1. CrackBerry Kevin's Avatar
    Hey All,

    With KEY2 launch just around the corner, I'm flexing my blogging chops again and helping out Bla1ze here on the site (I like to think of myself as his assistant these days!).

    Working on some articles in the lead up to and launch of KEY2.

    Every year or two I like do an article on the benefits of the physical keyboard. Think it would be good to get one live before June 7th.

    Would love to hear all of your reasons for loving the PKB. Sound off below! Will source some of the unique responses in the article.

    Would love to come up with a list of like 50! I think a lot of non-BB users see our qwerty's and just don't get why you'd want it... so love to have that hit list of every reason why PKBs still have an important place in the smartphone market.

    Thanks!!

    CBK
    05-25-18 09:26 AM
  2. Moon_Man's Avatar
    Blind typing because of muscle memory and fast acces to other symbols with the alt key.

    more screen real estate combined with the keyboard scrolling.

    And of course the keyboard shortcuts.
    dmlis and Minju Jube like this.
    05-25-18 09:40 AM
  3. flyersfan76's Avatar
    Simply faster typing.

    More accurate typing.

    Typing while not looking.


    As for the people who saying what I wrote above is just not true. We all all not the same. Some people might say that they can type faster on a screen but not everyone can.


    Not that I would but the signature line of some peoples phones of "I typed this email on a phone. Please disregard typos, punctuation, spelling, brevity, etc" is just plain unprofessional and embarrassing.
    WES51, playfoot, BerryRipe and 4 others like this.
    05-25-18 09:42 AM
  4. Frenzytom's Avatar
    Increased keyboard functionality
    - I like the ability to use the keys for quick links to my apps or functions
    - Scrolling and text selection
    - The fingerprint scanner is perfect place
    - I am more an accurate type rather than fast type and PK makes it easier for me to slow down and hammer out what I want to say.
    - The clicking sounds. Call me old school.
    05-25-18 09:49 AM
  5. BlackberryPrivUzer's Avatar
    I personally like the fact that I can use it as a back up if my screen fails. No need to rely on a piece of glass I can use real buttons.
    05-25-18 09:59 AM
  6. DWonder's Avatar
    -If u think typing on ur computers keyboard makes typing things easy, BlackBerry PBK's do the exact same. So it's literally like having a computer in the palm of ur hands

    -after using BlackBerry PBK's for the last 8 years I can't imagine not typing on one
    joseanmx likes this.
    05-25-18 10:00 AM
  7. orkneydave's Avatar
    Quite a few benifits:
    - Blind touch typing. In my job I have to to a check of artic trailers at a busy ferry terminal. I can compose an email of all the trailer numbers without actually having to look at my phone so I keep my eyes open to other things going on around.

    - Long and short press shortcuts. Not much to say here except they add to the useability of the phone.

    - Easier to type on. Personal preference here but I struggle to type on touch screens. I also have a wierd static thing coing on sometimes that can confuse touch screens.

    - Capacitive touch pad embedded in the keyboard. This means that I can scroll through pages, emails, feeds etc without having to cover the screen with my thumb.

    - The tactile feel of a PKB. Again personal preference but it is nice to actually feel a key press. I know VKBs can have taptic responses but it's not the same really.

    - The look. In a sea of glass slabs a PKB really stands out.
    Minju Jube, WES51 and the_boon like this.
    05-25-18 10:10 AM
  8. dbq10's Avatar
    Tapping on glass is unpleasant. Using a physical keyboard to scroll up and down on a news site loaded with multiple items keeps you from accidentally clicking on a link you're not interested in, especially if it plays a video or takes you to another site.
    BigAl_BB9900 likes this.
    05-25-18 10:22 AM
  9. katxeus's Avatar
    Productive fidgeting.
    Over 30 aestetically sculpted pieces of art that can be arranged in a million different ways to look at and touch.
    And many more..
    05-25-18 10:49 AM
  10. Tommy-boy's Avatar
    if you had to type up a 20 proposal and your device choices were:
    A - an iPad, or
    B - a Lenovo laptop
    which would you chose? (both running Word)

    laptop would be way faster, efficient, and effective. the pkb is why

    we usually don't type up 20 pg items on our phones, but.....the pkb still makes for a superior experience. example above just takes the concepts to the extreme.

    tom
    the_boon likes this.
    05-25-18 11:06 AM
  11. selimpusat's Avatar
    please add; pleasure to manage my whole world with my thumbs.
    05-25-18 12:14 PM
  12. anon(10268214)'s Avatar
    Accuracy, accuracy, accuracy...

    Can't say it enough! Glass is just too damn slippery. Like trying to walk on ice.

    And I dare say being able to customize and shortcut via a keyboard is a faster and more private way of executing repetitive actions as opposed to dictating to Google Assistant (that wants to track everything I do in exchange for using it Lol).
    05-25-18 12:15 PM
  13. cckgz4's Avatar
    Typing makes me want to do emails and look forward to doing it versus dreading to type a long one on a touch screen.

