Revive The Phone With A Keyboard

[AsherO]

Welcome to the club.
 After having it for 7 years. Let me tell you it's a full fledged smartphone.

I was close to 7 years on the BB when I wrote that post in '08

I'm not going to disagree, sometimes it's a pain to use being that the browser and apps are not quite fit to be used on that device. (Not every app).

The issue is that the internet (even mobile sites) and apps have evolved and BB stagnated (especially the legacy BB OS).

[Kosher_Cellutions]

Thanks for the feedback keep them coming while I continue to do my research with our ODM partners. On the software side of things we can do pretty much whatever we want.

[AsherO]

On the software side of things we can do pretty much whatever we want.

But there are costs involved, especially if you have to design/create custom apps for each service (e.g. Spotify, Waze etc.) adapted to the device.

[MoYS]

But there are costs involved, especially if you have to design/create custom apps for each service (e.g. Spotify, Waze etc.) adapted to the device.

Especially true seeing as the market gets slimmer and slimmer the less 'kosher' the phone is. While i personally would like spotify on my phone, it seems like an added cost which will be damaging to the overall product from a sellers perspective.

[ExGingi]

Thank You so very much for taking up our plight!

-No button lag on that awesome qwerty keyboard
-dedicated Voice Dictation Button (cloud based)
-Decent Camera WITH GEOTAGGING
~Backup pictures to Google photos
-Sync Contacts with google
-Optional Email and SMS
-Optional Hotspot
-Spotify (unofficial is ok) support
-Rugged
-VoLTE and WiFi Calling for ALL carriers (including T-Mobile)
-Band 3 LTE for Israel
-Waze, Google Maps, Moovit, Walking directions
-consider making the middle button of the D- pad double as touchpad (like blackberry Bold and Samsung on T-Mobile)
-Mouse pointer for apps with a dedicated button.
(The buttons for Mouse and Voice Access can be officially for something else but easily re- assignable in settings?)
-Apps: Spotify, Maps, Google Photos, Weather, etc)
-A slide phone will definitely see wider adoption but if impossible a Blackeberry- style should be OK. From my inquires it would be possible to get LG to manufacture a batch of Cosmos or any old phone with a 4g modem just very expensive. May save on R&D to use existing designs.

Thank YOU!!!

I second almost every word said here.

Here are my additional 2 cents:
1. I personally preferred the Palm Treo keyboard to the BB keyboard. My biggest problem with both is the lack of a dedicated dial pad. Maybe a design similar to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_U750_Alias_2 but where a regular flip reveals a dial pad, whereas a horizonal flip open reveal a good qwerty keyboard.

2. A good balance needs to be struck with the screen to be large enough to be functional for things like navigation yet small enough for a flip phone.

Alternatively, why not consider something based on the Jio Phone 2?

[shabbosabba]

Especially true seeing as the market gets slimmer and slimmer the less 'kosher' the phone is. While i personally would like spotify on my phone, it seems like an added cost which will be damaging to the overall product from a sellers perspective.

Agreed. For that price I could just go filter a smartphone. Although, seems like some people are looking for a smartphone with a actual keyboard. However, I think that most people are looking for a kosher phone. Therefore, having certain apps would be detrimental to the phone and not a added benefit.

[MoYS]

Agreed. For that price I could just go filter a smartphone. Although, seems like some people are looking for a smartphone with a actual keyboard. However, I think that most people are looking for a kosher phone. Therefore, having certain apps would be detrimental to the phone and not a added benefit.

I think before the discussion moves into which apps, it should be if there should be apps.
(unless making two software models, and being able to justify the costs of the non-'kosher' one)

[ExGingi]

Agreed. For that price I could just go filter a smartphone. Although, seems like some people are looking for a smartphone with a actual keyboard. However, I think that most people are looking for a kosher phone. Therefore, having certain apps would be detrimental to the phone and not a added benefit.

Being able to make alternative voice calls (WhatsApp, Telegram) would be a great feature, but I don't know if that's possible (especially using WhatsApp) since those are proprietary platforms. I would imagine that if it had no other app, just plain old calling and texting + synching with Google Contacts + full multilingual keyboard, and the ability to make WhatsApp calls, it could be a major hit globally.

