Hand-held electronic device with auxiliary input device

• US 6,489,950 B1
• Filed: 04/05/2000
• Issued: 12/03/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Major, Harry R., Brown, Michael, Lazaridis, Mihal, Griffin, Jason T., Holmes, John A., Dunk, Craig, Little, Herb A., Lang, Jérôme
• Primary Examiner(s): Saras, Steven
• Assistant Examiner(s): Spencer, William C.
• Application Number:
  US09/543,231
• Time in Patent Office: 972 Days
• Field of Search: 345/168, 345/169, D14/247, D14/252, 400/489
• US Class Current: 345/168
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1656 Details related to functional adaptations of the enclosure, e.g. to provide protection against EMI, shock, water, or to host detachable peripherals like a mouse or removable expansions units like PCMCIA cards, or to provide access to internal components for maintenance or to removable storage supports like CDs or DVDs, or to mechanically mount accessories mounting of accessories to a computer display G06F1/1607; display hoods G06F1/1603; cooling arrangements for portable computers G06F1/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1664 Arrangements for ergonomically adjusting the disposition of keys of the integrated keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1698 the I/O peripheral being a sending/receiving arrangement to establish a cordless communication link, e.g. radio or infrared link, integrated cellular phone details of antennas disposed inside a computer H01Q1/2266
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0219 Special purpose keyboards
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0362 with detection of 1D translations or rotations of an operating part of the device, e.g. scroll wheels, sliders, knobs, rollers or belts
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0383 Signal control means within the pointing device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/274 Converting codes to words; Guess-ahead of partial word inputs

Abstract

A hand-held electronic device with a keyboard, thumbwheel, display and associated software is optimized for use of the device with the thumbs. The associated software has a plurality of features to optimize efficient use of the limited keyboard space and encourage the use of the device by thumb-based data entry through the thumbwheel and/or through a combination of minimal number of keystrokes. Software features include international character scrolling, and auto-capitalization. The keys on the device keyboard are optimally shaped and configured for thumb-based input. In addition, the thumbwheel is inclined between the front and a side edge of the device so as to be reachable by either the thumb or index finger of the user'"'"'s hand at the side edge of the device.

Claims

1. A hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) configured to communicate with a wireless network, comprising:

a housing dimensioned to be held between a user'"'"'s hands;

a display located on a face of the housing;

an auxiliary input device located on a side wall of the housing adjacent to the display; and

a QWERTY-style keyboard located below the display on the face of the housing and distributed horizontally across the face of the housing, wherein the QWERTY-style keyboard includes a plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys and is symmetrically distributed across the face of the housing such that half of the tilted oblong keys are positioned on a left-hand side of the face of the housing and the remaining tilted oblong keys are located on a right-hand side of the face of the housing, wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys are configured into three rows of keys, each key in each row of keys being positioned on the face of the housing along an arc.

2. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, wherein the left-hand oblong keys are tilted at a negative angle relative to vertical and the right-hand oblong keys are tilted at a positive angle relative to vertical such that the tilted oblong keys are inclined at angles complimentary to typing with the user'"'"'s thumbs.

3. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of function keys located on the face of the housing below the QWERTY-style keyboard.

4. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, further comprising a serial port located on the housing for coupling the PDA to a host computer.

5. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, wherein the display is approximately square.

6. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheel.

7. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 6, wherein the thumbwheel is inclined between the face and the side wall of the PDA so as to be accessible to either the thumb or index finger of a user'"'"'s hand at a variety of angular positions.

8. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claims 7, wherein the thumbwheel projects outward through a slot-shaped opening which is located partially at the face of the PDA and partially at the side wall of the PDA.

9. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 6, wherein the PDA further comprises a main PCB, a thumbwheel PCB operatively connected with the main PCB, and a rollerwheel switch assembly supporting the thumbwheel on a portion of the thumbwheel PCB which is inclined relative to the main PCB.

10. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 9, wherein the PDA further comprises a connector interconnecting the main PCB with a portion of the thumbwheel PCB which is parallel to the main PCB.

11. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 6, wherein the thumbwheel has multiple depressible and rotatable detectable input movements.

12. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, further comprising a transceiver for transmitting and receiving information to and from the wireless network.

13. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 12, further comprising at least one antenna structure coupled to the transceiver.

14. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 13, further comprising a messaging application operating in the PDA for generating messages to be transmitted via the wireless network.

15. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, further comprising a power supply subsystem for providing power to the PDA.

16. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 15, wherein the power supply subsystem includes a rechargeable lithium-ion battery.

17. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 16, further comprising an external charger input on the housing for coupling the PDA to a source of power for recharging the lithium-ion battery.

18. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 15, wherein the power supply sub-system includes a battery and a voltage regulator.

19. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, further composing:

a microprocessor; and

a memory for storing an operating system and a plurality of software applications that are executed by the microprocessor to control the operation of the PDA.

20. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 19, wherein the plurality of software applications include an address book application and a messaging application.

21. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 19, wherein the plurality of software applications include a calendar application and a messaging application.

22. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, wherein the housing is rectangular having four side walls, two of the side walls being relatively longer than the other two side walls, and wherein the QWERTY keyboard is symmetrically distributed across the face of the housing between the two relatively longer side walls.

23. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys are oval shaped.

24. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys are tilted with respect to a vertical reference through the PDA.

25. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 24, wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys are tilted at an angle with respect to the vertical reference of between 20 and 70 degrees.

26. The hand-held personal digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, wherein a rho value defining the curvature of the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys is about 0.4.

27. The hand-held persona digital assistant (PDA) of claim 1, further comprising:

an antenna for receiving text messages from the wireless network and for transmitting text messages to the wireless network;

a transceiver, coupled to the antenna, for demodulating the received text messages and for generating modulated text message to transmit to the wireless network; and

a digital signal processor coupled to the transceiver for processing demodulated text messages from the transceiver and for providing modulating information to the transceiver.

28. A handheld device optimally configured for use with the thumbs of a user, comprising:

a device housing;

a QWERTY keyboard comprising a plurality of letter keys, wherein the plurality of letter keys are oblong shaped keys, and wherein each oblong shaped key is tilted relative to a vertical reference through the device, the QWERTY keyboard being symmetrically positioned in the device housing;

an auxiliary input device positioned in relative proximity to the QWERTY keyboard;

a display positioned adjacent to the keyboard; and

software residing in the device for providing functionality to inputs received from the auxiliary input device and the QWERTY keyboard.

29. The handheld device of claim 28, wherein the plurality of letter keys in the QWERTY keyboard are grouped into a first set of letter keys and a second set of letter keys, wherein the first set of letter keys are tilted at a positive angle with respect to the vertical reference and the second set of letter keys are tilted at a negative angle with respect to the vertical reference.

30. The handheld device of claim 28, wherein the plurality of oblong shaped letter keys are oval shaped.

31. The handheld device of claim 29, wherein the positive angle is about 40 degrees and the negative angle is about 40 degrees.

32. The handheld device of claim 29, wherein a rho value defining the curvature of the first and second set of oblong shaped keys is about 0.414.

33. The handheld device of claim 28, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheel.

34. The handheld devices of claim 28, wherein the auxiliary input device includes a directional input component for navigating a plurality of menu items presented on the display and a selector switch for selecting a menu item from the plurality of menu items.

35. The handheld device of claim 28, wherein the device is a two-way pager.

36. The handheld device of claim 28, wherein the device is a personal digital assistant.

37. The handheld device of claim 28, wherein the plurality of letter keys are grouped into three rows of letter keys, each row of letter keys positioned on the device along an arc.

38. The handheld device of claim 37, wherein the arcs are concentric.

39. The handheld device of claim 28, further comprising a transceiver for transmitting and receiving information to and from a wireless network, and an antenna coupled to the transceiver.

40. The handheld device of claim 28, further comprising:

a microprocessor; and

a memory for storing the software, the software including an operating system and a plurality of application programs that are executed by the microprocessor to control the operation of the handheld device.

41. The handheld device of claim 40, wherein the memory is a flash memory.

42. The handheld device of claim 40, further comprising a digital signal processor coupled between the microprocessor and a transceiver included in the handheld device.

43. The handheld device of claim 40, wherein the plurality of application programs include a messaging application for generating e-mail messages and a calendar application.

44. The handheld device of claim 43, wherein the plurality of application programs further include an address book application.

45. The hand held device of claim 28, further comprising a serial port for coupling the handheld device to a host computer.

46. The handheld device of claim 28, further comprising a power supply subsystem including a rechargeable battery and an external charger input for receiving a source of electrical charge to recharge the rechargeable battery.

47. The handheld device of claim 46, wherein the rechargeable battery is a lithium ion battery.

48. The handheld device of claim 46, wherein the power supply subsystem further includes a voltage regulator coupled to the rechargeable battery for generating a regulated supply voltage for powering the device.

49. The handheld device of claim 46, wherein the power supply subsystem further includes connections to a microprocessor for monitoring the operation of the power supply subsystem.

