Just when you thought you’d never see a slide-out landscape QWERTY keyboard on a mobile phone again, F(x)tec announces the Pro1 Android smartphone.
Recently at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, London-based tech start-up F(x)tec who’s committed to “bringing back and making better well-loved features missing in current mobile phones and related devices” unveiled a retro slider complete with a full landscape keyboard.
At first glance, the Pro1 device looks like a standard smartphone by today’s smartphone standards. The bezels are slim, there’s no notch, the AMOLED display is large – the look takes obvious design cues from Samsung’s latest handsets. However, when you handle it, you’ll find that a QWERTY keyboard slides out at a 155 degree angle inspired by the Nokia E7 and N950 for optimal, old-fashioned thumb typing.
This isn’t your average slider, though; F(x)tec brings it into 2019 with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835 processor, rear dual camera system, stereo speakers, dual SIMs, and “landscape-optimised UI.”
Unfortunately with all these upgrades, this slider’s price jumps up a few hundred dollars from the Nokia models’ original price points; The Pro1 will cost US$649 and is already available globally for pre-order. Devices will begin shipping in July. – Relaxnews
