[cgk]

Interesting long form article about the death of qwerty, and possible reasons they are dying, there are a few nuggets about bbry in there

Is the QWERTY so incredibly niche that manufacturers are willing to let BlackBerry have that market unchallenged? One anonymous industry insider hints that BlackBerry's misfortunes might actually be part of the problem. "Believe me, this is a game of volume... if they thought [QWERTY] would be a meaningful niche, it would not go ignored. We saw what happened to the manufacturer who thought different."

Still, when I push Sprint's Kaufman just a little bit further, he relents. "It'd need to be an HTC One Q, a Galaxy S4 Q... [a flagship phone] with top-of-the-line specs."

"If you could have a Galaxy S4 with a QWERTY, I think people would buy that."



http://www.theverge.com/2013/11/15/5...y-but-to-bury-

[raino]

Is the QWERTY so incredibly niche that manufacturers are willing to let BlackBerry have that market unchallenged?

Is that how those who've tried and failed justify their futile attempts? Because it's not as if they haven't tried.

http://reviews.cnet.com/cell-phones/...-35811778.html

[anon5759238]

I dunno some people prefer the keyboard I've met ppl who don't like all touch screen... the 9900 or q10 size square screen is good enough for them. And they simply like the feel of a little keyboard... I feel differently since using z10 and z30 but that's me

Swordsmanship Channel C000C9AF6

[zee3p0]

I agree, some people don't care about screen real estate they just want a keyboard they are accustom to. Don't know if there are enough left around to make a profitable market from.

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[dblcup]

Qwerty is absolutely dead. Abandoned long ago....while I held on to mine forever, i really can't see going back after the z10. The screen is just too big (no pun intended) of a draw.

Posted via CB10

[Aljean Thein]

Qwerty phones are not dead. Just cause some of you enjoys the touchscreens more doesn't mean everyone enjoys it . Qwerty will be a niche market and nothing more. It'll continue to be in the market for years to come.

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[berklon]

First off... why is this constantly referred to as "QWERTY keyboards"? The Z10, S4, iPhone, etc etc all have QWERTY keyboards. QWERTY is about the layout of the keyboard - regardless if it's physical or virtual buttons. This always bothered me. I'd prefer to refer to it as Physical keyboards.

Anyway, the market for Physical keyboards won't be totally dead, but it will be a VERY VERY small niche. So small a niche that Blackberry won't be able to survive on it.

In my office we have A LOT of people who have lived off the physical keyboards of BB Bolds. And almost all of them have said the same thing "I love real keyboards, but I guess I should get used to phones without them"... and they actually do get used to them - it just takes some time. After a while they realize they can't live without the larger screen as it works so much better for apps, photos and web surfing.

[sigint99]

I'm certainly more productive on a physical keyboard BlackBerry than any touchscreen phone. The latter are just gimmicks that have been forced onto consumers.

[Bbnivende]

Might not be dead if they increased the screen size otherwise it may live on as a "feature phone".

[WArcher]

Interesting long form article about the death of qwerty, and possible reasons they are dying, there are a few nuggets about bbry in there



"If you could have a Galaxy S4 with a QWERTY, I think people would buy that."



http://www.theverge.com/2013/11/15/5...y-but-to-bury-

It's far easier (and cheaper) to avoid the QWERTY issue. A simple screen, no extra hardware or logic.

BlackBerry is the King (or Qween) of QWERTY and has invested a lot of money perfecting that little keyboard. I am very happy with my Q10 (and Torch 9810, and Bold 9900 and Bold 9000...)

I am waiting for the perfect hybrid of keyboard, touch, and BlackBerry10. (a slider)

[DS1331]

I don't like touch screen keyboard and I have a q10 and love it, but I need Android. If BB came out with a qwerty phone running Android I'd spend a weeks paycheck on it instantly

Sent from my XT1053 using CB Forums mobile app

[richardat]

Pretty open and shut case. It's been apparent for years now - and some of us have been saying it. The physical keyboard is a tiny niche. It didnt' prevent BB's marketshare from going to essentially 0 in developed countries, and it didn't stop ios/android from getting the entire market. The fact that BB couldn't sell any q10/q5 just added further support to the notion. I hope some physical keyboards are around for whoever wants them, but not many choose them.

[richardat]

Is that how those who've tried and failed justify their futile attempts? Because it's not as if they haven't tried.

