Best form-factor for a phone

Posted by meelahi on July 1, 2012 02:36 am 7

Candy-bar, slide-up, slide-down, flip, portrait slider, portrait qwerty...... market is (at least was) filled with all sorts of mobile form factors. For now market has settled on touchscreen slabs, but I still believe this is not the best form factor for a smartphone. The form that I believe to be the best have been only one phone to date and the phone was a failure I believe. I have used the phone for a long 22 months. This 22 months I have loved the form-factor, hated the weak internals which I shall blame to be reason for it's lack of commercial success.\

Now behold the Motorola Backflip!

via www.movilzona.es

I am not saying the phone is perfect, rather far from it. It was weak as hell. But Motorola got several points right on this phone that I am yet to see in any other device.

This phone uses a unique backwards swivel to reveal the keyboard. This makes the keyboard a bit harder access, but also lot more harder to accidental opening, like when you get it out of pocket.The phone is also more stable to hold.

Backward swivel gives the phone a integrated kickstand. To watch video this phone was better than many other bigger and more powerful phone.

A 5 megapixel front facing camera! Because the camera swivels to front, you don't really need a second camera. You can use your primary camera for video chat. (Of course Backflip could not do it.)

3 button design. Androids reference design used to have 4 buttons, but Backflip had 3, Home, Back, and Menu. Guess which design won?

I still wish Motorola would release a Backflip 2(Meaning same form-factor) with a 4" display with modern internals and slimmer chassis. It would be the best QWERTY phone in the market.