Will BB's ever have touch screens?

[ThomD]

I am a BB newbie (8300 / AT&T) and am very happy so far. I moved from Palm/Treo after 10 years and don't think I will go back. The BB is just so darn stable and the battery life, even on my Curve is easily double what I was getting on my Treo 680.

The one thing I do miss is the touch screen. Has there ever been any talk about BB's getting touch screens?

I tried searching for touch screen and got hundreds of hits, so if this is an old topic please forgive my newness.

Thom_D

[murpheous]

touchscreens are lame

just saying

[ShaneToronto]

I hope not.

[d_fisher]

BlackBerryCool reported about the RIM Conference Call yesterday. That very question came up.

5:48 – Second iPhone question: touch screen.

Balsillie: There’s a lot of market research in what we do.. There’s been some debate previously on touch and tactile things and graffiti. I think the best thing is for these devices is to get out to market and get going.

In a nutshell, I think RIM is going to see how the market reacts to the touch screen before diving in head first. Personally I am not a big fan of the touch screen. If its executed well I might change my mind. Guess we will have to wait and see.

[JGrauman]

i hate touch screens! used to have a treo 600 and hated it, i have big hands, and big fingers and had a hard time tapping some of the keys. the other day we were driving and my dad was trying to get a number out of his 700P (he also has big hands) and had to get out his stylus and was trying to drive and use the touch screen with the stylus and finally handed the phone to my mom who had to look up the number... seemed like a big pain in the butt to me. i love the pearl ball on my 8830, so much better

[iceman027]

touch screens seem like they would get annoying to me, especially if you text a lot

[Dawg]

Originally Posted by ThomD

The one thing I do miss is the touch screen. Has there ever been any talk about BB's getting touch screens?



Thom_D

God I hope not

[King-B]

What does it matter. How are touch screens so bad. Not saying that all blackberries need touchscreens, but some people might like them.

-Me personally, I'm fine without a touchscreen, but I did like using the treo.

[PingGuy]

Hopefully never. Touch screens are everything that is wrong with normal PDA's and Palm's especially.

[dc/dc]

I hope not.

[ArgonNJ]

Originally Posted by PingGuy

Hopefully never. Touch screens are everything that is wrong with normal PDA's and Palm's especially.

Oh yeah, how is that. Even Nokia is changing its tune in regards to touch screens. If RIM wants to compete in the consumer market, and they do, they will need to adopt touch screens at some point.

[dc/dc]

Originally Posted by ArgonNJ

Oh yeah, how is that. Even Nokia is changing its tune in regards to touch screens. If RIM wants to compete in the consumer market, and they do, they will need to adopt touch screens at some point.

No, they actually don't.

[test54]

I like touch screens and can see BB getting into them. BB are affected by what is popular and as more computers move to touchscreen so will the phones. As they have with media, BB will adjust and introduce new products.

[Dawg]

Originally Posted by test54

I like touch screens and can see BB getting into them. BB are affected by what is popular and as more computers move to touchscreen so will the phones. As they have with media, BB will adjust and introduce new products.

You are wrong they are not affected at all by what computers do. I dont see touch screens in the near or distant future.

[packetknife]

My cat already uses the BB touchscreen style. Works fine for her, she seems very satisfied.

-Pk

[nuopus]

Originally Posted by ThomD

I am a BB newbie (8300 / AT&T) and am very happy so far. I moved from Palm/Treo after 10 years and don't think I will go back. The BB is just so darn stable and the battery life, even on my Curve is easily double what I was getting on my Treo 680.

The one thing I do miss is the touch screen. Has there ever been any talk about BB's getting touch screens?

I tried searching for touch screen and got hundreds of hits, so if this is an old topic please forgive my newness.

Thom_D

Good god I hope not. I switched to BlackBerry because of its one handed use. Microsoft has smartphone edition, but its not optimized for one handed use. You cant select text and copy in that platform. You can tell that key cursor input for that OS was only an afterthought. BB on the other hand is very key intuitive. For me anyway, if they forced us to use touchscreens in some programs, there is no reason for me to stay with BB.

