By It’s no secret that I love hardware keyboards but the combination of the Motorola Droid’s large screen and a slide-out QWERTY that is mediocre makes pulling it out a rarity. For longer E-Mails and when I need to see form fields sometimes. That might change with the Motorola Droid 2.
Last week at CES, Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha said a new version of the Motorola Droid would come with an improved keyboard, reported PCMag. I haven’t seen the story picked up anywhere else and the article doesn’t provide a direct quote so we’re left without knowing the direct context of the statement.
One would assume that a 2nd version of the Motorola Droid would come as a 2010 holiday followup to the first Droid. And don’t forget that Mr. Jha joined HTC CEO and Andy Rubin during the Nexus One Event, indicating they would also be manufacturers of Google branded/sponsored phones.
We’ve heard that the Nexus Two (Nexus One Pro) will be an “enterprise” device with a hardware keyboard – Andy Rubin supposedly said so himself – so could the Droid 2 become the Nexus Two?
You wouldn’t THINK that Verizon/Motorola would want to abandon that DROID name but remember it isn’t owned and is only licensed by Verizon. The LG Voyager was a pretty darn popular device for Big Red but they abandoned that name, which was licensed from Plantronics, and instead rolled the brand into their existing enV line as the LG enV Touch. I’m just speculating here… throwing out ideas and nothing more – make your own guesses in the comments.
As the manager of the Motorola Support Forums says, the appeal of the new never ends. In the past several months we’ve gotten our Droid and Nexus One and we’re already thinking about what’s Next(Us-Too). See what I did there?
I love my DROID, what i don’t love is the sloppy physical keypad, that is far too small. It was one of the reasons why i decided to go with the DROID, among other things, now I am forcing myself to use it to justify my purchase. There are other great things about don’t get me wrong, but the phys. QWERTY needs addressing. Can’t waith to see it!
whatever is next, I want it. bad…
I have had a DROID since day one and I can HONESTLY SAY that it didn’t take long for me to get used to the keyboard. Now I slide it out for anything longer than, say, 50 characters. Hardly a rarity. And, of course, I play RBI Baseball on it!
I would like to see the Nexus One with the G1 physical keyboard. That would be a nice combo.
Yeah, agreed. The G1 has the best physical keyboard of any phone I’ve ever held. The keys are clear, distinct, satisfying to press, and there are 5 ROWS of them. No absurd contortions to get a number or a mark of punctuation out of them.
Not saying it couldn’t be better – just saying i DO use it quite a bit… and I would be annoyed with having to use the virtual all the time, esp for longer messages/emails/comments.
so, guess there are no estimation on when it’s gonna be out then.
can’t wait >.> , ordering a milestone next week probably
The DROID was my first hardware keyboard. I think I would prefer a slimmer/lighter keyboard-less version, as I don’t use it much. The swype virtual keyboard seems faster and less error prone for me.
I think I was one of the people who really wanted the Droid/Milestone for ages but as it still has not arrived with any decent carrier in the UK I’m now looking forward to something better from the Nexus One.
I’ll have to hold off buying a droid or n1 now…
Lets face it, we are never going to buy another phone again. As soon as one phone is just about to be released we are advised of a hardware upgraded phone thats 2 months from release. Its like the old days of buying a PC again lol
I kind of enjoy it :)
The G1 has a great kb but oh no it’s not sexy enough…oh we need to have sex with our phones instead of actually using them.
Having said all this, the inbrics phone looks pretty cool.
I’ve only held the demo models of the DROID, but the physical keyboard’s horrible feel was enough to stop me from buying it. I tried the touch screen keyboard of a MyTouch 3G and really liked it, but hated taking up the room on the screen. What I really want is a dual-screen slider with the inside screen dedicated to keyboard and game controller functionality!
