Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
vkjk
Enthusiast - Level 2

This is a frustrating, aggravating circular argument.  There are not basic keyboarding cell phones offered for the LTE, therefore there are no sales, which does NOT illustrate a lack of market.  I do not go more than a few days without encountering someone lamenting for a simple keyboarding phone like my soon to be extinct LG Env Touch. 

My whole family had the same phone, and it has been very loved and admired.  I do not need or want a data phone, and my father would refuse to use one. 

And simple texting is something that should be considered a safety function; making it difficult should be considered a hostile action against those who wish for simplicity.

Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
vkjk
Enthusiast - Level 2

Please  ditch the judgement.  This is a community forum, and the only place those of us whose interests do not align with your opinion have a chance to express ourselves.  The fact is that there are a lot of us who do, in fact, want something that may not yet be available.  Attitudes of those who keep telling us to shut up and deal with it is the problem, not a solution.  If I want some mindless repetition of the current 3 to 5 basic flip phones, I can walk into a Verizon store.  If I want to let the community know that there are many of us wanting something that will work for us, then I come to the community forum.  Please keep your luddite bashing bludgeon to yourself.

Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
mama23dogs
Legend

@hearmenow123 wrote:

@mama23dogs  yes it's pretty large, expensive , you'd be using only 1/10th the functionality for just a phone and texting. 

The FxTec pro1 should be smaller but otherwise is still expensive and over-featured for most people.

The key two (1) has microscopic raccoon keys and (2) will require you to pay for a data plan. Also it is (3) not a flip / clamshell phone so the screen and keyboard are vulnerable. 

 


I had to double back on the second part of your post -   
Key 2 does have tiny buttons, but so do most of the basic QWERTY phones people are using now.   While bulky and require data, they are still smaller than the communicator, which is about 50% heavier than the Note phones.  
    Is the communicator just a huge basic phone?   I think the developer is hitting a niche that's a lot smaller than the QWERTY market that is on page 11 of this thread.
   These folks want tiny, cheap, durable and QWERTY.   Without a mass market, cheap is unlikely.  The big manufacturers onky produce what makes money.  
  They might be convinced to make them for nostalgia, like that Nokia 3310 (?).  Which is a 3g phone and will be obsolete soon.   But people are activating them on AT&T anyway.   
   Just a side note, I lurked on other carrier sites, and no one has QWERTY phones. Not even consumer cellular.   Only 2 options, flip/bar, or smartphones.  
   I checked out GSM arena, and none of the manufacturers have made QWERTY phones in years.  

0 Likes
Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
mama23dogs
Legend

@vkjk   I don't think anyone is arguing or making "judgement" 
As they use to say on 'Dragnet', " . . . just the facts".  
um . .  Who said you should shut up?  Can't say as I saw that. 
Fact -  
1.  Carriers order what sells and makes them a profit.  

2.   More than 50% of US users own an iPhone (as opposed to all other brands and types)   

3.   Manufacturers stopped making QWERTY phones in 2012/13.    That's when LTE took over.  (Most active users had LTE phones).   They sat on carrier prepaid websites for at least another 2 years, because you could buy one off At&t well into 2015, despite no new ones being made.  When you can't give the phones away, you stop ordering new ones.  And manufacturers stop making them.

4  while I'm sure carriers make a bigger profit off data plans and steer the market, they can't make manufacturers build a phone that's not profitable.  And have no insentive to do so financially.   There is no peer pressure either, as no other carrier has QWERTY phones either.  

As it stands today, If you're dedicated to QWERTY, you're going to have to make the adjustment somewhere else.   Either another carrier with a used phone (till they shut them down too), or not cheap, not small, or not QWERTY.  I think @hearmenow123  has the right idea - shop the start-ups for an outlier phone that's LTE compatible.   Or create your own start up.   Maybe you can get someone to revive your old phone like the Nokia bar phone got its second wind.  (However, it's 3g and will soon be obsolete also)   
    Accusing a carrier of "not caring" is beside the point  it's a business.  A business has to make business choices that are financially appropriate.  
   Ford has decided they are getting out of the 'car' business in the USA.  Aside from the muscle car, they are going to sell trucks and SUV's.   I'm sure some fiesta and focus owners are bummed.   But ford isn't making a profit off those little cars, they do on truck/SUV's.   
   Progress is what it is.  We are just going to have to be flexible.

 

0 Likes
Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
hearmenow123
Enthusiast - Level 3

I had to double back on the second part of your post -   
Key 2 does have tiny buttons, but so do most of the basic QWERTY phones people are using now.   While bulky and require data, they are still smaller than the communicator, which is about 50% heavier than the Note phones.  


I suppose it's a matter of personal taste, but for me the LG enV keyboard has just enough space to hit the buttons reliably but the Blackberry does not. Also I really like the clamshell design that protects the screen and keyboard from dirt and damage. And as said the $30/mo data plan really adds up over the life of the phone - granted you could move to a new plan (or an MVNO that uses Verizon) to get data included.




