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Upside Down Phone Patent
An anonymous reader noted that "A patent has been filed for the "Upside Down Phone", which features the keypad on top and the screen on the bottom. The idea behind the upside down phone is, apparently, to allow faster texting by have a more comfortable position for the thumb to work from. A quick check of this seems to confirm the theory, making this one of those "Why didn't I think of that?" moments."
How about a phone with no buttons ? I'll patent that....
I don't know..maybe because the hands will be right on top of the screen and you won't be able to see anything?
Infinite time means everything that can happen, will. You being you is absolutely incidental. You do not exist.
Gonna get rich! I just filed a patent for the upsidedown laptop, where you pull up the keyboard and look down at the screen.
Makes it easier for those of you who type with your feet. (I'm looking at YOU, AOLers...)
Is it sad that I am more likely to recognize you and your posts by your sig than your name or UID?
I bought a Garmin GPS12 back in '98 that had the screen on the bottom. It made for great one-hand used.
I guess adding "cellphone" to a design is just like adding "on the Internet" to a business plan.
I'd rather have someone respond than be modded up.
More
How the H*ll Can You Patent That?
...it's because we designers were always thinking of phones as little computers. Though I might be wrong, I'd be willing to bet that the person who thought this up has never worked in designing computers before -- the idea is too fresh and clean. Either that or some designer was drunk one night and used his phone upside down for hours, and then decided to patent it the next morning. :P
It is by my will alone my thoughts acquire motion; it is by the juice of the coffee bean that the thoughts acquire speed
How is it possible to patent the layout of something? I'll just go and patent a much used way of laying bricks on top of eachother and everyone who builds a house has to pass by my bank account first? This patenting is getting way out of hand!
09 f9 11 02 9d 74 e3 5b d8 41 56 c5 63
Well it's true, there are a lot of things that seem to be common sense that aren't yet patented. For example, my upcoming patent for a simple gesture to signify the consummation of a business deal. I like to call it the handshake.
I hope it was side talking as well!
making this one of those "Why didn't I think of that?" moments.
This is simply because people don't think about ergonomics or what logically makes sense. Rather, they view things in terms they are familiar with. So since cellphones have always had the buttons on the bottom, everyone just assumed that's where they should go. The same can be said for interfaces in software development. Look at all the sourceforge projects that have GUIs. How many of them are just rehashes of the same bad interface design ideas lifted from Windows?
Ericsson did this way back in 1999 with the "Hedvig".
Project was cancelled, one reason being users didn't like the upside down configuration.
--
make install -not war
The screen (at the bottom) won't be touched by the ear, so it will stay clean.
No more dirty sticky traces on the screen !
-- Rastignac was here.
What's next, a patent on wearing baseball caps backwards?
As another poster said. my 7 year old Garmin MAP12 handheld GPS had the screen on the bottom and buttons on the top.
Can't type, must enjoy visual....
...with my original N-Gage when I use it as a book reader. It fits nicely in my hand, with the D-pad above the screen where I can use it to flip the pages. The book reader software takes care of rotating the screen in whatever direction I want i to be...
--frank[at]unternet.org
Brought to you for the people who do the most 'texting' (shudder at the term); British teens. So what if you gave one of 'em, when, in a rare moment, they use their phone for its intended purposes, a big push on the phone: they'd press all the buttons at once with their zitty cheecks. You'd have to scrape all that pus out from in between the buttons. Yek.
Religion is what happens when nature strikes and groupthink goes wrong.
I don't think this is obvious. The common "Why didn't I think of that?" feeling that many people are getting right about now is evidence enough for me. And it's definitely useful for people who text a lot. But has it been done before? I haven't seen anything like it, but I never really paid attention to mobile phones and such. (I know, I know; I'll mail my Geek Card back to HQ)
Well, I must admit that this is certainly non-obvious. In fact, even after flipping my phone upside and playing around, I still find it non-obvious why the hell anyone would do this. I can safely predict that this is one patent I won't feel tempted to violate.
...the iPhone can do this in software. :-P
Big Gloves.
Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
...if we all turn our existing phones upside down and memorize the keypad that way, will we be in violation of the patent? Or can this ability prevent the patent from being accepted?
A previous poster mentioned the Garmin unit that is layed out this way. I've got one too, a different model of Garmin, but still, the screen is at the bottom and the buttons are at the top. The thing actually looks like a cell phone almost. Seems like Garmin could fight the patent as they thought of it first.
-Maurice
FixingTheWeb.com Helping to keep the bad guys out...
