As anyone who has attempted to carry a keyboard – and we’re talking musical, not QWERTY – any distance, you’ll know it’s generally not the most accommodating of shapes. Infinite Response are attempting to address that, with the VAX77 controller; 76-keys, a powder-coated magnesium casing and plenty of presets for all manner of hardware and software synths, its party trick is a hinge down the middle that lets it collapse to a far more manageable 23.3 x 14.5-inches.
I know how it is; Brando’s original Super Tiny Keyboard appeals, but your job watching owls means you need something visible in low-light conditions. Thankfully Brando have heard your hooting prayers and delivered this, the Wireless Illuminated Super Tiny Keyboard, just 170 x 81 x 15mm but now with some lovely blue backlighting.
We’re always on the look out for sturdy travel keyboards, and Atek’s bucks the trend by looking to have the same key size and apparently the same key travel as your desktop ‘board. The payoff with the OnBoard Travel Keyboard is the size: with no folding, rolling or twisting mechanisms, it’s still pretty large. Nonetheless, you get a neat slide-over cover, plus an inflatable wrist-rest.
Sony has announced two new accessories for the PS3 that will ship this holiday. The first is the Wireless Keypad for PS3, a Bluetooth keyboard that clips onto the controller and recharges via USB. Second comes an AC adapter for peripherals, with two separate USB power outputs that can be used to recharge the wireless DUALSHOCK 3 and SIXAXIS controllers, Bluetooth headset and new Bluetooth keyboard without turning the console itself on.
Wireless Keypad demo video after the cut
Art Lebedev Studios have released an image of what they’re calling the “final pre-production prototype” of the Optimus AUX, which presumably means that commercial versions of the 15-key OLED ‘board will look this way. They’ve also, finally, given an indication of price: around $650.
Logitech have announced a Mac-version of their super-skinny wireless keyboard. The Logitech diNovo Keyboard Mac Edition has the same 0.87-inch depth, 3.2mm key travel and high-gloss, semi-transparent plexiglass casing (with brushed aluminum palm-rest), but Mac-specific keys including Mail, Safari, iTunes, Exposé, Cover Flow, Dashboard, QuickLook and Spaces shortcuts.
Optimus have released photos of the newly assembled Aux prototype, the fifteen-key accessory that will use the same OLED technology as its Maximus full-QWERTY sibling. While it’s arguably straightforward to produce a slick prototype and then ruin things with a shoddy production run, we have to give the Optimus guys credit here: the Aux looks great.
Take one rare IBM Model M-15 split ergonomic keyboard, add a flourish of Steampunk mods, and you end up with this, the Datamancer Ergo. A custom commission, the Ergo combines the M-15’s inverted slant, a velvet wrist-rest and an integrated buttonless trackpad, together with violet LEDs and an etched acanthus-leaf pattern.
“Cold hands, warm heart” goes the old saying, but if you’re more keen on melting the ice around your digits than you are reassuring people of your genial nature then Thanko’s new keyboard might appeal. As well as looking monstrously well built, the USB ‘board includes both a fan-cooler and warmer function, designed to keep your hands clement despite the weather.
If you’re an ultraportable device user and you want to keep working even when conditions aren’t all that great, iKey may have the keyboard for you. The iKey BT-87-TP Rugged Bluetooth Keyboard is a 12.01 x 7.75 x 2.03 inch fully-sealed slab of ruggedized data entry, with an industrial silicone keypad and ABS polycarbonate case that together met NEMA 4X specifications dirt, dust, water, ice and corrosive resistance.
SlashGear Japan