I went from g1 to droid. I like that verizon has better 3g but the droid sucks bigtime. The g1 was much easier to use. No call/end buttons?? U have to hold alt to enter numbers?? Come on motorola get with the effin program. Nexus 2 with physical keyboard will MURDER the droid.. easy
To me, a touchscreen phone with no call/end buttons is too iphony for me. My gf has a droid eris and her virtual keyboad is better than my physical keyboard.. and the virtual keyboard on the droid? I might as well b typing with my penis
I find nothing wrong with the Droid keyboard, and I’ve used a wide variety of mobile devices with keyboards.
I use the slide out all the time. after a week with the phone, I was completely used to it.
aaah.. watch the little droid complaints slowly trickle in as droid fever wanes.. i guess anything could be better once something newer and more exciting comes into the horizon.
I want a phone with the nexus one specs and the keyboard of a G1.
now that could be an iphone killer.
oh and did I mention that I would love to have a working 3g ;D
I got use to my Droids keyboard, just wished it had that xtra dedicated number row. Sucks that i might not by able to upgrade my droid to the droid 2.
I like the idea of the a keyboard, but I find it useless nowadays…. thought I would be turned on by the keyboard on the droid but not so much…
I seriously don’t understand why people have such a negative response to the physical keyboard on the Droid. I’m using the Droid slide out keyboard right now and it functions just fine. It’s easy to hit the keys and bang out text. Yeah sure there’s room for improvement, but that’s technology, right? I mean, are we ever truly satisfied? This phone rocks.
the keyboard is my only problem too :(
My alt key has peeled off, it was slightly detached when i got it in the mail
I love the physical keyboard and I’ve got big hands. It only took me a few days to get used to it. I prefer it over software keyboards.
Bought my Droid 10 days ago. Took it to CES with me and was rocking the shit. The phone was great. Tweets, email, text msg, etc. Not one issue. I had 50+ people stop me to ask questions. Everyone tests the keyboard and always says it isn’t that bad. I am coming from the LG Voyager with the best qwerty EVER amd I don’t mind the Droid keyboard.
@dp – I bought my Droid on day one. While I was waiting I occupied myself by checking out the demo model and was about to change my mind when the salesperson came over and handed me my phone. The first thing I did was whip out the kbd and while I was not thrilled, I was pleasantly surprised. The actual kbd feels nothing like the display model. While I don’t use it that often, I use it enough, and I like having the physical keys for gaming. If only they had filled the space where the 5d keypad is with a mini 4 button diamond config a-la-Xbox… I don’t know how it would play but it sounds pretty sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet.
The keyboard on my dash was top notch. The droids falls way short but isn’t as useless as some of these comments suggest.
Thanks Motorola.
Yeah, today I coincidentally typed the longest email on my Droid today. I am becoming more and more fond of this phone each day. The keyboard being so flat makes me type a lot faster because I don’t push down nearly as far. I’m getting close to my previous blackberry speeds. The keyboard really is a huge asset to the Droid.
The Droid is a rockin’ device for sure. Even if the keyboard isn’t perfect, it’s still the best Android device so far for my liking. Plus, it doesn’t look like everything else out there on the market.
I have had my Droid since 11/6/09, Day 1. I have found it to be a love/hate relationship. Believe it or not, first and foremost, I use it as a TELEPHONE. The hate part is that making calls, receiving calls, ending calls all require multiple key strokes.
It was so simple with my Blackberry, just start entering phone number (no unlock necessary) hit send, then end, done! Wanna upgrade an app? About 4 or more keystrokes for that. My iTouch does it in one.
My fiance has given up on her Droid and is preparing to return it in favor of another Blackberry. She logs thousands of minutes each month and it takes too much time to make/end calls for her. Not to mention the road hazard.
My 2010 VW CC phone book is horrible compared to the Blackberry.
Yet, for some strange reason, I’m hanging onto the phone. I enjoy the apps, definitely appreciate VZ’s quality network over ATT, not to mention the superior tech support and service.
So it’s a love/hate relationship. How soon before the 2.1 update, Droid 2….?
The never-ending quest for the newest phone, the battle continues.
I had a G1 for a year, and the kb was great. Got the Droid on day one, and found I make a lot of mistakes on the physical keyboard — fingers are too fat. So I started learning to use the virtual keyboard. Then I downloaded SWYPE, and I NEVER use the physical keyboard anymore. Swype is awesome, and I just keep getting faster on it.