Wow, can you get patents for turning anything upside down? Dibs on the upside-down ping pong ball!
No way this is expected to fly as a patent.
/. to drive a concept test data collection. We'll see a product or not depending on the survey.
I expect that a manufacturer is using
--
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.
Here's a phone by B&O that came out in europe two years ago: http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/cellphones/serene-bang- -olufsens-upside-down-cellphone-210756.php
This is similar to the 1 click buying case.
I assume this is only a request not yet approved. A patent must fulfill several requirements (at least in most countries)... to not be already invented, to be really innovative and to not be evident from the current state of the art.
If they want software patents for doing this kind of things, I have to agree with those that are against.
That is such a great idea that the company came up with it should be granted exclusive license to its use for 17 years. After all no one would come up with such innovations without the patent system.
i could see this working even on normal ("non-upsidedown") phones, when you want to text simply flip the phone over and an accelerometer will flip the screen orientaton. kind of like how the iphone will do it
If history repeats itself, why can't we study the future?
"A patent has been filed for the "Upside Down Slashdot" which features the comments on top and the fucking article on the bottom. The idea behind the upside down Slashdot is, apparently, to allow quicker reading by not having to RTFA. A quick check of this seems to confirm the theory, making this one of those "Why didn't I think of that?" moments."
@neonux
I'm filing for a patent on a device with the screen on top and the buttons on the bottom. That way, your thumb and that muscle there will not obscure the screen as you're operating the buttons. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go quit my job, because I'm about to be rich.
turn it right side up!
Then I'll patent a phone with the keys oriented to the side...oh wait...damn. I guess I'll have to patent a sandwich with two patties of meat encasing a piece of bread, mustard, onions, and pickles. And whatever else you normally put on a burger.
nuff said
For one, why does the display always have to be 'on top of' the keypad? You have to hold the thing with both hands, or nearly drop the phone while reaching for the * 0 # keys. Instead, flip it around so the display is *below* the keypad. Go on,try it with your own phone, right now (just ignore for now that your keys will be upside down):
-- One-handed typing will be much easier, as you can hold onto the phone more firmly while typing. Also note how the 'thigh' of your thumb will not obscure the display.
-- Two-handed speed-texting will be much more 'private' because your thumb's thighs will keep your display hidden from everyone but you (the teens will love this!). I've blogged about this before, too (if you can call it that, as it was before "blogging" was called that).
"Good news, everyone!"
I've been saying this for 5 years now. Bastards stole my idea.
The phone is much more stable upside down, and you can still reach the keys easy.
It also stops thieves snatching it your hand (or you accidently dropping it in the toilet) as your typing a text.
If you scan Slashdot from some months back I described this very concept.
No really I did. Ugh. Geex can you patent anything now? Wheres the prototype?
The plans, etc.
They Live, We Sleep
not the product, that smells......
every day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
I'm having a "Why is that patentable?" moment.
In a few years, all the obvious low-hanging-fruit patents we've seen in recent times, will be expiring and things will level off. Let them patent *everything they can think of* obvious or not, NOW, and look forward to all these patents expiring together, which will be equally hilarious.
-fb Everything not expressly forbidden is now mandatory.
This would work great using a device with one hand. It's much easier to hold while typing than the conventional method. However, it doesn't fare so well with a two-handed device. I tried to turn my Blackberry upside down to see if it had the same benefit - nope, it's very awkward. Since you have nothing above it to hold the device (where you would normally use your index, middle, and ring fingers), the "natural" thing to do is use the sides of your thumbs to hold it up. But since you use your thumbs to type, it would then easily be dropped while typing. In this position, you have to support the device on your pinkys to type. It feels like nothing is really supporting the phone while typing. In additon, your thumbs cross the screen making it difficult to see.
Keith
Support bacteria. They're the only culture some people have.
The Serene phone from Samsung/Bang & Olufsen http://www.serenemobile.com/ already does this -- even lets you switch configurations.
Science fiction for grown-ups...
The only problem is that the screen and number pad are also upside-down.
I just stand on my head and use my right-side-up phone!
Trouble making decisions? Just flip for it.
You're making the assumption that "if noone patented it, noone thought about it", which is, sad to say, bogus. Some people just don't run to the patent office for each and single triviality.
In this case, for example, there I can remember at least two cases of phones built just like that. One even made it all the way to being marketted. (Dunno if it actually sold or not, though.) So, yes, other people "skilled in the art" _did_ think of it before. Go figure.
A polar bear is a cartesian bear after a coordinate transform.
