[0xEF]

Physical discomforts of writing a novel on a smartphone aside, I am trying to wrap my head around trying to do the same with a device that needs T9 as input. I type slow on a touchscreen as it is, frequently losing my train of thought before I can get my whole comment out, the comments themselves often turning into meandering adventures in Fuzzy Logic Land as a result. I cannot imagine banging one out on a number pad, and I lived through that era, even working a job where cell phones were a no-no so we got pretty good at firing off quick texts without having to look at the keys. Short messages? Can do. Lengthy HN replies? Count me out.

[wodenokoto]

Back in the T9 days, it was not uncommon for Japanese to be faster on a cellphone than on a keyboard.

The input algorithm used in Japan wasn't T9, but very similar to the kana-keyboard available on iPhones today, and the prediction (both kana-to-kanji and next word) was quite good as far as I remember.

[socksy]

I dunno until I learned to swipe on a touchscreen keyboard I was (and still would be) much slower there then with T9. I miss being able to text in my pocket without looking at my phone too...

[stavros]

T9 was pretty good, I remember being fairly fast on it. It wouldn't have been such a slog to type on, I don't think.