What I want is, Verizon’s next Android phone (perhaps the Nexus One) to be a world phone and with NO physical keyboard — don’t need it, don’t want it. But I do want world phone capability in a CDMA Verizon phone.
Motorola historically hasn’t made a decent keypad of any kind on a phone yet. I’ll be very surprised if the Droid 2 is any different. I love my Droid, but Motorola needs to rethink their keypads.
Am I the only one that thought the G1s keyboard was average at best? I mean I can think of at least two phones, Touch Pro 2 and Sidekick series where their keyboards are way better than the G1s.
hey GOOGLE I do not know about the keyboard but i knowfor sure that come out with the GOOGLE voices, google start sending emails who those we ask for the services(GOOGLE voices and is very very cool, thanks GOOGLE, i got to go i ave to play wiht the android app. GOOGLE voices AJUAAAAAAAAAAAA want pics i can send acouple :P
The Droid’s keyboard is fine. Fine for typing and simple gaming. But certainly not great. One of the main reasons I chose Android was for the emulators (nesoid, snesoid, etc) in the Android Market. that said, a slide out keyboard is a must. I tried the on screen and it doesn’t even come close to the response needed for acurate, enjoyable gameplay. The Droid’s keyboard is too flat. It’s difficult to push two keys down at once which is sometimes required in some games. Also, the keys are not off set, so you can’t set up a diamond shape d-pad with the keyboard which means you really have to use the gold d-pad. Of course it’s on the wrong side for gaming! So you flip the screen upside down, (in the settings) and now you can use it properly on the left side. However, the bottom of the d-pad is now too close to the top portion of the slider making it extremely difficult to hit the d_pad in the “down” direction. This pretty much kills any chance of playing fighting games like Street Fighter remotely well… if you want a good Android phone with good specs and can really play games well, you have to get a Samsung Moment! Or wait for the next great slider…
I too thought the Droid keyboard would be difficult to get use to when I first got the phone.
After having the phone for several weeks now I can easily say that I’ve gotten use to it and actually prefer it over the virtual keyboard on this device and on my iPhone.
I’ve used the physical keyboards on the Touch Pro, the Touch Pro 2, and now the Droid, no complaints here – using it to type this comment.
thats stupid DROID 2.. wtf.. worry about focusing on the products u have already.. stop producing massive cell phones with droid OS.. just admit it.. u wont have a fast CPU like the iphone.. and have android run smoother as iphone.. android will never be as good as iphone.
@AJ
Lol google isn’t trying to compete with apple iPhone. Obviously you are a know nothing iPhone fanboy. So of course you would think that droid is is an OS no its not its Android and there are many variations of it which make it better. Lets compare this to Mac vs Windows for a second. Microsoft does better because people like variety as opposed to snow leopard OS where its only on macs. Not everyone in the world can afford a Mac. If you notice the comparison this is also why google is doing better than apple right now, because google is creating software and letting cell phone manufacturers have at it to do what they will with the design.
But to put this in more simpler terms.
Some people don’t like the iPhone for its lack in a good camera and lack of keyboard and expensive price tag and exclusivity. Not everyone has AT&T. Thats why people go for google because it is generally inexpensive and guess what? Nexus one works on AT&T and Tmobile 3G. granted you won’t be getting 3G speeds just yet if you are on AT&T but it still works and is cheaper unlocked compared to iPhone. Android generally has cheaper apps more free apps these are the things that simply make them better than iPhone.
Don’t be getting mad because Android is better than crap phone 3gs. Get over it iPhone was an overly expensive fad that only lasted because there was nothing like it. Now that Android has arrived iPhone gets kicked to the curb. Its just how it works.
The only people who are using the term IPhone Killer etc are marketers. Knowone in the phone business ever said they are trying to unseat iPhone. Its like night and day. Apple Heads will buy iPhone and the rest of us will buy phones for function, not to look cool and pay for every little thing. That’s the big difference Apple makes users pay for everything. They could charge less for their products if they wanted.
at this point i’m starting to consider buying ANY phone with a proper, G1-style qwerty keyboard – regardless of the OS it runs.
