Optimus Maximus gets price and date

After some OLED display supply issues and a few setbacks, it looks like Lebedev and company have finally settled on a launch date and price for the king of keyboard, the Optimus Maximus. Hold your breath, it'll be due late November (the 30th, to be specific) for $1536 US ("Shakespeare's birthday"). Bad news, we know, but the worst news is still to come: only 200 keyboards per month for November and December, and 400 keyboards are scheduled to be made next January. (On second thought, at over $1500 apiece, maybe that's not so few keyboards.) Ok, exhale, it's going to be alright.

[stitifier @ Apr 27th 2007 12:53AM]

No offense, Ryan, but who cares about a peripheral that is a) marginally useful, b) ridiculously, extravagantly expensive, and c) completely unavailable to the general public?

Wait, I just described the PS3. JUST KIDDING. *runs for cover*

[Christian Martin @ Apr 27th 2007 1:02AM]

I don't know what rock you're living under, but PS3s aren't exactly hurrying out the door at the local stores 'round here...

[mitch @ Apr 27th 2007 12:59AM]

stitifier:

Do you feel the ground shaking? I do believe it's the collective hypemotron of the Internet gathering against you.

Still, the $1.5k pricetag, as expected as it was, made me recoil. Damn.

[Steele @ Apr 27th 2007 1:04AM]

I honestly couldn't care less about whether or not the maximus makes it to the shelves or not. I mean it's cool technology and all, but seriously, its still just a keyboard.

[Brian McBride @ Apr 27th 2007 1:32AM]

Uh... I don't even think the stupidly wealthy is going to spend the $1500 on this product.

I bet it never ships. It just is not a sustainable product division. If there was a market for stupidly priced keyboards, Logitech and Microsoft would already be all over it. Heck, keyboards like the G15 already push the boundary of what people are willing to spend for advanced peripherals.

[MadHat @ Apr 27th 2007 2:07AM]

The G15, or any other "advanced peripheral" for that matter, and this device have no comparisons. This is not a "tool". It's a luxury item. This thing is going to look great plugged into some iPhone toting, 30" cinema display viewing, octo-core packin', yuppie's Mac Pro. And thousands of them out there dying to get their hands on this thing, just like you are. We can all get over our frustration of not being able to afford one now. After all, there was a time we couldn't event afford the damn computer. We'll all get to play...someday.

[sdsdv10 @ Apr 27th 2007 11:35AM]

@ Brian McBride
"Uh... I don't even think the stupidly wealthy is going to spend the $1500 on this product."

Brian, please don't underestimate the stupidly wealthy. You really have no idea what they are capable of...

[kevin.nowhere @ Apr 27th 2007 1:33AM]

now i have a reason to go to work

[Justin @ Apr 27th 2007 1:35AM]

I'm not digging that offset "Optimus Maximus" text with the Art Lebedev logo.

Would it be too hard to duplicate? I mean just get some OLED small displays or something......

Let's boycott this thing.

[Z @ Apr 27th 2007 2:01AM]

Hmmm... let me think about this for a minute...

For this amount of money...

... I could buy this keyboard...

... or I could buy a 42" LCD HDTV and an Xbox 360 from Costco.


Wonder what I'm gonna do?

This completes today's lesson on "Better Ways to Spend Your Money".

[Josh* @ Apr 27th 2007 10:04PM]

I imagine this is aimed at people who already have a 60" screen in every room, comeplete with 360 / PS3, along with their Mac Pro and 8-screen video wall of 30" displays in their home office, with the Ferrari parked out front.

Not people thinking "Hmm... should I buy this, or should I get these other things for the same cost..." comprende?

[Keaton @ Apr 27th 2007 2:01AM]

This keyboard is freaking awesome... I might pick one up... Still $1500 is a little steep... I wouldn't blink if it was $999...

[Juaquin @ Apr 27th 2007 2:14AM]

This thing has been promised for forever. At one point it was supposed to be out by November of LAST year. Vaporware. Even if it does materialize, for $1500, they won't ever be mass producing these, making the whole venture worthless.