50. An electronic communication device, comprising:

a device housing;

a transceiver for transmitting and receiving text messages;

a keyboard for composing text messages to be transmitted by the transceiver, wherein the keyboard includes three sets of tilted oblong shaped keys, wherein the three sets of tilted oblong shaped keys are arranged into a QWERTY keyboard having three rows of keys, a top row, a middle row, and a bottom row, wherein the first set of keys is arranged in an arc and forms a top row of keys in the QWERTY keyboard, the second set of keys is arranged in an arc and forms a middle row of keys in the QWERTY keyboard, and the third set of keys is arranged in an arc and forms the bottom row of keys in the QWERTY keyboard, and wherein the three rows of keys are symmetrically positioned on the device housing; and

a display for displaying the received text messages.

51. The electronic communication device of claim 50, wherein the three sets of tilted oblong shaped keys are oval shaped, and wherein the oval shaped keys are tilted at a common angle with respect to a vertical reference through the electronic communication device.

52. The electronic communication device of claim 50, further comprising:

an auxiliary input device for selecting an operation to be performed by the device, wherein a menu of operations is presented on the display.

53. The electronic communication device of claim 50, wherein the text messages are e-mail messages.

54. The electronic communication device of claim 50, wherein the transceiver includes:

a first antenna for receiving a text message; and

a second antenna for transmitting a text message.

55. The electronic communication device of claim 54, wherein the transceiver further includes:

a receiver, coupled to the first antenna, for demodulating the received text message; and

a transmitter, coupled to the second antenna, for generating a modulated text message.

56. The electronic communication device of claim 55, wherein the transceiver further includes:

a digital signal processor coupled to the transmitter and the receiver for processing demodulated text messages from the receiver, and for providing modulation information to the transmitter.

57. A hand-held electronic device, comprising:

a device housing having a top surface, a bottom surface, and a plurality of connecting surfaces for connecting the top surface to the a bottom surface;

an LCD display mounted within the top surface,

a keyboard mounted within the top surface of the device housing in a position beneath the LCD display, wherein the keyboard comprises as a QWERTY-style keyboard having a plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys that are tilted with respect to a vertical reference through the top surface, and further wherein the keyboard is distributed symmetrically across the face of the housing, wherein the keyboard includes a plurality of letter keys and a plurality of specialized keys, the plurality of letter keys including a first set of oblong shaped keys and a second set of oblong shaped keys, wherein each oblong shaped key in the first set of oblong shaped keys is tilted at a positive angle relative to the vertical reference and each oblong shaped key in the second set of oblong shaped keys is tilted at a negative angle relative to the vertical reference; and

an auxiliary input device mounted within the device housing in a position above the keyboard and to the side of the LCD display.

58. The hand-held electronic device of claim 57, wherein the plurality of specialized keys include at least a space bar key, an alt key, a cap key and a line feed key.

59. The hand-held electronic device of claim 57, wherein the hand-held electronic device is a two-way pager, a personal digital assistant or an electronic organizer.

60. The hand-held electronic device of claim 57, wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys are oval shaped.

61. The hand-held electronic device of claim 57, wherein the LCD display occupies more than half of the surface area of the top surface.

62. The hand-held electronic device of claim 57, wherein the auxiliary input device is mounted within one of the connecting surfaces.

63. The hand-held electronic device of claim 57, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheel.

64. The hand-held electronic device of claim 57, wherein the auxiliary input device includes a directional input component for navigating a plurality of menu items presented on the LCD display and a selector switch for selecting a menu item from the plurality of menu items.

65. The hand-held electronic device of claim 57, further comprising:

a transceiver for transmitting and receiving messages.

66. The hand-held electronic device of claim 65, further comprising:

a first antenna for receiving messages; and

a second antenna for transmitting messages.

67. The hand-held electronic device of claim 66, wherein the transceiver further comprises:

a receiver, coupled to the first antenna, for demodulating the received messages; and

a transmitter, coupled to the second antenna, for generating a modulated message.

68. The hand-held electronic device of claim 67, wherein the transceiver further comprises:

a digital signal processor coupled to the transmitter and the receiver for processing demodulated messages from the receiver, and for providing modulation information to the transmitter.

