BlackBerry Thunder's touchscreen keypad gets snapped

Spy-shots emerge of QWERTY and SureType displays

14 July 2008 15:57 GMT / By Amy-Mae Elliott

More leaked photograph's of RIM's forthcoming touchscreen smartphone, the "Thunder" have been unveiled online and this time it's the keyboard that's been posing for the camera.

From the pics, it seems that full QWERTY will be offered when the phone is in landscape mode, while holding the phone in an upright portrait position will change the input method to RIM's SureType system.

CrackBerry, the folk behind the photos, report that the screen is made of glass and will feature multitouch as well as offering users a tactile response when you press on the Thunder's screen.

The interface is described as having "big keys that are easy to locate and tap". Existing BlackBerry fans will be happy to note that the site reports that this keypad design will mean BlackBerry-style thumb-typing is still going to be possible, even with this virtual keyboard.

CrackBerry reports that the version of the keyboard seen in the pics is an early one, and that the final version will likely be better looking, and comments: "You should be able to grip the device with both hands and pound out emails with both thumbs blazing".