Let me know when Logitech catches on and makes the "G" keys on it's G15 keyboard into little LCDs. They already have the software to do it with the big LCD, shouldn't be much of a stretch to add some more small ones.

[Allan @ Apr 27th 2007 2:48AM]

You could always just buy a touch screen monitor and type on that, probably cheaper too.

[Jesse S @ Apr 27th 2007 3:03AM]

No tactile feedback.

Honestly, if I had the money, an HTPC, carputer, home theater, an awesome amp and headphone setup, a new computer, and a second 2407, I would totally jump on this.

[Joe @ Apr 27th 2007 3:00AM]

I also cannot figure out why this device makes the news.

[Jeff Dunn @ Apr 27th 2007 3:10AM]

Shouldn't that be $1564?

You only missed his birthday by a few years though, right?

[mark @ Apr 27th 2007 4:09PM]

>@Jeff Dunn @ Apr 27th 2007 3:10AM
>
>Shouldn't that be $1564?
>You only missed his birthday by a few years though,
>right?

Engadget has it wrong, the link to the LiveJournal site shows the price as $1564:

"To be or not to be - the price for the Optimus Maximus keyboard with finalized specs is US$ 1564 (Shakespeare's birthday)."

ref: http://community.livejournal.com/optimus_project/28887.html

[Alberto @ Apr 27th 2007 3:15AM]

What a load of bull. $1500 for that. It's a freaking keyboard. Now if the stupid thing did the typing for ya well then maybe we would be on to something here. Man, I sometimes wonder how stupid these blue chip companies think the general public is. LOL

[Adam @ Apr 27th 2007 3:52AM]

lol, all these posh modern designer shops will get at least one of these.

[Camperton @ Apr 27th 2007 4:55AM]

we scoff now, but when they are cheap in 10 years we will all have one. these things will be standard in laptops by then.... I hope.

[Tom @ Apr 27th 2007 5:12AM]

Remember when the most basic of computers was $6k? Now you can buy one that's many multitudes faster that costs only $300 with a monitor.

This is first-gen technology. First-gen technology that IS NOT CATERED TOWARDS CASUAL USERS. It is geared towards workstation users who demand a LOT from their computer in a serious working environment. What's a $1500 keyboard on an $80k audio workstation? Stop and think, people - you don't scoff at the price of a $140k Jaguar saying "oh, nobody's ever going to buy that", because people do, and the product isn't even geared towards people who can't afford it. It's not geared towards you, but that doesn't mean you can't stop to look at it.

This is a tech blog - cool shit like this will be covered even if it is out of most of our price ranges, this isn't a shopping recommendation blog.

[aleksey @ May 8th 2007 2:00PM]

I 100% agree with Tom. This is a life saver for any serious post-production video equipment.
Unfortunately, gamers and casual users have to wait for relative affordable prices and availability. I am sure, that Microsoft and Logitech will eventually license or buyout this technology.

[Ben Holmes @ May 7th 2007 5:31AM]

Finally, Tom, a little sense in this discussion.

This is (and always has been) a pro product. Whether or not some rich geeks buy it is irrelevent to the business model that Art L has aimed at.

This is a unique product, and almost certainly the first of many. Any of you geeks know how many shortcut keys there are in the average NLE system for pro video editing. Or an audio setup.

We just spent $15,000 on two Mac Pro setups and the same again for a disk array linked to them. They're installed in a suite that cost somewhere north of $200,000 to build, and rents out at $3000 a day. Do you really think we care about a $1500 cost if it improves the setup, or if it is requested by a client. Personally, as an editor, I think this would be a very useful tool, and a great alternative to the custom keyboards used by 1,000 of professionals all over the world.

With proper application support, I expect similar products to this to become STANDARD in creative workstations within 5-10 years.

[A @ Jun 9th 2007 3:11PM]

Yeah, but then you could also look at like, these cars: http://www.automotoportal.com/article/Top_10_most_expensive_cars_in_the_world and wonder who the hell buys these. Yeah, this keyboard is for the rich, it's more geared towards, and I say this lightly, "nerds", ahaha kidding. Good luck ranting, everyone.

