Product Requirements:
Device:
Visor, Visor Deluxe, Visor Neo, Visor Platinum, Visor Prism, Visor Pro
SnapNType.prc 7k
FaceBoard.prc 30k

The SnapNType T101 from TT Tech LTD. is a unique snap-on input device that is compatible with all of the current Handspring Visor PDAs excluding the Edge model. This thumb-type keyboard is reminiscent of the popular RIM Blackberry style keyboards.

The SnapNType is a sturdy little module. It has a thick plastic shell that doesn't flex or creak when you use it. The shell portion of the device is clear with a grey rubberized front. A clear plastic cover protects the cavity and connector that the PDA snaps into when the keyboard is not attached to it. I thought it was a nice touch to include this cover with the product, but I would probably end up losing it in a short period of time.

There are 39 individual keys on the SnapNType. All of these keys are made of a hard rubber material with white and orange silk-screened labels. The keys are small, but are large enough to press with the tips of your thumbs. The only buttons that I found to be somewhat harder to press were the small round application buttons at the bottom of the keyboard. All of the keys  have decent tactile feedback. The letter keys are laid out in QWERTY format which makes the keyboard easy and familiar to use if you are already a touch typist.

Before you can actually start using the SnapNType, you must first install 2 drivers on your Visor. The driver allows you to enable and disable the keyboard as well as adjust the repeat rate and delay rate for repeating letters when holding down a key. You must enable the keyboard with this driver before attaching it. If you don't do this, none of the keys will be recognized. You do not need to disable the keyboard to hotsync, but it is important to note that you can not beam via the IR port while the SnapNType driver is enabled.

After the two driver files have been installed and the keyboard has been enabled, you can then attach the SnapNType to the Visor. This requires you to remove the protective cover on the back of the keyboard and also the Visor's plastic screen cover. You can then slide the Visor into the cavity on the back of the module. The hotsync connector on the Visor will snap into a mating connector on the keyboard. When the keyboard is in place, it covers the Visor's application buttons, power button and graffiti area. The actual display area is left unobstructed. To turn on the Visor, you press the I/O button on the keyboard.

(Visor Prism and Visor Deluxe)

I was able to test the SnapNType with a Visor Deluxe and a Visor Prism. I found that the keyboard module fit better on the Prism than the Deluxe. By 'fit better', I just mean that the combo felt more solid in my hand. With the Visor Deluxe, the PDA tended to wobble just a little in the keyboard cavity. The Prism / Keyboard combo was also easier to hold due to the 'fin' at the bottom of the Prism. I found that my index fingers rested on that fin making my grip feel more secure. You hold the combo between your two hands and leave your thumbs free to press the keys. It is actually quite comfortable and easy to use in this position.

Overall, regular typing on the SnapNType is probably going to be fine for most people. That said, I did find that I had a little trouble with the placement of a couple of the more important keys. I guess I should start out by saying that I'm really used to the RIM 950 so that might be why I question the location of some of the keys on the SnapNType... The keys that I had problems with were the Backspace, and Return keys. The Backspace key is the rightmost key in the larger horizontal oval key row. That location just doesn't feel natural to me when I need to use it. I would much prefer it to be located at the top right of the keyboard. The location of the Return key isn't as annoying to me, but I think I would prefer it to be on the right edge of the QWERTY board instead of being the next to last button on the bottom row of letter keys.

One other thing that I really like with the RIM that this keyboard doesn't have, is the ability to hold down a key to get the capitalization of that key. With the SnapNType, you have to press the shift key and then the letter that you want to capitalize.

Some buttons that would be nice to have that aren't included on the keyboard would be a Done and Ok button. As it is, you have to keep your stylus handy to tap the screen when those options pop up.

You also need to keep your stylus handy for the FaceBoard popup. The FaceBoard is a pick list of smiles / emoticons and symbols that are not accessible by pressing the symbol button and desired key. Although I find this to be a nifty addition to the product... especially for emails, it would be great if you could use the actual keyboard to activate them instead of the stylus.

You can actually type pretty quickly with the SnapNType. Of course, if you are a touch typist, it's not going to come close to the same speed (at least not for me). I think the SnapNType is a good input solution for tasks such as short email writing or on the go memo editing. I'm not sure I would personally want to use it for lengthy input sessions though. For those tasks, I prefer a regular keyboard such as the Stowaway. However, the SnapNType is a great alternative to the Stowaway when you don't have a flat surface available to you.

The SnapNType is a well made unit at an affordable price. If you don't care for graffiti and find yourself yearning for a compact style keyboard, you might want to give this one a try.
 

Price: $39.95

Pros:
No batteries required
Solid construction
Compact

Cons:
Must manually enable and disable driver
Can not beam with IR while driver is enabled
Location of Backspace key might be less than convenient