I think it may be because if you mash the phone into your ear it would trigger the keypad.
Isn't this the default layout down under?
I'd like to patent the keyboard on the right, but garmin seem to have done that one too:
m in-quest.htm
http://www.radar-detector-shop.co.uk/products/gar
Do they have a unit with keys on the back?
Don't go stealing my Intellectual Property, it takes away jobs and kills little puppies.
Current configuration:
Let's see:
Long fingers, short thumbs.
Fingers cradle phone.
Thumbs type.
New configuration:
Fingers crunch uselessly over the top of the phone.
Thumbs must curve outwards to prevent screen from being concealed.
Once again: just because you patent it, doesn't mean its good.
Sort of like my upside down toilet patent. Just *try* to copy it, I dare you.
------ The best brain training is now totally free : )
designed to let the guy sitting opposite of me do all my typing...
I found a quicker route to my office. Now I'm going to patent that route and anyone who wants to use my route must pay me royalties!
Seriously, ridiculous "patents" like this want me to torch the patent office (or the applicant, whichever works).
My Garmin Geko 201 (http://www.garmin.com/products/geko201/) has the same layout, for the same reasons.
But I don't like that layout a single bit. It may be great in theory, but in practice my hands always obscure the screen if I use the buttons. Even more so if I mount it on my bike's handlebar.
This sig under construction. Please check back later.
I don't care why you're posting AC
This has already been done:
http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=513
The Wildseed Identity phone was innovative in many ways; putting the keypad on top was just one. Unfortunately, Wildseed never really got off the ground on their own. I think AOL snapped them up.
You don't need a special phone for this, once you've practiced a little you'll be used to reading the screen upside down and will find it weird using a phone the conventional way.
Do i get to claim prior art?
If improving something in a non obvious way is not enougt, what should it take to get a patent?
FRA: STFU GTFO
'More importantly, nobody "skilled in the art" thought of it either. If they had, they would have patented it.'
Ah but Ericcson did do it before (see above), and they didn't patent it and countless devices did it before them (Garmin are listed as examples above) and they didn't patent it either.
So it illustrates the problem with ignoring the 'non obvious' and 'innovate' clauses in the patent law as the patent office is clearly doing.
"A lack of an existing successful product is considered "objective evidence of nonobviousness,"
Yet a quick look in any shop shows keypads on the left of the screen, right of the screen, and handsets with buttons above (e.g. the off button is often above the screen). So what is so unique about this?
It appears the 'unique' aspect of this is that the person thinks it makes it easier to use one handed, however he's ignoring the thumb. In the drawing he's placed it at the middle, and the viewpoint at the left, so it doesn't show the thumb obstructing the screen. So what is unique about it? Nothing.
Someone skilled in the art draw unworkable prototypes like this all the time. Just because a drawing isn't worth making into a product, doesn't mean its new.
Bang & Olufsen had a phone like this, Serene Mobile, a long time ago :
http://www.bang-olufsen.com/page.asp?id=54/
http://linuxdevices.com/news/NS7002110505.html
When you apply for a patent you have to live up to three criteria:
- bang--olufsens-upside-down-cellphone-210756.php and this phone http://www.garmin.com/products/gps12/ already have upside down displays.
1 - Your idea must not have been in the public domain before you file your patent aplication
2 - Your idea must not be obvious to a skilled expert in the field of the invention
3 - Your idea must be usable
Well, to me it seems that this is pretty obvoius to any engineer in the mobile phone market, and both this phonehttp://gizmodo.com/gadgets/cellphones/serene
So I hardly see how this can justify a patent... Of course it could all be about business practices, there is nobody stopping me from applying for a patent on the wheel, I just won't get it. But my competitors won't know that for a year or two..
Has anyone here ever written a SMS before? T9 usually messes up every second word if you don't watch what you're typing, you'll *have* to constantly watch the screen. And that's impossible with the keypad above the display, as it'll be partially covered by your thumb. So this is one of the most useless ideas I've ever seen! Unless someone invents a T9-like SMS input method that actually works, that is...
Serene
upside-down cellphone from Bang&Olufsen
"There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action." Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Everything in Australia surely qualifies as prior art.
For the love of god... I actually had this idea a few years ago. I was playing around with my phone and found it easier to access the keys with the phone upside down. My idea would have the screen offset by a few millimeters so that it wouldn't be obscured by the palm.
I didn't actually think it was a patent worthy idea. I didn't think much of the idea at all. I guess somebody else has. What a joke.
