Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#1

Post by walterbell » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:30 PM UTC

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#2

Post by maxpert » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:44 PM UTC

I so much wish Apple would have integrated E-Ink in their keyboard keys. I was kinda hoping from the leaks it to be true but sad :( Instead of removing function bar and putting in a stupid LCD this would have made more sense. If they were dying to put in an Apple watch display in keyboard they could have done it on trackpad!

Disclaimer: Despite all this Macbook remains my fav laptop, no other laptop including surface compares to integrated experience.

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#3

Post by Kenji » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:44 PM UTC

And here I am looking down at my keyboard, which looks like this: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/81amtBk%2BvqL._SL1500_...

And wondering what an E-Ink Keyboard is good for in the real world (this is a genuine question).

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#4

Post by deelowe » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:49 PM UTC

Kenji wrote: post #3

And here I am looking down at my keyboard, which looks like this: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/81amtBk%2BvqL._SL1500_... And wondering what an E-Ink Keyboard is good for in the real world (this is a genuine question).

First step in playing a PC game is to go into options and try to memorize the controls. This could be useful for gaming or specialized applications like CAD.

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#5

Post by ianai » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:49 PM UTC

I really want to like this, but I never look at the keyboard. I wish this were a general purpose display.

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#6

Post by feketegy » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:49 PM UTC

maxpert wrote: post #2

I so much wish Apple would have integrated E-Ink in their keyboard keys. I was kinda hoping from the leaks it to be true but sad :( Instead of removing function bar and putting in a stupid LCD this would have made more sense. If they were dying to put in an Apple watch display in keyboard they could have done it on trackpad! Disclaimer: Despite all this Macbook remains my fav laptop, no other laptop including surface…

What integrated experience when you can't even connect your iPhone to your Mac without an adapter?

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#7

Post by Veen » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:52 PM UTC

It looks cool, but I don't like that the e-ink displays are deep in the key caps rather than at the top. Perhaps it's a technological limitation.

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#8

Post by mbreese » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:52 PM UTC

feketegy wrote: post #6

maxpert wrote: post #2

I so much wish Apple would have integrated E-Ink in their keyboard keys. I was kinda hoping from the leaks it to be true but sad :( Instead of removing function bar and putting in a stupid LCD this would have made more sense. If they were dying to put in an Apple watch display in keyboard they could have done it on trackpad! Disclaimer: Despite all this Macbook remains my fav laptop, no other laptop including surface…

What integrated experience when you can't even connect your iPhone to your Mac without an adapter?

There are better arguments for Apple's connectivity issues. I haven't had to directly attach my phone to my Mac in years. Sure, there are use-cases, but really, how many people plug their phones into their computers on a regular basis?

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#9

Post by the8472 » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:55 PM UTC

Not exactly a novel idea, the optimus maximus keyboard has been a concept design in 2005 and saw a limited production run in 2007. And it supported colors to boot.

I think its main problem was that it was too expensive.

Re: Sonder E-Ink Keyboard

#10

Post by the8472 » Sun, Oct 30, 2016, 3:57 PM UTC

Kenji wrote: post #3

And here I am looking down at my keyboard, which looks like this: http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/81amtBk%2BvqL._SL1500_... And wondering what an E-Ink Keyboard is good for in the real world (this is a genuine question).

if you allow enough alternative keyboard layouts for exotic unicode characters then you probably won't have muscle memory for it. So cycling through blocks with hunt and peck might be useful for rarely used characters.

Or as accelerator key hints for application-specific keyboard shortcuts for applications that you don't use on a daily basis. Instead of having to dig through 3 levels of modal dialogs or menus you could just look at your keyboard to find the right shortcut.