HTC Vision Rumors

[Varjak]

I agree with Hook. Really, after all the great thin phones (iPhone 4, Droid Incredible, Droid X, Evo, Nexus One, HD2) we can't have ONE premium smartphone with a screen over 4" and a slider keyboard? (Yes, I know the Galaxy S Pro, which might be nice.) Still, I'd like to see HTC take a shot at this target.

[JRakes]

Yeah yeah, I was in the breakroom that time, I remember. It was the volunteering for it that threw me this time.

I'm helpful that way...

Ummm... You did destroy those pics, though, right?

[Mi An]

HTC Vision headed to T-Mobile in new spy shot, dubbed G1 Blaze? -- Engadget

[JRakes]

Hmmm... While it's still basically a rumor, they're again showing that abbreviated keyboard, which gives me great pause. With the steady stream of devices appearing, IF I was looking for a new device now (and I'm not) I'd have to be seriously convinced that every other aspect of this device is a significant leap forward from what I currently use - Not a few little improvements, but major jumps ahead in all other aspects.

Not to beat a dead horse, but if they're going with (what's to me) a great keyboard design (sliding landscape QWERTY hardware type,) why go half way? For my use, it's a major disappointment.

I'm hoping the rumors are still just that, including the pics, and that whatever device might ultimately appear doesn't step halfway back to the stone age in keyboard design.

[Drillbit]

I suspect the keyboard design you want from HTC, is most probably one they won't make it again. It seems to me the keyboard shown here and with the Slide, is what HTC has chosen as a direction. If you don't like what you see, you might have to consider what Motorola, Samsung and LG will be up to.

[Mi An]

If you don't like what you see, you might have to consider what Motorola, Samsung and LG will be up to.

Most of the alternatives are worse than the Vision, or at least as compromised.

Right now, the Galaxy S pro is the next best (high end) keyboard out there. I like the key shape for differentiation, the dedicated number row and the apparent press depth (I'm guessing based on key appearance of course), but I don't like the limited key spacing or the key alignment (not offset). To me, between the two keyboards, it's mostly even. The LG aloha looks like at least a step down -- adopting the Droid/G1 dpad area that scrunches and shifts the keyboard over and being rather small to begin with. Motorola's droid 2 has a board that almost looks usable, which is a nice improvement, but it's still not in the same league.

I don't really believe HTC is done with this design. I think there will be a Tilt 3 yet. I just hope it isn't a winpho7.

[JRakes]

Yes, that might be true - Yet another compromise (or step backward) shoved to the masses by technology. Hence, yet another round of weighing compromises to determine the least of the evils and which type of communications is easiest to give up / turn back in time. *SIGH*

I'll keep hoping for a "real" keyboard, though, for when the time comes for a new device. Otherwise, there's still that old standby that always works as expected: Pen and paper. Or simply getting in the car and driving somewhere to tell someone something.

[Mi An]

Since it's so flawed (despite my heart briefly skipping a beat as Engadget misreported the G2, TMo's Vision, having a tilting screen), I almost wish it were a 3.6" screen, making it a more likely candidate for a TP2 innard transplant. I dream of a snapdragon Droid I can (pay someone to) stuff inside Syd's highly functional casing.

*covers Syd's mic* Gentlemen, we have the tech. We can rebuild her. Better, stronger, faster.

[Mi An]

HTC Desire Z Is a Gorgeous Slide-Out QWERTY Android With Brains

When its first leaked shot appeared online, many doubted HTC would create a phone with only four rows of keys. Yet that's what keeps the phone so thin, with the spring-loaded mechanism "Z hinge" drawing the keys under that 3.7-inch touchscreen.

Now that I know Gizmodo agrees with me, I'm willing to concede the point. 4 rows doesn't make it thinner.

This HTC branded version looks a tiny bit slicker than the G2. The differences are subtle, and both seem oddly fascinated with using shiny where matte makes more sense (keyboard background).

[Varjak]

HTC Desire Z Is a Gorgeous Slide-Out QWERTY Android With Brains



Now that I know Gizmodo agrees with me, I'm willing to concede the point. 4 rows doesn't make it thinner.

This HTC branded version looks a tiny bit slicker than the G2. The differences are subtle, and both seem oddly fascinated with using shiny where matte makes more sense (keyboard background).

Not sure what you're trying to say here. 'Conceding' means you are saying you are incorrect, but by what Gizmodo is saying, you aren't incorrect, although for entirely different reasons.

In any event, if this is what you meant, this is NOT what I meant. From the photo, you can see that the keyboard has a 'two-level' form (thin under the screen, raised with the keyboard), and this fits into a similarly sculpted recess on the back of the screen. In that event, yes, it's 'thinner.'

My argument is that if the WHOLE phone were WIDER (with a larger screen), the part of the keyboard that was exposed by sliding out would ALSO be bigger (wider) allowing for a 5th row of keys. Furthermore, this is a function of the HINGE design, which other phones don't share. You can easily design a phone (like the Droid/Droid2, N97, N900, TP2, etc.), which is simply two 'slabs' that slide past each other. Thickness unaffected.