with a statement which suggests the August release and LTE support incoming.
“Galaxy Folder will be released in August with LTE support.” – (translated) Samsung via DDaily
With the Samsung Galaxy Folder there’s a question of how the vast majority of touchscreen-only Android apps will function. While most smartphones today employ Android with on-screen keyboards, Samsung will have to retro-fit apps – or ask developers to do so – so that this machine’s unique makeup can be handled with style.
This device will likely be launched in a variety of colors to appeal to those consumers hoping to keep up with Samsung’s higher-cost range of smartphones and tablets. If the Samsung Galaxy S 4 can come in Aurora Red, so can the Galaxy Folder.
VIA: Blog of Mobile
Samsung Galaxy Folder may return flip phone to fashionability with Android is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
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