[test54]

Originally Posted by Dawg

You are wrong they are not affected at all by what computers do. I dont see touch screens in the near or distant future.

not to pick a fight but look at the evolution of the computer and then look at the evolution of the pda/smartphone i think you will find that they are amazingly similar and as the technology gets better then the capabilities are there.

-small programs - office apps - internet / email - IM - music - movies - televisoion - camera - voip -

my opinion is that as features become popular on the pc platform people want them on their phone and that included input methods. Im sure that their were plenty of BB users that just wanted email and thats it, sad to look bad at those people now though, new tech is a good thing to me atleast.

But if the touchscreens on the pc's go bust then i would not count on phones following suit.

[ArgonNJ]

Originally Posted by dc/dc

No, they actually don't.

Time will tell. 3 years ago you probably said the same thing about a BB with a camera.

[Dawg]

Originally Posted by nuopus

Good god I hope not. I switched to BlackBerry because of its one handed use. Microsoft has smartphone edition, but its not optimized for one handed use. You cant select text and copy in that platform. You can tell that key cursor input for that OS was only an afterthought. BB on the other hand is very key intuitive. For me anyway, if they forced us to use touchscreens in some programs, there is no reason for me to stay with BB.

I agree with these statements exactly

[theBorg]

Traditionally the BB's market has been a more mature market - prosumers over gadget hounds and kids. Every company, however, must grow to create shareholder value.

"Balsillie: There’s a lot of market research in what we do.. "

It's all about how much more market share can be gained per new feature. Personally I guess there's a much richer return on investing in broadband radio development than in a touchscreen.

[ndub33]

I agree with most of the other posters here, in that I truly hope they don't...however, it may be just the thing to get my wife to shake her HTC obsession and get a Berry...she is a touch screen junkie.

[blackberry-guy]

I think blackberry should always keep a hardware keyboard. But I think it would be a really bad move to never impliment a touch screen. Those who say otherwise are just making noise because they don't HAVE ONE at the moment.

I think the blackberry should always have the hardware scroll wheel AND the option to do everything as we do it NOW, but with the addition of a touch screen for data input (like signatures) and a much more enjoyable experience with MOST programs.

I remember this same rediculous kind of talk when the "mouse" hit the scene. All the people who used "keys only" were up in arms and calling people who used mice various names - and computers that relied on them were called "less than business class".

Touch screens on PDA phones are here to stay and consumers will EXPECT THEM. If the Blackberry doesn't offer this feature, it will be left even further behind. As I said, adding a touch screen doesn't mean that any current methods of input would need to be "lost'.

Let's get real people! The facts are the facts.

blackberry-guy

[BBAdmin]

We all claimed BB would never have a camera and look what happened! Despite things like the iPhone hype, touchscreens are not as user friendly as people percieve, that said, if anyone can make it work then RIM will. I think for the moment RIM will stick with qwerty thumb boards, and if you look at the smartphone trend, 120 different models of smartphones are currently on sale with qwerty thumb boards which says a lot.

[ArgonNJ]

Originally Posted by BBAdmin

We all claimed BB would never have a camera and look what happened! Despite things like the iPhone hype, touchscreens are not as user friendly as people percieve, that said, if anyone can make it work then RIM will. I think for the moment RIM will stick with qwerty thumb boards, and if you look at the smartphone trend, 120 different models of smartphones are currently on sale with qwerty thumb boards which says a lot.

I don't think the original poster was advocating a touch only interface like the iphone. I agree that would not be good. But combine, say the 8800 with a touch screen, and you would really have a good product. The dinosaurs could still use the trackball and keyboard to their hearts content. While other crossover users could use the touchscreen as well. It would make the device more user friendly and intuitive. If RIM refuses to change, then they will end up like Palm, where every new model is basically the same as the one before. It may fly in the short term, but also as Palm is learning with its aging Treo line, it will only go so far.

[ArgonNJ]

Originally Posted by blackberry-guy

Touch screens on PDA phones are here to stay and consumers will EXPECT THEM. If the Blackberry doesn't offer this feature, it will be left even further behind. As I said, adding a touch screen doesn't mean that any current methods of input would need to be "lost'.

