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RIM demos new on-screen keyboard solution for BlackBerry 10 devices

By Bla1ze on 1 May 2012 09:36 am
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Many folks have been wondering exactly how well the on-screen keyboard for BlackBerry 10 will work. During BlackBerry World 2012's Keynote address today, we got a further look at how things will work. Freshly revamped, the new keyboard will make use of gestures on the device to enable users to maintain a keyboard that learns as you type while also allowing you to customize its features. For things such as predictive text, you can actually just swipe suggestions onto the screen making the whole experience effortless. Needless to say, this isn't going to be a reliving of SurePress. RIM is working on something different and very compelling here.

Topics: BlackBerry 10 News & Rumors

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56 comments

isma33

More photo and some video pleaaaase :D this is beautiful !!

sf49ers

BB10 keyboard is wicked

Killaserpent

Wow just saw it on the webcast and that keyboard is amazing. As a virtual keyboard user I'm blown away and incant wait to get my hand on a BB10 phone

digtech

1 word. Awesome. *speechless*

PagerRocka

I like how its designed to look like a hardware keyboard

mckillio

How so? It does appear to have some depth/texture to it but I don't think it looks like a BB keyboard.

LoganSix

Looks similar to my 9930, just no curve.

Xader

It has virtual "frets" between the key rows, just like the Bold line has had since its debut.

Blackberry_boffin

the minute someone mentions a hardware keyboard you assume they are talking of your dear BB? That is so laaast year. This is now.

Emu the Foo

I totally agree. When I saw the video that's the first thing I said. This pic doesn't look so much real. I'm intrigued by this virtual keyboard, even tho I enjoy my 9930 to death

yurayko

Nice, very nice :-) I'm satisfied.

Liquid_Revolver

A new version of swipe... If the OS sucks then nothing can save rim

Rootbrian

Nothing can save you because you suck more than any OS you don't appreciate. GTFO troll.

bbschorsch

what does the suggestion BLACKWATER tell us???^^

killa4luv

It means they will murder the competition...

...And not be held accountable for their actions because theyre friends with Dick Chaney.

Or it could mean nothing. :)

dhtoan

Look like a real physical keyboard. Love it :x Love RIM ^^

koolrosh

Simply Amazing! This is innovation.

Blackberry is back baby!

FunktasticLucky

does it work with SureType?? I'm really gonna miss it if it's gone :( Do love the swipe suggestions though. Pretty schweet idea and the kind of innovation RIM is capable of that nobody believed. LOVE IT!!

TripNFry

is that keyboard racist?? Hello Blacks????

Branta

Not racist... but the apostrophe is missing :p

berrybait

You're kidding, right?

Blacula

Blacks is a popular photography store in Canada.

JackKennedy

What the hell is blacks...why not blacksmith...

if the concept works I would love it...but it looks way too concepty to be feasible....

The demo video even showed the girl only really typing "need" and it guessed an entire sentence going "need to make sure...."...it really doesn't look real...and does look too good to be true...

on the other hand, the punctuations compressing into a key does not look very efficient...

even the keys look hard to tell because their edges are black and the entire thing is dark black on dark black...I don't understand how it will even work in daily situations...

I think they are trying to imitate the look of its famous keyboard...but we can't touch type on the screen...the edges of a key have to be clear...

and the keys also look way too small...

They spent a year and the keyboard's UI still looks like this?!?

sk8er_tor

PLEASE, go crap somewhere else. This is our party and it's by invitation only.

tranceboy_johny

this kid needs a life or someone please hire him so that he don't spend his entire time bullshi**ing here !!

jayemmbee

Do some research before you stick your foot in your mouth you troll Blacks is Photography store in Canada

JackKennedy

so a photography store in Canada is a more common word than any other word that starts with blacks?!?!!?

canuck_67

Go and troll somewhere else, use your energy to get a job instead of being an arsehole.

JackKennedy

Let's remember this thread when BB10 is released...I think this will be like the "Surepress is amazing", "buy RIM's stocks now, I'm putting all my money in it", "Samsung Galaxy Note is a joke", etc. comments...

This is not a very good virtual keyboards, there are observable flaws even before it's released, that's very rare...

When you type things in daylight, it's just going to be impossible to see dark black virtual keys with black border...and the suggestions are too small...and having the suggestions being placed closed the keys means there's more chance for typos....

