Fxtec Pro1 review - For physical keyboard die-hards only - Android

A decade ago, people still furiously pecked at the physical keyboards of BlackBerries and some Android phones. Swipe-typing wasn’t a thing yet and many clung to the notion that a smartphone must include real buttons to press. These preferences faded over time, and phones with keys largely died out. Still, some die-hards remain and it is those folks Fxtec is targeting with the Pro1.

The Fxtec Pro1 features a full-sized screen and a physical keyboard that hides behind the screen when not in use. When opened and set on a table, it resembles a mini laptop and is clearly meant for those seeking to be productive.

Can this small company convince people to come back to the keyboard? Find out in Android Authority‘s Fxtec Pro1 review.

Fxtec Pro1 review: The big picture

The first real smartphones from the likes of BlackBerry and Palm featured tiny keyboards for typing. I happily poked at my BlackBerry 8700 and Palm Treo 650 back in the day. Many millions of mobile professionals cut their teeth on these devices, often supplied by work, and were the first real wave of smartphone users.

The tech industry moves fast, however, and the Apple iPhone changed everything in 2007.

Keyboard-equipped phones lost to big-screened devices for a reason: people prefer phones with large displays. (Have you see the size of the screen on the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus?) Keyboards eat into the real estate available for those screens, and solutions such as Gboard, Swype, and auto-correct helped resolve the typing issues prevalent on screen-only phones.

Still, some of those early original smartphone adopters miss the keyboard, which they felt provided a better experience for composing emails on a screen. Fxtec isn’t necessarily targeting older people, but it is eyeing, in the words of founder and CEO Adrian Li Mow Ching, “people who need to get shit done.”

Did the Fxtec Pro1 help me get more stuff done in the time I used it? I’m here to tell you.

What is the Fxtec Pro1?

Finding a modern smartphone with a built-in QWERTY keyboard is all but impossible. The TCL-made BlackBerry Key2 and Key2 LE are just about it. These two are candybar-style phones, however, like the BlackBerries of old, meaning the screens are smaller to accommodate a keyboard that’s crammed into the phone’s chin. The BlackBerries’ keyboards are always accessible.

The Pro1 is what we used to refer to as a sideways slider, though it doesn’t quite slide. The phone has two halves that rest upon one another: the screen up top and the keyboard underneath. There used to be lots of these: The Samsung Galaxy Indulge, the Motorola Cliq, the LG Mach, for example.

Rather than simply slide back and forth, the Pro1 has a hinge that tilts the screen up at an angle. It doesn’t stand at 100 or 110 degrees; rather, it is a comfortable 155-degree angle for viewing the screen when holding the phone in your hands.

The phone it most closely resembles is the 2007-era Nokia E97, which, says Fxtec, actually inspired the hinge design.

See also: Best smartphones with keyboards

What are the Fxtec Pro1’s hardware features?

As far as basic features are concerned, the Pro1 might surprise you. The screen measures 5.99 inches across the diagonal with Full HD+ resolution (2,160 x 1,080). It is protected by Gorilla Glass 3. I’d call it a decent screen, but also a forgettable one. The size and resolution are fine, it offers plenty of light, and the colors are accurate. Outdoor visibility is good enough.

The Pro1 is comparable to other phones with 6-inch screens, at least in terms of length and width. Its 14mm depth, however, makes it chunky. The front may be glass, but Fxtec had no choice but to use lots of metal in the sliding hinge mechanism and the bottom half of the phone. It’s heavy. At 244.6g or 8.63oz, the Pro1 is heavier than a Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus — with a case on.

Fxtec smoothed over the profile of the phone, giving it curved side edges (including the display) and rounded corners. This absolutely necessary design decision helps reduce the overall footprint to a more pocketable size. The rear metal has a matte black finish with a pleasing grain.

The Pro1 is thick and heavy, but the aluminum and glass feel nice.

Three buttons are on the right edge of the phone, including a volume toggle, power button, and camera key. I am not a fan of the buttons, which make loud clacky sounds when pressed. The volume toggle is loose and floats a bit, while the camera button hardly moves at all.

A fingerprint reader is mounted on the right edge, too. It’s a bit low. I found it easy to train, but it hardly ever worked properly. I gave up and resorted to a password.

You’ll find a 3.5mm jack on top, USB-C port on the bottom, and a SIM card slot on the left edge. I appreciate that the SIM tray can be removed with just your fingernail. It can accommodate two SIM cards, or one SIM with a microSD memory card.

The Pro1 is not rugged, nor is it water proof/resistant.

What’s it like to use the Fxtec Pro1?

Despite seeing various prototypes of the Pro1 over a period of more than seven months, I’m still not convinced Fxtec got the design right. I like and appreciate the basic concept here, but the execution is simply not there.

The foremost problem is the hinge. The physical act of forcing the top half to open is maddening. Rather than simply pop open with a little pressure, you have to press the top half forcefully to convince the hinge to budge. This has been true across all the prototypes I’ve seen, including the shipping model we reviewed. Thanks to the rounded design, your fingers have little purchase to push against. This means you’re just as apt to accidentally fling the phone across the room as you are to successfully open the hinge.