69. A hand-held electronic device, comprising

a device housing having a top surface, a bottom surface, and a plurality of connecting surfaces for connecting the top surface to the bottom surface;

an LCD display mounted within the top surface;

a keyboard mounted within the top surface of the device housing in a position beneath the LCD display, wherein the keyboard comprises a QWERTY-style keyboard having a plurality of tilted oval shaped keys that are tilted with respect to a vertical reference through the top surface, and further wherein the keyboard is distributed symmetrically across the face of the housing; and

an auxiliary input device mounted within the device housing in a position above the keyboard and to the side of the LCD display.

70. The hand-held electronic device of claim 69, wherein the keyboard comprises:

a plurality of letter keys; and

a plurality of specialized keys.

71. The hand-held electronic device of claim 70, wherein the plurality of specialized keys include at least a space bar key, an al key, a cap key and a line feed key.

72. The hand-held electronic device of claim 70, wherein the plurality of letter keys include a first set of oval shaped keys and a second set of oval shaped keys, wherein each oval shaped key in the first set of oval shaped keys is tilted at a positive angle relative to the vertical reference and each oval shaped key in the second set of oval shaped keys is tilted at a negative angle relative to the vertical reference.

73. The hand-held electronic device of claim 69, wherein the hand-held electronic device is a two-way pager, a personal digital assistant or an electronic organizer.

74. The hand-held electronic device of claim 69, wherein the LCD display occupies more than half of the surface area of the top surface.

75. The hand-held electronic device of claim 69, wherein the auxiliary input device is mounted within one of the connecting surface.

76. The hand-held electronic device of claim 69, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheel.

77. The hand-held electronic device of claim 69, wherein the auxiliary input device includes a directional input component for navigating a plurality of menu items presented on the LCD display and selector switch for selecting a menu item from the plurality of menu items.

78. The hand-held electronic device of claim 69, further comprising:

a transceiver for transmitting and receiving messages.

79. The hand-held electronic device of claim 78, further comprising:

a first antenna for receiving messages; and

a second antenna for transmitting messages.

80. The hand-held electronic device of claim 79, wherein the transceiver further comprises:

a receiver, coupled to the first antenna, for demodulating the received messages; and

a transmitter, coupled to the second antenna, for generating a modulated message.

81. The hand-held electronic device of claim 80, wherein the transceiver further comprises:

a digital signal processor coupled to the transmitter and the receiver for processing demodulated messages from the receiver, and for providing modulation information to the transmitter.

82. A keyboard for use with a mobile communication device, the keyboard configured in a device housing having a top surface the top surface being bisected into a left half and a right half by a vertical reference through the device housing, the keyboard comprising:

a plurality of oval shaped tilted letter keys distributed horizontally across the top surface of the housing, wherein the plurality of oval shaped tilted letter keys are grouped into a first set of letter keys, and a second set of letter keys, wherein the first set of letter keys are positioned on the left half of the top surface and the second set of letter keys are positioned on the right half of the top surface, such that approximately half of the plurality of letter keys are positioned to the left of the vertical reference and approximately half of the plurality of letter keys are positioned to the right of the vertical reference so as to symmetrically distribute the keys across the top surface of the housing; and

a plurality of specialized keys.

83. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein each key in the first set of letter keys is tilted at a positive angle relative to the vertical reference and each key in the second set of letter keys is tilted at a negative angle relative to the vertical reference.

84. The keyboard of claim 83, wherein this positive angle is between positive 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference and the negative angle is between negative 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference.

85. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys each comprise three rows of letter keys, wherein the keys in each row of the three rows of letter keys are vertically aligned with keys in the other two rows of letter keys.

86. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein the specialized keys include a space bar key.

87. The keyboard of claim 86, wherein the specialized keys form a fourth row of keys placed on the top surface of the housing be low the three rows of letter keys.

88. The keyboard of claim 87, wherein the specialized keys include a space bar key.

89. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein the specialized keys include a cap key.

90. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein the specialized keys include a backspace key.

91. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein the specialized keys include a line feed key.

92. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein the specialized keys include an alt key.

93. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein the first set of letter keys and the second set of letter keys comprise a first row of letter keys.

94. The keyboard of claim 93, wherein the first set of letter keys and the second set of letter keys comprise a second row of letter keys positioned beneath the first row of letter keys.

95. The keyboard of claim 94, wherein the first row of letter keys and the second row of letter keys are positioned on the device housing along respective first and second arcs.

