Mobile Phone Form Factor - Look Matters!!!

Look Matters! Phone factor decides the look and style of the phone. It is an important aspect of mobile phone and a common parameter based on which people pick mobile phones. Phone factor is divided into two broad categories. 

Rigid form factor

Bar (Candy bar): This is widely used form factor. Bar phones are in cuboid shape. These phones have screen and keyboard (T9 keyboard or QWERTY keyboard) on one face. 

·        Slate: A subset of “Bar” form factor. Touchscreen phones without physical keyboard have slate form factor.

Moving form factor

Flip: The phones with two or more sections that are connected a hinge to let the phones fold and become compact. Generally one section of the phone has keyboard and other has display. 

Slider: A phones having two sections one sliding on rail of the other section. Upper section has display and some basic buttons like call key, multimedia key, etc and lower section has full T9 keyboard or QWERTY keyboard.       

          

·         Normal slider

·         Dual slider – phone can slide from both ends.

·         Side slider 

side slider

side slider

Swivel: Phone with two segments, which swivel past east other on a central axis. It is not common form factor.

Mixed form factor: It can be combination of flip and swivel form factor. This is also not common form factor.