Will Touch Screens Kill the Keyboard?

CWmike writes "Next-generation touch-screen devices will embed more haptics, or touch-based feedback, into virtual keyboards. 'A lot of companies are really getting into haptics, [using] source feedback and a sense of touch to try to replicate a keyboard on a display,' says Bruce Gant, a mechanical engineer at Product Development Technologies, which integrates touch screens into cell phones and other devices for manufacturers. 'If people really get that down and nail that experience, [virtual keyboards] could replace mechanical keyboards on laptops.' Don't tell that to Motorola, which just introduced the Atrix 4G, and dual-core 4.3-inch smartphone that docks to a laptop with, you guessed it, a physical keyboard."

Comments

No

[TheL0ser]

Keyboard is a lot cheaper, more easily repaired if something goes wrong.

Re:No

[TheRaven64]

Add to that, the best device for avoiding RSI has a large amount of travel and a gradual resistance in the keys. A touchscreen has no travel and a very sudden resistance. Try spending five hours typing on one and see how much your fingers hurt.

They're fine for consumer devices (i.e. devices for consuming), but not for devices people use to create anything involving text.

Re:No

[KermodeBear]

It also keeps my finger smudges out of my line of sight. I hate touch screen anything. They always end up dirty.

Re:No

[I8TheWorm]

And....

You simply can't type on a touchscreen without looking, at least not for any usable amount of time. I love my Galaxy-S with the Swype keyboard, but even that is no replacement for a physical one.

Re:No

[Sarten-X]

My Model M has never failed me.

Except that one time when it only caused an ugly bump, rather than kill my opponent. I mostly blame my aim for that.

Re:No

[skids]

I just don't understand how anyone could do any serious typing on the same screen they are looking at. Sure, causual keying in google search terms is easy that way, but when the screen is at an angle suitable for viewing there's no way I could bend my wrists back far enough to type efficiently -- and even in a compromise between the two positions, I'm sure it would kill my hands. I suppose I could put the screen flat down and lean over it, but only if I want to look like Quasimodo in a decade or so.

Plus my fingernails tend to be kept long (unlike many I actually use them in my job) so I doubt a touchscreen would stand up to my abuse very long.

Answer: no.

[Senes]

Big media: quit saying "XYZ is dead" every time you're starved for attention.

No matter how good a smartphone gets, that doesn't mean that old technology people still benefit from should suddenly disappear. My phone has a built-in keyboard; I can text so fast it startles people and any flashy features my phone doesn't have would be all the better with it. Give us more functionality, not tell us we should settle for less.

The Bad Keyboard Trend Continues

[Sonny Yatsen]

If touchscreens do kill the keyboard (and I am very doubtful), then it'll just be another milestone for the trend of crappier and crappier keyboard input devices. Back in the day, the mechanical switch and the buckler keyboards were fantastic. They had the weight, they had the tactile response, they had the satisfying click you get when you press down a key, plus they were nigh indestructible. Then, everyone moved to the quiet keyboards that use the rubber sheet and the dielectric, and it had less of a tactical response. Then people started moving towards those awful chiclet keyboards (are they called Island keyboards?) and they make it so frustrating to type something. If touchscreens take over, it'll just be the next logical step towards crappier keyboards.

No

[Umuri]

Touch keyboards cannot keep speed with physical keyboards due to a lack of tactile feedback, space requirements, and hand-strain when typing due to jamming your finger into a solid surface repeatedly (guess its not much different than laptop crappy keyboards, but still). That's assuming you've overcome the software limitation of slow processing that plagues most touch keyboards.

That being said, they will probably replace keyboards for applications(such as mobile phones) where a keyboard would be a waste and inefficient use of space while not being very effective anyway.

But in a laptop? God no unless you're going for lightweight style rather than a useful work space.

Disclaimer: Typed on my model-m.

iPhone and iPad

[FuckingNickName]

If there's anything Apple have taught us, it's that an awful lot of people don't do any real work on their computers.

For those who do, real computers with real I/O devices will remain.

Re:haptics?

[gstoddart]

"haptics" is an anagram [wordsmith.org] for "Caps Hit"

And Shit Cap. :-P

Yes, mostly

[joh]

For all the users who don't type much (that is for about 95% of all users) the touchscreen will replace the keyboard, no doubt. Devices without keyboards have less buttons (good), you can press, drag and touch where you're looking (good), there are no moving parts (good), the devices are much easier to clean (good) and the devices look better (good). For the typical user a real keyboard is ugly, complex and hard to use. Most people just forget all the effort they had to invest to learn to use it.

Those who type much and fast will still use keyboards. They're a minority, but a loud one.

Next question please.