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14 November 2007

More on Phones and Keyboards

So, I watched the android youtube demonstration today. I still haven't downloaded the code yet, but that will be the next thing I do. Yes, the 3D acceleration is great, and google earth on the phone is cool, but I am still wondering, HOW DO THE PHONES WITH NO TOUCH SCREEN USE THEM?!? Google earth would take probably about six to seven buttons: four to move the globe, two to zoom in and one to bring up dialogues and display information. That's an idealized version of google earth, it could get much more complex and require more buttons than are on the phone. What if some application needs a different button not on the device the developer will just have to find a way around it, not add a button like on a touch screen. What I think will happen is that developers will simply release two versions, one for the touch screens and one for the keyboard. People will get confused by the choices of phones and just buy an iPhone, or another brand of phone. Since Android is actually just an "alliance", there will be no distinct version 2.0 of the phone hardware, and new features that could eliminate the problems in the old phones just won't happen. Google will have to get it perfectly the first time, or it will kill itself for the next decade trying to fix its mistakes.

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