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A new company promises a 5G keyboarded BlackBerry in 2021

pcmag.com

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Re: A new company promises a 5G keyboarded BlackBerry in 2021

#31

Post by boring_twenties »

smiley1437 wrote: post #17
boring_twenties wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even after over a decade to adjust, typing on my old Blackberry's keyboard was just light years better than any touch keyboard I've tried since. Gesture typing, aka "swype," seemed promising at first but has somehow progressively gotten worse since then, to the point where I'm now considering disabling it. I guess for most people, probably myself included, the tradeoff is still worth it, because most of what we do wi…

I miss the days of rattling off detailed email responses with practically zero typos on the physical keyboard, on a touchscreen I'm constantly checking for incorrect Autocorrect replacements. I carried two phones (an Iphone and a blackberry) for about a year before dropping the Blackberry, and I'd had about 10 different Blackberry models over the years. That said, I don't think going back to physical is worth it anym…

I have a gargantuan phone now (which I can't stand, but anyway), but I think my typing accuracy is worse than it was on 2013-era Android, and I think that it's because the keyboard software is getting worse and worse.

Virtually every single time I have to enter anything more than "ok" or "5m", it's a frustrating experience.

The only reason I put up with it is that I never need to write emails or engage in long chats on the phone. I just use a computer for those. If I'm not home, well, you might have to wait until I get home to chat with me. This is a rather stark difference from the Blackberry days, I was happily emailing and chatting away on mine even at home with a computer within easy reach.

Since the pandemic started, I only use my phone for the 2FA app. It's regularly a chore to even find it, when it's been a week since I've used it and the battery is dead, so "Find my phone" can't be used.

Side note, I just got a new phone in December... considered the more expensive S10e, but ended up with the dirt cheap ($150 shipped) Moto G6. Man, was that a great decision in hindsight or what!

Re: A new company promises a 5G keyboarded BlackBerry in 2021

#33

Post by walterbell »

arch-ninja wrote: post #29

God I wish BB10 was open sourced. Today the biggest problem with phones is their bloated runtimes, android being the largest offender. I want something with the form factor of the q10 running a QNX-based os I can ssh to and use rsync to copy music, contacts, and a calendar to.

BB10 had the opportunity to support security and the open web, instead of chasing the app store quagmire. WebOS is now open-source and based on OpenEmbedded, which can be minimized. Blackberry has already ported some of their special sauce to Android, they could do the same for WebOS, extracting suitable components from both BB10 and QNX/automotive.

Instead of worrying about apps (previous war), they could invest in a Rust-based browser and WebAssembly for mobile devices, building on their security strengths. Allow the 'mobile' device to dock with USB-C to a desktop display and keyboard, and you've got a WFH story for security-sensitive apps/data. They have enough proprietary security software to sell on top of WebOS.

Convert Blackberry Messenger to IETF MLS (open-standard E2E encrypted group messaging) and enable interop with Matrix and other apps/platforms that embrace MLS, while (re)creating a business identity network. By focusing on open standards and honoring their heritage in email/chat and physical UX, they could provide a usable alternative for high-end users who favor productivity and security without lock-in. Yes, BB was once the king of carrier gardens, but Apple is now a garden to be escaped, not emulated.

There may be Firefox browser engineers recently on the market, who can hit the ground running with variations of the above strategy. LG, lead developer of OSS WebOS, does not compete with QNX or Blackberry. QNX remains an undervalued gem. A hybrid OSS+proprietary model can bridge BB past & future, but it requires vision from Blackberry, not only a new brand licensee.

Re: A new company promises a 5G keyboarded BlackBerry in 2021

#34

Post by Normille »

beerandt wrote: post #24
honkycat wrote: post #12

I would be super into a phone with a physical keyboard, but I am on Google Fi and I am hesitant to switch. I've given up on swipe typing. I have been using it for almost a decade and I still cannot type effectively with it. I am ready to go back to physical keys.

I'm amazed no company seems to be interested in filling the market niche for physical keyboards. I swear swype typing seems to have gotten progressively worse since it's early days, I suspect as machine learning from public data is relied on more than personal mechanics. And also as the pool of users became more diverse, especially older (fat finger users like my parents) and less tech knowledgeable (ie don't use sho…

The weird thing about swype typing for me is how it can swing from hugely impressive to beyond lunatic in the space of a couple of sentences.

One minute, I'm amazed when I've swyped a sentence using some of my favourite slang words [or even made up words / nicknames etc] and found it's been transcribed perfectly. The next, I'm staring in disbelief as it inserts some completely off the wall term like 'albatross' or 'dar es salaam' for a really everyday word.

Re: A new company promises a 5G keyboarded BlackBerry in 2021

#37

Post by Normille »

derekp7 wrote: post #26
908B64B197 wrote: post #23

I remember a few years ago Samsung selling a keyboard case for one of it's phones [0]. If I recall the phone would detect it and scale the UI so that the keyboard wouldn't cover any important part of the screen. Sounds like the ideal tradeoff. I've never seen one in real life however, so that tells me how big the demand for a physical keyboard is. [0] https://www.zdnet.com/article/samsung-keyboard-cover-for-gal...

I've actually been planning on getting one of those mini Bluetooth keyboards, take it out of the case, and design a custom cell phone case where the top hinges up similar to how a tackle box opens up. Still working out the details and measurements though.

Those mini BT keyboards are great for the money. I got a no-brand copy of a Rii one for £8 off eBay to replace the Apple keyboard I use to control my media server and which was gradually dying one key t a time.

I was really impressed at how the mini BT keyboard 'just worked' on my odd setup of Ubuntu running on Apple hardware. It's pretty tolerable to type on --at least for shortish stuff like web searches and naming files, etc. and it goes for a week or two on a charge.

Re: A new company promises a 5G keyboarded BlackBerry in 2021

#38

Post by Normille »

HarryHirsch wrote: post #11
VectorLock wrote: post #10

What percentage of the market for phones come with physical keyboards? I know some cling to the idea but I think the technology has progressed far enough to mostly eclipse it in every practical way, certain holdouts not withstanding, and the market reflects that.

Do people really like these huge breakable touchscreens that you leave oily fingerprints on, or do they merely tolerate them? It's a damn shame that phones with smaller screens and optical touchpad don't exist any longer.

I wonder this myself. If I can ever be bothered to read a review of a mobile phone these days [which is rarely] it seems to be accepted as self-evident that ultra-thinness, huge screens and non-existent bezels are what everyone wants.

Not me. I want a phone that has a bit of ruggedness to it, will fit in my pocket and leaves some room round the edge of the screen for me to hold the damned thing, without triggering some unwanted app or function.

Re: A new company promises a 5G keyboarded BlackBerry in 2021

#39

Post by Normille »

VectorLock wrote: post #18
HarryHirsch wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do people really like these huge breakable touchscreens that you leave oily fingerprints on, or do they merely tolerate them? It's a damn shame that phones with smaller screens and optical touchpad don't exist any longer.

Glass and screens on modern phones are amazingly durable now. I don't even bother with screen protectors now since under normal usage they're virtually unscratchable.

It's not the scratching that's the problem. It's the shattering.

I'll take, any day, a hard plastic screen which will survive being kicked round the streets with only a bit of scuffing to show for it over a scratch-proof glass one which turns into a mosaic if it drops off my desk.

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