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Mobility

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

By Jason Hiner August 24, 2010, 11:46 AM PDT

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Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Droid 2 (top), Epic 4G (bottom), and BlackBerry Torch (right)

Droid 2 (top), Epic 4G (bottom), and BlackBerry Torch (right)

For those who still prefer a hardware keyboard on their smartphone, here are comparison photos of three great devices: Motorola Droid 2, Samsung Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch 9800.

Check out the close-up photos at the end of the gallery for a description and critique of each of the three keyboards. You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Boxes: Epic 4G, Droid 2, and BlackBerry Torch

Boxes: Epic 4G, Droid 2, and BlackBerry Torch

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Samsung Epic 4G box (top)

Samsung Epic 4G box (top)

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Samsung Epic 4G box (bottom)

Samsung Epic 4G box (bottom)

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

BlackBerry Torch 9800 box (top)

BlackBerry Torch 9800 box (top)

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

BlackBerry Torch 9800 box (bottom)

BlackBerry Torch 9800 box (bottom)

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

BlackBerry Torch 9800 box (contents)

BlackBerry Torch 9800 box (contents)

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Motorola Droid 2 box (bottom)

Motorola Droid 2 box (bottom)

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Motorola Droid 2 box (contents)

Motorola Droid 2 box (contents)

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Boxes: Droid 2 vs. Droid X

Boxes: Droid 2 vs. Droid X

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Boxes: Droid 2 vs. Original Droid

Boxes: Droid 2 vs. Original Droid

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Powered off: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

Powered off: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Backplate: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

Backplate: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Powered on: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

Powered on: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Keyboard out: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

Keyboard out: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Back: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

Back: Droid 2, Epic 4G, and BlackBerry Torch

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Droid 2 and Epic 4G keyboards

Droid 2 and Epic 4G keyboards

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Droid 2 and BlackBerry Torch keyboards

Droid 2 and BlackBerry Torch keyboards

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Epic 4G vs BlackBerry Torch keyboards

Epic 4G vs BlackBerry Torch keyboards

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Keyboards: Droid 2 (top) vs. Original Droid (bottom)

Keyboards: Droid 2 (top) vs. Original Droid (bottom)

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Samsung Epic 4G, powered off

Samsung Epic 4G, powered off

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Samsung Epic 4G, powered on

Samsung Epic 4G, powered on

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Samsung Epic 4G, QWERTY keyboard

Samsung Epic 4G, QWERTY keyboard

The Epic 4G has the most versatile keyboard of the three. It has a dedicated row for numbers and several special keys (search, back, home, smiley, etc.). The keys themselves are chicklet-style, reminiscent of Apple Macbooks and Sony Vaio laptops.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

BlackBerry Torch 9800, powered off

BlackBerry Torch 9800, powered off

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

BlackBerry Torch 9800, powered on

BlackBerry Torch 9800, powered on

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

BlackBerry Torch 9800, QWERTY keyboard

BlackBerry Torch 9800, QWERTY keyboard

The BlackBerry Torch has the traditional BlackBerry qwerty that has been around on high-end devices since the BlackBerry 8800 World Edition. It is a top quality keyboard with a nice weight to it and typically has a low error rate. Those who are already familiar with BlackBerry will love the standard feel.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Motorola Droid 2, powered off

Motorola Droid 2, powered off

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Motorola Droid 2, powered on

Motorola Droid 2, powered on

You can also read the companion blog post.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

Keyboard showdown: Droid 2 vs. Epic 4G vs. BlackBerry Torch

Motorola Droid 2, QWERTY keyboard

Motorola Droid 2, QWERTY keyboard

The Droid 2 keyboard is the worst of the three. The keys are too flat and non-distinct and there are no special keys other than the arrow keys. The Droid 2 keyboard is better than the original Droid keyboard, but that’s not saying much. Most of the people I know who have a Droid bought it at least partly because of the physical keyboard. But those same people report that 90% of the time they never use it, since it’s so bad.

Photo credit: Jason Hiner / TechRepublic

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By Jason Hiner
Jason Hiner is Editorial Director of CNET and former Editor in Chief of TechRepublic. He's co-author of the book, Follow the Geeks.
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