Let's get real people! The facts are the facts.

blackberry-guy

No argument from me. Unfortunately some here still long for the days of monochrome displays and thumb wheels.

[Dawg]

Originally Posted by blackberry-guy

If the Blackberry doesn't offer this feature, it will be left even further behind

Let's get real people! The facts are the facts.

blackberry-guy

so according to you RIM is behind now? You really need to wake up and smell the coffee.

[Mark Rejhon]

Hey all - touchscreens are terrible when not designed well. Palm/Microsoft style touchscreens never worked very well in a handheld device for the Average Joe User.

I am a Windows/PC user. But if you have tried the Apple Multitouch Mouse Pad in a MacBook laptop, you find out how great a well-designed touchpad is. You start to wonder why these 'improved' touchpads aren't available on Windows laptops....

For example, lot of people accidentally tap the mouse pad using your wrist while typing. On Dell laptops, this gets very annoying: cursor moved to a random location in Microsoft Word or Email - ANNOYING. (this is the finger tap feature detecting your accidental wrist touch as a mouse click, while you're just merely trying to type on the laptop) But on the Apple touchpad, it's smart enough to ignore most kinds of accidental taps. In addition, you put Two fingers onto the mousepad - and it goes straight into scrolling mode! Use one finger, it moves the mouse, use two fingers, it scrolls the current window - and new tricks can now be added to zoom in-out of things (browser, PDF, graphics, etc) by simply pinching your two fingers apart and closer together (not yet supported by all software). It makes scrolling and zooming a pleasure.

I have never owned an Apple computer but I have to say I am impressed at Apple's improvements to touchpad technology -- the multitouch mousepad technology is a big improvement (to me, akin to the improvement from old mouseballs to optical mice!). iPhone uses this new-generation touch technology...

Conclusion: The next-generation touch screen technology turns the iPhone is the world's best touchscreen cellphone.

Apple makes touchscreens a LOT more fumble-proof....

The Question: Are these touchscreen improvements good enough to eliminate other touchscreen inconveniences???

If touchscreen technology ever comes to BlackBerry, I'd like it to be idiot proof, accident-tap-proof, fumble-proof, and I'd like to be able to disable the touchscreen feature. And please don't remove the buttons or trackball/trackwheel from a BlackBerry -- I still want an easy-access non-retractable thumb keyboard!

Note: I have not used iPhone and have never owned a Mac before. However, I have to admit that I agree there are massive improvements to touchpads possible, that Apple are taking advantage of. Watch for Windows laptops to copy their touchpad improvements in a couple years from now...

[i robot]

It’s hard to follow on from Marks comments but I have used touch screens and although at first they appear convenient one has to focus on the fact that BB’s are primarily emailing work horses and as such it’s the keyboard that's everything. You'll see that on this forum there’s more discussion about which BB has the best keyboard than the use of touch screens. The aesthetics/usability of any touch screen keyboard will be the crucial factor. The iphone touch screen keyboard looks nice but will it please the email addicts that are devoted to their BB’s, I can’t help thinking not and if evidence were needed then just think about why we are not all sitting around our touch screen pc’s/laptops, oh that’s right we’re not…..why? They’re just not practical.

[Dawg]

Originally Posted by i robot

It’s hard to follow on from Marks comments but I have used touch screens and although at first they appear convenient one has to focus on the fact that BB’s are primarily emailing work horses and as such it’s the keyboard that's everything. You'll see that on this forum there’s more discussion about which BB has the best keyboard than the use of touch screens. The aesthetics/usability of any touch screen keyboard will be the crucial factor. The iphone touch screen keyboard looks nice but will it please the email addicts that are devoted to their BB’s, I can’t help thinking not and if evidence were needed then just think about why we are not all sitting around our touch screen pc’s/laptops, oh that’s right we’re not…..why? They’re just not practical.