P.S. I know this comment is extremely late.

[Justin @ Apr 27th 2007 5:32AM]

Tom makes a good point

[Jay @ Apr 27th 2007 5:39AM]

Still want one. Still want one now.

PS All you whining fools read Tom's intelligent and informed post (@ Apr 27th 2007 5:12AM). You might learn something for once.

[Dan F @ Apr 27th 2007 6:57AM]

My thoughts on this keyboard.
This keyboard while very expensive, is also very useful. Especially for applications such as Photoshop or most movie editing programs. There are thousands of people that do this and these are the people who I suspect will be their target market, Professionals who are wealthy from their work being a photo editer at a modeling agency, a paparazzi, perhaps a video editor working in Hollywood. The fact is these keyboards just scream innovation and at this pricetag, it seems pretty reasonable for some to own this. I can probobly see Jobs and Gates getting this clearly because it looks so dam cool, and definatly some other Famous people. And they make 300 grand just selling 200 of these babys!

[Dave M @ Apr 27th 2007 7:31AM]

Wasn't Shakespeares birthday just recently? April 23?

[duophonix @ Apr 27th 2007 9:47AM]

yes it was, same as my birthday, he also died on the same day 23rd of april

also St Georges day (saint of england)

[Mio @ Apr 27th 2007 9:59AM]

think you guy bring to the table wrong data being got high -ha ha :) what weeds you prefer? Shakespear was born on 1564 , open school textbooks before writing on..writers

[duophonix @ Apr 27th 2007 10:26AM]

technicaly, neither of us disputed the date, we just discussed the date of his birthday




hehehehehe

[uberfu @ Apr 27th 2007 10:32AM]

personally - if Kensington or Logitech picked up on this they'd have one stable - fuunctional and availbale after 9 or 10 months with merely a couple hundred dolalrs on the tag_

I really dig the concept - only problem is that based on everything I've read about this over the past couple of years - these folks seem like they are building this thing out of their garage and trying to recoup development cost up front 'cause they're outta cash_

Unless people are confusing the the price tag with Rubles instead of Dollars ?

[wfbnadador @ Apr 27th 2007 10:44AM]

Shakespeare was born the 23 of April (which I only know because we share a birthday)... i dont get why they call Nov. 30 Shakespeare's birthday.... anybody?

[duophonix @ Apr 27th 2007 11:03AM]

heheh WE share a birthday! i was also born on the 23rd, but as mio pointed out, they are refering to the year, not the day :-)

happy birthday for last monday, i had a big wii gamer party! was fuckin amazing!
converted two sony lovers to go and get a wii!

[wfbnadador @ Apr 27th 2007 11:11AM]

yeah now all wii need are some new games... although i just got super paper mario, and have yet to play it. TGIF.

[mark @ Apr 27th 2007 4:09PM]

dood... it's not the date they're drawing a parallel to, it's the price and the year he was born.

[Don @ Apr 27th 2007 2:07PM]

Three Words: Vertu. Signature. Cobra.

http://www.dialaphone.co.uk/blog/?p=73

They will sell all 200 of these KBs on the first day, believe it. At one point, this was my most anticipated product. After 2.5 years of delays and a price tag 7x the original estimate, I am totally uninterested, and I am in one of those professions that might actually benefit from it...

[aperio @ Jul 6th 2007 3:48PM]

I think my biggest fear in buying one (as if I could afford it or justify spending that much on a keyboard) would be that six months down the road, what if it breaks? Not like you can just run out to your local Best Buy store and swap it out for a new one.

[marko mandaric @ Apr 27th 2007 11:35AM]

someone, do explaine to me how this can be useful at all... keyboards aren't meant to be looked at.

they're meant to be typed on.

[bobdole @ Apr 28th 2007 3:03PM]

it could be useful for dozens of things..

sure, you aren't going to look at it while you're typing, or even really while gaming (though it'd be cool to have the keys as icons of the different items and actions etc)..