My patent for a phone into which you had to talk backwards to it doesn't seem to generated much capital for me, yet. The idea is that the person you're calling will immediately hear the end of the conversation and know straight away if it was a worthwile conversation or not and thus be able to terminate the call immediately if the conversation didn't end positively for them.
Lets say that there WERE NO PATENTS.
Would this idea not be used? No. Could its' use be kept a secret or protected from easy reverse engineering? No.
So what do we, the public, get out of breaking the free market principles of capitalism and granting a patent on this idea? Whether it's a novel idea or not, without patent protection, this idea would still be around and there would be no friction in using it (e.g. to get Ericson to include this "useful feature" will cost Ericson the retooling but no licensing costs). Therefore the market will be efficient in getting the best product use of this idea out to the public for the least cost.
*has a pathetic look on face*
I shoulda got a patent.
34486853790
Connection too slow for X forwarding? Try "ssh -CX user@host"
He filed a patent -> APPLICATION -. It is far from being a patent. Don't we wish we could scribble some trash, drop it in the mail, and have a patent. Sadly, it has to be examined by a patent office and all that other procedural stuff.
What? Me? Sig?
I've been saying there should be a phone like this for a while (not on /.; IRL). I often dial phone numbers with the phone upside down just because it's so painful to do it the other way.
However, I think I've seen a phone that has done this before (maybe it was just a prototype).
It's so you don't get all your skin grease all over the screen.
So it's a bit like the Bang & Olufsen "Serene" mobile, then?
Icky flash-driven official site or a review.
Liam P. ~ "Intelligence is a lethal mutation." (me)
If I take my phone and turn it upside-down in a natural position, the screen is fully visible. It would be a major improvement. I'd have to adopt an uncomfortable position to obscure the screen.
My phone is a very small Nokia soap-bar (6100 - I've never understood the infatuation with flip-phones... Star Trek?). Perhaps it's different with whatever you're using.
As one holding a number of patents (sorry, part of the problem, I suppose....), my experience is that many patent applications are initially rejected by the patent office for reasons of obviousness.
So how does one prove that a solution to a problem is non-obvious? One technique that has proved successful in my personal experience is to demonstrate that a certain problem is well known within the art and yet no one has ever proposed or implemented this approach to solving the problem. Such an argument then requires two steps: (1) demonstrating that experts in the field have struggled with the problem for some time and (2) claiming that no prior art has been found with the inventor's solution.
I'm curious if anyone thinks this is inadequate or if other proofs of "non-obviousness" are possible.
(No comment on the obviousness of the upside down phone patent)
I've never understood the infatuation with flip-phones
No keyboard locking necessary. I can't count the number of times my wife has forgotten to lock the keyboard on her Nokia, and buttons get pushed on it in her purse.
General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
Why not make a candybar phone with a chorded keyboard on the sides? It would fit the human hand better than the upside-down or rightside-up designs, and gives you proven speed (stenotype machines used in court reporting use a chorded keyboard). It would require some training, but the speed gains would be worth it for heavy texters.
I am really sick of patents. I do not think this is an idea worthy of a patent. Maybe because I've had the same idea. Who knows...
I think that the usability on a phone is okay, but I really thought the concept could be better applied to the iPod. Giving the user a full screen in front and and the virtual jog wheel on the back. Anyways, at least now that it's here in the annals of slashdot that will hopefully provide some prior art concept and prevent more stupid patents.
I swear, soon the patent office is going to grant a patent on "the wheel". Yes, the thousands and thousands of year old invention now patented by "Good Year".
Or suddenly your pocket or briefcase starts talking to you... Hello? Hello? Or on the other end, you receive a call and you either hear rustled background noise, or a mundane conversation... Ian
The point of a flip is that it takes up the least space in your pocket or whatever, and then it turns into a phone that isn't so tiny that the microphone is just useless. I mean with most phones they might as well put the mic on the back for all the good having it pressed against my cheek does. I now have a RAZR V3i (was waiting for MP camera and memory card slot on the RAZR and they gave me what I wanted, so I bought one) and when you open it, it actually turns into a good-sized phone with the mic near my mouth, and I'm 6'7" and have a proportionally-sized head.
This is especially true of the RAZR and that samsung knockoff which is made much more cheaply but has that neat flip-over camera. I don't even know of any phones thinner than a folded razr, and I don't know of any that start out with so little overall volume (and I don't mean the sound) and end up so long. And yes, I realize there's a joke there, thankyoverymuch.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Ok, part of my viewpoint comes from the fact I'm a cheapskate, and won't pay hundreds of dollars a year for service*, don't care about cameras, internet access etc.. For cheapskates, the soap-bar is king.