96. The keyboard of claim 82, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys comprise a QWERTY keyboard.

97. A keyboard for use with a mobile communication device, the keyboard configured in a device housing having a top surface, the top surface being bisected into a left half and a right half by a vertical reference through the device housing, the keyboard comprising:

a plurality of oblong shaped tilted letter keys distributed horizontally across the top surface of the housing, wherein the plurality of oblong shaped tilted letter keys are set of letter keys are positioned on the left half of the top surface and the second set of letter keys are positioned on the right half of the top surface, such that approximately half of the plurality of letter keys are positioned to the left of the vertical reference and approximately half of the plurality of letter keys are positioned to the right of the vertical reference so as to symmetrically distribute the keys across the top surface of the housing, wherein each key in the first set of letter keys s tilted at a positive angle relative to the vertical reference and each key in the second set of letter keys is tilted at a negative angle relative to the vertical reference; and

a plurality of specialized keys.

98. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys are oval shaped keys.

99. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the positive angle is between positive 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference and the negative angle is between negative 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference.

100. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys each comprise three rows of letter keys, wherein the keys in each row of the three rows of letter keys are vertically aligned with keys in the other two rows of letter keys.

101. The keyboard of claim 100, wherein the specialized keys include a space bar and form a fourth row of keys.

102. The keyboard of claim 101, wherein the fourth row of keys is positioned on the top surface of the housing below the three rows of letter keys.

103. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the specialized keys include a space bar key.

104. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the specialized keys include a cap key.

105. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the specialized keys include a backspace key.

106. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the specialized keys include a line feed key.

107. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the specialized keys include an alt key.

108. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the first set of letter keys and the second set of letter keys comprise a first row of letter keys.

109. The keyboard of claim 108, wherein the first set of letter keys and the second set of letter keys comprise a second row of letter keys positioned beneath the first row of letter keys.

110. The keyboard of claim 109, wherein the first row of letter keys and the second row of letter keys are positioned on the device housing along respective first and second arcs.

111. The keyboard of claim 97, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys comprise a QWERTY keyboard.

112. A keyboard for use with a mobile communication device, the keyboard configured in a device housing having a top surface, the a top surface being bisected into a left half and a right half by a vertical reference through the device housing, the keyboard comprising:

a plurality of oblong shaped tilted letter keys distributed horizontally across the top surface of the housing, wherein the plurality of oblong shaped tilted letter keys are grouped into a first set of letter keys and a second set of letter keys, wherein the first set of letter keys are positioned on the left half of the top surface and the second set of letter keys are positioned on the right half of the top surface, such that approximately half of the plurality of letter keys are positioned to the left of the vertical reference and approximately half of the plurality of letter keys are positioned to the right of the vertical reference so as to symmetrically distribute the keys across the top surface of the housing, wherein the first and second sets of letter key each comprise three rows of letter keys, wherein the keys in each row of the three rows of letter keys are vertically aligned with keys in the other two rows of letter keys; and

a plurality of specialized keys.

113. The keyboard of claim 112, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys are oval shaped keys.

114. The keyboard of claim 112, wherein each key in the first set of letter keys is tilted at a positive angle relative to the vertical reference and each key in the second set of letter keys is tilted at a negative angle relative to the vertical reference.

115. The keyboard of claim 114, wherein the positive angle is between positive 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference and the negative angle is between negative 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference.

116. The keyboard of claim 112, wherein the specialized keys include a space bar key.

117. The keyboard of claim 116, wherein the space bar key forms a fourth row of keys positioned beneath the three rows of letter keys.

118. The keyboard of claim 112, wherein the specialized keys include a cap key.

119. The keyboard of claim 112, wherein the specialized keys include a backspace key.

120. The keyboard of claim 112, wherein the specialized keys include a line feed key.

121. The keyboard of claim 112, wherein the specialized keys include an alt key.

122. The keyboard of claim 112, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys comprise a QWERTY keyboard.

123. A keyboard for use with a mobile communication device, the keyboard configured in a device housing having a top surface, the top surface being bisected into a left half and a right half by a vertical reference through the device housing, the keyboard comprising:

a plurality of oblong shaped tilted letter keys distributed horizontally across the top surface of the housing, wherein the plurality of oblong shaped tilted letter keys are grouped into a first set of letter keys and a second set of letter keys, wherein the first set of letter keys are positioned on the left half of the top surface and the second set of letter keys are positioned on the right half of the top surface, such that approximately half of the plurality of letter keys are positioned to the left of the vertical reference and approximately half of the plurality of letter keys are positioned to the right of the vertical reference so as to symmetrically distribute the keys across the top surface of the housing, wherein the first set of letter keys and the sec and set of letter comprise comprise a first row of letter keys and a second set of letter keys positioned beneath the first row of letter keys, wherein the first row of letter keys and the second row of letter keys are positioned on the device housing along respective first and second arcs; and

a plurality of specialized keys.