    Is the communicator just a huge basic phone?   I think the developer is hitting a niche that's a lot smaller than the QWERTY market that is on page 11 of this thread.
   These folks want tiny, cheap, durable and QWERTY.   Without a mass market, cheap is unlikely.  The big manufacturers onky produce what makes money.  
  They might be convinced to make them for nostalgia, like that Nokia 3310 (?).  Which is a 3g phone and will be obsolete soon.   But people are activating them on AT&T anyway.   
   Just a side note, I lurked on other carrier sites, and no one has QWERTY phones. Not even consumer cellular.   Only 2 options, flip/bar, or smartphones.  
   I checked out GSM arena, and none of the manufacturers have made QWERTY phones in years.  

 

Yes a basic QWERTY phone is what I would like to see as well. You can go back and read my first post on page 1. The Cosmo ticks a number of boxes but not all. 

1) Smart phones have poor battery life --> Still applies to the cosmo, it has about a 30 hour battery life despite large battery

2) The screens are large and fragile, get all scratched up, even broken -> Fixed on the cosmo, the clamshell protects it.

3) They overheat in the car / sunlight -> I think this is fixed as well, the clamshell seems to protect it and I don't feel it getting warm.

4) Android / google / iOS tracks you and listen to you all the time -> This is fixed on the Cosmo if you use it without a data plan as I mentioned. No data plan = no spying. Also the Cosmo can be used without linking to a Google account whereas most smart phones require a Google account even if you just want to use the phone.

5) Constant notifications about unimportant things, difficult to get rid of -> Also fixed without the data plan. No data plan = no notifications. Also many mainstream brands of smart phones have their own add-ons that generate a lot of pop-ups. I haven't seen this with the Cosmo. 

6) Touch screen keyboard is hard to use with large fingers -> Fixed on the Cosmo, in fact the keyboard is as good as a laptop.

7) Frequent pocket dialing or other unintended behavior. -> As with the enV series there is a small external display and it's possible to dial from there but so far it hasn't done that on its own. You can set it up with the fingerprint reader to prevent accidental dialing.

😎 Extra cost of a data plan -> Also fixed with Cosmo. 

9) As of recent no more wired headset jack -> Cosmo has a regular headset jack.

10) Having to navigate through a million functions you never use -> Cosmo still has that , although as with any Android device you can re-arrange the icons on the home screen to show only the functions you need.

 

My regular flip phone is a Kyocera DuraXV and it actually also runs Android, it's just a really basic install without the app store and whatnot. 

I would love to see something like the Cosmo but then half or 2/3 the size and de-featured down to a basic phone.

0 Likes
Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
mama23dogs
Legend

@hearmenow123       Can't wait to see information on the other phone.   I for one thank you for taking an active interest and trying to provide a solution.  
Also for taking time to reply. 😊

Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
mama23dogs
Legend
0 Likes
Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
hearmenow123
Enthusiast - Level 3

@mama23dogs wrote:

I searched the other phone.

https://www.androidauthority.com/fxtec-pro1-review-960653/

 


That's it! I pre-ordered mine back in May but don't have it yet. Supposedly they have already started shipping now but I would not order one at this point, I would wait a month orso for all the pre-orders to complete and if all is well then you can order one. If you wait longer they will fix more bugs. Some of these hot-off-the-press phones can be buggy.  I found several bugs in my Cosmo already as well.

They say it is compatible with Verizon and includes support for LTE Band 13 which is somewhat unique to Verizon. It's 8.5oz as compared to the Communicator which is just about 1.5x that at 11.2 oz 

I'll post an update here when I receive mine or if I find out about any other (Verizon compatible) QWERTY phones under development.

 

 

0 Likes
Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
vzw_customer_support
Customer Service Rep

Currently we do not offer any basic phones with the QWERTY keyboard. We also do not have any updates on whether manufacturers will provide any. I would suggest reaching out to manufacturers to inquire about this. LisaL_VZW

0 Likes
Re: Will there be a 4G Basic phone with QWERTY keyboard?
biteemeyeedickeyy

OK yet again verizon is forcing you to upgrade your device because they can... its well documneted the problems that occur when giving adolesents a smart phone .. its the main reason we have  NOT given unfettered acccess via a smartphone to our children.. all internet access is controlled by me the parent.. haveing  to pruchase yet anohter service to controll data when all you want is simple talk and text  is not acceptable from a company as lagre a verizon...  VERIZON is famious for not listening to consumer demands and this is yet anouther example. QWERTY devices that are simple and cheap should have been offered when the anouncment to turn off the CDMA was made public.. with landline based phones shrinking and wireless increasing and the aging population in the USA alone dictates not all customers want or need a smart device and the accosiated headaches ...   

0 Likes