ergomotion
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Smartfish Engage keyboard automates ergonomics, is finally available
It's been two years in the making, but Smartfish has finally released its opus into the world: the Engage keyboard. It's been known as the Pro:Motion and ErgoMotion over the years, but now it's got a new moniker, a classy all-black look, and a $150 pricetag. Outside of the tilted design and large palm rests, the keyboard has an internal motor that moves the position of the two halves of the keyboard based on your typing frequency. The periodic position adjustments help fight off fatigue, an approach developed in conjunction with The Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. We'll try to play around with the keyboard at CES -- last year's prototype wasn't terribly impressive -- but if it's anything as good as the Smartfish Whirl Mini Notebook Laser Mouse, we might have a new carpal tunnel warrior in our arsenal. %Gallery-112482%
Smartfish ErgoMotion Keyboard fingers-on
The crew at Smartfish have been working overtime on their world hunger-ending, carpal tunnel-killing, and totally innovative peripherals, and they're finally ready to introduce the complement to its ErgoMotion mouse: the ErgoMotion keyboard. We got to lay our overworked, underfed fingers on a prototype on display at Digital Experience, and although it's certainly nifty, we can't say we're rushing to buy one. Our key presses felt somewhat shallow, but we'll cut the crew a little slack because it's still a prototype. The selling point here is the fact that the keyboard itself is segmented in two, and is programmed to reconfigure itself periodically -- a phenomenon that definitely takes some getting used to. The movements, although subtle, are definitely noticeable, but see for yourself in the videos after the break. %Gallery-81888%
Smartfish ErgoMotion Mouse fights off RSI with a bit of wobble
After a long period of incubation, Smartfish is at last ready to start shipping the first of its "ErgoMotion" devices. The ErgoMotion Mouse is a pretty straightforward wireless laser mouse, with large right and left click buttons, a nice big scroll wheel, and its own little USB wireless dongle. What makes it different is a truly odd raised platform that allows the mouse to tilt in all directions -- apparently providing for more natural motion. We tried it out for a bit, and while it certainly provides a fresh method of using the mouse, the very fact that it's working out more arm muscles simultaneously means that there will probably be a bit of fatigue at the outset. The ErgoMotion Mouse is available today for $50, and you can check out some video of it in action after the break.
