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Wireless keypad attachment revealed for PS3
A new peripheral for the PS3 has just been announced at Leipzig. A wireless keypad is similar to Xbox 360's current chatpad, but it will connect to the controller through the top USB port. The chatpad will also enable "touchpad mode for mouse input." A picture of the keypad attached to a controller, after the jump.
Creative's ZEN X-Fi player with WiFi gets a lot more real
The Creative kids over at epiZENter have what looks to be a genuine scoop of an unannounced ZEN X-Fi. Not only did they receive this supposedly leaked photo, they also managed to dig out a "ZEN X-Fi Starter Pack" (software and user guide) from the bowels of Creative's own site. Accordingly, we're looking at a new DAP with SD expansion and built-in WiFi, speaker, FM tuner, voice recorder, and the ability to stream media from Creative's "Public Media Server." Additionally, users can chat with Yahoo! Messenger and Microsoft Live! users thanks to the 9-button, cellphone-like keypad. More details and genuflecting lie just beyond the read link.[Thanks Tony and everyone who sent this in]
Crestron adds Windows SideShow support in kepads, remotes
We know, the lack of SideShow support up until now is somewhat baffling, and while having Crestron onboard certainly won't hurt matters, we doubt this is just the boost Microsoft was waiting for. Regardless, the aforementioned figurehead in home automation has just announced that its touchpanels and control systems will support Windows SideShow, giving owners of such devices easy access to news feeds, sports scores, weather alerts, e-mail, etc. through a simple network connection to a Vista PC. For those curious if their devices are included in the fun, any touchpanel or 2-way device that supports dynamic text (such as the APAD wall mount controller and MLX-2 handheld remote) is game, and if you're eager for more, just head on down to the read link for Creston's official take.
Opus intros WCU600 Touchscreen Control Panel
If you're sick and tired of having to actually walk more than three steps in order to handle mundane tasks such as turning the volume down in the kids' room or powering up the Opus system in your den, take heart. Opus has unveiled a swank (albeit pricey) new touch panel control unit meant to give Opus system owners full control over their components throughout the house on a 3.5-inch touchscreen. The WCU600 even supports IR control from faraway, but unfortunately, it looks as if this one's tied into the Opus infrastructure only. Nevertheless, those with cash to burn and desires to satisfy can look for it to ship sometime this Spring for £575 ($1,151).[Via ShinyShiny]
Fastap keypad layout certified for action in China
Fastap-equipped phones aren't exactly commonplace in North America, so hey, maybe taking the input method to the world's most populous country (and one of the most prolific consumers of cellphones to boot) is the answer. Digit Wireless has announced that the Chinese version of the Fastap keypad layout has now been officially blessed by China's "Standard Scheme of Chinese Phonetic Alphabet Input with Universal Keypad" protocol, allowing phones sporting said layout to be sold within the country's borders. The platform apparently makes Pinyin entry and mixed Chinese / English entry a snap, though we're really none the wiser; any Chinese speakers in the house want to chime in on whether the layout makes sense?
Universal's dual-use KP-900 wireless keypad / remote gets official
Remember that intriguing KP-900 that came our way courtesy of the FCC late last month? Turns out, this creature is getting all official on us today, with Universal proudly proclaiming that its newest IR / RF dual-use remote will be debuting at the Electronic House Expo in Orlando next month. The multifaceted gizmo is made to be retrofitted into any home that could use a wall-mounted home automation controller and a sophisticated home theater remote, and it should be hitting authorized dealer locations next month for $599. Not bad, not bad at all. [Via Widescreen Review]
Prototype mobile showcases e-ink keypad
An e-ink primary display on a cellphone? Eh, that's so 2006. On display at Japan's CEATEC show this week is a prototype clamshell that flips the concept on its head, moving the e-ink down below. The benefits are pretty obvious -- different keypad configurations can be shown in different phone modes, a tactic that's been explored before -- but unlike phones that use OLED or LCD displays, e-ink only requires power when it's being changed, so you get the combined benefit of configurable keys while consuming virtually no additional energy over a standard layout. Combine the concept with physical ridges between keys and we figure this could be a pretty killer setup since you wouldn't be losing tactile feedback, either. We see a good fifteen or twenty concept phones for every device that actually sees production, but since some folks bothered to throw together a physical prototype here, we're cautiously optimistic this thing might see the light of day.[Via Ubergizmo]
Ezkey's mouse and keypad combo
Here you have it: proof that convergence can never be stopped. We don't have any details on this optical mouse but really, what more do you need to know?
