The market craves novelty.

Unbelievably, full keyboard phones are making a comeback!

According to foreign media outlet NoteBookCheck, Unihertz recently unveiled its new 5G phone, the Unihertz Titan 2, on their official website. The standout feature of this device is its built-in full keyboard, and it is anticipated to launch on the Kickstarter platform for crowdfunding in June this year.

(Image source: Unihertz)

It's safe to say that, compared to mainstream mobile phone manufacturers who are incessantly fixated on cameras, thinness, performance, and price wars, this product sounds refreshingly unique.

A Modern "Blackberry Passport"

Let's start with its appearance, as always.

Those familiar with Unihertz know that as a niche brand, the company isn't afraid to disrupt the monotonous mobile phone market. Whether innovative or not, their product design stands apart from the mainstream. Therefore, regarding the design of the Unihertz Titan 2, netizens aren't worried about it being mediocre; they're afraid it will be eccentric.

From design sketches circulating on X, the back of the Titan 2 will continue the rugged style of the Titan series.

Considering the product positioning, Unihertz's signature back line lights are absent. Besides the integrated rear cover made of high-strength composite material and metal, the most notable change lies in the camera module, which has shifted from the slightly rugged centered square module of the first-generation Titan to a more modern and recognizable single-camera module.

(Image source: X)

By the way, this sketch was posted by a Japanese user on Twitter, and I can't guarantee its authenticity.

Now, let's turn to the front.

Yes, it's quite familiar. The front design of the Unihertz Titan 2 is nearly identical to that of the Blackberry Passport, both featuring an unconventional screen ratio and a full-size physical keyboard occupying the lower half of the body. Even the keyboard layout is identical.

(Image source: Blackberry)

Regardless of its practical value, it certainly grabs attention.

You may not know that this isn't the first time Unihertz has launched a phone with a square/square-like screen.

As early as 2019, Unihertz launched the first-generation Titan phone through crowdfunding, equipped with a 1430*1438 square-like screen; the subsequent Titan Pocket also adopted this screen ratio, but the resolution was reduced to 716*720.

On the Titan 2, it's rumored that the resolution of this screen will be bumped up to 1440*1440, but it will still maintain a 60Hz refresh rate. While the square ratio may not be compatible with many Android apps, considering the surprises in screen ratios this year, perhaps this screen will perform well?

As for the keyboard, based on the Blackberry Passport's keyboard layout, Unihertz has added a function bar with six additional keys, which can collaborate with the original keyboard to execute various shortcut operations. Theoretically, this should enhance the full keyboard input experience.

In my opinion, this is a lesson learned from the Blackberry Passport.

A Mixed Bag of Specifications

Of course, in terms of core specifications, this is the upgrade long-time users are most anticipating.

Although Unihertz hasn't announced detailed parameters yet, we can still make educated guesses based on leaked information on X to predict its performance, camera, and battery life.

Let's start with performance.

For smaller manufacturers, maximizing resource utilization is crucial, so the Unihertz Titan 2 will most likely be powered by a Dimensity 7400 (a rebranded version of the Dimensity 7300), built on TSMC's N4P process, featuring four Cortex-A78 cores with a maximum frequency of up to 2.5GHz, four Cortex-A55 cores, and a Mali-G615 MC2 GPU.

(Image source: Generic)

Yes, it's essentially the same processor found in the Jelly Max and Motorola edge 60.

Compared to the Dimensity 7200, which has a smaller name, the Dimensity 7400 has two more mid-range cores, but its single-core frequency is roughly 12% lower, and it has two fewer GPU cores. Therefore, its actual positioning is lower than the Dimensity 7200 and is considered a direct competitor to the Snapdragon 7s Gen2.

If there's any good news, it's that this SoC represents a significant leap in energy efficiency and performance compared to the Helio P60 used in the first-generation Titan.

Next, let's discuss battery life.

In my opinion, the first-generation Titan's 6000mAh battery was already impressive, but with increased hardware power consumption and users' longer usage needs, maintaining the status quo isn't "extreme" enough.

(Image source: Unihertz)

Riding the wave of this battery density revolution, the Unihertz Titan 2 is expected to achieve an astonishing 7000mAh battery capacity while becoming thinner. Coupled with the excellent energy efficiency of the Dimensity 7400, its battery life performance is certainly worth anticipating.

As for fast charging, it would be great if it featured the same 66W fast charging as the Jelly Max.

Finally, let's talk about the camera.

Many might think, "Camera? What's there to say about the camera on such a full keyboard phone? As long as it can take pictures, scan codes, and focus quickly, it's good enough."

You'd be surprised, but there are rumors on Reddit that this phone might use the same 100MP main camera as the Jelly Max. While it's not a flagship sensor, compared to the "good enough" photography of the first-generation Titan, the Titan 2's camera capabilities can definitely be described as a transformation.

As for other specifications, although no specific news has been released, most can be guessed.

The Market Craves Diversity

When mentioning "full keyboard phones" today, what comes to mind?

Is it the once-glorious Blackberry empire, with the Bold and Passport series tapping out countless business legends with their fingertips? Or those fleeting Android-powered attempts to continue the keyboard glory, like the Motorola Droid or certain Samsung slider models? Or even older legends, like the last Nokia N95?

As for the domestic market, apart from a handful of enthusiasts who go to great lengths to find "foreign treasures," the glory of full keyboards seems to have long been overshadowed by the wave of full-screen phones.

Oh, by the way, some manufacturers even go so far as to claim that their phones' virtual keyboards have a "mechanical feel" to boast about their linear motor tuning, or even promote things like "Razer collaboration tuning," which is indeed perplexing for physical keyboard enthusiasts and efficiency aficionados.

(Image source: OnePlus)

Especially in recent years, full-screen design has evolved from a novelty to a "standard." The relentless pursuit of screen-to-body ratio has made it difficult to find a model without a full-screen design on the market. Sliders and flip phones have disappeared, and models with full keyboards are even rarer.

I can only say, as a former owner of a Nokia E72,

The thrill of flying fingers on a full keyboard phone... I once thought it would be hard to see again on future new phones.

But in reality, Europeans and Americans have a much stronger obsession with full keyboards than I imagined.

Last year, Clicks launched an external QWERTY keyboard in the form of a protective case specifically designed for the iPhone, which garnered widespread attention and even became a hit product on crowdfunding websites.

Earlier this year, Clicks announced the expansion of its product line to more Android models, including the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, Galaxy S25 (standard version only), and Motorola's small foldable phone, the Moto Razr+. All of these can now offer the classic Blackberry-style physical keyboard experience through this phone case.

The Unihertz Titan 2, which has been dormant for three years, was obviously launched targeting this trend.

But full keyboard enthusiasts shouldn't get too excited too soon. Although the phone's specifications are average, the Unihertz Titan Slim, released years ago, still has an official price of $299.99 (equivalent to 2150 yuan). The Jelly Max, which entered the domestic market last year, is still priced at 2399 yuan on JD.com. I estimate the retail price of the Unihertz Titan 2 will be around 3000 yuan.

For interested tech enthusiasts, perhaps participating in crowdfunding would be more cost-effective.

For larger manufacturers, taking unconventional paths often means uncontrollability, so they're very cautious when launching new products; but for niche manufacturers like Unihertz, which have little user accumulation and whose product specifications are difficult to compete with mainstream manufacturers, taking unconventional paths is the way forward.

As a consumer, I'm delighted to see manufacturers continue to create more distinctive and quality products amidst the competition.

Source: Leitech