http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/ Engadget Comments for Optimus Popularis keyboard is still on target, due next year http://www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:30AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/Luckily, Optimus is willing to supply you with a number of stickers that fit on top of the keys with numerous popular applications printed on them.]]>May 13th 2010 8:32AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 10:23AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/color e-ink maybe? Perhaps that's how they're building it cheaper (slightly less superexpensive)?]]>May 13th 2010 11:02AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/Jun 25th 2010 11:03AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:31AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 10:09AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:33AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:33AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 9:52AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/each key is clear and has a separate screen inside that you can dynamically change depending on what program has focus. For example, if you are in Photoshop, you can change the entire keyboard's keys to Photoshop shortcuts. Then, when you alt+tab to AIM, you can have a one-button press to put up an away message, and tht key on the keyboard would have a little away message icon instead of a letter. Later, when you're playing a game, the reload key could say "Reload" instead of "R," the "Throw grenade key" could ve a picture of a grenade instead of a "G," so on, so forth. It really is an insanely awesome idea, but they build these things in a very expensive manner (the Optimus Maximus has a separate 50x50 pixel OLED screen inside each key on the keyboard), and it's made by a designer, so it automatically costs way too much.

But I want one. ]]>May 13th 2010 10:44AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/Thank you for explaining it, I was wondering that myself. While the concept seems novel and the functions handy, the price is a bit too much for me.]]>May 13th 2010 1:56PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:34AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/
"I just bought the Optimus keyboard"
"Wow, how could you afford it?"
"I sold my PC"
"...so what PC are you going to hook it up to?"
"None, it has a PC inside"
"What? No dude, that's EeeKeyboard"]]>May 13th 2010 8:45AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/Come to Akihabara, Tokyo and you could easily get some good-looking used dell desktop for about $30, add another $30 for a display... Need a mouse? $5.

I wonder how bad they are at keeping BOMs low. I doubt those displays really cost them lots of $$$ if they buy them in correct ways, and there's no reason to have separate displays for all the keys. Idea's not bad, but implementation is a crap. ]]>May 13th 2010 9:08AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:34AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:44AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/yeah and it will have a proprietary connector as well as requiring iSomethingorother to configure it.]]>May 13th 2010 9:00AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/
As weird as it may sound, for $1000 a sane person would buy a gaming rig or even a mac.. why not ?]]>May 13th 2010 9:10AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/
wait a minute, ive seen that alligator, or crocodile in a German video, where it sings and does this egyptian dance, lol]]>May 13th 2010 11:05AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 14th 2010 3:39AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:43AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:46AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:48AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 8:51AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 9:24AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/
The idea is cool as hell - keys whose labeling can change dynamically. You get the benefit of a touchscreen, with the haptic feel of a true physical key.

... BUT, it's also the dumbest idea because most of us can type without even looking at a keyboard, and remembering what CTRL-H or ALT-K does is not THAT difficult to need a $1000 keyboard. A $5 short-cut paper card does the trick. ]]>May 13th 2010 9:24AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/
It's not just about being able to differently label the keys. The true beauty of the concept is that if you're able to change the label, you can also dynamically change the FUNCTION of the key. For example; as soon as you start Firefox, a number of keys could switch to website-icons, and pressing them will open a new tab with that website.

Information technology used to be limited by the amount of informaton we could get (output), but it's more and more limited by how fast we're able to INPUT information. Imagine a word processor that dynamically re-assignes keys to the most likely word or letter that you will be typing. In theory, you could type with one finger, if the keys get mapped properly around it. It will change the future. ]]>May 13th 2010 4:17PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/
I get what you mean, and I understand the potential - that's the cool part.

It's the cost that makes it completely and utterly dumb.
Let's be honest here, for the price that this will cost (IF it ever actually gets released), the benefits simply do not make it worth it. Setting up a hot-key is just not that hard.
If it was a $50 keyboard, then I'd be all over it though. ]]>May 13th 2010 10:08PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 9:29AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/A flush level space bar is PITA to press, and your hands loose feel of where they are on the keyboard.

I know, one of our recent dell's came with a flush level keyboard and it seriously sucks.]]>May 13th 2010 9:36AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/ that the good folks at Optimus
Actually company's name is Artemy Lebedev Studio.]]>May 13th 2010 10:28AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 10:59AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 7:15PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 11:13AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 1:31PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 13th 2010 2:35PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 14th 2010 12:33AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/May 16th 2010 11:41PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/13/optimus-popularis-keyboard-is-still-on-target-due-next-year/
It won't matter which way is up. The one on the bottom will form the keyboard and trackpad on its screen, the other will be the display.

You can drop a clear rubber grid on the bottom one if you need touch-typing.]]>Jun 24th 2010 6:37PM