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Lifehacker
It's likely to be one of those defensive patents, but RIM's patent application for a fold-out smartphone keyboard forgets why you might want a fold-out keyboard.
A new patent from Nokia shows a pretty interesting new design: a full widescreen that can swivel behind a QWERTY keyboard so only half the screen is visible.
It appears that Motorola is getting ready to add the QA30 to their Q-Series lineup complete with a sliding QWERTY keypad. It isn't a smartphone and the specs (CDMA, 1x-EVDO connectivity, 2.5 inch TFT, Full HTML browser, 2 MP camera, Bluetooth, MicroSD / MicroSDHC card support, up to 32GB) aren't going to wow anyone, but it might be a decent option for Alltel customers looking for a cheap QWERTY. That is, of course, if you can get past the wonky looking design.
Just like we thought, Samsung's i770 Saga QWERTY phone and clamshell world phone Renown are available online. The Saga is for sale as of yesterday, going for $US200 after a $US70 mail-in rebate and with a 2-year contract, and the Renown will go live on November 19th for $US180 after a $US50 MIR with the 2-year lock-in. The Saga is most notable at this point for being the first phone to require Verizon's mandatory $US29.99 a month plan. Specs after the jump.
AT&T, who currently has a thing for cheap, underwhelming messaging phones, has teamed up with Samsung for an advertising campaign to promote their Propel QWERTY slider phone. This isn't some budget spot either — it's got Ozzy Osbourne. Two things we can learn from this commercial: 1.) Osbourne's most marketable asset is currently his senility and 2.) apparently 'QWERTY' has joined general public's jargon lexicon. So yeah, in other words, SABBBBATTHH!! Anyone? [Crunchgear]
Pantech's Slate is billing itself as the world's thinnest QWERTY phone, which is true in more ways than one. The feature set is pretty anorexic—a 1.3-megapixel camera should not be a bullet point—but it's really cheap too, only $US50 with a two-year contract, so it's perfect if you want the absolute cheapest, most stripped down texting device possible on AT&T.
Oh, there's a full QWERTY keyboard on this pen, but you can't actually type with it. Instead, the keys just sit there, judging you silently as you attempt to remember just how to shape a cursive capital Q or Z. Screw this, it'll be easier just to change your name from Quique Zuzanny. That's what I did, and it's worked out alright for those three times a year I send somebody a card late. The keyboard pen runs $US62. [Uncommon Goods via Geek Alerts]
Not so long ago we told you about Touchtype, a 99-cent iPhone app that adds a sort of universal landscape typing option to the iPhone. You write up a message in a wide mode text editor and that content can be forwarded to other programs, like your email. Now a competitor named Firemail has hit the scene and it looks to do the same thing but for free. Who knows, maybe Touchtype is somehow one million times better than Firemail, making its users smarter, stronger and better looking. But now most of us will never find out. [Firemail via LifeHacker]
Over at Symbianfreaks there're a bunch of photos and this video which seem to be leaked data on two upcoming Nokia mobiles: the E72 and E75. Both have QWERTY keypads, with the E72 seeming to combine the S60 platform with a side-sliding keypad and the E75 looking pretty business-like in a BlackBerry-esque with its large candybar form factor. There's precious little other info on the handsets, but knock yourself out with the images in the gallery. [Symbianfreaks]
The first thing that stands out about Sprint's exclusive LG Lotus is it's shape. Few, if any, flip phones possess a square shape a full QWERTY keyboard in a true clamshell design. The hardware design was inspired by makeup accessories every woman on the planet carries around, but despite its target audience, the Lotus hardware is nice hardware for anyone who make text messages their priority.
