[diskology]

Hi all, great forum, exceptional. I lurked for days pre-purchase, I have owned my blackberry for a whole day now and I already love it. The reason I am writing is because I really debated on going with the SureType keyboard vs. the QWERTY. I did a lot of searching on the forum and while I'm sure I must have missed some simple threads comparing the two, I couldn't quite find the answer I was looking for which was, for an absolute beginner how hard is it to learn SureType?

I spoke with a couple of TMobile reps who told me they recommended QWERTY, but I really liked the features / size of the 7105. I spoke with a friend who used to sell phones and she said QWERTY but then I found someone who told me once you learned SureType it would be faster. I debated this for a week before buying!

So, if anyone who does not have a BB but is lurking on the forum, doing searches for SureType, etc., as I was has the same question let me just give my quick comments as a very, very newbie user. Drum roll please...

SureType is sweet! Man, to think I seriously wasted a week on this decision is now comical. I'm sure that there are differing opinions, and I'm sure QWERTY would have worked fine for me, too had I gone that route, but for somebody who really wanted the smaller phone but was beating myself up about my ability to learn SureType w/o even ever trying it man was I an idiot!

I'm amazed at how well it recognizes words, how well I can type after only one day using the 7105, etc., etc. So fellow newbies, pre-purchasers, at least from my standpoint don't let the SureType vs. QWERTY debate keep you up at night

Now I'm ready to learn all those shortcuts! Thanks to everybody for participating in such a great forum.

Tonyo

[FlyingElvis]

I'm another new BB (7130e/Verizon) user and love SureType. I think its a fair tradeoff to get the desirable form factor.

I suspect most SureType detractors will be those who are use to the full QWERTY BB.

[radimus]

Wirelessly posted (BB 7100: BlackBerry7100/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/102)

I had been using a 7780 which has a QWERTY keyboard and am now using a 7100. Having been used to that Suretype is quite the speed bump, I can understand any gripes about it, but I'm going to give it a fair shot. If you never used a QWERTY model I can see why one would like it so much. Suretype is 100 times better than trying to bang out messages on a tiny phone keypad.

[rigeek]

I switched from a Nextel 7520 to a Nextel 7100i, and I was definitely worried about the keyboard / SureType and having to double-tap. I realized in the first 24 hours how great SureType worked, and now I'm hooked. Anyone want to buy a 7520? :D

[mymitsu3kgt]

I'm absolutely sure (no pun intended) that I can type must faster with Suretype than with a Qwerty keyboard. I had the 7100t, which I loved, and then bought the 8700g, which I love a ton more. I could type much faster with Suretype because the keys are larger and easier to hit because they have two letters on each key.

[JerryD]

I had been on full size devices for a couple of years, then moved to a 7100g last year. The thing about SureType is first you have to teach it, and then you have to trust it!

The first time you type a strange word it doesn't recognize, you have to do a bit of shifting to get it to use the right spelling, but once you've typed a word in once, it will get it the next time. The disconcerting thing about it is that the second time you type the word in, it may LOOK like it's not it's not going to get it right, but if you just keep typing it usually will get it right!

I moved to an 8700c a few months ago, and I love it - the screen is amazing, and it's blazing fast compared to any other BB I've used - this is my fifth! But I miss the 7100's form factor, and I miss SureType.

I haven't seen the 7130 in action yet, but if anyone has compared it with the 8700, I'd be interested in the comparison of the screen and speed - both the device's speed and download speed.

J

[kaj0005]

The thing that I mainly like about SureType is the ease of composing messages with one hand. I have never used a QWERTY device, but I would assume it would require both hands.

[radimus]

Originally Posted by kaj0005

The thing that I mainly like about SureType is the ease of composing messages with one hand. I have never used a QWERTY device, but I would assume it would require both hands.

Nah. It's very do-able to type one-handed on a QWERTY model. It's just extremely tedious. One thumb typing on a 7100 is faster simply because there's less distance to travel.