I hate to admit it, but it is true. After 10 months (and untold thousands of messages), I still stink at composing text using the iPhone's software QWERTY keyboard. I make mistakes all the time, and have to edit and re-edit messages before sending them. Time to go back to a physical keyboard?

When the iPhone debuted at MacWorld in January 2007, Steve Jobs made a big fuss of pointing out how much space physical QWERTY keyboards rob from the screen of any smartphone. You can't debate this point. They do. Even though smartphone manufacturers are getting better at designing smartphones that have QWERTY keyboards and reasonably large screens, none of them matches the iPhone's 3.5-inches of roomy goodness.

How did Jobs get so much screen space on there? Easy. He got rid of the physical keyboard. It was replaced by a software keyboard that also has built-in word prediction. The word predictor works pretty well, although it is far from perfect. (Truthfully, that can be said for any T9, SureType, or iTap system). No matter what, I can't blast out messages quickly and accurately on the iPhone. If I take my time (a lot of time), everything works out, but if I move too fast, I find 5 errors and need to go back and edit.

The thing about the iPhone's keyboard is that you often end up using the inner edge of your thumbs to hit the keys. Rather than forming a small point that can accurately hit a specific spot on the screen, the edge of your thumb is more like a blade that is a centimeter or longer. That surface is more than enough to stretch to either side of the key you intend to hit and "push" the wrong one instead.

Technique is crucial. You have to hold the iPhone a specific way and angle your thumbs as close to vertically as possible if you want your accuracy to go up. This requires (too much) thought and concentration.

Here's my biggest problem. On the right side of the keyboard, the "M", "L", "Delete", and "Return" keys are all just a hair too close. When typing messages that require using those letters or keys, I find I've accidentally hit the delete key or return key when I intended to hit the M or L keys. This means I get annoying spaces and jumps in my messages. I then have to go back and edit. Again. And again. And again. I just can't get the right technique down to prevent myself from making these mistakes.

I never had this problem with physical keyboards.

Granted, physical keyboards are not all created equal. Not by any stretch of the imagination. Each has its own quirks that require the user to master and work into muscle memory. The problems are almost all concentrated on the placement of the period, delete, enter/return, shift and other function keys.

To date, I am fastest and most accurate on the Nokia E61i, which has a pretty big keyboard. I also was pretty decent on a BlackBerry Curve. I am not as good on the Motorola Q series, nor the Treo line up.

I am worst at the iPhone. :(

UPDATE:

One reader sent me this link. Point your iPhone to: iphonetypingtest.com. I continued to mak errors, but the test congratulated me on my consistent 37 words per minute typing speed.