The Register, in a long, rambling article, says that Apple has already made a prototype iPhone with a slide-out keypad with traditional plastic buttons that it is demoing to select customers.
The goal is to pitch the slider iPhone to professionals who still prefer the tactile feedback of their BlackBerries and Windows Mobile devices.
The keypad iPhone won’t be out until next year at the earliest, The Register says, but the site seems fairly confident it is coming eventually.
Given the gradual proliferation of different iPod models (Shuffle, mini, etc.), it’s certainly plausible, especially once Apple’s exclusivity deal with AT&T ends.
Maybe the iPhone won’t need a keyboard dock after all.
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