[MoYS]

................ it could be a major hit globally.

Just curious, do you really feel there is a global market for such a product.
If so why is ddf (@Kosher_Cellutions) the first to do something, besides for the obvious 

[ExGingi]

Just curious, do you really feel there is a global market for such a product.
If so why is ddf (@Kosher_Cellutions) the first to do something, besides for the obvious 

Well, I was thinking mostly about EY, but I can imagine that there's a market for non-smartphones that can benefit from the ability to communicate over alternative networks/platforms other than the traditional phone providers.

[MoYS]

Well, I was thinking mostly about EY, but I can imagine that there's a market for non-smartphones that can benefit from the ability to communicate over alternative networks/platforms other than the traditional phone providers.

Thats possible.
I was thinking of a brochure i saw explaining the lack of qwerty phones, in their words non smartphones are used solely by seniors who dont need texting or by mafia members. I naturally assumed when you said a global hit you were referring to the global mafia 

[AsherO]

Well, I was thinking mostly about EY, but I can imagine that there's a market for non-smartphones that can benefit from the ability to communicate over alternative networks/platforms other than the traditional phone providers.

Because of the cost of smartphones? Because smartphones (that can make phone calls on apps and do a whole lot of other things) can be had for much less than $120.

[shabbosabba]

I think it's a common misconception that only Jews use flip phones. Almost although most of the world has shifted to smartphones, there is still a market for flip phones. Why would US Cellular have the LG Wine 2? they don't even offer service in the tri-state area. Hence, there are other people who use these types of phones.

[best]

1) Something in-between the sprint lg remarq and the at&t zte z432
2) For T-Mobile!

[AsherO]

I think it's a common misconception that only Jews use flip phones. Almost although most of the world has shifted to smartphones, there is still a market for flip phones. Why would US Cellular have the LG Wine 2? they don't even offer service in the tri-state area. Hence, there are other people who use these types of phones.

A very small market? For seniors, or people who don't wanna pay for a data plan. Neither of those groups need most of these features:

Thank You so very much for taking up our plight!

-dedicated Voice Dictation Button (cloud based)
-Decent Camera WITH GEOTAGGING
~Backup pictures to Google photos
-Sync Contacts with google
-Optional Email and SMS
-Optional Hotspot
-Spotify (unofficial is ok) support
-VoLTE and WiFi Calling for ALL carriers (including T-Mobile)
-Band 3 LTE for Israel
-Waze, Google Maps, Moovit, Walking directions
-consider making the middle button of the D- pad double as touchpad (like blackberry Bold and Samsung on T-Mobile)
-Mouse pointer for apps with a dedicated button.
(The buttons for Mouse and Voice Access can be officially for something else but easily re- assignable in settings?)
-Apps: Spotify, Maps, Google Photos, Weather, etc)

[ExGingi]

A very small market? For seniors, or people who don't wanna pay for a data plan. Neither of those groups need most of these features:

It's not about the Data plan. Smartphone are too much of a distraction for many.

[AsherO]

It's not about the Data plan. Smartphone are too much of a distraction for many.

The market is very small. Granted it's still 0.x% or or 0.0X% of the global cellphone market, but you'd be a new entrant competing against the likes of LG.

[MoYS]

The market is very small. Granted it's still 0.x% or or 0.0X% of the global cellphone market, but you'd be a new entrant competing against the likes of LG.

In terms of breaking into global markets you would seem correct, unless there would be some heavy proprietary software that would make a niche market. but even to do that would require heavy marketing and doesnt seem profitable (obviously i dont have hard data to back this, just a feeling)
I wonder if OP has any data on this....

[AsherO]

In terms of breaking into global markets you would seem correct, unless there would be some heavy proprietary software that would make a niche market.

What niche market other than the frum market? What's the value proposition?

[MoYS]

I was talking theoretically, what popped into mind was something posted in the flip phone thread, https://www.thelightphone.com/ which is totally different from a standard basic phone. I didnt have anything in mind for this case