@Bruce: "You can't SSH and perform many sysadmin tasks with a sw keyboard..." ..do a search for the Hackers keyboard in the market.. its made by for and by users with your exact complaint and has all those keys that are missing from so many software keyboards (Ctrl, Tab, Fn, Alt, esc, , standard 5th row w/ #'s & symbols, etc)
Cybersax - 13 years ago
I'm really at a loss when I have to replace my OG Droid. I got it because it smoked everything in sight AND it had a keyboard. I've used keyboards on my smartphones since I was a Mobile Windows user, and I don't like touchscreen keyboards. Period. However, the Droid 3 is lacking in 4G and RAM, so unless they pump up the specs between now and July (probably), it looks like I'm either going with the next-gen Nexus or an iPhone 5.
Stuntman - 13 years ago
I prefer hardware keyboards. I like seeing the whole screen when I type. I specifically chose the HTC Desire Z because of the keyboard and the Nokia N97 before. If there were no more hardware keyboards any more, I think I can adapt to using a screen keyboard. I do it occasionally on my Desire Z if I do not need to enter more than a few words.
Trinition - 13 years ago
I find the haptic feedback with on-screen keyboards to be anemic. Imagine if instead of a simple click and short vibration of the duration, frequency of even pattern of the vibration differed depending on how close you were to the center of the "key". Suppose when your finger touched two keys instead of one on accident, you felt a stutter in the vibration. And the more centered you were on a key, the higher the vibration frequency. Your brain would quickly and subconsciously pick up on the cues, just as they do with the concave or convex hspae of phsyical keys with distinct edges.
bearcat - 13 years ago
I love the keyboard on my HTC Espresso (T-Mobile Mytouch Slide). I keep trying to use the sw keyboard, but even using predictive software, my fat fingers make too many mistakes for me to use that as my only input method. And who wants to have to carry an external keyboard? I did that for years with my Palm, and was never happy with it. The hardware keyboard on phones isn't perfect, what is? But I won't buy a phone without one.
Bruce Garlock - 13 years ago
You can't SSH and perform many sysadmin tasks with a sw keyboard. I have a Droid2 Global and would never get an Android phone without a physical keyboard. The fact that the Droid 3 is adding another row is even better since it will be less use of the functiion key to type a number. I can't wait for the Droid 3. Having the arrows on the keyboard to navigate around a big textarea is also a huge plus. The sw based cursor navigation is painful and very frustrating.
So, as long as I have to admin 40+ linux servers on a regular basis as part of my job, I absolutely cannot live without my hw keyboard.
poopcrew - 13 years ago
I wasn't sure about using the soft keyboard, but once you adapt to it, its faster and more convenient
lostsync - 13 years ago
Well...after the underwhelming Droid 3 info, I'm pretty dismayed since I'm just about ready to move on from my OG Droid. I really enjoy the physical keys for SSHing with ConnectBot and lengthy chats while traveling. That said, the Android world moves fast and getting a midrange device if you're any sort of power user or enthusiast is something you'll regret time and time again as those two years slowly tick by. When I get ready to upgrade, if the Droid 3 hasn't won me over via the coverage of it's release, I'll likely go back to a touchscreen-only Android device (my first was a Droid Eris and, aside from the phone sucking in most possible respects, the software keyboard was fine, and even better with the Gingerbread keyboard). I'll miss the physical keys but I'll get used to it if I have to. Most people with sliders (that I know, anyway) wind up not using the keys that much anyway...I guess I am a fringe case.
@Bruce: "You can't SSH and perform many sysadmin tasks with a sw keyboard..." ..do a search for the Hackers keyboard in the market.. its made by for and by users with your exact complaint and has all those keys that are missing from so many software keyboards (Ctrl, Tab, Fn, Alt, esc, , standard 5th row w/ #'s & symbols, etc)
I'm really at a loss when I have to replace my OG Droid. I got it because it smoked everything in sight AND it had a keyboard. I've used keyboards on my smartphones since I was a Mobile Windows user, and I don't like touchscreen keyboards. Period. However, the Droid 3 is lacking in 4G and RAM, so unless they pump up the specs between now and July (probably), it looks like I'm either going with the next-gen Nexus or an iPhone 5.
I prefer hardware keyboards. I like seeing the whole screen when I type. I specifically chose the HTC Desire Z because of the keyboard and the Nokia N97 before. If there were no more hardware keyboards any more, I think I can adapt to using a screen keyboard. I do it occasionally on my Desire Z if I do not need to enter more than a few words.
I find the haptic feedback with on-screen keyboards to be anemic. Imagine if instead of a simple click and short vibration of the duration, frequency of even pattern of the vibration differed depending on how close you were to the center of the "key". Suppose when your finger touched two keys instead of one on accident, you felt a stutter in the vibration. And the more centered you were on a key, the higher the vibration frequency. Your brain would quickly and subconsciously pick up on the cues, just as they do with the concave or convex hspae of phsyical keys with distinct edges.
I love the keyboard on my HTC Espresso (T-Mobile Mytouch Slide). I keep trying to use the sw keyboard, but even using predictive software, my fat fingers make too many mistakes for me to use that as my only input method. And who wants to have to carry an external keyboard? I did that for years with my Palm, and was never happy with it. The hardware keyboard on phones isn't perfect, what is? But I won't buy a phone without one.
You can't SSH and perform many sysadmin tasks with a sw keyboard. I have a Droid2 Global and would never get an Android phone without a physical keyboard. The fact that the Droid 3 is adding another row is even better since it will be less use of the functiion key to type a number. I can't wait for the Droid 3. Having the arrows on the keyboard to navigate around a big textarea is also a huge plus. The sw based cursor navigation is painful and very frustrating.
So, as long as I have to admin 40+ linux servers on a regular basis as part of my job, I absolutely cannot live without my hw keyboard.
I wasn't sure about using the soft keyboard, but once you adapt to it, its faster and more convenient
Well...after the underwhelming Droid 3 info, I'm pretty dismayed since I'm just about ready to move on from my OG Droid. I really enjoy the physical keys for SSHing with ConnectBot and lengthy chats while traveling. That said, the Android world moves fast and getting a midrange device if you're any sort of power user or enthusiast is something you'll regret time and time again as those two years slowly tick by. When I get ready to upgrade, if the Droid 3 hasn't won me over via the coverage of it's release, I'll likely go back to a touchscreen-only Android device (my first was a Droid Eris and, aside from the phone sucking in most possible respects, the software keyboard was fine, and even better with the Gingerbread keyboard). I'll miss the physical keys but I'll get used to it if I have to. Most people with sliders (that I know, anyway) wind up not using the keys that much anyway...I guess I am a fringe case.