Slashdot Mirror
OrbiTouch Keyless Keyboard Review
robyn217 writes "When I last looked at strange, new keyboards (here's the previous thread here on slashdot), I thought I'd seen it all... not even close! I just reviewed a new keyless keyboard, called the OrbiTouch, and gave it a run for its money. It's literally made up of two humps--it reminds me of holding onto my knees rather a keyboard. To type or mouse, you need to move the humps around in a synchronized manner. It's twisted--but it's better for you to decide for yourself--here's the article, OrbiTouch Review: A Keyless Keyboard with lots of pictures. Think you'll give it a test drive? Will it survive the year?"
OrbiTouch Review: A Keyless Keyboard
May 29, 2003
By: Robyn Peterson
Editor's note: Back by popular demand, our Keyboard Krazy author visits one late-entry in our quest for the most "out there" design. For a recap of the wild input devices we've already reviewed (vertical keyboard, gesture sensitive keyboard, cyborg system, etc.) check out Keyboard Kraziness and Mouse Madness. Note: There are some important considerations to keep in mind before you purchase any ergonomic keyboard.
Imagine a keyboard with no space bar, no letters, no numbers... no keys at all. In fact, forget the entire idea of a keyboard, as you know it, altogether. Just reach down with both hands and grab your knees (assuming you have two knees), and close your eyes. Only subtle differences exist between this sensation, and the experience of first lowering your hands and gripping the OrbiTouch Keyless Keyboard (pictured below).
click on image for full view
But why would anyone design a keyboard like this? In one simple word, comfort. But comfort comes at a very steep list price of $695 in the case of the OrbiTouch, so its appeal will likely be limited to a specific class of users that cannot use standard keyboards without pain. Of course, there will also be the early adopters with excess discretionary income who must have the coolest new gadget. And for users who master the device, they will most certainly impress friends and coworkers.
The standard equation for typing has always been,
Typing Equation:
Wrist movement + Finger pressing = Keystroke
Even the entrants in the first round of keyboards we reviewed rarely dared to rework this basic equation. It's as simple and accepted as,
Yellow + Blue = Green
The OrbiTouch completely removes finger movements from the process of typing, while significantly reducing the amount of wrist motion. With Carpal Tunnel Syndrome as a leading claim for Worker's Compensation, a lot of people are not only interested in reworking the current typing strategy, but developing a whole new typing equation.
Keyboard Kraziness & Mouse Madness
Review: Typing With Gestures on the TouchStream ST
Review: DataHand System, More Cyborg than Keyboard
Hey, if any of us want to keep on typing for our entire careers (let alone typing our whole lives), we should be interested.
It's a completely new idea in computer input devices--but is it a good idea? That's what we're here to find out.
First we'll take a look at how this odd device works, and we'll take a peek under the hood. Then, we're going out for a test drive. Now, it's not our style to keep our opinions to ourselves, so next we'll give you the lowdown on what we liked and what we didn't like. Is the keyless keyboard a keeper? Read on to find out...
How It Works
Installation is easy as the OrbiTouch keyboard connects to both PS/2-compatible keyboard and mouse ports simultaneously which is to be expected since it handles standard mouse and keyboard functions (only available for PCs at this time). Note: An Apple-compatible version is reportedly in the works right now.
Weighing in at 4.5 pounds and sizing up to virtually the same dimensions as a standard keyboard, it fits on just about any keyboard tray and desktop keyboard slot -- and the slick black design will make even the most anachronistic desktop look simply space-age.
The "keypad" is comprised of two domes upon which the hands are intended to rest. Each dome can slide in up to eight different directions, allowing movement of up to seven millimeters in each direction-- so the movements are fairly easy to make, and don't require a large range of motion.
click on image for full view
Keystrokes are composed of simultaneous movements of both domes in sync. For instance, moving the left dome to the left and moving the right dome to the right will create a letter 'd'. Learning the repertoire of chords will be ch