Remember Nokia's
E52 and
E55? Espoo took an interesting tactic with these two: start with the same basic phone and operating system, but offer it with two different keypad layouts (in fact, HTC did the same with its
Touch Dual). It's not a bad idea -- different strokes for different folks, right? Indeed, not everyone can really get into RIM's
SureType layout, but the
Pearls that usually underpin it have a distinct opportunity to appeal to a wider audience. To that end, an OEM full QWERTY module for the unannounced
Pearl 9100 has made an appearance on Chinese accessory reseller TrueSupplier's site that suggests RIM's learned this lesson and might be prepping to offer the newest model in two different versions. What'd be tragic here is if only one flavor was offered on each carrier that picked it up -- and given RIM's history, that wouldn't surprise us -- but for now, we sticking with the "choice is a good thing" line.
posted March 5th 2010 2:43PM
Choice is a good thing.
@HardToBelieve
i feel like i was the only one that actually loved the compact-qwerty without the suretype. those giant keys made the multi-tap so much easier.
@HardToBelieve so wheres the difference? in the size of the keys or somehting?
@doug
You were the only one. I don't use Blackberry. My dad does though, so that's the only BB experience I have.
@emopoops
with the 8100 series, the keys on the keypad were actually a lot bigger than a normal qwerty keypad. pretty much take two keys, put them together add a little more width and you have one key. very impressive design while still keeping it a slender phone that fits in any pocket.
@HardToBelieve
That's what steve said! :)
2nd!
@AndroidFreewareORG
First to be sent to oblivion.
@HardToBelieve life is hard, only the strongest survive
@AndroidFreewareORG
"The weak may die, so the strong may live"
If I was them I would just Make two verisions of the phone.
That's interesting; i love the size & form factor of my Pearl, but SureType is a pain. I wonder if it's possible to use a QWERTY this tiny, though -- I'm sure I'd end up hitting multiple buttons at once w/my thumb (even happens to me on a full-size BB keyboard).
@mpv im sorry but ive seen some blackberry keys. the ones like the picture are just aweful!
So it's have a micro-sized qwerty keyboard to fit the smaller sized pearl? I agree with mpv - that could be tough to type on. If it's a full sized keypad...then its just a regular blackberry, is it not?
EVERY cellphone company should copy Blackberry's keyboards and I especially love the compactness of BB's SureType while still being extremely functional.
Palm you soooo should have mimicked the Pearl's keyboard on your Pre and Pixi phones.
@Hazdaz as much as I like my pearl's keyboard... no. full qwerty is more useful - easier to write words that aren't real, or to write in another language (pearl's french dictionary is terrible. and they're canadian!)
Who is even buying the Pearl at this point? With the prototypes for a portrait slider and candybar touch screen out there they need to become the new high end and the Curve needs to replace the Pearl as the low end Blackberry. That's just me though.
Sketch...
I loved SureType and the 8100 keyboard. Wish someone would write a SureType app for my iPhone...
Is it bad that this is like my dream BlackBerry? Hah. Small size, trackpad, high-res (for the size, anyway) display, and a full QWERTY keyboard.
I once had a SureType blackberry for work. After using it for myself for a little while, the only conclusion I could reach is that it was a failed experiment of a really horrible idea and they should just forget it ever existed.
One can be GSM and the other CDMA.
BTW this looks to be a Pearl FLIP as noted on CrackBerry.com with the primary evidence being the button layout at the top.
I have a Pearl Flip, and the SureType is great! I can type really quickly, the enormous buttons ensure I never make a mistake, and the only downside is when I have to type strange words or in foreign languages (although the latter can be fixed by quickly pressing Alt-Enter).
That is the smallest keyboard ever. That's like taking a phone the width of a razer and thinking that it would be a good idea to put a full keyboard on it. Most people think that the blackberry curve keyboards are too small anyway. A full qwerty pearl would just be ignorant.