That's interesting, and old colleague of mine has between completely deaf since birth and using SMS from his mobile phone made life so much easier for him.
You know after reading Cammy's post I was thinking what use would a deaf person have for a cellphone. Then I read yours and realized talking on my cellphone is the least used function on my phone. That little keyboard gets quite the workout. I just hope it lasts the next year and a half till the contract is up.