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RIM shows off the BlackBerry 10 soft keyboard

RIM shows off the BlackBerry 10 soft keyboard

Posted: 14 Dec 2012, 15:01, by Michael H.

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RIM shows off the BlackBerry 10 soft keyboard

With the announcement of BlackBerry 10 coming relatively soon, now is the time for RIM to show off what the platform can do, and today we're seeing a video of Vivek Bhardwaj, Head of Software Portfolio for BlackBerry showing off BlackBerry 10′s touchscreen keyboard.

In the video, Bhardwaj shows off how RIM made sure that they keyboard looks like a classic BlackBerry keyboard with the white letters on black background, edge-to-edge design, and even virtual ridges between keys to make it look more like its physical keyboard ancestor. The virtual ridges made us think of that tech we saw last year (and which was supposedly due to hit devices within a year), which can make a touchscreen feel like different textures. It would be pretty nice to see that come around soon, and given RIM's history with physical keyboards, we wouldn't be surprised to see the company try to use it to make a soft keyboard feel more real.

On the feature side, the keyboard has the standard ability to learn words based on what you type, but the more interesting features are on the side of inference rather than prediction. First, the keyboard can infer when you need spaces, so you never really need to use the space key. Also, the keyboard will supposedly be able to infer when you are changing languages and make sure it is checking spelling and adding accents properly.

The video shows some pretty cool features, although we're not sure that it will be enough to convert those users who are still married to physical keyboards. No word on how it all works when tapped with a fingernail, which should be a concern given that a high proportion of BB users are female (over 50% as of last year).

source: BlackBerry via BGR

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1. bovcrx posted on 14 Dec 2012, 16:13 1 5

Sounds dumb, but that space feature is much needed. I always have a b in place of a space using my Note 2.

2. simplyj posted on 14 Dec 2012, 16:24 10 1

How do you mess up on something that big?

11. bovcrx posted on 14 Dec 2012, 23:23 0 0

s**t happens

14. REYNER posted on 15 Dec 2012, 04:44 1 0

now tell me who's dumb the user or the note 2?

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3. OHaZZaR posted on 14 Dec 2012, 17:10 2 3

Or you could download swiftkey on android.

4. MichaelHeller posted on 14 Dec 2012, 17:53 13 2

Which isn't really an option if someone chooses to buy a BlackBerry...

7. Nikolas.Oliver (limited) 4 days ago posted on 14 Dec 2012, 18:54 4 8

And no one is buying blackberry anymore

17. danny_a2005 posted on 17 Dec 2012, 09:23 0 1

Blackberry WHO?

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18. miles16852 posted on 19 Dec 2012, 02:33 0 0

WRONG!!!!

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16. OHaZZaR posted on 15 Dec 2012, 15:33 0 1

I have to agree with you there. Still, swiftkey is miles ahead of this keyboard

6. theBankRobber posted on 14 Dec 2012, 18:52 2 1

Who's talking about android? Its about blackberry and swift key is a app, something NOT built into android .

5. cretinick posted on 14 Dec 2012, 18:48 2 1

Consumers do not wait!

Release the Kraken as soon as possible! But I think it may be too late...

8. Nikolas.Oliver (limited) 4 days ago posted on 14 Dec 2012, 18:55 2 2

Too late rim... Too late

9. nyamo posted on 14 Dec 2012, 19:35 0 0

while larger screens are nice, everyone i know who has loved BB always stuck with them due to the HW keyboard, not sure how RIM is going to persuade new users here with legacy items finally disappearing

10. Droid_X_Doug posted on 14 Dec 2012, 22:18 1 0

Yeah, the devices that RIM released without a physical keyboard were utter failures. In fact I have managed to forget their model numbers, they were such a failure. The BB owners I know (as well as former BB owners) are/were in love with the physical keyboards on the BBs. I wonder how well the touch-only BBs will do. If they tank, that could bias buyers against the BBs with physical keyboards that are scheduled for release a few months later.

12. bovcrx posted on 14 Dec 2012, 23:26 0 0

Just got to mess with a Dev Alpha B device and the keyboard is pretty good. Can't wait to try the Dev of the physical keyboard.

13. RapidCat posted on 15 Dec 2012, 00:14 0 2

this keyboard will not work in indonesia

15. Roomaku posted on 15 Dec 2012, 08:14 0 2

Awesome but I fear it's to late :(

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- Display: 5.0 inches, 1080 x 1920 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 13 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
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- Camera 8 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900), CDMA (800 1700/2100 1900)
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- Announced: 29 Aug 2012
- OS: Android 4.1.2 4.1.1
- Hardware: Quad core, 1600 MHz, ARM Cortex-A9, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 5.5 inches, 720 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 8 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 35 hours of Talk Time, 980 hours of Stand-by
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900)
- Data: LTE Cat3 Downlink 100 Mbit/s LTE Cat3/4 Uplink 50 Mbit/s HSDPA+ (4G) 21.1 Mbit/s HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s UMTS EDGE GPRS
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- Hardware: Quad core, 1700 MHz, Krait 300, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 4.7 inches, 1080 x 1920 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
- Camera 4 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Technology: GSM (850 900 1800 1900), CDMA (800 1900)
- Data: LTE HSPA (unspecified) UMTS EDGE GPRS
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- Announced: 07 Jan 2013
- OS: Android 4.1.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
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- Camera 13.1 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 11 hours of Talk Time, 550 hours of Stand-by
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- OS: Android 4.2.2 4.2.1 4.2
- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
- Display: 4.7 inches, 768 x 1280 pixels, Capacitive Touchscreen
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- Hardware: Quad core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 2048 MB RAM
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- Camera 13 megapixels, 1920x1080 (1080p HD) video
- Battery: 15 hours of Talk Time, 335 hours of Stand-by
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- Announced: 05 Sep 2012
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- Hardware: Dual core, 1500 MHz, Krait, 1024 MB RAM
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RIM shows off the BlackBerry 10 soft keyboard

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18 Comments Follow Following

1. bovcrx posted on 14 Dec 2012, 16:13 1 5

2. simplyj posted on 14 Dec 2012, 16:24 10 1

11. bovcrx posted on 14 Dec 2012, 23:23 0 0

14. REYNER posted on 15 Dec 2012, 04:44 1 0

3. OHaZZaR posted on 14 Dec 2012, 17:10 2 3

4. MichaelHeller posted on 14 Dec 2012, 17:53 13 2

7. Nikolas.Oliver (limited) 4 days ago posted on 14 Dec 2012, 18:54 4 8

17. danny_a2005 posted on 17 Dec 2012, 09:23 0 1

18. miles16852 posted on 19 Dec 2012, 02:33 0 0

16. OHaZZaR posted on 15 Dec 2012, 15:33 0 1

6. theBankRobber posted on 14 Dec 2012, 18:52 2 1

5. cretinick posted on 14 Dec 2012, 18:48 2 1

8. Nikolas.Oliver (limited) 4 days ago posted on 14 Dec 2012, 18:55 2 2

9. nyamo posted on 14 Dec 2012, 19:35 0 0

10. Droid_X_Doug posted on 14 Dec 2012, 22:18 1 0

12. bovcrx posted on 14 Dec 2012, 23:26 0 0

13. RapidCat posted on 15 Dec 2012, 00:14 0 2

15. Roomaku posted on 15 Dec 2012, 08:14 0 2

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