Dear Motorola:
Please put the dpad on the left, and make it look and function like a Nintendo dpad.
Thanks!!!!
I’ll second the nomination of Sidekicks for having the best keyboards ever. I’m still on my Sidekick (LX-2008) because there hasn’t been an Android phone yet with a comparable keyboard. The G1 got the key spacing and sizing right (why does almost everyone else thing that making keys as big and square as possible is a good thing?), but the keys on the G1 need to be “bumpier” for better location assistance. I could get used to it, though. But not the Droid.
I never thought I’d say this, but the Nexus 1, even without a keyboard, is very tempting.
The problem I have with the Droid keyboard is the dpad. It makes it uncomfortable to reach the middle keys with my right thumb. I think it would have been much better to leave off the dpad and spread the keys out.
Ke V mentions the dash and astronomer the sidekick, 2 of my absolute favorite devices ever for data, wish more of the positives of those devices would find their way into Google devices.
I got the Nexus One the next day after the announcement but I had already moved on from the Droid to the Acer Liquid (really not a bad phone, still 1.6). But all the Droid users in my office are fighting over who gets to use the Nexus Ones, they are nice phones, they just free really nice in your hand (I haven’t had that feeling since the dash really)
Is it just me, shouldn’t a phone have a call/phone button already?
What the hell is an iTouch? Dumbass.
I don’t think there is going to be a Droid two anytime soon. They may just come out with a different color Droid new keyboard and same specs. Sorta like the first LG envy did. The first one was sliver then game lime green and orange. I had all three before and noticed they had a bigger feel and arrangements also new buttons. As for me I gotten use to the physical keyboard feel and don’t really mind it, as I had it from day one it is a assome phone and very apealing to my envyous friends but dose anyone else wanna see muti colors of droids I wouldn’t mind a mixture of red and white
@ #1 (and others) I can’t understand how people are complaining about the keyboard saying that they, “got the Droid because of it.” and now they hate it. Didn’t you people physically look at and touch the device before you purchased it?
here’s the problem with the dpad. Many here see dpad and think “Nintendo dpad…goes on the left.” Motorola sees the arrows that are on the right of the keys on every keyboard so figures that’s where it goes.
PC games don’t use a dpad. instead they use the WSAD keys and a mouse. I’m more of a pc gamer so I’d rather use WSAD and have a trackball replace the dpad. Like…the G1.
I just want some info on Verizon’s Nexus. Acer’s phone liquid seemed nice too but the chances of VZW getting it are about zero.
well, at least it has dedicated porn now!
http://dpinkvisual.com/
http://dpinkvisualpass.com/
Hmm as enlightening as reading through the mess of misspelled angry rants posted above I would like to offer what I would like from a phone. I will include some things mentioned above that I have been thinking for quite some time are cell phone musts.
1. Touch screen. We’re all fascinated by this one. Ok not all but I sure as heck am!
2. Dedicated call and end buttons. This just makes sense, and makes navigating between phone and “smartphone” that much easier.
3. Dedicated camera button. Makes taking pictures a snap and I like how when I depress the button ever so slightly I get auto focus working. Plus not that I can’t live without it but I really like when the volume rocker doubles as a zoom for the camera. I like a good camera on a phone!
4. Virtual keyboard/keypad. If you want a touch screen phone this is a must and it should work well. Along with that I’ll say that other intuitive touch features in camera mode and web browsing should come standard.
5. Physical keypad. Okay so some of you don’t want one and I don’t know if I do totally, but I would like to see someone make one that rocks added to the above features. Mainly I’m thinking of gaming with a physical keypad and would like to see a game friendly d-pad with a decent keyboard.
6. Forward facing camera. In addition to my camera I would like to have a “webcam” like camera facing me so I could use a Skype app to hold a on the go video conference with a friend. Sure it may not be needed but I would have fun with it.
