Designing a Snap-On QWERTY Keyboard for the iPhone

iPhone 4 with sliding QWERTY keyboard (all images: Altamash Jiwani)

Desperate for a real keyboard on your iPhone?  Indian industrial designer Altamash Jiwani was too, and created a prototype of a snap-on sliding QWERTY keyboard for the iPhone 4:

[The] keyboard offers a QWERTY slider tactile keyboard and a stylish impact case to protect your Iphone from bumps and bruises along with access to all the switches and jacks on your Iphone. Just fit your Iphone in the case while connecting the QWERTY keyboard’s port to the dock connector of your Iphone.

Design also incorporates a finger rest at the lower end bottom of the case to get a comfortable hold while typing. If you don’t open the slider, you still have access to whole Iphone screen and the QWERTY keyboard for quickly typing something.

Jiwani put significant thought into choosing among three possible form factors: a flip keyboard, an elongated iPhone frame, or a sliding keyboard.  He documented the design process on his blog.

The keyboards are held in place by a “bumper” frame that goes around the iPhone, constructed out of Polycarbonate, ABS and Carbon Steel.  The different concepts are sketched and detailed and the pros and cons of each are considered:

Jiwani Concept 1 | Flap keyboard

This isn’t a bad concept, familiar and popular.  It allows full use of the phone, and if it included a microphone at the bottom of the keyboard that could improve voice quality.  I wouldn’t be surprised to see something like this eventually, but ultimately it was rejected for being too dated.

Jiwani Concept 2 | Elongated keyboard

This is my personal favorite; it allows for viewing and using the whole phone without having to move anything out of the way, and there are no hinges to break.  Crafted correctly I think it could work, but this was rejected by Jiwani for being too bulky.

Jiwani Concept 3 | Slider keyboard (finalized)

The slider style is Jiwani’s choice for the best compromise.  He goes on to make a foam mockup, then the actual prototype.  A fascinating insight into how to conceptualize and implement industrial design.  Read the full posts on Jiwani’s blog for more details and larger photos:

Iphone QWERTY Keyboard | Industrial Design
Iphone QWERTY keyboard (The making) | Industrial Design

Thanks to iPhoneSavior for the tip.

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