Clicks Communicator: A Physical-Keyboard Phone
Clicks Communicator is a smartphone with a built-in physical QWERTY keyboard, reviving the tactile typing experience of older devices like BlackBerry. The phone runs Android and targets users who prefer physical keys for faster, more accurate typing on a modern smartphone.
Background
- Clicks Technology is a startup founded by Michael Fisher ("MrMobile") and Kevin Michaluk (founder of CrackBerry), two long-time figures in the mobile tech community who are known for their nostalgia and advocacy for physical QWERTY keyboards on smartphones.
- The Clicks Communicator was originally a crowd-funded keyboard case for iPhones (the Clicks Keyboard for iPhone 14/15 Pro Max). That first product received mixed reviews — praised for its tactile typing feel, criticized for its high price and bulk.
- This new "Communicator" is a standalone Android smartphone with a built-in physical keyboard (like the classic BlackBerry devices of the 2000s/2010s). It runs Android 15, has a 5.5-inch screen, and a 3:2 aspect ratio display, targeting users who miss or prefer physical keyboards over full-touch screens.
- It fills a niche largely abandoned by major manufacturers: BlackBerry stopped making its own phones in 2016, and the last serious physical-keyboard Android phone (the Unihertz Titan series) remains obscure. The device competes primarily in the "enthusiast/retro" niche, not the mainstream smartphone market.