There are more things I would add to the list but these are my top features I want to see in a smartphone. If I went on this post would descend forever. If, or when a smartphone comes out with these features you can be assured I will be first in line.
I saw the other day you could get a subsidized Droid for only $99. Wonder if they are trying to move these phones to make way for an updated model. It’s just a few months old so that would seem unlikely, but a better keyboard and OS 2.1 would make it a near perfect phone.
swype has solved my keyboard issues, will need a very good physical keyboard to stop swyping
@ ari-free
We all realize why Motorola chose the placement of the Droid d-pad, but you have to admit that using the arrows on the computer for fighting games (for instance) is not really possible. No way to perform all the special moves… the arrows on the right side are far less functional than a proper d-pad on the left side. Also, I’m guessing that you are also used to playing on nintendo controllers a bit, so you can switch back and forth if you like. Most serious console gamers are only used to the d-pad and using something on the right side just feels awful, and for me, is impossible to play with. So with the d-pad on the left, you would be fine and so would most everyone else. More functionality.
Some games can play upside down so the dpad is on the left
I also love my Droid, but the slide-out keyboard needs some improving. As it stands now the pads are pretty flat and need to be raised.
@ DP What a great idea a second slide out that would slide out and be large enough to have the keys spaced apart and maybe bigger in text mode and in game mode be a controller. I am current on a BB curve and love the keyboard. I have tried both on Droid I don’t mind on screen but I do not like the slide out.
@dp: The tactile keyboard on the Droid displays are nothing like the keyboards on the actual units. Trust me on this one, the actually keyboard isn’t great…but soooo much better than the fake.
@ Dave
See comment #36.
I got used to the keyboard after about a week and I use it all the time. The key for me was switching to using the very tip of my thumb/thumbnail to push the buttons instead of the meat of my thumb. For typing I still prefer my old G1… but I’ve gotten used to the Droid keyboard to the point where it isn’t really an issue anymore.
One thing the Droid keyboard is EXCELLENT at is for playing games. NESoid and SNESoid work better on my Droid than my G1 because the keyboard is not staggered so the letters form a very nice d-pad compared to the angled letters on the G1 keyboard. That is the one place where it is actually nice not to have a staggered keyboard.
@MarvinAndroid
Wow. You could not be more wrong. How can you make a diamond shape d-pad with straight keys. That really makes no sense. The Droid’s keyboard is extremely inferior to the G1 and Samsung Moment. No contest.
My household owns both, an iphone and a Droid. Everyone loves the DROID MUCH better. Love the keyboard as well.
My first Phandroid post after being an observer *yay* :D
I was looking for more info on the new ‘Nexus Two’ and it seems to be a contender for my dream phone, the X10. Which at the moment I am quite upset with Sony’s delay. I just hope that this delay means that Sony is upgrading the Android to an Eclair. Is this too much of wistful thinking? I would settle for the Cupcake if it is.
Back to the N2, it looks ‘identical’ to the Droid except the monitor has a red sheen finish, a white keyboard and this huge wrist strap. I for one cannot imagine why anyone would need such a strap unless you are quite clumsy. It might be a fashion statement or simply just for the clumsies. Hopefully it is lighter than 165g, like weighing as much as the Nokia N97 mini at 138g or even less without being all plasticie like.
I think it being called ‘Motorola Shadow’ is preferable than to ‘Nexus Two.’ If this IS the second Google phone, I hope they won’t name it Nexus Two, although I doubt it. I think the name Nexus Two is UGLY. I would not have thought this was an enterprise device, since it is too bloody beautiful. If it is and is equipped with both CDMA and GSM, that would mean every carrier in the world can carry the N2. And I think THIS would definitely change our buying experience as it means we buy the unlock phone from Google and can use it with any carrier we want (assuming your carrier has the N2 frequencies).
