Remember the Optimus Maximus keyboard from Art Lebedev? No, me either. But if I did I’d probably recall the LED keycaps which had two distinct functions: One, to display a tiny image on top of each key and two, to send the cost of the keyboard through the roof.
Today we bring you the e-ink keyboard, which is the same kind of thing, only way more practical.
The idea of the e-ink keycaps on this concept design is to change depending of function. Thus, you could have the relevant symbols displayed when your hit the ctrl, alt or caps keys, or you could have app-specific displays, tailored to Photoshop, say. You could even vary layouts depending on international region or whether you’re hooked up to a Mac or a PC.
In fact, it’s a lot like the soft keyboard of the iPad, only with actual keys. And e-ink is clearly a much better idea than OLED screens.
As a concept, it’s likely that this design will never actually become a real shipping product. But that same limitation never hurt the Optimus Maximus, right?
Source: Apartment Therapy
Charlie Sorrel writes reviews and how-tos. Follow Charlie on Twitter at @mistercharlie, and at micro.blog on @mistercharlie
2 responses to “E-Ink Keyboard Concept Marries Best Of Touch And Physical Keys”
For the love of everyone, please make this a reality.
Would be a nice feature for future Apple Keyboards…