RIM's patent application for reconfigurable keypad
The beauty of the messaging beast known as the BlackBerry, is, of course, the lovely QWERTY pad layout and giant luscious screen. We have seen a goodly pile of patent applications from RIM in an effort to preserve said keyboard while potentially supplying a new twist on a fairly utilitarian (and a bit long in the tooth) design. This latest application sees your favorite handset fitted with keys in a "garage door" type layout, so if you only need a few keys for watching a video or wandering the interwebs, the extra keys just roll back into the handset's body. Apparently RIM may already know what Apple could discover next week: on screen keyboards can be pretty weak affairs, albeit much easier to keep clean.[Via Unwired View]
NEC's "Latticekey" concept keypad for mobiles
NEC was showing off some conceptual stuff at CeBIT this year and when we caught sight of what looked like a mobile phone, we hustled over to get a look. Upon closer inspection what they were actually demonstrating was an keypad interface for a mobile phone. Labelled the "Latticekey Interface," the idea is fairly straightforward: none of the keys on the handset have labels of any type, but once you place you fingers on them, the screen will help guide you to use them for whatever task is at hand. This is actually a pretty slick concept, but sadly it was only that – no hands-on here, folks. We included a pic of the text in the display, as NEC worded it in such a dreamy, Utopian voice.%Gallery-2178%
RIM applies for triangular keyboard layout patent
Big, tactile, and fast QWERTY keyboards are the Blackberry's defining characteristic: why then is RIM showing signs that it's going to mess with their tried and tested formula? In the second patent application to surface from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, a series of drawings show a Blackberry design with a keyboard that features up to six different letters on large, triangular shaped keys, although the majority of the keyboard designs group three letters onto each key. As a logical extension of the BB Pearl's space saving -- but mushy -- two letter per key combo, it's natural that RIM would want to control the rights to these kind of keyboard layouts. Still, as a history of failed keyboard designs indicate, there's very little chance that this kind of layout would catch on were it to be released in a physical product. If you ask us, the real money's in tactile touchscreen keypads. That's not thinking different, it's thinking better.[Via Unwired View]
Inventor crafts inexpensive gesture-based 3D touchpad
While there's been boasting galore about gesture-based keyboards, scanners, phones, and more keyboards, it looks like an elusive inventor has crafted yet another "3D touchpad" which can be moved around and placed on (or under) nearly any keyboard that you'd like to implement gesture-based technology on. As with similar renditions, the pad can detect movements of your hand floating above it, and can create inputs not always possible on a typical keyboard. Interestingly, this flavor can purportedly work on standard boards, underneath laptop boards, and even under the "screen of a PDA or cellphone." While our skeptic gear is still zipped on tight, it's said that a few working examples are already out of the lab, and that the special antennas capable of picking up hand movements wouldn't cost much more than it did to insert "scroll wheels into mice." We'll let the peculiar analogy slide if this thing hits the market for a competitive price, deal?[Thanks, Kerunt]
Analysis: Phone Keyboards - Out of the RDF
I guess I'm as susceptible to the famed Steve Jobs "Reality Distortion Field" as the next guy, but even during my initial viewing of the Keynote there was one thing that really bugged me: Jobs' claims about smartphone hardware keyboards. He said:"the problem with them is... they all have these keyboards that are there whether you need them or not.." Further, if the manufacturer happens to "think of a great idea six months from now you can't run around and add a button to these things; they're already shipped."Hmm...
Chemists craft molecular keypad lock
While the folks behind the AACS could probably use a few pointers about constructing a sufficient lock of their own, a group of scientists at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovat, Israel have crafted a molecule-sized "keypad lock" that "only activates when exposed to the correct password, a sequence of chemicals and light." Organic chemist Abraham Shanzer and his colleagues suggest that their invention could "lead to a new level of safeguards for secret information," but we tend think the infamous hackers of the world would inevitably crack the code. Nevertheless, the molecule -- dubbed FLIP -- houses a core linker that mimics a bacterial compound that binds to iron, and attached to it are two molecules that respectively can glow either blue or green. Using three "buttons," which just so happen to be an acidic molecule, an alkaline compound, and ultraviolet light, the lock can be "opened" if given the right sequence of chemicals and light, and there's a grand total of two noticeable results possible. Interestingly, the researchers have insinuated that their creation could be used to recognize "when certain sequences of chemicals (like harmful toxins) are released in the body," but we haven't heard a 10-4 from the US Army just yet.[Via Yahoo, thanks, Antonio H.]
