Optimus Keyboard Pre-Orders In Mere Hours

godzillopiteco sends timely word that Art. Lebedev Studio is finally going to accept pre-orders for the Optimus Maximus Keyboard — in just under 11 hours at the time this story posts, according to the countdown timer on the site. (Late last year we were primed to pre-order in December 2006.) Read the project's blog for some recent developments.

Comments

*Yawn*

[Giolon]

I was really excited about this keyboard back when they first announced it and they posited that it would cost approxmiately $100. Now that it's finally becoming a reality several years behind schedule, and is going to cost approximately $1500, I don't know how anybody can really still be looking foward to it.

Re:*Yawn*

[DAtkins]

How is this modded insightful?

The exciting thing is going to be if there are enough pre-orders for them to start fabrication. If they can stay in business passed this point, and OLED manufacturers start ramping up, it's only a matter of time before the price comes down. I remember when plasmas came out priced around $20000 for a 42" (if it was that big). Now you can get them for much less. We don't know how their planning on fabrication at this level. With such a small production schedule, it would suggest hand assembly. If they managed to sell out that production run, whats to stop them from licensing it to a foreign manufacturer? You know, like we do...

What would be more practical...

[commlinx]

Rather than having every key with an in-built display what would be more practical is leaving the alphanumeric keys as standard and just having the displays on the left block of special function keys and F1-F15. Short of multiple users who want to swap between QWERTY, Dvorak and other languages I can't think of any reason re-programming the standard keys is useful and it must add stacks to the cost. I'd go for one at $200 odd if when I switched applications I could replace the function keys with alternative icons and alternative keystroke codes. No wonder the unit cost is so high though - they don't seem to be planning to manufacture many units so it seems to be aimed at people with a surplus of cash.

Re:Advertising

[Jah-Wren Ryel]

This isn't a story. This is an ad. Whether or not it is an advertisement does not preclude it from being a story. The first keyboard with fully software remappable symbols on each and every key is absolutely news for nerds.