About Different Form Factors of Mobile Phones

There's variety of mobile phones in various types shapes and sizes available in market. The most common form factors are the slider, candy bar, flip and the slate. But the each of form factor having its advantages and disadvantages. While most often, the choice of one form over the other is just a personal preference, there are some advantages each style has over the other. Here are we talking some advantages and disadvantages of each type.

Types of Form Factors:

Bar Form Factor: Bar shaped or candy bar shaped phones are quite likely the  most common phones. They usually have a rectangular shape that resembles a candy bar. To most, the biggest advantage is that they have no moving parts. Also, while the screens of these phones get scratched, the covers of a majority of bar phones can be easily changed.
 
Flip Form Factor: In flip phones, the screen and the keypad are connected by hinges which allow the phone to "flip" open or fold. These phones were earlier known as clamshell phones. There are many advantages that this form factor has over the others, apart from the fun that some have while hanging up. The most obvious being that the screen is better protected from scratches when the phone is closed. Often the voice quality of these phones is better as the mouth piece comes till the mouth. However, this also depends on the quality of the handset. 

In addition, flip phones tend to have larger screens and some come with dual screens, which can be quite handy when taking self portraits. The second screen also tends to improve the notification mechanism of the phone by providing quick access to alerts for missed calls and messages. Those who do not have a habit of locking the keypad before putting the phone into their pockets find these phones more user friendly as there is very little chance of them accidently dialling a number.

However, the fun in using phones of this form has a huge dependency on the quality of the hinge. At times, the hinge gets damaged and noisy making the phone uncomfortable to use. Hinges have been known to break as well!

Slider Form Factor: In slider phones, one part of the phone "slides" over the other part on rails. These phones have keyboards that slide out from under the screen. This form factor lets handset manufacturers build devices with either large screens or with special buttons on the main panel while providing a full keypad. For instance, the popular Sony Ericsson Walkman series had dedicated buttons for music playback and were of standard size. Many smartphones come in this form factor as their users tend to prefer full QWERTY keypads.

The main advantage of slider phones is that they usually have large screens while remaining relatively compact. They are fashionable as well.

However, like with bar phones, the screens of slider phones are not protected and tend to get scratches on them over time. Also, the top half of many of these phones tends to wobble when the handset is open.

Slate Form Factor: Phones of this form factor are thin, have large displays and have touch as the only input. Popularized by the iPhone, these phones have virtual QWERTY keypads and very few actual buttons on the body. Most of these phones require a stylus and typing on them is a pain in almost all cases. Few of Samsung and Nokia phone available on this form factor like Samsung star and Nokia 5230.
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