an improved handheld electronic device having an improved keyboard provides enhanced usability with fewer keys by enabling the keys to pivot slightly to provide multiple functions to the keys . the improved keyboard may , for example , include internal strips of conductive carbon that are disposed adjacent the keys and are electrically engageable with contacts on a printed circuit board . specifically , when a key is pressed directly downward it collapses a single dome and connects together a set of primary contacts to provide a first function . when the key is pressed at the side thereof , the key pivots slightly , collapses the dome and connects together the primary contacts , and also engages a carbon strip with a pair of secondary contacts to connect together the secondary contacts , all of which provide a second function . the keyboard may be configured to be of a qwerty configuration while using only a relatively small number of keys .