ArtLebedev
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Art Lebedev's Folderix flash drives are obvious, awesome
Lebedev's design crew never seems to be short on surprisingly obvious and yet entirely fresh takes on every day objects, and the new Folderix flash drives are taking that ethic to entirely new and conveniently functional heights. The 4GB drives come in a myriad of colors, are available today and will run you a fairly steep $55. Literal folder design? Priceless.[Via Electronista]
Art Lebedev opens minimus Optimus Store in New York
There it is, Art Lebedev's new Optimus Store in New York, NY. It's not so much a store as it is a kiosk sitting inside of RCS Computer Experience at 575 Madison Ave. Guess they're just waiting for demand of the $1,500 $1,877 keyboard market to pick-up before busting out the trowel and mortar.
Optimus Maximus survives coffee spill test... or does it?
Maybe it's the ambiguity and possible masking of truth that just adds to the allure here, but whether it really lived or not, you now know what an Optimus Maximus looks like after an impromptu greeting with lukewarm java. Sir tema clearly states that the keyboard "survived" its first recorded coffee spill "thanks to the construction of the upper tray," but judging by the looks of this thing... um, we're not so sure. Oh, and he also mentions that spilling liquids on the 'board is not only "stupid," but it obviously voids any applicable warranties. Thanks for the memo.
Art Lebedev lets loose Plastinkus scratch pad
Sure, you could whip out your iPhone or Nintendo DS and your app of choice for a little impromptu DJ session before dinner, or you could get yourself one (or two) of Art Lebedev's new Plastinkus scratch pads, which supposedly sound just like you're scratching the real thing. While that claim may be somewhat dubious, at about four bucks apiece they're certainly at least worth taking a chance on, and you can even get 'em in no less than forty different color combinations. Now, if we could only get our business cards printed on them.[Via Pocket-lint]
Optimus Pultius: because Maximus just isn't enough
Sensing your deep down desire for more OLED keys, Art Lebedev is busting out the new Optimus Pultius, which adds 15 keys to the mayhem. Sure you could use it all by its lonesome, sans Maximus, but that's just not as fun. The keys are just like the ones on the Maximus, and there's even an extra USB port in the back. And you know what that's for... daisy chaining these suckers. No word on price or release date just yet, other than the vague 2008 / early 2009 timeframe.
Art Lebedev opening Optimus Store in New York next month
We highly doubt Art Lebedev chose the opening day of the 2008 Beijing Olympics on purpose here, but nevertheless, the design studio made famous by its Optimus Maximus keyboard will be opening up shop in the Big Apple on August 8th, 2008. At first, the store will actually be held within RCS Computer Experience at 575 Madison Ave. and E. 56th Street (on the second floor, just opposite the escalator), but if sales start pouring in, we reckon it could land its own place in due time. It is noted that this location will devote almost all of its shelf space to Optimus Maximus keyboards, but a few other electronics gizmos should be available as well. So, who's camping out for the opening?
Optimus Popularis prototype hits the web
Watch out, everybody, the Optimus Popularis has gone from foam mockup to proper-looking prototype. (We're really digging that full-length display in the space bar.) With any luck, we won't have to watch this one develop over the course of 2-3 years like we did the Maximus -- and with a little more luck, this one will be easier to type on, too.
Art Lebedev shows off Optimus Popularis keyboard mock-up
It hasn't been all that long since the Optimus Maximus emerged its long, long journey from idea to actual, ridiculously expensive product, but it looks like we're already off on the next round of teasers and wild speculation courtesy of Art Lebedev, with the firm now offering up the first glimpse of its forthcoming Optimus Popularis keyboard. True to from, however, there's not much more than the mock-up above to go on at the moment, with Art Lebedev only saying that the keyboard won't use OLEDs but will instead be based on a "totally different principle," and that it'll be priced "below $1,000."
How would you change the Optimus Maximus?
After hacking away on Art Lebedev's utterly gorgeous Optimus Maximus for a few days, we came away both awed and disappointed. For as beautiful and functional as this beast is, we still felt that actually typing on it -- you know, its primary purpose -- left a lot to be desired. Still, it's hard to deny the ingenuity in the OLED-stuffed 'board, but with such a lofty price tag and even loftier expectations, we can't imagine all of the lucky early adopters being a hundred percent satisfied. For those that laid out for this exquisite piece of kit, how on Earth could revision two be better? Want a few more keys to play around with? Could it stand to lose some of that clicky tactility? Or will it really only be worth the coin once it bags your lunch, irons your shirt and chauffeurs you to work? Do tell.
Art Lebedev taking wares to brick and mortar
Be still, our hearts! Judging by a post (penned in Russian) over at the studio's Livejournal, we could be seeing a number of Art Lebedev retail outlets popping up over the next year and change. From what we can glean, (more) B&M locations could surface in a plethora of Russian cities (Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, etc.) along with one in New York (!). Granted, we get the impression that the "stores" may resemble holes-in-the-wall within other establishments (rather than dedicated structures), but we 'spose only time will tell. Camp out for the next edition of the Optimus Maximus right here in the Big Apple? Why, of course.[Thanks, Dmitriy]
Art Lebedev's Defendius. Because unlocking doors is just a little too easy
Sure there's plenty options out there for those that want quick and easy security measures for their doors, but what about those that like to make everyday activities a challenge? Thankfully, the geniuses at Art Lebedev studios have now come up with a solution in the form of the Defendius door chain, but you better act fast -- we hear it's available for today only.