If they can really predict an entire message out of a few letters, that's amazing technology but badly implemented in an odd UI...if the demo is exaggerated, then it's really just the current swype keyboard with the suggestion placed near the keys, which makes it even more difficult to type on the small screen and on keys with borders that are virtually impossible to see.

firasMD

Someone answer me pls ...
Will there be a PHYSICAL Keyboard on RIM's next BB 10 ??
because this will be frustrating if there will be ONLY a touch screen phone .. Love the BB physical keyboard.

OniPod

Looks like you are SOL for the time being...lol

FunktasticLucky

the first device is touch only. With a physical keyboard slated for next year.

floydwds

where are you getting this from, or is it speculations?

Elyssa_38

This is something that has been said by RIM the first phone will be touch only and then a physical keyboard will follow.

Im sure there is something regarding that here in crackberry. but it is known.

Nels

I love the look of this - might even convince me to leave the physical keyboard!

Alex_Hong

same here, this may very well convince me to leave my awesome bold 9900.

sstevenson

So only touchscreen at first to follow the bandwagon and rumors of no real keyboard until a year later??

bbaleno

I don't mean to be skeptical, but it's all just show. Why don't they bring some of that stuff to the playbook now. As in the next update. Still waiting to see tat stuff (more than just scrapbook ) a year later. They should get bb10 on the playbook first. The hardware is already here. Everything looks wonderful. But we have seen alot before and most of it hasnt seen the light of day.

I say BRING IT ON. No time like the present.

Now that the cat is out of the bag they need to get it out before other companies copy the idea and are first to market with it

shawnOST

They need to push this to the PB so we can get our hands (and fingers) on this ASAP.

knightfall

Agreed 100%. PlayBook users could be beta testers in a manner of speaking.

Give us this keyboard, but the option to switch to the old keyboard in case of bugs, or simply for the ability to have choices.

DREXcb

The keyboard is so critical to bb success they should get this on the PlayBook right away so they can start building converts. If there isn't a groundswell of enthusiasm for the new keyboard before the product launches it could be used against bb. Heck the analyst can't even get it when you tell them it is a development device. They sure won't understand if you say this keyboard is better than physical keys

cfoxx

Predictive text is a fallacy, a vain attempt to bring touch screen keyboards up to speed. Interacting with a predictive system can never be as efficient as boshing out what I already know I want to write on a physical keyboard. Bring back my buttons, BlackBerry.

rthonpm

So long as the existing keyboard shortcuts work, I'll be happy. The thing that most drives me crazy about the Playbook is that none of the phone keyboard shortcuts work. Even with the larger numbers of visible keys, I still find myself mistyping far more than I should.

canuck_67

Holy crap, if you just slow the fingers down a bit the words spell themselves. I find that the predictive text works when you are using proper grammar. What i would like is for the correction suggestions to work with the bluetooth keyboard.

I typed this on the rim keyboard with the suggestions it made.

BB_Bmore

This is going to make hard keyboard lovers switch to touch and love it. This is innovative, this is going to be copied, right. Patent that sh!t now!!!! Before apple gets it on iclone5!

The Fuzz 53

Hello Blacks?

THASS RACISS!!

gorang

Its great but 'alt' and 'shift' should sway places and stay same as current bbs

BBPandy

wow....no matter what RIM does people always put them down....BLACKS Photography is a STORE. Stop accusing them of being Racist when they are NOT....btw as far as the keyboard goes...where's my "Alt" key. I hope we don't loose it...I also see they have no "Sym" key as someone somehow got a pattent for that & is now suing everyone that uses it...even though it was being used way B4 they applied for the pattent. (it's another one of those companies that don't do anything but buy pattents & sue people with them)

JackKennedy

Who are they targeting? They expect the entire world to know about a photography store in Canada?!?

If you don't see a key, it doesn't have it...it uses gestures and gestures...which may be too much from what I have seen in the demo...

The fact that the predictive text would choose to give me a generic photography store in Canada over the many other English words that start with blacks is very odd....

jasonec

Being an avid Android and iOS virtual keyboard user, this innovation isn't that ground-breaking - however, it is nice to see that RIM is innovating in these ways - keep it up!

chris5a

I think the letters should be lowercase on the keyboard and then change to uppercase when the shift key is pressed so it is more intuitive to the user about what it will show up as.

David Roy

With changing on screen keyboards technology every time, most of the consumers are confused about the functionality of the new devices. Some even big players are sometimes plagued with patent violation. But still then consumers can stay back from using every new innovations by BlackBerry.