124. The keyboard of claim 123, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys are oval shaped keys.

125. The keyboard of claim 123, wherein each key in the first set of letter keys is tilted at a positive angle relative to the vertical reference and each key in the second set of letter keys is tilted at a negative angle relative to the vertical reference.

126. The keyboard of claim 125, wherein the positive angle is between positive 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference and the negative angle is between negative 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference.

127. The keyboard of claim 123, wherein the specialized keys include a space bar key.

128. The keyboard of claim 123, wherein the specialized keys include a cap key.

129. The keyboard of claim 123, wherein the specialized keys include a backspace key.

130. The keyboard of claim 123, wherein the specialized keys include a line feed key.

131. The keyboard of claim 123, wherein the specialized keys include an alt key.

132. The keyboard of claim 123, wherein the first and second sets of letter keys comprise a QWERTY keyboard.

133. A wireless e-mail device, comprising:

a device housing having a top surface and a left and ride side surface coupled to the top surface;

an LCD display mounted within the top surface;

a transceiver for receiving e-mail messages front a wireless network and for transmitting e-mail messages generated on the wireless e-mail device to the wireless network; and

a keyboard mounted within the top surface for generating e-mail messages, the keyboard comprising a plurality of tilted oval shaped keys configured as a QWERTY keyboard, wherein the QWERTY keyboard is symmetrically positioned on the top surface of the device housing.

134. The wireless e-mail device of claim 133, further comprising an auxiliary input device mounted within the device housing.

135. The wireless e-mail device of claim 134, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheel.

136. The wireless e-mail device of claim 134, wherein the auxiliary input device includes a directional input component for navigating a plurality of menu items presented on the LCD display and a selector switch for selecting a menu item from the plurality of menu items.

137. The wireless e-mail device of claim 133, wherein the plurality of tilted oval shaped keys include a first set of keys and a second set of keys, wherein the first set of keys are tilted at a positive angle relative to a vertical reference through the device housing and the second set of keys are tilted at a negative angle relative to the vertical reference.

138. The wireless e-mail device of claim 133, further comprising an antenna coupled to the transceiver.

139. The wireless e-mail device of claim 133, further comprising:

a microprocessor; and

a memory for storing an operating system and a plurality of application programs that are executed by the microprocessor to control the operation of the wireless e-mail device.

140. The wireless e-mail device of claim 139, wherein the operating system assigns a plurality of characters to at least one of the plurality of oval shaped keys, and wherein the wireless e-mail device includes an auxiliary input device that is used to select one of the plurality of characters by holding down the at least one oval shaped key and selecting the one of the plurality of characters using the auxiliary input device.

141. The wireless e-mail device of claim 139, wherein the memory stores a database associating a plurality of first character phrases with a plurality of second character phrases, and wherein the operating system detects one of the plurality of first character phrases input by a user of the wireless e-mail device using the keyboard and substitutes the associated second character phrase on the LCD display.

142. The wireless e-mail device of claim 139, wherein the memory is a flash memory.

143. The wireless e-mail device of claim 139, further comprising a digital signal processor coupled between the microprocessor and the transceiver.

144. The wireless e-mail device of claim 139, wherein the plurality of application programs include a messaging application for generating e-mail messages and a calendar application.

145. The wireless e-mail device of claim 144, wherein the plurality of application programs further include an address book application.

146. The wireless e-mail device of claim 133, further comprising a serial port for coupling the wireless e-mail device to a host computer.

147. The wireless e-mail device of claim 133, further comprising a power supply subsystem including a rechargeable battery and an external charger input for receiving a source of electrical charge to recharge the rechargeable battery.

148. The wireless e-mail device of claim 147, wherein the rechargeable battery is a lithium battery.

149. The wireless e-mail device of claim 147, wherein the power supply subsystem further includes a voltage regulator coupled to the rechargeable battery for generating a regulated supply voltage for powering the device.

150. The wireless e-mail device of claim 147, wherein the power supply subsystem further includes connections to a microprocessor for monitoring the operation of the power supply subsystem.

151. A wireless e-ail device, comprising:

a device housing having a top surface and a left and right side surface coupled to the top surface;

an LCD display mounted within the top surface;

a transceiver for receiving e-mail messages from a wireless network and for transmitting e-mail messages generated on the wireless e-mail device to the wireless network; and

a keyboard mounted within the top surface for generating e-mail messages, the keyboard comprising a plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys configured as a QWERTY keyboard, wherein the QWERTY keyboard is symmetrically positioned on the top surface of the device housing, and wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys include a first set of keys and a second set of keys, wherein the first set of keys are tilted at a positive angle relative to a vertical reference through the device housing and the second set of keys are tilted at a negative angle relative to the vertical reference.

