Musings for a Pro2 (I know I know Pro 1 is not even out yet! :D)

[_DW_ 628]

I keep wondering why phones went from the clip on back design which allowed you to replace batteries and insert sim / sd-cards.

 

I keep thinking back to my N97 its design was spot on removable back and battery with sim card / sd-card slot under as well. No issues at all with the design with fold out keyboard.

Had a Nokia windows phone that supported wireless charge but still had a clip on back so you could replace the battery. Back panel had the wireless charge mechanism on it.

I have a waterproof camera that has a removable battery, the cover has a gromet around it to protect it. Memory card in same area. So this could easily be below the main protective back cover.

Changable back allows customisation for the people who like doing this.

Having a back panel allows for battery expansion possibility.

Having easy access to internals could allow easy access to keyboard attachment screws to ease replacement.

 

So why can't we get a device with these features these days :D

 

 

[netman 1,424]

I also love clip on backs... The most recent non-android I used was a lumia 730 with a plastic clip-on (maybe more clip-over actually) back and alas no keyboard, it was easy to work and very durable. Nowadays it's all glass and metal backs because plastic has a cheap reputation or something, and I don't totally get it... The pro1 is already a great leap in the right direction away from minimalistic iphone copies, really excited to see if it leads to more good stuff :).

[EskeRahn 5,421]

I love removable backs and batteries too!

My ancient 2011 SonyEricsson (neo) Pro has it.

 

And it has a wonderful additional advantage: Take out the battery, take a piece of slightly stiff plastic (e.g. window from envelope, or a piece of tape doubled on it self) and put between the battery and electrodes while reinserting, and the battery can EASILY last a year! PERFECT for storage of a spare phone in e.g. a glove compartment of a car. And if you want to keep an old device without having to keep charging the device.

I have used that for my spare/old phones as long as I can remember - and that is why my spare phone is not the BB Priv but still the SE Pro (even if it is stuck on ICS)...

 

I have for LONG wished that someone would again make this, and preferably with multiple sizes so the same base-device can be used for a variety of usage scenarios for each user, and thus also by a broader audience.

 

I loved the three different size battery backs on my Samsung S300 clamshell, so I could put on what fitted my need of the day the best. I don't use the same thickness of jacket all year either....

 

But even with fixed back, another solution that might be better would be to have the keyboard clicked in, and easily removable, and then have direct access to the battery. And preferable easily swappable so we can carry one or more spare batteries, rather than the need of different sizes. This would also simplify multiple layouts of the device.

 

I certainly hope a Pro² will use either.

 

I have long had a dream on a generic slab without a back, and let the user choose between different battery-backs OR a keyboard and battery-back.

Sort of what Moto tried, but WITHOUT the battery and exterior flat back of the base unit.

Then the base device could have a broad audience AND could be upgraded over the years, keeping the backs.

And we could have a super slim device with the slimmest back for the dinner jacket, and larger ones for more demanding scenarios.

And of course the all important landscape keyboard slider-back. Preferable angled like the Pro¹,

And perhaps even a keyboard-slider-back in the wrong direction to please the BB-users.

 

The important thing here is that the base do not need to be flat, but could be shaped with room for the slider mechanism, to keep the device thin.

 

Oh and a tiny thing with swappable batteries, the base units should have a very small backup (capacitor?), large enough to put the device to sleep and keep it like that for some seconds while the battery is swapped. Perhaps after say five seconds going into aeroplane mode temporarily.

[skkayman 0]

Non-replacable batteries = thinner phone which is what most people wants (dunno why O.o, for me, thin phone is hard to hold).

AND

Non-replaceable batteries = when battery is dead, most people buy a new phone and not battery. Only some replace the battery in service for a big price. And only a few has no problem replace the battery by themself.. So it is profitable for manufacturer.

[EskeRahn 5,421]

Non-replaceable batteries = when battery is dead, most people buy a new phone and not battery. Only some replace the battery in service for a big price. And only a few has no problem replace the battery by themself.. So it is profitable for manufacturer.

 

Totally agree here.

Early on when I bought a new device, I gave the old one away, and with a new battery or two, it would be as new. After a couple of year an 'old' flagship is comparable to a new midranger, so now sending the device in somewhere for a battery swap, would easily be for a price comparable with a new midranger, so it just end up as waste...

 

Again here aPple are the greedy crooks, they were the first to on a massive scale use this planned obsolescence nonsense, and frankly I wish that a large player like the EU would say that by a certain year (say 2025) it would simply not be allowed to sell battery-products without a user-replaceable battery inside the EU.

[_DW_ 628]

People do the same with laptops as well. I have a laptop from 2010 the spec are only just dropping below the mid range ones now and it performs fine in all things except playing modern games. A bit of TLC for a device is usually all it takes :D

[ToniCipriani 194]

I'm just hoping a portrait slider is in the consideration.

[VaZso 1,997]

I hope no... maybe for Pro 2.1 (as an "alternative"), but I hope to keep a usable landscape keyboard as main conception and maybe landscape as a "brother" for others who like it the other way. :)

 

Anyway, as far as I know, Blackberry has / had this conception, however, I don't know if they are still actively developing phones with hardware keyboards...

