Tony, I moved from the Blackberry to the G1 to the Nexus One, and was always a staunch physical keyboard guy. I took a big chance on the Nexus One because I ordered it (for $550+) without having ever held it in my hands.

Frankly, I don't miss the physical keyboard.

I do think the iPhone's keyboard is a little better for typing than my N1's, but being able to install others is a big help. Try Swype for a while and see if you like it. I never much liked it myself, but it's a subjective thing so it might suit you more. I'm personally a huge fan of SwiftKey, which greatly reduces the number of screen taps to get a sentence out.

At this point I don't suppose you have much to worry about with the merger. I think 2 years is going to be more time than they'll need to convert the towers such that you won't be able to get 3G on TMobile anymore. Just as long as you go into it knowing that your phone won't be desirable to anyone when you're done with it. That's what I'm facing with my Nexus One and why I'm hoping it'll still be sellable when the supposed new Nexus phone is released.