Last week we told you that there are some signs that BlackBerry phones could make a comeback in the smartphone market. Kevin Michaluk, the founder of CrackBerry and a co-founder of the Clicks keyboard case, started a petition drive at BringBackBlackBerry.com. A company called Zinwa is replacing the processor, battery, RAM, cameras, and more on old BlackBerry Classic (aka the BlackBerry Q20) units and is selling the refurbished models.
The phone, called the Zinwa Q25 Pro, will cost $420, while a do-it-yourself kit for those with the phone will be priced at $300. The BlackBerry Passport, a wide-screen phone from 2014 with a 4.5-inch 1440 x 1440 square display, can be refurbished using a kit made by Zinwa. This phone will be known as the Zinwa P26. The big news is that both phones will be powered by Android 13 instead of BlackBerry 10 OS. Connectivity will also be limited to 4G LTE. In other words, these phones will not work on 5G networks.
The vast majority of you say you type faster and more accurately with a physical keyboard
The poll in our previous BlackBerry article asked if you would buy a phone with a physical QWERTY since it allows you to type faster and more accurately. Not surprisingly, more than 90% said yes. Yes, most people can type faster and more accurately with a physical QWERTY. But would 90% of you really buy a phone with a physical QWERTY? I think most of you were saying that your typing improves when using a physical keyboard. Most of you probably wouldn't like the current crop of phones that feature a physical QWERTY.
The Unihertz Titan 2 is coming soon. Image credit-Unihertz
If you must have a brand-new phone that doesn't need a case to sport a physical keyboard, you could try the Unihertz Titan 2 phone. The original Titan was a Passport clone that featured the 4.5-inch 1440 x 1440 display and the hybrid physical-virtual keyboard. The sequel keeps the same 4.5-inch 1440 x 1440 LCD display and is powered by the Dimensity 7300 application processor. It carries 12GB of RAM and 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage. There is a 50 MP main camera on the back along with an 8 MP telephoto camera, and a 32 MP front-facing camera. A 5050 mAh battery keeps the lights on. There is Dual SIM support, and the phone features both a fingerprint scanner and facial recognition. The Titan 2 is priced at $399.99.
Are people really ready to return to using a physical QWERTY?
What does indicate that there is some demand for a phone that has a physical QWERTY is the growing interest in older BlackBerry models. Besides Michaluk's petition, there does seem to be some demand for long forgotten BlackBerry models. The one 'Berry that seems to be in heavy demand, and the model I wish BlackBerry would bring back, is the aforementioned Passport.
There seems to be a brisk market for Passport models, both previously used and new units in their original boxes. Although it runs on BlackBerry 10.3, and you are limited when it comes to apps, some Android apps were available via Android Runtime. Apps bult for Android 4.3 Jelly Bean (API 18) were compatible with the Passport.
Would you buy a phone with a physical QWERTY?
Yes. I might type faster and more accurately.
90.33%
I actually type faster using a virtual QWERTY.
9.67%
If my experience is typical, I'm not sure that everyone is ready to return to a physical keyboard. I did buy the Clicks case for my iPhone 15 Pro Max and used it for a year before I realized that I wasn't typing any faster with the Clicks case than I was with the virtual keyboard. I'm not even sure that I typed more accurately. Where Clicks came in handy was when I was typing a long list or message. Your mileage may vary.
What cellphone was the first to sport a virtual QWERTY keyboard?
There is a controversy when trying to determine which cellphone was the first to feature a virtual QWERTY keyboard. Some say it is the IBM Simon Personal Communicator which was released in 1994. The device could make and take calls and did have a virtual resistive touchscreen keyboard. Some will tell you that the first cellphone with a virtual QWERTY was the LG Prada released in March 2007, mere months before the iPhone was launched.
The Prada had a capacitive touchscreen, but it was a feature phone. The first smartphone to use a virtual QWERTY was the original Apple iPhone. Ironically, the first Android phone, known as the T-Mobile G1 in the U.S. (The HTC Dream elsewhere) had a physical slide-out QWERTY keyboard. A virtual QWERTY wasn't added to Android until Google released Android 1.5 known as Cupcake.
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Alan, an ardent smartphone enthusiast and a veteran writer at PhoneArena since 2009, has witnessed and chronicled the transformative years of mobile technology. Owning iconic phones from the original iPhone to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, he has seen smartphones evolve into a global phenomenon. Beyond smartphones, Alan has covered the emergence of tablets, smartwatches, and smart speakers.
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