Keyboard concept

[thoughtfix]

Okay here's a concept.

I have no Photoshop skills or I'd make a mock-up.
Imagine if you will a thicker slider cover with a thumb keyboard that flips down then slides up a bit to lock in. The USB port stays plugged in and gets it's own power supplied to a USB port on the side The microphone hole is just drilled through and the headphone jack is redirected to the side as well.

Can anyone conceptualize this? Or is it stuck in my head with no creative talent to get it on to Photoshop?

[Jeffgrado]

I think I know what you mean. The keyboard would be the width of the slide case (actually a little smaller). It should then be able to support the 770 at an angle, so it would look like, and be used like, a laptop.

[thoughtfix]

Not quite - it would still be parallel to the tablet. Let me see what I can photoshop when I get home.

Or we could have an ultrathin keyboard that popped up from within the slide cover so you can slide the device 3/4 of the way up, pop up the keyboard, then lock the 770 back into the slider.

[thoughtfix]

That's similar, .wo. Mind if I post that image on my blog?

[bowdie]

That's a really interesting idea, I'd snap that up if it came to market.

[djs_tx]

While I agree that looks very cool, ergonomically it would be a nightmare for thumb typing. For a thumb board it needs to be narrow enough that you can reach any key with either your right or left thumb while still supporting both sides with the web of your hand.

Hold your hands out in front of you and pretend to type. Transitions from "T" to "H" are going to suck because of the amount of shifting of your hands to reach the letters then repositioning the hand to support the other side.

I'm not trying to be negative, keep dreaming. But ergonomics and UI are not easy to get right.
David

[thoughtfix]

djs: Small hands? My thumbs would reach all keys easily.
But you're right. Drop the numeric pad, split the keyboard, and use the center area as the place where the power/connection is stored when it's folded :)

[chrwei]

what about a cover that you don't slide off, but hinges open to reveal the keyboard, and would also lift the mag switch away to turn it on? you could still slide this cover off to remove the keyboard. this also wouldn't make the cover much larger in any direction, 1/16th inch at most I think is possible. you could even have the kb snap into open position and have a small bar or plate that slide out the back to act as a stand for the whole kit.

the biggest challenge though is how to power the thing. can't get power off the usb, and if it has got to have it's own battery, bluetooth might be the best way, but then we'd need more stable bt HID software on it. and to make it mass market, you'd ned to be able to set all this up without root.

[chrwei]

how about this? http://www.eleksen.com/index.asp?page=products/usbkeyboard/usbkeyboard_2.asp

[phi]

i'd love an attachable thumb keyboard like the mockup on page 1. makes it still portable, and a lot more easy to text input.