152. The wireless e-mail device of claim 151, further comprising an auxiliary input device mounted within the device housing.

153. The wireless e-mail device of claim 152, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheet.

154. The wireless e-mail device of claim 152, wherein the auxiliary input device includes a directional input component for navigating a plurality of menu items presented on the LCD display and a selector switch for selecting a menu item from the plurality of menu items.

155. The wireless e-mail device of claim 151, wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys are oval shaped.

156. The wireless e-mail device of claim 151, further comprising an antenna coupled to the transceiver.

157. The wireless e-mail device of claim 151, further comprising:

a microprocessor; and

a memory for storing an operating system and a plurality of application programs that are executed by the microprocessor to control the operation of the wireless e-mail device.

158. The wireless e-mail device of claim 157, wherein the memory is a flash memory.

159. The wireless e-mail device of claim 157, further comprising a digital signal processor coupled between the microprocessor and the transceiver.

160. The wireless e-mail device of claim 151, wherein the plurality of application programs include a messaging application for generating e-mail messages and a calendar application.

161. The wireless e-mail device of claim 160, wherein the plurality of application programs further include an address book application.

162. The wireless e-mail device of claim 151, further comprising a serial port for coupling the wireless e-mail device to a host computer.

163. The wireless e-mail device of claim 151, further comprising a power supply subsystem including a rechargeable battery and an external charger input for receiving a source of electrical charge to recharge the rechargeable battery.

164. The wireless e-mail device of claim 163, wherein the rechargeable battery is a lithium battery.

165. The wireless e-mail device of claim 163, wherein the power supply subsystem further includes a voltage regulator couplets to the rechargeable battery for generating a regulated supply voltage for powering the device.

166. The wireless e-mail device of claim 163, wherein the power supply subsystem further includes connections to a microprocessor for monitoring the operation of the power supply subsystem.

167. A wireless e-mail device, comprising:

a device housing;

an antenna;

a transceiver coupled to the antenna for sending and receiving e-mail messages to and from a wireless network;

a display mounted in the device housing for displaying received e-mail messages, and for presenting a user interface for generating an e-mail message;

an auxiliary input device mounted in the device housing and having a directional component for navigating a plurality of menu items presented on the display and a switch for selecting one of the menu items; and

a QWERTY keyboard mounted in the device housing for entering the text of an e-mail message, the QWERTY keyboard including a plurality of tilted oval shaped keys.

168. The wireless e-mail device of claim 167, wherein the device housing comprises a top surface, a bottom surface, and a plurality of side surfaces coupling the top surface to the bottom surface.

169. The wireless e-mail device of claim 168, wherein the display and the QWERTY keyboard are mounted in the top surface of tie device housing.

170. The wireless e-mail device of claim 169, wherein the display is mounted above the QWERTY keyboard.

171. The wireless e-mail device of claim 170, wherein the display is approximately square.

172. The wireless e-mail device of claim 167, wherein the display is an LCD display.

173. The wireless e-mail device of claim 167, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheel.

174. The wireless e-mail device of claim 167, further comprising a serial port for connecting the wireless e-mail device to a host computer.

175. The wireless e-mail device of claim 167, wherein the plurality of tilted oval shaped keys include two groups of keys, a first group keys that are tilted at a positive angle with respect to a vertical reference through the device housing and a second group of keys that are tilted at a negative angle with respect to the vertical reference.

176. The wireless e-mail device of claim 167, wherein the plurality of tilted oval shaped keys are grouped into three rows of keys, a first row, a second row, and a third row, wherein the first, second and third rows of letter keys are positioned on the device housing along first, second and third arcs.

177. The wireless e-mail device of claim 176, wherein the first, second and third arcs are concentric.

178. The wireless email device of claim 167, wherein the wireless e-mail device is a two-way pager, a portable digital assistant, or an electronic organizer.

179. The wireless e-mail device of claim 167, further comprising:

a microprocessor coupled to a memory for controlling the operation of the wireless e-mail device, the memory storing an operating system and a messaging application, wherein the messaging application presents the user interface for generating an e-mail message on the display.

180. The wireless e-mail device of claim 167, further comprising:

a power supply subsystem including a rechargeable battery and an external charger input for receiving a source of electrical energy for recharging the rechargeable battery.