Optimus mini 3.0 could sport Bluetooth, touchscreen
Those crazies over at Art Lebedev are starting work on a new Optimus mini 3.0 device, which will likely include Bluetooth for wireless operation and possibly Tactus-esque touchscreen capability. The plan is to have one display divided into three or possibly more zones, but right now it sounds like they're still planning on having the device be AC-powered (boo, hiss). Apparently the current Optimus mini is getting a lot of use as a PowerPoint controller. Who knew? Pictures will be forthcoming, says the official blog.
Video: Optimus Maximus install, setup, Configurator, and use!
Ah, finally, video of the production Optimus Maximus keyboard in real world use with our machine running the Configurator software. We won't spoil all the fun, hit up the video after the break to see it in action.[MP4] - Download, h.264 65MBUpdate: Ok, YouTube was totally sucky for the first couple hours, but the embedded video is now online after the break. Of course, you can also download it from the link right above. Sorry for the delay!
Optimus Maximus: at long last, we bring one home to test
It's the damnedest thing: years after seeing the renders we're actually finally writing this post on our very own Optimus Maximus. We've had ours for a few weeks for testing, but we weren't able to do a whole lot with it until we got some later firmware updates. Here's the preliminary report: The OLED displays look really good, and are bright and colorful, just like we'd hoped. Key changes were instant (or almost) in Windows mode, but had a slight delay in Mac mode, where some key bindings were also little out of whack. These are known issues, though, and are being worked on. The keyboard itself is friggin massive, and very sturdy-feeling. The thing is a tank. Replacing keys is pretty easy, but larger keys are more difficult to pull off. You're really only intended to replace the standard-sized keys, so far as we can tell. Typing on it, well, sucks. We kind of hate to say it, but this thing more than likely won't replace what ever keyboard you're writing your novel on -- it's better off used as an absurdly configurable swiss army knife for tasks like gaming, Photoshop, or just about any other productivity app that doesn't require a lot of typing. Okay, why does typing on the Optimus suck, you ask? Well, although the keyboard uses mechanical switches and a lot of high quality components (evident when we pulled off some keys), and there is some clicky tactility to keypresses, as a whole it just requires way too much force to depress keys. And the larger the key, the more force is required, so enter is easier than space, but harder than tab. Let's put it this way, we sit around and type all day long and this thing wore us out in about 30 seconds to a minute. Carpal sufferers, beware. The Configurator is everything we hoped it'd be and more. The ability to paint directly onto the keyboard maps with the image editor of your choice is most excellent. Mapping keyboards to applications and conditions is ridiculously easy. Not everything was working properly though, since we were testing early beta software. We'll have some video in a bit. We so can't wait for people to start getting their keyboards so we can benefit from their wacky layouts.%Gallery-16672%
Optimus Maximus shipments begin
The day you've been waiting so very, very, very long for has finally arrived: Optimus Maximus keyboards have begun shipping out to their new homes. In addition to the pricey, OLED-studded 'boards, the Optimus Configurator software utility is also available, allowing you to customize your new purchase to your heart's content. In other news, Art Lebedev says that he's planning a new project which will make you salivate uncontrollably for five years straight, and end with you taking out a second mortgage on your home to purchase it. Huzzah!
How much would you pay to be the first Optimus Maximus owner?
We wouldn't have expected the first opportunity for consumers to pick up an Optimus Maximus to be in the wild frontiers of eBay, but hey, we'll take what we can get. Currently at $300 with 14 bids, but seeing how fast our pathetic bid was shot down, it looks like there's going to be quite a frenzy when the auction winds down on February 4th.
Art Lebedev's CES 2008 booth tour
Let's get this straight: Lebedev by no means only does the Optimus Maximus, and his studio is one of the most prolific design firms in Russia. But Art and his crew were at CES for one reason, and one reason alone -- not that we have a problem with that. Don't forget to check out our Optimus Maximus video.%Gallery-13143%
Apple patents a Maximus-alike keyboard, iMac MacBook dock
Apple's always enjoyed patenting the near-absurd, just to get us speculating in the wrong direction or to give its thousands of patent lawyers something to do during a slow design cycle. We can't really imagine Apple has this pair of "products" prepped and waiting in the wings of Macworld, but it's still fun to look. First off we have a MacBook dock that conveniently looks just like an iMac. Not much explanation is needed, you just slide the laptop into the side of the iMac and start desktoping away on the big screen. The second patent deals with a quite familiar keyboard concept: OLED screens in every key. It's not the first time an Apple patent has overlapped with a Lebedev design, but who knows how it'll go down if Apple tries to build one of these Lebedev-ish ideas -- Apple patented this keyboard concept about a year after the Maximus concept was first shown off.Read - iMac MacBook dockRead - Apple Maximus
Art Lebedev kills us with Optimus Tactus keyboard concept
Yeah, you thought the Optimus Maximus was the holy grail of keyboarding -- then you saw the Optimus Tactus, a giant touch sensor display tablet keyboard that could do all the sorts of crazy stuff the Maximus can't even touch, like playing movies and being a gigantic color swatch. That is, if it weren't a concept. (Then again, the Maximus started out as a concept as well just a couple of years back, so who knows.) The only thing we don't get: the name. Tactus? Touch-sensitive doesn't exactly shout tactility to us, but since it's all just theoretical at this point, maybe by the time keyboards like this exist we'll all be typing on shape-shifting tactile membranes overlaid on touchscreens. That is, if Apple's patents haven't already blocked everyone else off from going there.%Gallery-12345%