Now that flip-phones like the RAZR are around, the size in the pocket is no longer a disadvantage, only leaving the high cost to get a small phone and the fragility of a hinge etc.. In contrast for instance the Nokia 6030 is even given away free for prepaid (T-mobile: $30 including $35 of airtime), the equivalent Samsung flip is a fat lump, and a RAZR costs $200. If you get them "free" with a contract, we all know they're not really free.
The mic on these soap bars is on the bottom of the unit, so won't touch your cheek. With my fairly large head, it's 2 inches from my mouth, and works just fine. No one ever has problems hearing me, and I have to keep telling my wife she can talk more quietly on hers.
I do concede that with the flips don't need to lock the keys, and if you're happy paying for a slim RAZR or whatever, then it's not really inferior. My initial comment was partly out of date, and certainly colored by my usage pattern.
* Prepaid: I use the phone on average of 10 minutes a week. With T-mobile prepaid I can buy 2 year's worth of minutes for $100, and then just have to buy a minimum of $10 after 12 months to keep that balance active for another 12. Total cost for first 2 years service with phone: $140, $50/year after that, assuming all things stay the same. Sure, I could pay $40 or more a month and get more minutes, but they'd be minutes I don't use. I use Skype or Gizmo when I want to have an actual chat, which is rarely when mobile.
In addition to the other phones cited here, this was also a feature of the Wildseed (also briefly known as "GitWit") phone, that had a number of other interesting features beside the fact that the keypad was on top.
. html
http://www.linuxdevices.com/articles/AT5512478189
I doubt that Anthony Harrison's patent can hold up, since there is plenty of "prior art" available.
Once I was driving into work in the morning, doing my normal thing when I get a call from my wife. Apparently, I had called her by accident and she wanted to thank me for singing to her - and her coworkers - on my drive in.
That day, I wished I had had a flip phone. My singing along to Junior Kelly surely doesn't sound all that great.
Jake Tucker
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from a yo-yo.-Enoch Root
You sent 4 different SMS messages to your wife, at 10p each, and she sent you 5 at 10p each for a grand total of 90p vs 20p for that 30 second call.
prior art 'nuff said
So someone thought they had a cool new idea because they hadn't ever seen anything like it and they were wrong... so what? If the patent *issues* then there's something to complain about (though pointing the patent office at the prior art would be a useful public service, unlike whining on Slashdot).
>> No keyboard locking necessary.
unless you have a poorly designed flip phone that happened to have 3 buttons on the outside, and one of them was both the keyboard unlock, and the redial last number button... I CONSTANTLY had that phone calling people from my pocket even though it had both the flip closed AND the keyboard locked! (what idiot designs a phone where the keyguard is turned off by one of only 3 buttons that were NOT covered by the flip cover??? (hint: Samsung SCH-3500 ))
I've been thinking this about Digital Audio Players for a couple of years now.
I still prefer good old sideways texting.
Feels much more natural and less typing due to the qwerty keyboard. I don't get why this style seems to have vanished in current generations.
"Nine times out of ten, starting a fire is not the best way to solve the problem." - my wife
My phone is much more comfortable and natural by holding it the correct way. I am able to hit every button with my thumb with ease. By holding it upside down, it's "Ok" to hold, but it's awkward to look down to see the screen. Bad idea IMHO, I will stick with the current format.
Ij rezenf dhat commeint.
I have two friends with large hands (they are both 6' 4" tall, but in particular have long hands) and have both always texted and dialed with their phones upside down because of the greater comfort it gives them.
LOAD "SIG",8,1
Yeah but now I want to know how you type on this phone with boxing gloves on.
Justice is the sheep getting arrested while an impartial judge declares the vote void.
There's a lot of good prior art listed in this thread. If you place any of the applicants, attorney of record, or anyone else substantively involved in the prosecution of this application on notice of this thread, they will have to report the prior art disclosed in this thread to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to satisfy their Duty of Disclosure. A patent is unenforcable if anyone substantively involved in the prosecution of the patent application does not satisfy their Duty of Disclosure.
Also, it's not such a great idea to put a screen next to your mouth. Unless you can flip it over the screen will be a mess.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
I've never understood the infatuation with flip-phones
flip phone = larger screen & buttons.