181. The wireless e-mail device of claim 179, wherein the memory stores a calendar application.

182. A wireless e-mail device, comprising:

a device housing;

an antenna;

a transceiver coupled to the antenna for sending and receiving e-mail messages to and from a wireless network;

a display mounted in the device housing for displaying received e-mail messages, and for presenting a user interface for generating an e-mail message;

an auxiliary input device mounted in the device housing and having a directional component for navigating a plurality of menu items presented on the display and a switch for selecting one of the menu items; and

a QWERTY keyboard mounted in the device housing for entering the text of an e-mail message, the QWERTY keyboard including a plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys, wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys include two groups of keys, a first group of keys that are tilted at a positive angle with respect to a vertical reference through the device housing and a second group of keys that are tilted at a negative angle with respect to the vertical reference.

183. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, wherein the plurality of oblong shaped keys are oval shaped.

184. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, wherein the device housing comprises a top surface, a bottom surface, and a plurality of side surfaces coupling the top surface to the bottom surface.

185. The wireless e-mail device of claim 184, wherein the display and the QWERTY keyboard are mounted in the top surface of the device housing.

186. The wireless e-mail device of claim 185, wherein the display is mounted above the QWERTY keyboard.

187. The wireless e-mail device of claim 186, wherein the display is approximately square.

188. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, wherein the display is an LCD display.

189. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheel.

190. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, further comprising a serial port for connecting the wireless e-mail device to a host computer.

191. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, wherein the positive angle is between positive 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference and the negative angle is between negative 20 and 70 degrees from the vertical reference.

192. The wireless e-mail device of claim 183, wherein the plurality of tilted oval shaped keys are grouped into three rows of keys, a first row, a second row, and a third row, wherein the first, second and third rows of letter keys are positioned on the device housing along first, second and third arcs.

193. The wireless e-mail device of claim 192, wherein the first second and third arcs are concentric.

194. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, wherein the wireless e-mail device is a two-way pager, a portable digital assistant, or an electronic organizer.

195. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, further comprising:

a microprocessor coupled to a memory for controlling the operation of the wireless e-mail device, the memory storing an operating system and a messaging application, wherein the messaging application presents the user interface for generating an e-mail message on the display.

196. The wireless e-mail device of claim 182, further comprising:

a power supply subsystem including a rechargeable battery and an external charger input for receiving a source of electrical energy for recharging the rechargeable battery.

197. The wireless e-mail device of claim 195, wherein the memory stores a calendar application.

198. A wireless e-mail device, comprising:

a device housing;

an antenna;

a transceiver coupled to the antenna for sending and receiving e-mail messages to and from a wireless network;

a display mounted in the device housing for displaying received e-mail messages, and for presenting a user interface for generating an e-mail message;

an auxiliary input device mounted in the device housing and having a directional component for navigating a plurality of menu items presented on the display and a switch for selecting one of the menu items; and

a QWERTY keyboard mounted in the device housing for entering the text of an e-mail message, the QWERTY keyboard including a plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys, wherein the plurality of tilted oblong shaped keys are grouped into three rows of letter keys, a first row, a second row, and a third row, wherein the first, second and third rows of letter keys are positioned on the device housing along first, second and third arcs.

199. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, wherein the first, second and third arcs are concentric.

200. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, wherein the plurality of oblong shaped keys are oval shaped.

201. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, wherein the device housing comprises a top surface, a bottom surface, and a plurality of side surfaces coupling the top surface to the bottom surface.

202. The wireless e-mail device of claim 201, wherein the display and the QWERTY keyboard are mounted in the top surface of the device housing.

203. The wireless e-mail device of claim 202, wherein the display is mounted above the QWERTY keyboard.

204. The wireless e-mail device of claim 203, wherein the display is approximately square.

205. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, wherein the display is an LCD display.

206. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, wherein the auxiliary input device is a thumbwheel.

207. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, further comprising a serial port for connecting the wireless e-mail device to a host computer.

208. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, wherein the wireless e-mail device is a two-way pager, a portable digital assistants, or an electronic organizer.

209. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, further comprising:

a microprocessor coupled to a memory for controlling the operation of the wireless e-mail device, the memory storing an operating system and a messaging application, wherein the messaging application present the user interface for generating an e-mail message on the display.

210. The wireless e-mail device of claim 198, further comprising:

a power supply subsystem including a rechargeable battery and an external charger input for receiving a source of electrical energy for recharging the rechargeable battery.

211. The wireless e-mail device of claim 209, wherein the memory stores a calendar application.