Mh, I think even if you can picture a 1-9 keyboard you'll (or to say it better - I'll) have some problems to tap the right place on the screen if you don't look at it, because of the missing orientation (on a old school phone you had e.g. a mark on 5 (like on "f" or "j") so it was lots easier to find the right key).

Ok - to tell you the truth - I've never tried Opera so I don't know how it is.

Sure, the HW keyboard is the fastest but only if you have both hands free.

Reinventing a keyboard isn't maybe that bad, because the keyboard as we know is a typewriter-keyboard with a goal to minimize typewriter clashes. So maybe it is better to try a new solution for a new problem instead of adapting old solutions.

Let me go a little off-topic: I'm using the Neo2-layout for 2 years and it feels lot nicer than the Qwertz-layout and I can recommend it to anyone who writes in German. But, the problem is, the time you lern it, your typing speed suffers A LOT. Yeah, I had the chance because I was going to school and had lots of time, but someone who has to be productive can't afford this. This is IMO one of the main reasons we still use querty.

I'll try it out as soon as its released for Android and let you know.