Not saying it didn't, just saying I think that should be STANDARD on all MIDs like the ones we're discussing.

I can easily get 35+ WPM while backspacing for errors, and including off the wall characters. If you know of a device that gets better WPM stats with just thumbs & including corrections.... I will consider it above any other device, for sure!!!

Battery life isn't so important to me when the device is as large as the Pandora. It's all about tradeoffs, and I'd rather have a more compact device with half the battery life. Everybody has their own preferred tradeoffs, but size is of utmost priority for me...

This page - http://www.pocketables.net/mobile-device-keyboard.html - shows that 35+WPM is VERY good cosidering the size of the Treo's thumbboard and the other keypads that get better than 35+WPM. I'm saying that if the Treo keyboard were adapted with SLIGHTLY larger keys, but the same type of tapered keys... would be AMAZING for all MIDs!!!

And I highly doubt that that sight showing avg typing speeds would include off the wall characters like forward slashes, etc.... that are necessary for ssh'ing. Tiny thumbboards ARE the answer for the off the wall keys. Nothing I'm saying is COPY this, but ADAPT this... take the style, but increase size & add a tab key. That would satisfy ALL Linux keys for sure!!!!

Why is that? Is the screen too heavy to be on top?

No way.... the DS Lite isn't too top heavy.

Make a DS Lite with Treo thumbboard (same size keys, but just a tad more space between keys for those with large thumbs) in place of the touch screen. Keep D-Pad & gaming buttons (A,B,X,Y) to the side of the thumbboard. Top screen would be a touchscreen with virtually no border.... and hopefully this clamshell could flip around to be turned into tablet mode. With 5-way somewhere right next to the screen, like N800 (I'm honestly not even considering an N810 because of this and the lack of SD slots). I use the 5-way much more than I use touchscreen on my Treo. I feel like all smartphones & MIDs that want to have hardware keyboards need to take notes from the Treos' keyboard & 5-way pad integration with sofware.

Something like the Pandora but with smaller form factor & screen that can rotate into tablet mode with 5-way next to screen, & SIM slot.

They thumbboard is key, tho!! Treos have done this right for 4+ years!!! And companies, starting with HTC decided that slider thumbboards that had FLAT keys RIGHT next to each other were the greatest idea ever. Go back to the drawing boards, guys!!

Ahhh.... I'll never find a device worth my money.

Just to clarify a detail: The only reason the Pandora is a "classic" clamshell and doesn't swivel, is because all the swivel methods are heavily patented.

Long time.

There have been so many interesting ideas in this thread! Such an interesting perspective of consumer preferences (and perspective).

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned, but I'd really like to see an ear speaker on the unit (or some holes to channel the right speakers sound) so that it can be held to ones face like a phone for voip applications. Bluetooth headsets are nice, but sometimes, all you want to do is click 'answer' and then have a quick conversation. The speaker also works, but there are many occasions where I would like to have a conversation without every one in the room being privy to its topics. With wimax and grocery stores, this becomes even more relevant.

I'm also very interested in nvidia's tegra showing. It's probably not really 'realistic' as the chip itself is (IIRC) only to be released later this year (enough time for production?) and nokia has a long standing with TI. However, nvidia has been known for their strong 3D hardware and linux support and the Tegra demos are quite impressive.

Tegra HD (720p)
Tegra Gaming
Tegra UI

This hardware could easily handle a 3D user interface (zooming, rotating, animation) similar to compiz fusion, osx, or vista. I see this as a benefit beyond simple eye-candy. The ability to quickly zoom in and out (for example), makes the small screen more more effective and displaying and organizing lots of content.

YARR!
}:^)~

Capt'n San

I think this thread ought to be re-born as two separate threads:

a) What do you want to see in the next gen IT

(What I want is basically a Sidekick Slide shaped device, but large enough for an N800/N810 size screen, and for its sliding screen to also tilt; button layout similar to the slide might be nice, but might not be necessary (a second dpad instead of the trackball would be fine); I want it to charge via USB, and have an express card slot on the top edge, especially for WWAN access ... and maybe a micro-dvi out on the top edge ... and a microSDHC card slot, but support having storage cards put into the express card slot, such as an express card that can hold SDHC cards ... do not have a miniSDHC card slot)


b) What do you want to see in the future IT OS

(bluetooth DUN _and_ bluetooth PAN built into the OS wizard; ability to fully remote control a Nokia phone, including controlling the phone via bluetooth HID, and displaying the phone's screen via bluetooth BIP; SIP phone client, UMA phone client, full IM client (not just Jabber), real IMAP support, sync contacts with Gmail, PIM (at last as good as what I have on my E62), sync calendar/etc. with Google Calendar, direct sync contacts and calendar between a Nokia phone and the tablet, an included Xterm that remembers your settings and can do black background for white or colored text, included VNC client and server, included OpenSSL client and server ... or, instead of including VNC and SSH servers, have some form of linux _AND_ mac _AND_ windows compatible remote desktop capability ... and last, but not least, a port of the OS to the E66, E71, and E90)

Hm. I have in mind a method that I haven't seen in use... I'd be happy to work with them to get a working prototype.

Haven't seen != hasn't been patented... they probably don't want to go through the legal battles to get an obvious patent thrown out, though I'd bet some of the swivel ones could easily be tossed.

Probably; I got my info from the developers themselves. Given that just about any aspect of the Pandora has been heavily debated in the community's forums and that the developers have "caved in" on several other points (you should have seen the cyberwars on the volume slider vs wheel!), I'd say that the swivel option was just too risky/expensive, because quite a lot of people did ask for it.