I agree Mark is a hard act to follow, but you did very well. I agree with everything you said to a T. I left the BB world for a while and went back to a reg phone. I bought WM phones with a reg keypad, I bought WM pdas, I bought WM phones with Pull out keyboard and touch screen. Six months later here I am back with my Beloved Blackberry. It has to have a keyboard and track wheel.

[ndub33]

Mark, if a Berry had even half the features you mention, I would at at least give it a try. Especially retaining the keypad and the abillity to turn the touchscreen on or off.

[theBorg]

Originally Posted by Mark Rejhon

You start to wonder why these 'improved' touchpads aren't available on Windows laptops....

Patents! @pple patents the hell out of their User Interface.

The Dell touch pads used to drive me nuts too. FWIW the Dell Precision M90 is a leap ahead for PC laptops' touch pads. The pad's placed more out of the way, it rejects wrist taps, and has horizontal and vertical scrolling.

[test54]

Synaptics Should Weather Potential Apple Loss - Forbes.com
article shows that the the touchpads were shifted to an in-house design from a Synaptics design. As an owner of 2 powerbooks, that was a great move.

theBorg, they have to or else someone else will and it would really hurt their ipod and laptop business whicha re their 2 big sellers. Also all large tech makers patent about everything they can, atleast thats my opinion. Although I think the patent system sucks.

[RoC1909]

Originally Posted by ArgonNJ

Oh yeah, how is that. Even Nokia is changing its tune in regards to touch screens. If RIM wants to compete in the consumer market, and they do, they will need to adopt touch screens at some point.

I disagree with this completely. People NAVIGATE their way around a keyboard by you you guessed it...feel. I have read that a lot of people are having a hell of a time adapting to touch screen. Of course I am not saying that it can't be done, it's just a much tougher thing to do than people have led on.

[ArgonNJ]

Originally Posted by RoC1909

I disagree with this completely. People NAVIGATE their way around a keyboard by you you guessed it...feel. I have read that a lot of people are having a hell of a time adapting to touch screen. Of course I am not saying that it can't be done, it's just a much tougher thing to do than people have led on.

Again. I don't think anyone is advocating ditching the keyboard, iphone style, for a touch screen. What we were talking about was adding a touch screen to the existing product for enhanced user ease and productivity. What is so hard about that to understand.

[blackberry-guy]

Originally Posted by Dawg

so according to you RIM is behind now? You really need to wake up and smell the coffee.

So, out of my entire post (of which every word is correct) you chose to single out that statement? It sounds to me like you have a huge blackberry chip on your shoulder when comparing it to competing technology.

Yes, the blackberry's GUI may not be perceived as being as pleasant or exciting (or even as usable) as it could be... by those shopping around.

I agree completely with the posts by ArgonNJ and several others (who seem to agree with my own statements). Anyone who rejects the idea of a touchscreen as an ADDITION to the blackberry has some "issues". I would suggest to them to go back and use an old CGA DOS box without a mouse!

Blackberry is INDEED starting to look a lot like poor old Palm OS (as correctly mentioned by ArgonNJ), and they will need to start moving forward with some new technology. Adding a touch screen will make a lot of people VERY happy and the blackberry a whole lot easier to use (for most people). Nobody is suggesting that we take away the current input methods.

But, if you'd like for the blackberry to become an aging, pathetic looking system (like Palm OS) then just stick to your current way of thinking.

blackberry-guy

[takeshi]

Originally Posted by ArgonNJ

I don't think the original poster was advocating a touch only interface like the iphone. I agree that would not be good. But combine, say the 8800 with a touch screen, and you would really have a good product. The dinosaurs could still use the trackball and keyboard to their hearts content. While other crossover users could use the touchscreen as well. It would make the device more user friendly and intuitive. If RIM refuses to change, then they will end up like Palm, where every new model is basically the same as the one before. It may fly in the short term, but also as Palm is learning with its aging Treo line, it will only go so far.

The faulty assumption there is that a touch screen is a "must have". It's not... The "because all the mother manufacturers" argument makes absolutely no sense either except from the herd-mentality point of view. If all devices "had" to have the same features then what would be the point of having a selection to choose from??