Well I do hope that Motorola intends to have the Call and End Call buttons on the device, like underneath the monitor. I cannot wait to read more on the Nexus Two. (Hint Hint Rob!)
http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/16/motorola-shadow-is-nexus-two-with-sliding-qwerty-keyboard/
http://www.unwiredview.com/2010/01/17/google-nexus-two-to-be-the-motorola-shadow/
P.S. I would sooooooo laugh my arse off if the Motorola Shadow is not the next Nexus Two.
And this is Roze’s $0.02 – Signing off.
Wooooooo that is one long comment >_>
And my formatting is gone >_<
What the heck happened to my empty lines :/
Will it be able to do voice dialing through bluetooth?
I own the droid. the keyboard was not spaced as far apart as many other phones on the market. That is a ‘sacrifice’ vz n motorola made to make their new smartphone as sleek as the iphone. after using the phone for less than a day the keyboard was no problem and I was able to use it as easily as any other qwerty phone. In my opinion the droid qwerty is better than any BB or LG dvice on the market. Keep in my I have average male sized hands and fingertips.
You have to have fingers of an infant to use the Droid’s physical keyboard effectively. I purchased the Droid and had it for a week before I took it back to the store. I wanted to like it so bad, but it was all the little things that was killing me about the phone. The power/lock button, the keyboard, bluetooth seemed a bit if’y, the music player was bland, the lack of VZ Navigator, it was a bit on the heavy side and got a little hot after extended use. Don’t get me wrong, there was a lot of things I liked about the Droid…number one was the resolution of the screen. The HD video capability, and the speakerphone.
why? the keyboard. NO keyboard.
I hate when a product is “almost there” like the Droid is.
Everyone’s comments pretty much laid out the things that need to be fixed to make the Droid “perfect”. I want to buy it, but….. Droid 2 is hopefully right around the corner.
Also, I hate to admit it, but the only thing keeping me from buying an iPhone is that it is on AT&T and not VZ. Given that i already carry an iPod touch along with my Alias2, having a phone/music player that works well with iTunes would make the decision easy for me.
Can someone comment on the Droid music player’s interface, sound quality, and ease of getting music from iTunes to the Driod?
Unfortunately I am still stuck with the Blackberry Storm aka The worst phone in history!!!!! It sucks I have to pay 30 dollars a month for a phone that I’ve had to get replaced 3 times in less than a year but anyways I am anticipating a Droid 2 to save me from my phone woes. The only reason I haven’t gotten the Droid is I don’t want to buy it and a week later a new one comes out like when I bought the storm and the Droid came out and the reviews I’ve heard about the Droids keyboard but I’m beggin Motorola to make the ultimate phone (not like they already haven’t) but with a better keyboard because quite frankly I am a texting whore.
Me, long timr ago I’am waitinfg for Motorola Milestone. somes people says the keyboard is not good, I know that, but no bady talking about 133 MB storage and 256 MB Room. Not enougt space to run google apps. I think this is a big mistake from Motorola. Now, I hope the Motorola Shadow (Nexus two)will have more space to run the programs, a better keyboard, Amoled capacitive touchscreen, Qualcomm Snapdragon QSD8250 1 GHz processor, Sense UI and Standard battery, Li-Ion 1300 mAh.
Biby
Sorry Standard battery, Li-Ion 1500 mAh not 1300.
it needs the rouge’s keyboard because thats a good one or it need the envy touch/envy 3
Honestly, i hope the Droid2.0 is keyboardless. with a 4.3″ AMOLED touchscreen, Android 2.5, HD Video Resolution, an 8 MP camera, a 1.5ghz processor, and a 32GB SD Card.
that would trump any iPhone to Verizon plans, and stop them dead.
I really like the Nexus One for T-Mobile but it didn’t suite me because I really enjoyed the physical keyboard of the Motorola Cliq. I really hope the Nexus Two comes out for T-mobile. I’ve seen how the Nexus Two is supposed to look and I absolutely love the design. Very sleek and well thought out. Can’t wait until it debuts!!
I have a droid. This phone is great. However, it can be better. I’ve had this phone since it came out and there are only two things that I dont like about it. 1. sometimes its a pain in the ass to end a call because the screen turns off on its own (to save battery life) and you have to tilt it a certain way for the screen to come back on and 2. the keyboard is a little weird sometimes. it’s not terrible, I’m used to it and i use it almost all the time whenever i have to type in long sentences but it could use some improvements.