Samsung Freeform 5 Review - Watch CNET's Video Review

No. It's what people who aren't bright say when they can't figure out why nobody is aggressively pursuing the 12 keyboard phones BB sold in the last 2 years in North America. The answer is: yes, nobody cares about getting BB's last 12 customers.

Ironic that the article you posted to says that the keyboard on that samsung is great...just on outdated hardware and software...it was in fact too good a copy of a BB.

[JeepBB]

In my office we have A LOT of people who have lived off the physical keyboards of BB Bolds. And almost all of them have said the same thing "I love real keyboards, but I guess I should get used to phones without them"... and they actually do get used to them - it just takes some time. After a while they realize they can't live without the larger screen as it works so much better for apps, photos and web surfing.

This ^^^^ was me.

I loved my physical keyboard, but always wanted more screen... so I got a 9800 as the best of both worlds. I'd previously tried glass keyboards on iPhones, and found my fingers were too fat to gain any speed. When the keyboard on the 9800 started to fail, I tried other phones with glass keyboards and found that glass keyboards had really come on since I last tried. Or maybe my fingers had dieted...

I still have nostalgic fond memories of physical keyboards (especially the time-saving keyboard shortcuts!), but I'd now never go back. Full screen phones are the future due to that screen real-estate being so useful for all the other uses we put our phones to these days.

[mikeycollins13]

Same here.

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[techvisor]

Seems to me it would have been good for BlackBerry to design some type of snap on keyboard accessory that would have worked with Z series phones. This would have provided best of both worlds, keyboard and larger screen size.

[Roo Zilla]

QWERTY isn't dead yet, but it's a shrinking market so it's in a death spiral. Basically, QWERTY is a relic of the first age of smartphones started by the likes of Palm, BlackBerry, WinMo, and Symbian.. We're past that now, and the only people still buying them are people who learned to use smartphones on QWERTY and find it difficult to get used to a touchscreen. That's basically it. QWERTY isn't winning any new customers.

[Aljean Thein]

QWERTY isn't winning any new customers.

but they're gaining their old customers back, therefore their growing in some ways

[bennelong]

All I can say, is that some years back I swore that I never would or could use a full touchscreen device.
The first one I tried was a Galaxy 1 which only enforced that belief, so I stuck with the physical keypad phone I'd been using.
It wasn't as good 'browser-wise' or 'performance wise' as the handsets which were being adopted by those around me, so after seeking some real assurances on the usability of the touchscreen keyboard I got a Galaxy 2.
It took very little getting used to, but now with the Z10 keyboard I couldn't imagine ever going back.
I absolutely understand people's reservations, but it is a relatively easy transition to undergo and one which has (in my own experience) it's own definite benefits.
If it were available at the time, I would've gotten a Q10 but now I'm so used to the extra screen space that I couldn't settle for less now.
PS. I'm still finding the size of the Z10 to be entirely adequate for me and don't foresee a larger phone in my future.


Z10 via CB10

[cgk]

but they're gaining their old customers back, therefore their growing in some ways

They are? There is no sales evidence to suggest this is the case.

[neoberry99]

I'm so...so old school. Qwerty till I die. That's easy for me to say because I carry 2 phones. 1 qwerty and 1 touchscreen.

[mad.dog99]

PHYSICAL all the way for me

I tried to love the Z10 for nearly 2 months but it started learning my gibberish that my fingers were mashing on the screen

Got my Q10 when it released and sooooo happy to have physical keys back

I was using my works iPhone 5 on holiday (company pays the bill) and I hated typing on it, took me 3x as long and I missed the notifications when the screen was off

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

but they're gaining their old customers back, therefore their growing in some ways

Numbers do not back you up on that. Sure lots of people say that they or a buddy came back from platform I or D and have rejoined BlackBerry. But the numbers show that these "experiences" are unique and go against the overall trend.

A QWERTY keyboard is not going to save BlackBerry.

[m1a1mg]

I'm certainly more productive on a physical keyboard BlackBerry than any touchscreen phone. The latter are just gimmicks that have been forced onto consumers.

Sorry, it wasn't forced on me. I have no clue why, but I've done better with the touchscreen keyboard.

[Heinz Katchup]

Another attack on BlackBerry from The Scourge. The only relevant QWERTY device on the Market are the BlackBerry phones. So why write this article either than to blatantly attack BlackBerry.

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