Why aren't there any companies making phones with physical QWERTY keyboards?

[ikbendusan]

I hate touchscreens, and I don't care if my phone is the thinnest in the world. I don't care about useless garbage like finger print readers or heart rate monitors. Give me a thicker phone that either has a large battery and I can leave on my desk for a week without recharging it (because I refrain from using a phone without a keyboard), or one that wields a physical keyboard.

 

Is anyone with me on this? I've had a sony ericsson xperia x1, a motorola milestone, a milestone 2, and an htc desire z. They were all great devices (apart from being terribly slow because of slower hardware back then) because they were usable. I want a device that will let me type on it without swearing at it because of how inaccurate and frustrating touchscreen typing is, even on a large 5.5" display. Three years have I been using a touchscreen, and I've never been able to get accustomed to it. It's just too. damn. slow. Is there really no market for a qwerty keyboard phone? Am I being delusional about keyboards ever being popular on phones in the first place? What do you think?

 

I should add that this is not a post for advice on purchasing a new phone that has a keyboard, I just want to discuss the matter at hand.

Edited December 6, 2014 by ikbendusan

[Interfectorem]

There's always the Blackberry Passport.

[Jerakl]

New blackberry one does.

[ikbendusan]

New blackberry one does.

 

There's always the Blackberry Passport.

 

Okay, besides the blackberries. I'm not digging their OS. 

And now that I think of it, their keyboards have always been too cramped for my liking.

[Interfectorem]

Okay, besides the blackberries. I'm not digging their OS.

I'm afraid you're out of luck, why not try a quick Google search, that might yield some results.

[Clyne]

small phone

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-intensity-iii-mobile-phone-black-verizon-wireless/5757086.p?id=1218690802452&skuId=5757086&ref=06&loc=01&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=5757086&extensionType=pla:g&s_kwcid=PTC!pla!!!75144772935!g!!48992176935&kpid=5757086&k_clickid=cddcebdc-8c5c-4e50-8ede-bc59adc54233&kpid=5757086&lsft=ref:212,loc:1&ksid=cddcebdc-8c5c-4e50-8ede-bc59adc54233&ksprof_id=10&ksaffcode=203&ksdevice=c

[Jade]

Because if your phone isn't thin and light, then you have an inferior device, as per most consumers would say.

[ikbendusan]

Because if your phone isn't thin and light, then you have an inferior device, as per most consumers would say.

 

That used to be the rage, but is it now? How often do you see people saying they don't care about the thinnest phone, and that they'd be more than willing to sacrifice an increase in thickness for much prolonged battery life, or in my case a keyboard?

[Samfisher]

How often do you see people saying they don't care about the thinnest phone, and that they'd be more than willing to sacrifice an increase in thickness for much prolonged battery life, or in my case a keyboard?

 

 

Almost never.  The market does not demand it enough for it to be worth creating such a device.

[Jade]

 

 

That used to be the rage, but is it now? How often do you see people saying they don't care about the thinnest phone, and that they'd be more than willing to sacrifice an increase in thickness for much prolonged battery life, or in my case a keyboard?

 

The only gripe I ever hear is battery, which seems to be in the minority. I have never heard the keyboard one.

 

Edit: On top of that, the only bitching I get about the battery is about and from people who stream a whole bunch of stupid stuff at the same time, along with snapchatting, using facebook, and other stupid bullshit similar to that that are notorious for draining battery like a bitch.

[ikbendusan]

Almost never.  The market does not demand it enough for it to be worth creating such a device.

 

Well I suppose I'm a sub-minority in this case. You don't really see anyone trying though do you? Did the HTC Desire Z really sell that poorly?

 

The only gripe I ever hear is battery, which seems to be in the minority. I have never heard the keyboard one.

 

Edit: On top of that, the only bitching I get about the battery is about and from people who stream a whole bunch of stupid stuff at the same time, along with snapchatting, using facebook, and other stupid bullshit similar to that that are notorious for draining battery like a bitch.

 

That may be, they might get one day out of their phones. Though, nowadays we think two days of battery life is great; but is it honestly?

[Jade]

Well I suppose I'm a sub-minority in this case. You don't really see anyone trying though do you? Did the HTC Desire Z really sell that poorly?

 

 

That may be, they might get one day out of their phones. Though, nowadays we think two days of battery life is great; but is it honestly?

Yes. Go look at the specs of the high end phones. Compare that to a desktop just in raw specs, then think about the form factor and how long it stays on -- WHILE maintaining a connection to the wireless cellular networks.

[ikbendusan]

Yes. Go look at the specs of the high end phones. Compare that to a desktop just in raw specs, then think about the form factor and how long it stays on -- WHILE maintaining a connection to the wireless cellular networks.

 

How can I compare a mobile device with a full-fledged desktop? They're not in the same league; in terms of functionality a computer is an order of magnitude ahead.

