Alltel became the first US carrier to launch a handset with the unique Fastap keypad layout. The LG AX490 was announced today and will go on sale starting August 3rd. Fastap is a licensed key layout technology that puts a 26-letter keyboard inbetween a more conventional keypad. While the tech is up for grabs by anyone who wants to pay a royalty, so far LG has been the most receptive. Canadian carrier Telus launched the LG 6190 with Fastap back in 2004 and saw a surge in data revenue from its users. The actual design of the handset is based off of a race car.
Besides the unique keypad, features of the AX490 include:
Alltel will start selling the AX490 next week for $59.99 after a $40 mail-in rebate and 2-year service agreement.
Two more images of the LG AX490 are available below.
The Fastap is amazing technology, long overdue. Simple and easy to use, even by persons like me with large fingers.
I've used a Fastap phone as well, but only at trade shows so I couldn't really get used to it. But I could see it working well, the buttons had a nice feel. Of course getting used to the placement takes a bit longer than the 10 minutes I used it.
KIDS IN MY CLASS 7TH GRADE LOVED IT WHEN THEY SHOWED IT TO US. REALLY EASY TO USE BECAUSE THERE IS NO MORE EXTRA TAPPING TO SPELL THINGS OUT.
This phone seems very nice however, as an owner of a blackberry with full intergraded keyboard on my phone, i find that when i call credit card companies etc and I need to spell something out such as the Mothers maiden name, I find that the system being used is not insinc with my full keyboard. So more often I need to have a regular phone by my side to read the letters on the keypads. I wonder if this also applies to this LG?
Fastap is great! I am a huge fan of texting so this technology makes my life so much easier. I am surprised it's not on most phones. I highly recommend having Fastap on your next phone.
In regards to Matt's comment, I was able to use the Fastap keypad to spell out the last 4 letters of a persons last name when calling into a automated switchboard for a company. I was really suprised to see that the system recognized the letters even though they were not on the number keys as with the traditional keypad layout. Great phone!!
I can't wait to get dat B*&@#$%!!
I have fat fingers and have used the Fastap phones. The keys work really well; the technology knows which key you are trying to press. It is not just a bunch of tiny buttons. For example, if you press "N" you will get the N character even if you accidentally press the 4,5,7,8 keys.