Samsung’s Galaxy S2 is currently the most popular Android smartphone in the world, and unsurprisingly it has already sold more units than the first Galaxy S (also a trend setter in the niche) did in the same time period, even though it was only available in South Korea up until just recently! There are good reasons for that, of course: the quality of the device and its hardware features are practically unrivaled – this phone combines the best of all worlds, bringing a sleek and powerful Android smartphone to everyone who can afford it, and to be honest, it isn’t that expensive, either – the iPhone 4 was reselling for more when it first came out (and still does).
However, there’s one thing that’s missing on the Galaxy S2 that would make this device even more appealing to power users, and that is a QWERTY keyboard! I mean, come on, with so much power and style, a nicely hidden keyboard that would help you make full use of the phone is almost a must have, right? Well, AT&T apparently thinks the same, that’s why they’ll be bringing what appears to be a Galaxy S2 with… a landscape QWERTY keyboard!
It is unsurprising that Samsung agreed to this – they have added a keyboard to their Galaxy S (which became Sprint’s Samsung Epic), and they will also make a Windows 7 Phone model, as well – it’s in their best interest to maximize the sales of their new flagship platform, after all.
What’s interesting is that it was AT&T who got this particular model in the US, as it’s usually Sprint’s task to get a popular consumer phone and add something that business and power users would want to it, but I guess Sprint already has every possible niche filled in by some pretty attractive offers of their own.
The tech specs of the as-of-yet unnamed smartphone will be pretty much the same as the original Galaxy S2: the device will have a dual core processor from Samsung, 1 GB of RAM, 32 GB of onboard storage, all the usual stuff like Wifi N, Bluetooth 3.0, NFC, DLNA, and other features, the 8 megapixels camera with support for 1080p recording on the back and VGA unit on the front for video calls and support for HSPA+ networks.
The keyboard slides from under the display and it looks a lot like the one on the Samsung Epic 4G – it has the same relatively large flat buttons that are slightly raised to allow for a pretty comfortable typing (judging by the Epic 4G), although there are still only 4 rows of buttons for the letters and no dedicated numbers row – a bit disappointing, as the surface could easily have fit all of them without sacrificing much comfort.
Of course, the new QWERTY-enabled Galaxy S2 will be running the latest Android OS version, with Samsung’s custom skin on top of it, which I hope won’t make it worse. Overall, this will definitely be a great smartphone for those who truly like to squeeze the last drop of potential out of their mobile devices, and will be a great competitor to the Droid 3 and especially the new T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide, another great business slider. If you like the Galaxy S2, but want or need a full QWERTY keyboard as well, this phone’s well worth the wait.