    Also nostalgic purposes goes with a pkb.
    05-25-18 01:14 PM
  14. draculito01's Avatar
    A weird feeling of satisfaction, that tactile physicality of typing on the real keys, hearing their click and realizing you are actually working to type something, not just touching the glass.

    And of course, typing while riding as a passenger in the car, especially on the rough roads. You may not realize it, but you are actually pulling some Gs and your typing accuracy decreases. But not with the physical keyboard.
    jmorgan456 and BigBadWulf like this.
    05-25-18 01:52 PM
  15. Gazelle065's Avatar
    I have a disability that will make my hands cramp up very quickly. For some reason the springiness, and accuracy let's me type longer with the PKB. When I tried the Z10 I switched back within a year as tapping on the glass was more difficult.
    05-25-18 05:19 PM
  16. anon(9710967)'s Avatar
    more accurate typing that's the main one
    05-25-18 06:00 PM
  17. katxeus's Avatar
    This week, the BBC's published an article on this, a great read.
    http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/201...-way-of-typing
    05-25-18 07:51 PM
  18. BerryRipe's Avatar
    Shortcuts such as T for top of page B for browser and F for flashlight are one of my favorite uses for the PKB.

    Posted via CB10
    05-25-18 08:06 PM
  19. snowsquirrel's Avatar
    I make less errors typing, especially because I end having to type a fair bit of symbols, and the blackberry keyboard handles that really well.

    The feeling of it is better but I tests have shown in flat out speed tests glass usually wins. But with real world situations where not everything is an English word, I think PKB is the same speed.

    The shortcuts are the biggest difference. Not fact or subjective opinion. Simply something that cannot be done without a PKB.

    Not losing screen real estate when keyboard appears is a nice bonus too.
    05-25-18 08:36 PM
  20. Sarek1701's Avatar
    All of my likes have been stated above. For me, a PKB simply says 'BlackBerry' and that's how I began my journey using a portable email device/phone/browser/etc. It's simply the most comfortable for me, and I have strayed to non-PKB devices to see what the fuss was about, but always, ALWAYS come back to BlackBerry and the physical keyboard.
    05-25-18 10:17 PM
  21. BigBadWulf's Avatar
    I disagree with accuracy for myself. Using a Z10 for most of a year, then a Z30 for a long time, and finally a Z Force, I had no problem typing accurately without looking at the keyboard. All bets were off though, when any motion is involved. The PKB has a huge advantage in that scenario. Couple that with shortcuts, which I find a massive plus, the capacitive keyboard and the editing advantage of controlling a cursor, leads me to my main reason...

    It's purely the pleasure involved! There is something about the tactile feel of physical keys. An unexplainable sensation that satisfies the soul. I suppose if you're so young you never experienced it when initially embarking upon the smartphone road, you just cannot understand. For those who have, it does take time to reacclimate, but if you're willing to endure a few days of frustration, the reward is well worth it.

    For all the BlackBerry diehards, yearning to have BB10 gestures restored, one final comment. I've always been anal about keeping my screen clean. There's no way currently around touching the screen some, but it's typically relegated to the outer extremes, thus maintaining smudge free the majority of the viewing area.

    PS - @CrackBerry Kevin... it's good to see you around, alive and kicking! You've had mail
    rarsen and toddshillington like this.
    05-25-18 11:32 PM
  22. Blackberryphosphamide's Avatar

    It's purely the pleasure involved! There is something about the tactile feel of physical keys. An unexplainable sensation that satisfies the soul.
    I agree there. Physical keyboards look cool, they feel great and I just like the sound of clicking keys.

    Specifically with the 4-row keyboards: being able to use the 'alt' key to get some symbols and numbers where a virtual keyboard may have required you to go onto a different page of the keyboard and then go back to continue with typing.

    ---={////]--[ Dispensed on my BlackBerry Passport 
    05-26-18 03:46 AM
  23. anon(9188202)'s Avatar
    People I am doing business with know my age just by looking at my phone and give me the seniors discount without making me produce photo I.D. 😉
    BigBadWulf and FF22 like this.
    05-26-18 03:49 AM
  24. tnewton3's Avatar
    My main benefits of the physical keyboard are as follows.

    Typing accuracy and speed - can easily write professional emails with ease and save the time of fixing typos. Also having the ability to use symbols and numbers almost without having to look at the keyboard.

    Word substitution - having abbreviations that turn into phrases or multiple words that I use all the time. I often say Thank you at the end of my email and turned "ty" into a shortcut. I've got a ton of them, another is "tyy" that turns into my work signature that I can easily put at the end of emails.

    Long & short press shortcuts - I have long press set to speed dial and short press to open apps. Keeps my screen uncluttered with all my most used apps ready at a button press. Love having the ability to speed dial up to 26 people.
    05-26-18 07:18 AM
  25. falcotec's Avatar
    unlock screen and start typing for universal search, that I really miss on my Motion.
    BigBadWulf likes this.
    05-26-18 07:30 AM
37 12

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