Think about CAD programs, photoshop, video, sound editing programs; Think about people who type more than one language... Think of all the times you forgot a keyboard shortcut... Now imagine you could hold ctrl and all the letters turn into "copy" "save" "print" etc.

People have already even started coding games you play on the keys themselves... There is even video support on the keys, (albeit 3fps or somesuch)

The possibilities are really endless

[Florecilla Silvestre @ Apr 27th 2007 11:39AM]

Ok, I understand there is a market for luxury items and for high end typists. Now the problem to me is that they do not seem to overlap. Anyone who makes money doing the typing himself won't make enough to shell out 1500$ for a keyboard. And if this person makes a living out of typing, it will probably be second nature to him and he won't need to look at the keyboard. Let's not forget that was the point with that blank one: Das Keyboard.

I am a programmer and I am going to order a Cherry g80-3000 soft action. If I remember well, both the tactile and auditory feedback were a joy. Much quieter than an IBM model M but still clicky. I guess it will set me back about 100$, but it is well worth it. Now, 15x that much cash? gimme a break.

[Tom @ Apr 27th 2007 12:32PM]

It's not a typist's keyboard. If you're a typist, go for the Happy Hacking keyboard, or one od the Deck offerings. This is a workstation keyboard, where the only thing the keyboard is used for is key commands. Press the "control" modifier, and all of the control+ shortcuts appear on the keys. Press "control+alt", and all of the control+alt+ shortcuts appear on the keys. It's a dynamic keyboard that makes working in complex software environments more streamlined and efficient.

And I know that people say "good workers KNOW the shortcuts". If I worked in a graphics house, using: Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premier, and Audition; that's hundreds of keyboard shortcuts! I wouldn't be surprised if it neared the 1,000 mark. You're not going to remember every one, and having a straight-forward graphical display of what the keys do with real-time modifiers is incredibly intuitive and you can't argue the practicality in workstation environments.

Now, in the HOME environment? It's pretty impractical. Probably won't stop some people from getting it though.


Also, to clear up the confusion about Shakespeare's birthday: Art never specificed WHICH Shakespeare. I'm sure there's many.

[McHoffa @ Apr 27th 2007 12:29PM]

no way would I (or could I) spend 1500 on a keyboard, but I do see this being very useful for real design or film studios...

[Don @ Apr 27th 2007 2:45PM]

"If I worked in a graphics house, using: Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premier, and Audition; that's hundreds of keyboard shortcuts!"

So true. There's a reason that Avid workstations have color-coded and specialized keys. You can only remember so many commands - some are so infrequently used that you never repeat them enough to learn them.

[squished18 @ Apr 27th 2007 2:01PM]

"No offense, Ryan, but who cares about a peripheral that is a) marginally useful, b) ridiculously, extravagantly expensive, and c) completely unavailable to the general public?

Wait, I just described the PS3. JUST KIDDING. *runs for cover*"

Phew, for a second I thought you were talking about the iPhone.

[Tom @ Apr 27th 2007 3:01PM]

The only price estimate they ever mentioned was "it will cost about the same as a good mobile phone". Hence, Vertu. Same price - actually, probably a good bit cheaper than one of those Vertu racing phones that Engadget covered a while back. So they never bailed out on their pricing - it's just skewed towards what constitutes a "good mobile phone" in Moscow. Over here in the states a good mobile phone is the $50 after rebates RAZR or Samsung A930, and there's no way this keyboard is going to ever be $50 after rebates.

[Don @ Apr 27th 2007 3:26PM]

Years ago I saw an estimate of $250 bux. Also "Good Mobile Phone != Vertu". Perhaps Ugly Mobile Phone, or Ridiculous Mobile Phone, or "Overpriced Greenscreen 1990 Phone", but not "Good" :).

[Jordee @ Apr 27th 2007 7:15PM]

How can you not want that keyboard, just because you can't afford it does not mean you should hate on it, If I was in the market to get a new keyboard; and I found a stack of hundred stuck beetween the seat of my Rolls Royce I would tottaly by one of those keyboards.

It's beautiful.

[Owen V @ Apr 27th 2007 7:46PM]

This is the future of keyboards.