Why should everyone who doesn't want the touch screen have to take on the added cost for a feaure that's likely to fail (based on my experience -- YMMV, of course)?

I'd be for the touch screen if it was an added cost option somehow. Though I don't really see that as a likely possibility.

[blackberry-guy]

Originally Posted by takeshi

The faulty assumption there is that a touch screen is a "must have". It's not... The "because all the mother manufacturers" argument makes absolutely no sense either except from the herd-mentality point of view. If all devices "had" to have the same features then what would be the point of having a selection to choose from??

Why should everyone who doesn't want the touch screen have to take on the added cost for a feaure that's likely to fail (based on my experience -- YMMV, of course)?

I'd be for the touch screen if it was an added cost option somehow. Though I don't really see that as a likely possibility.

I don't see many people using VCR's anymore or bying PC's without a mouse or GUI based operating system. The real point is... that sometimes you have to upgrade the technology if you even want the device ITSELF to have a future. At first, you may see a price increase in the initial models (as you do with ALL technology), but then it will all level out. PC mice aren't that expensive anymore. Most computers come with CD and DVD recorders these days. It wasn't all that long ago that those were considered expensive add-ons.

It's all about keeping up with new technology. There are GREAT uses for a touch screen, and the blackberry needs to move forward.

blackberry-guy

[Galvatron]

yeah the touch screen use to enhance navigatio would be apreciated the fact that opera mini4 used a virtual mouse feture preovs that som bb useers want more verditiy whil keeping the thumbpad qweryy keyboard. hece even M$ is caving to let linux developers rwrite open scorce for the next geration of windows mobile they know they can't play the propritary game forever
also a graphics acelerted LCD wuld be somthing to considder. an braod band radio trnaceiver and wifi if tmo'a UAN @ home servicece catches on they will hve to impliment wifi more. also certain carriers eed to advace there network
on of the main complaints in th iphon revews is ATT' edge is horrable TMO UK alredy has hsdpa they call it "web and walk" the speeds on thos HSDPA phones and laptop modens is !.8mbps

[BallHawk3]

touchscreens kinda kill the function of the device.

It's one more thing to break and go ground, let's admit it, devices with touch screen aren't normally very durable (nor have they been a sucess).

A stylus must be used if you want and "precision." Also, touch screen requires more of a two handed operation as opposed to the blackberry, you can always use it with one hand.

As of now, I don't see touchscreen as an "improvement" or "innovative" at all. And definately not a "must have." It's more of flash than function.

[Dawg]

Originally Posted by blackberry-guy

So, out of my entire post (of which every word is correct) you chose to single out that statement? It sounds to me like you have a huge blackberry chip on your shoulder when comparing it to competing technology.

Yes, the blackberry's GUI may not be perceived as being as pleasant or exciting (or even as usable) as it could be... by those shopping around.

I agree completely with the posts by ArgonNJ and several others (who seem to agree with my own statements). Anyone who rejects the idea of a touchscreen as an ADDITION to the blackberry has some "issues". I would suggest to them to go back and use an old CGA DOS box without a mouse!

Blackberry is INDEED starting to look a lot like poor old Palm OS (as correctly mentioned by ArgonNJ), and they will need to start moving forward with some new technology. Adding a touch screen will make a lot of people VERY happy and the blackberry a whole lot easier to use (for most people). Nobody is suggesting that we take away the current input methods.

But, if you'd like for the blackberry to become an aging, pathetic looking system (like Palm OS) then just stick to your current way of thinking.

blackberry-guy

This all coming from a guy who bought an outdated phone that cant even use the features that the Blackbeery can have. Dont act so smart here tough guy. Lets see here if I can work this out for you.

"I dont know what an IT policy or BIS or BES is can some one please help me to remove it. Am I still going to be able to do this or that."

Thats you in several other threads now you come in like you are kind S%$# acting like you know whats best for blackberry technology.

I think the fact the RIM doenst follow the crowd is what makes them a complete sucess. I guess the 9.9 million subscribers all want a touch screen device huh.