[EskeRahn 5,421]

I hope no… maybe for Pro 2.1 (as an “alternative”), but I hope to keep a usable landscape keyboard as main conception and maybe landscape as a “brother” for others who like it the other way. :)

 

Anyway, as far as I know, Blackberry has / had this conception, however, I don’t know if they are still actively developing phones with hardware keyboards…

 

BlackBerry (Or rather BlackBerry Mobile - a subside of TCL licensing the BB name) has made the Key1&2 that are slabs of 'normal' phablet exterior dimensions with a fixed keyboard in Portrait orientation, permanently using roughly a third of the area. To my knowledge there have been no public plans to actually make any slider by BBMo, in right or wrong direction.

 

I too prefer landscape sliders, but I DO understand that for those not using a keyboard that much, and with small fingers, a portrait slider is a tempting alternative, as so many lazy programmers does not optimise their apps for landscape - despite all humans being build with horizontal sight.

 

The portrait orientation is a RUDIMENT from the era with phone sizes, that were one hand operable, Modern huge phablets (including the Pro¹) will for the vast majority of the population of the world require two hands for operation while keeping a secure grip. So there are zero physical reasons left for a phablet to be in portrait orientation, except for the very few with very long and flexible fingers.(I have actually met one though - so they do exist)

 

I have had several PC-screens with Pivot-function, and the ONLY thing the portrait orientation was really good for was reading papers a page at the time without scrolling. There are good physical reasons why almost no one uses a pc with a portrait display, and some gamers even uses very wide 32:9 displays - that is what our vision was build for...

 

For very large surfaces, like a newspaper, it eases reading things by breaking them up in columns - but phablets are not that huge (yet?).

[ToniCipriani 194]

VaZso wrote:

I hope no… maybe for Pro 2.1 (as an “alternative”), but I hope to keep a usable landscape keyboard as main conception and maybe landscape as a “brother” for others who like it the other way. :)

 

Anyway, as far as I know, Blackberry has / had this conception, however, I don’t know if they are still actively developing phones with hardware keyboards…

BlackBerry (Or rather BlackBerry Mobile – a subside of TCL licensing the BB name) has made the Key1&2 that are slabs of ‘normal’ phablet exterior dimensions with a fixed keyboard in Portrait orientation, permanently using roughly a third of the area. To my knowledge there have been no public plans to actually make any slider by BBMo, in right or wrong direction.

 

I too prefer landscape sliders, but I DO understand that for those not using a keyboard that much, and with small fingers, a portrait slider is a tempting alternative, as so many lazy programmers does not optimise their apps for landscape – despite all humans being build with horizontal sight.

 

The portrait orientation is a RUDIMENT from the era with phone sizes, that were one hand operable, Modern huge phablets (including the Pro¹) will for the vast majority of the population of the world require two hands for operation while keeping a secure grip. So there are zero physical reasons left for a phablet to be in portrait orientation, except for the very few with very long and flexible fingers.(I have actually met one though – so they do exist)

 

I have had several PC-screens with Pivot-function, and the ONLY thing the portrait orientation was really good for was reading papers a page at the time without scrolling. There are good physical reasons why almost no one uses a pc with a portrait display, and some gamers even uses very wide 32:9 displays – that is what our vision was build for…

 

For very large surfaces, like a newspaper, it eases reading things by breaking them up in columns – but phablets are not <span class="gdbbx-bbcode-underline" style="text-decoration: underline;">that</span> huge (yet?).

 

Respecfully disagree. As a messaging and communications device, I want it to be single-hand capable. And on the note of reading, novels and books are also portrait. It works even better with my gesture-capable keyboard, I can just flick the keyboard to flip pages.

 

I do see the appeal of a landscape device (I had a Nokia N810 myself), but NOT as a phone. As a terminal or remote desktop device it's perfect, if you want a desktop-like experience, or if you're consuming media (unless you're stupid like Snapchat). Portrait and landscape both have their advantages, it comes down to use case.

 

PS: I actually hate phablets. The one thing I would change about my Priv is make it smaller but thicker.

[EskeRahn 5,421]

Respecfully disagree. As a messaging and communications device, I want it to be single-hand capable. And on the note of reading, novels and books are also portrait. It works even better with my gesture-capable keyboard, I can just flick the keyboard to flip pages.

 

I do see the appeal of a landscape device (I had a Nokia N810 myself), but NOT as a phone. As a terminal or remote desktop device it’s perfect, if you want a desktop-like experience, or if you’re consuming media (unless you’re stupid like Snapchat). Portrait and landscape both have their advantages, it comes down to use case.

 

PS: I actually hate phablets. The one thing I would change about my Priv is make it smaller but thicker.

 

Well sure I TOO would prefer a phone over a phablet any time EXACTLY due to it being one hand operable (that is the difference between a phone and a phablet in my book).

 

My point is that since all manufacturers seems to make (almost) only phablets, it is currently quite silly that it is not landscape that is the primary format for Android&Ios, and portrait the 'odd one' for the few remaining phone sized devices.

 

The ONLY chance I see for the return of phone sized devices is three part Z folded devices, and they are years away from being market ready, (the current foldable ones I see as just proof of concept)