The best slider phones are for those of you who want the best of both worlds; a physical QWERTY keyboard and a compact form factor. Now in order to flaunt the duo with finis, you would require a slide out keypad that’s bundled up within a sleek chassis. If these specifications caught your fancy, well throw a glance at our list which is packed with a variety of handsets that surely fit the bill in their own dashing way. Our array has been invaded by the likes of Blackberry, Nokia, Samsung, HTC and Motorola. There’s something here for everyone, whether you are a brand loyalist or simply looking for a device that meets your everyday needs.
1 – T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide:
As its name aptly suggests, the T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide is indeed a slider with touch capabilities, which exposes a full QWERTY keyboard. Tipping the scales at just 6.5 ounces, the handset sports a 3.7-inch LCD WVGA touchscreen. Also catering to the shutterbug in you is the inclusion of an 8MP BSI CMOS sensor that comes along with auto detection, geo-tagging, dual flash and digital zoom.
Accompanying this is a front-facing snapper fitted in for video conferencing with office colleagues or loved ones. And in case you were wondering, this Android 2.3 phone is powered by a 1.2GHz Dual Core Snapdragon processor, so you know just what to expect when the brand new package covers come off.
Price: $129.99
2 – Sony Ericsson Xperia pro:
Slapped with the tag, ‘An Android business phone for fast messaging,’ here is another entrant in our slider phones list that will surely appeal to texters. The QWERTY keypad is blessed with the Type & Send function which enables you to seamlessly jot down notes directly on the home screen. The device features a 3.7-inch scratch-resistant TFT touchscreen and is highly portable in nature as it weighs just 142 grams and measures 120mm x 57mm x 13.7mm.
Like the myTouch 4G Slide, this offering too tugs at the heartstrings of photo enthusiasts as it incorporates an 8.1MP camera with 16x digital zoom, auto focus and LED flash. Working on a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, it forays onto the scene with the taste of Android Gingerbread.
Price: £269
3 – Samsung Epic 4G:
Offered through Sprint, the Samsung Epic 4G boasts of providing a ‘full suite of entertainment on the go.’ This Android 2.3 handset weighs just 5.5 ounces and has a 4-inch Super AMOLED 480 x 800p display resolution touchscreen spread across its slim chassis. Furthermore, it runs on the 1GHz Cortex A8 Hummingbird application processor and includes various features such as TouchWiz, Smart Unlock, Social Hub and an accelerometer.
You can capture precious moments and video bits through the 5MP camera with 4x optical zoom, which is accompanied by auto focus, geo-tagging, editing modes and online imaging uploading.
Price: $99.99 via Sprint
4 – Nokia E7:
The choice is yours – touch or type. Offering you this option is the Nokia E7, which is next on our roster of slider phones and for good reason. Besides displaying a 4-inch ClearBlack AMOLED screen, it packs in a full QWERTY keyboard without adding extra pounds to the smartphone. Tipping the scales at just 176g, the device sits snuggly in your palm as it measures 123.7mm x 62.4mm x 13.6mm.
The Symbian Anna OS phone offers you the ability to capture picture perfect moments via its 8MP camera that features dual LED flash, face recognition and even a secondary VGA snapper for video calls. It also strides down the aisle in a slew of colors like silver white, blue, dark gray, orange and green.
Price: $392
5 – HTC Evo Shift 4G:
As the company claims, although the HTC Evo Shift 4G fits comfortably into the pocket or handbag, you’ll have ample of reasons to keep it out and take complete advantage of its various attributes. Well for one, it incorporates an integrated QWERTY keyboard that easily slides out, cutting on any excess bulk. Although the phone is packed with HTC Sense and Android 2.2, you can smack your lips with delight as the handset is now upgradable to Gingerbread.
All pictures and videos snapped through the 5MP color CMOS camera with auto focus can be viewed on the 3.6-inch 800 x 480p WVGA resolutions capacitive multi-touch screen. The rechargeable 1500mAh lithium-ion battery allows you to catch up on all the daily gossip by providing up to 360 minutes or 6 hours of talk time. These features and more are sealed neatly within a 4.61- x 2.32- x 0.59-inch chassis.
Price: $99.99 via Sprint
6 – Motorola Flipout:
The Motorola Flipout rides into our array of slider phones bearing a slightly different form factor as compared to the aforesaid five devices lined up in this roster. The 2.8-inch 320 x 240p resolutions QVGA TFT touchscreen can be slid away to reveal a five-row rotator QWERTY keypad complete with a separate number string. Infused with Motoblur, the gadget includes Battery manager and Data manager, both of which put you in charge of their respective aspects. You can also exploit Google mobile services such as Google Maps, Gmail and Google Search as well as Twitter, MySpace and Facebook for all those social butterflies out there. Additionally, it comes embedded with Android 2.1 and a 3MP camera. And although the specs are nothing to ‘flip out’ about, it does bear some sort of uniqueness, looks-wise, and hence can be flaunted with panache wherever you go.
Price: $114.99
7 – BlackBerry Torch 9810:
Not all of you would be surprised to see a RIM entrant among the crème de la crème, as far as slide phones are concerned. Straying away from its conventional appearance, the company endows the BlackBerry Torch 9810 with a silde-out QWERTY keypad that is accompanied by an ESC key and Menu button on the right and left sides of the trackpad, respectively. Blessed with 8GB onboard memory, potential users can garner additional hoarding space via the microSD slot which can accommodate up to 32GB. Fitted with a 3.2-inch high resolution 640 x 480p VGA color display, it comes with the essentials like a 5MP camera and flash. So if you want to show off your BlackBerry handset with a twist, why not pick up the Torch 9810?
Price: $441
So we hope by listing out the best slider phones, we have narrowed down your options for acquiring the pick of the crop. Do let us know which of the aforementioned devices are sliding into your pockets right now and which ones didn’t quite make the cut.