Ideal keyboard design and configuration - Page 14 - maemo.org

dirkvl | # 131 | 2013-10-29, 11:42 | Report

Originally Posted by stefanmohl View Post

I am afraid I am a pretty abstract guy, I can present suggestions and ideas, but when making things I write software. If I build anything in hardware it will at the most be an FPGA-design

I wouldn't know where to start in buying the components and putting them together!

To build the keypad overlay in my suggestion would require someone with good materials experience to get the feel right, that is far beyond my areas of knowledge.

Okay, in that case let me spoil the fun: e-ink display + e-ink i2c driver + touchscreen + i2c touchscreen driver + transparent overlay with clicky feel = very thick package + very complex to build + very complex to program + impossible to find the right parts

I don't see it happening. On the other hand, if someone disagrees, prove me wrong!

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stefanmohl | # 132 | 2013-10-30, 16:10 | Report

I think I would be able to help with writing the driver part, but:

e-ink display + touchscreen + transparent overlay with clicky feel = very thick package + very complex to build + impossible to find the right parts

would be a showstopper. If you think that is the case, the solution is out. Thanks for considering it!

bennypr0fane | # 133 | 2013-11-11, 15:35 | Report

Here is what comes to my mind concerning the problem of the other-half-kb covering the camera and flash. The problem has changed a bit, since the camera is supposed to be in the middle now, rather than on the left, but the issue basically remains the same. I'd largely prefer the James-Bond-style option! :-)
Also, I'd prefer a N950/N97-like slide-out-at-an-angle design.
I can't think of a convenient clamshell design, as that would either make the other half cover the screen or the keys located on the outside of the clamshell.
There must be more than 3 rows, preferably 5, and the top row should be reserved for numbers keys. 4 arrow keys are also very desirable.
The surface of each key should be like the N900's, slightly convex, but with larger spaces in between, or the keys being larger, or both.
Anyone remember the Google G1? Plenty of space between the keys, and totally wasted because the keys were completely flush with the surface, so impossible to hit them just by touch. Note the difference to the totally crammed N900, which is still decent enough thanks to the convex surface of each key, so that's more important.
Note that on N900, that goes together with the base of the keyboard slightly receding into the bezel, so the edges are still flush against the back of the device.
In a trade-off I'd prefer 4 rows of well-spaced keys to 5 rows of densely cluttered ones, as long as the numbers get their own row.
I think it's not necessary to have 2 of Ctrl, Shift, Alt and Fn keys, I'll be happy with one of each.

JS2 | # 134 | 2013-12-11, 18:36 | Report

I think there should be a navigation key and it should be on LEFT side of the keyboard, not on right side. It's ideal for navigation and great for gaming, this is the reason I loved my Nokia n97's keyboard:

JS2 | # 135 | 2013-12-15, 09:38 | Report

Concept

Courtesy of Ali Fakhruddin

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Silvertongue | # 136 | 2013-12-15, 09:41 | Report

Thanks for sharing my idea here.. Appreciate alot..

Ali
@alifakhruddin

Silvertongue | # 137 | 2013-12-15, 10:15 | Report

hw abt this:

Zeta | # 138 | 2013-12-15, 18:23 | Report

Hi Silvertongue,

Great design.
I love as people still put FM transmitter in their concepts !

My "perfect" device would be :
* qwerty keyboard as in your design
* 4" display (with "medium" resolution, which allows to reduce GPU consumption, and battery live)
* thicker to allow doubling the battery capacity and fitting a bigger camera sensor (pixel count doesn't matter, so a 8MPix with 1.8µm pixels like on N8 or bigger would be perfect) with OIS and Xenon flash.

Seeing the current trends, I imagine this will not happen anymore ?

minimos | # 139 | 2013-12-15, 19:09 | Report

Originally Posted by Zeta View Post

Great design.
I love as people still put FM transmitter in their concepts !

Personally I'm not interested in a FM transmitter, so I'm probably not going to make one myself, but just today I was going through various electronics-related news and I arrived to the pages of 'FMBerry', a FM transmitter piloted with Raspberry PI: https://github.com/manawyrm/FMBerry
Looking at the details, it uses as FM transmitter from the Sony Ericsson MMR-70, an add-on that can be found on fleabay for about 1 EUR.
At its core it uses the Alps chip TSM 1-6, which is controlled via I2C: https://www.mikrocontroller.net/atta...0251/MMR70.pdf
The chip and its circuitery seems to be sufficiently small to be incorporated into a Jolla cover (if you find a way to get the audio signal).

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Zeta | # 140 | 2013-12-15, 19:55 | Report

Nice finding minimos!
Answered in this new thread to avoid hijacking this one : http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?p=1396850