[DigitalHermit]

Sony used to have one...

[ikbendusan]

Sony used to have one...

 

Yeah, I just wish I could buy one now, with current technology.

[DigitalHermit]

Yeah, I just wish I could buy one now, with current technology. 

 

Same here... Touch screen keyboards suck... and I have stubby fingers...

[Kyuubixchidori]

really? i love swype. I hated using tiny qwerty keyboards. tiny phyiscal keyboards are the worst.

 

that being said, there are bluetooth cases with sliding keyboards. if they have a decent build, thats best of both worlds. slim phone for those who want it, then keyboard for the select few. 

[Guest]

How do you have a problem with touch screen keyboards?

With SwiftKey I can type insanely fast despite having fat fingers.

I can't hit the physical keys actually on a small keyboard

Edit: Oh OP is from the Netherlands too!

[ikbendusan]

Edit: Oh OP is from the Netherlands too!

 

Ayyyy I sure am!

 

really? i love swype. I hated using tiny qwerty keyboards. tiny phyiscal keyboards are the worst.

 

that being said, there are bluetooth cases with sliding keyboards. if they have a decent build, thats best of both worlds. slim phone for those who want it, then keyboard for the select few. 

 

How do you have a problem with touch screen keyboards?

With SwiftKey I can type insanely fast despite having fat fingers.

I can't hit the physical keys actually on a small keyboard

 

 

I do have to admit, yes, the keyboards were small. That shouldn't be as much of a problem now though, the standard phone size is pretty much 5". A 5" physical keyboard on a phone would be glorious to type on.

[QueenDemetria]

Is anyone with me on this?

I'm with you on this one, there is nothing like a physical keyboard(its almost like membrane vs mechanical in the PC world). I am also disappointed by the lack of devices, but have found some alternatives. #1 Blackberry. I know you said that you don't like BB OS, but you honestly need to give it a try. The use of gestures and built in Android run time makes it a killer OS in my opinion. The only compromise is the non 16:9 screen, but if you don't watch video on your phone then its a good compromise. Alternative #2 is to bite the bullet and invest in a older device with a keyboard. I am still holding on to my Motorola Droid 4 because of its keyboard, but its slowness is just irritating. Alternative #3, make your own. There are many physical keyboards for devices like the iPhone and Galaxy S series(haven't seen any since the S3 though), but thats not stopping you. Since most of these 3rd party keyboards use bluetooth, the only thing proprietary about them is the case part, which you can cut off . Once the case part is cut off, double sided tape, Velcro, or glue could hold the keyboard on to your new phone, making it a almost seemless experience. An example of this "hack" method would be:

This is my Moto G with a iPhone 4 Boxwave keyboard Velcro'd to it. Its really thick, but this is mostly due to the Velcro. If I had a flat device(like a Sony device) I could have gotten away with double sided tape(but nooo, Motorola had to make the G round, lol). Its not a great solution, but it certainly works . If you want to mod your own, I could help you out.

Here is my G next to a Motorola Droid 4:

The Boxwave keyboard is backlit if you were wondering. Its just that it kept turning off before I could get my camera to focus, lol.

[ikbendusan]

If you want to mod your own, I could help you out.

 

First of all thanks for your contribution to the discussion, finally someone who actually agrees with me. It didn't come to mind that I could basically strap a keyboard to my phone. I have a OnePlus One though; are there any keyboards that could go with a phone that large?

[QueenDemetria]

First of all thanks for your contribution to the discussion, finally someone who actually agrees with me. It didn't come to mind that I could basically strap a keyboard to my phone. I have a OnePlus One though; are there any keyboards that could go with a phone that large?

I did some looking and I couldn't find any keyboards made for the 1+1 or even any Oppo phone for that matter. This doesn't surprise me though, because the demand for physical keyboards low and the popularity of the 1+1. I did find that Boxwave is still carrying bluetooth keyboards for the iPhone, so if you are willing to modify the keyboard(and possibly your phone) this is your main option. I'm not sure about the sizes of these keyboards though, so you might have to live with your camera being covered up(like I had to with my Moto G). Basically all you have to do is cut the iPhone case part off of this case(so you will make the surface flat). Since the 1+1 is a flat phone(relatively), you could get away with double sided tape or similar. This will void the warranty of the keyboard though, so keep that in mind(because of the quality of Boxwave keyboards, I would do lots of testing before committing to modifying).

 

http://www.boxwave.com/cases-and-covers/keyboard-buddy-case/bwpds/pkz/

[Aniallation]

My daily driver is an HTC MyTouch 4G Slide, which has a QWERTY keyboard. Honestly though it's slower then typing with touchscreen keyboard (at least for me)

[ikbendusan]

Honestly though it's slower than typing with touchscreen keyboard (at least for me)

 

On the same device? With auto correct?

[Aniallation]

On the same device? With auto correct?

Yes.