Overall, this is a good phone though. the camera is amazing. it gives super clear pictures, the browser is PERFECT imo. I had trouble deciding whether I wanted a blackberry storm 2 or a droid when i first got it and the browser was what won me over to the droid. It’s just like I’m on my desktop looking at a website on firefox or internet explorer.
If you’re tech savvy and you know how to customize your phone with good apps and things like that. then youll love this phone. You can do almost anything with this phone. There’s nothing you cant do on this phone.
I have a loyal iPod user/owner since they first came out and I refuse to buy any other media player. I currently own a 64GB iPod Touch and use it quite frequently for web browsing and I have no problem using the virtual keyboard for fast input.
That being said, I also recently upgraded my Verizon phone to the Motorola Droid and to be honest I find typing on the Droid virtual keyboard slightly better than my iPod.
I have fat fingers and can see where people could raise an issue with the physical keyboard of the Droid, but personally I never use it and see no need to.
I can type plenty fast and error free on the virtual keyboard and thus far I have ZERO complaints about the Droid.
God I love this thing.
Seriously? The keyboard on the Droid is fine. I type paragraphs a day on it, and even having to press alt for each number doesn’t slow me down at all. I like the thin, flat buttons because I can swipe over them quickly.
Then again, I’m not a mouth-breathing footballer, either.
And please, please, have a keyboard on the Droid 2.0. If I want something without a keyboard then go buy the Eris or the iPhone or whatever.
I think Motorola should make 2 versions of the Droid with the choice of the device with a flat keyboard or raised keyboard! Since Motorola had already produced a fair amount of Droids with raised physical keyboards I would love to see them implement this idea and create a win-win strategy for everyone! I’m excited to see this new Droid, but if there is no root I might stick to my original.
They keyboard is good.. it’s been 2 months since i got it and just now, reading this i remembered how i didn’t like that the right thumb had to stretch over the ‘lip’ and the d pad, which makes it harder to reach some letters ..and unconfortable.. just remembered because it must have been few hours or days after i started using the keyboard when i forgot about it. you get used to it and don’t think of it anymore.
I really like droids keyboard, i think it’s well thought out. The flatness enables you to move fingers quickly around and the keys are large and have nice little and sure sink. I rarely hit the gap between 2 keys. more often i get the wrong letter, but this keyboard is pretty fast..
also, if you use 2 languages.. swype is nice thing and great idea and improvement, but if you use a language you have no dictationary for.. nothing can beat this hw keyboard.
And i also hope droid 2 is gonna have hw keyboard, cause that’s what wins a lot of people for it, there are better android phones now, without kb. namely n1, desire, soon samsung 9000,..
Anyone seen the improved keyboard on the current generation Droid?
http://bit.ly/DroidKeyboardFixed
Hello,
I’ve a motorola droid. I think it’s one of best android phones on the market nowaday. Having a phisycal keyboard issomething fantastic, the virtual keyboard hides a very big portion of the screen.
Droid’s keyboard is not the perfect one but it’s good enough, and from my point of view much better than virtual keyboard.
I’m very happy with my motorola droid and i don’t ghange it for anyother phone.
I have a droid and love it. cant wait for adobe to get their asses done with 10.1 but i have no need for the keyboard other than to play games with. the one screen texting is soo much easier. i dont see any reason for anyone to use the keyboard for anything other than games.
I am one of the lucky ones who has a Droid keyboard that is not flat. My friend has one that is in between flat and raised, and my aunts droid’s keys are TOTALLY flat. What’s up with this, Motorola? Can’t wait for the Droid 2.
If my Droid had a voyager keyboard I’d be set.. flat keyboards are terrible
Why are sites calling the Droid 2 obsolete already? It’s only been out for three months. How is that obsolete? So what if the World edition is coming out? The only difference between that one and its predecessor is the new one can use HSPA. So what?!