New SureType keyboard

A new SureType keyboard technology from Research In Motion (RIM) is drawing early praise for its ingenuity and effectiveness and appears to have hit a usability sweet spot for mobile devices in the candy bar form factors. SureType is a viable contender to become the next generation interface for the mobile phone sized device.

The SureType keyboard design incorporates a QWERTY keyboard layout and a prominent numerical phone keypad and allows easy one-handed phone dialing.

Through an integrated keyboard and software system, SureType provides users with an instinctively familiar look and feel and allows them to dial phone numbers and type messages quickly, accurately and comfortably.

It solves the paradox of fitting an efficient QWERTY keyboard with reasonably sized keys into a traditional candy-bar handset design.

The SureType keyboard design incorporates large, optimally placed keys that allow one-handed or two-handed operation.

Each key contains a maximum of two letters and the letters are aligned in a standard QWERTY layout.

The keyboard works in conjunction with a sophisticated, real-time software system that incorporates a large word database (approximately 35,000 words initially plus the user's address book), linguistic intelligence and advanced learning capabilities to automatically interpret keystrokes and recognize words with a high degree of accuracy.

Dedicated 'send' and 'end' phone keys are also included for convenience. For more information, visit www.rim.com or www.blackberry.com .