HTC Vox (S710) smartphone revealed
Deets were slim when we first got wind of this HTC Vox phone, a purported GSM counterpart to the HTC Libra, but now The Boy Genius Report has managed to track down some more juicy details, including the first "live" pic of the phone. As rumored, the Vox -- officially titled the S710 -- goes with a messaging-friendly setup, running Windows Mobile 5 Smartphone instead of the Pocket PC featured by some of its QWERTY-sliding companions in the HTC lineup. Contrary to initial reports, the phone is supposed to feature 128MB of ROM and 64MB of RAM, and with a 2.4-inch QVGA screen, Bluetooth, 802.11b/g WiFi, a 2 megapixel camera and a microSD slot, the phone is by no means a total slacker on specs. Of course, the most interesting part of the device is that numeric keypad on the face of the phone, with a semi-automatic sliding QWERTY keyboard tucked behind, but at 0.7-inches thick, it looks like HTC managed to keep things relatively slim, despite the extra keys. What's still up in the air is whether or not the phone will sport 3G data -- the spec sheets list quad-band EDGE as the tops, but that tacked-on smartphone screen up above reads "UMTS operator," so at least there's hope.
ORtek's Skypad Skype phone / numeric keypad combo
Looks like peripheral maker ORTek has managed to find a way to distinguish itself from the seemingly endless stream of Skype phones flooding the market with its latest offering, the Skypad -- a combination USB phone and numeric keypad. Dual uses aside, the unit looks to be a pretty bare-bones deal, with a no-frills, display-less design, and that USB cable keeping you from wandering too far off while you're chatting on it. On the telephony side of things, the Skypad boasts full-duplex support and compatibility with Skype, as well as volume control buttons and other Skype-related keys. As far as keypad capabilities go, the unit packs what appear to be decently-sized keys, as well as such exciting features as Num Lock, and "smart" LEDs. No word on pricing or availability, unfortunately, though it looks like Mac users are out of luck with this one, as it's strictly Windows only.[Via Mobile Whack]
Telus brings Fastap to Canada with LG 490
It looks like Canadians are getting a second shot at Digit Wireless' love-it-or-hate-it Fastap keypad layout with Telus' introduction of the LG 490 clamshell. As you might recall, this same model came to Alltel a couple months back, though we're guessing the Telus incarnation is cleansed of the NASCAR fodder strewn about on its American equivalent. Strangely, Telus customers are going to pay a good deal more for the phone, commanding $129 CAD (about $115 USD) on a two-year contract compared to Alltel's $60 -- the carrier must be brimming with confidence that 38 keys are exactly what text-savvy Canadians yearn for.
Thanko's PIN-protected Morse Code Drive
You may think that those USB thumb drives with biometric protection are keeping your data on adequate lockdown, but with so many Play-Doh-equipped crooks looking to steal your personal information these days, are you really willing to trust your most secure infoswag to a notoriously unreliable fingerprint reader? Our old friends at "innovative" Japanese manufacturer Thanko certainly aren't, as evidenced by their new keypad-sporting model called the Morse Code Drive -- which, despite its name, has nothing to do with the dash-dot-dashing we've seen performed by characters in old war movies. Available in either 512MB or 1GB flavors, this USB 2.0-compatible drive requires the user to input the proper PIN before revealing its precious data on a Mac or Windows machine, although we doubt that a determined hacker would be unable to penetrate its defenses. Still, most consumers will find the $60 and $85 drives acceptable for everyday use, and the fact that they camouflage themselves as a cheap calculator when stored in your pocket protector should only help seal the deal.[Via Fareastgizmos]
Runthrough with Samsung's Q-killing i320
Slim, wide, full keyboard-packin' WM5 Smartphones might be out and about this side of the pond, but our European friends have yet to get in on the Motorola Q -- making Samsung's release of the i320 even more interesting for them, not to suggest there aren't a few Americans that'll be reading PPCReviews' first impression with bated breath. Unfortunately, the outcome isn't exactly a love fest, with the reviewers knocking the i320's sluggish response, odd speakerphone positioning, under-battery microSD slot and lackluster camera. On the positive side, well, it's a WM5 Smartphone with a full keyboard if you're into that sort of thing, and the QVGA display gets high marks. They were also a bit confused about the inclusion of two batteries, suggesting that the i320 might eat some serious power. We'll wait for a couple more reviews before issuing a final judgment, but the HSDPA Q is looking better every day.[Via Smartphone Thoughts]
NeoKeys: yet another mobile keypad interface
A lot of companies have come and gone trying to come up with the Next Big Thing in phone keypad layouts, but this one might just take the cake. The NeoKeys concept, brought to us by a company named Yuvee, takes a page from the Optimus wireless keyboard's book by adding a battery-annihilating array of LCDs to the keypad. The idea is to make the keypad's functionality dynamic depending on the phone's mode, including a language-switching character entry pad for multilingual text messaging. Of course, this is all conceptual right now -- no devices or partners have been announced. We'll go ahead and write up NeoKey's obit now so we have it at the ready.