That said, Nokia's interface is sooo much better than anything else anyone has to offer and Nokia haven't made a small, well featured flip phone, so I'm sticking with candy bar phones for the moment.
meh
http://linuxdevices.com/news/NS2319525658.html
I also think candybar-style phones (my preferred style) would benefit from having the mic and earpiece on the *back* of the phone, so the screen and keypad don't get all greasy.
Why can't they just collide a whole bunch of little hadrons?
Correction - I meant "I use a prepaid card as do most of the people in the countries I've lived at".
The AACS key is NOT 0xF606EEFD628B1CA427BEA93A9CA9773F
OK, hold your phone upside down, and press the button in the top-left with your right thumb. Half the screen is obscured.
I mentioned this exact feature request to several Apple reps at Macworld, 2 Macworld's ago. The ability to have the iPod display the screen upside down and thus reverse the controls of the ipod.... it makes the iPod easier to hold and your thumb does not get in the way. Maybe I should just keep these silly ideas to myself and patent them? If only I had thousands of dollars to patent things that seem obvious to me.
Hello? Sorry I can hardly hear you. I said I can hardly hear you! Yes, I'm on my way! Sorry? Can't you go somewhere quieter? err..don't worry about it! huh? I'll see you in 10 minutes, you're in the same place right? sorry? err, sorry I can't hear you, I'll call you in a bit.
...if you could call me back on 0122334456789 I'd much appreciate it.
Hi, I'm on the train and the signal is a bit dodgy. I'm on my way and I'll see you at
Yeah we're going to the party tonight, are you coming? Yeah it's at Guanabara between Covent Garden and Holborn. No...Guanabara. G U A N A B A R A. Yes kinda off longacre to the north, on Parker Street. Have you got a pen and paper? ohh bugger, nevermind. yes, P A R K E R street... and it's G U A N A B A N A. No, G U A N A B A N A. Look we're going in now, so hopefully I'll be able to hear you call if you get lost, it get a bit loud in there...Yes on Parker Street. ok hopefully see you in a bit.
You just punch the numbers in.
You asked for it.
A blog about stuff.
dunno what you are smoking, no one in the world pays 200 for a razr... maybe a krazr.... its 100 and with the $50 that every single company gives you right now no matter what (all i did was renew my 2 year contract) brings it down to 50 bucks.. stop complaining about it being expensive. 10 minutes a week? why do you even need a cell phone? and that assumes that they still offer service to your ancient phone after 3 years... also assumes that you dont have to replace the battery.
"Jazz isn't dead, it just smells funny" ~Frank Zappa
EdelFactor
The Curitel Identity phone (1st Linux phone released) has the screen on the bottom and the keys at the top. It had a lot more cool shit than just that though... it was a shame they never caught on.
That's the key - perhaps you should read my post. You think it's really costing you $50? Good consumer! Good boy!
For me, the question will be "Why didn't I patent that?"
That the person thought that simply switching the layout of a phone was a patentable invention... and that they were probably right, in the absence of the Ericcson and BO phones they would probably have been allowed the patent. To the Slashdot crowd, it's just a layout change, no different than arranging the number keys so they're 987,654,321 instead of 789,456,123. A change that should fail the 'obviousness' test.
So it points out a couple of big problems with patents:
Patents are to encourage new products and new inventions by giving an exclusive market to the inventor to cover the financial risk of inventing. How much risk is there in simply saying swap the screen and keyboard? None. Bad application of the 'technical invention' clause, since it's a styling design not a technical invention.
There is no way to see into the design studios of cell phone companies, but do you honestly think that they don't move the keys around the phone in their many designs? This is a problem with the 'prior art' and 'obviousness' tests since you can't know how many times it's been designed.
>> I've never understood the infatuation with flip-phones
> No keyboard locking necessary. I can't count the number of times my
> wife has forgotten to lock the keyboard on her Nokia, and buttons get
> pushed on it in her purse.
Last time I had a one piece phone, there was a timer that automatically set the keyboard lock and I nevery had a problem.
Now that I'm stuck with a flip phone with "extra" features that I'll never use such as a camera, I'm constantly taking pictures of the insides of my pants (and not in the fun way). Nothing like being on a date, shifting in your seat, and having to explain the tacky little camera shutter sound effect.
Don't feel bad about it now. Patent prosecution is expensive (unless you do it yourself, which for most people is a bad idea because they don't claim very many rights, and thus end up with weak patents). Feel bad a couple of years from now if this technology becomes extremely popular.
Support RMS, oppose patents! Just hold your cellphone upside down and practise typing with the new button-layout and inverted text!