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I know the idea is to be distraction-free but it’s hard to justify over a basic writing app on the phone you already own, which includes a nicer screen.
Why is this so expensive? Raspberrypi zero 2w + some stripped down OS that boots directly to an editor, lcd display and a nice case would be much cheaper. Also easier to implement other stuff, like different fonts, use your own 'cloud' to sync stuff (and not being forced into a subscription), etc.
I'm from GenX. I remember these. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AlphaSmart
There is a special place in hell for people who make hardware that runs static software, but still withhold ownership just so they can indefinitely bilk money from you.
If you’re charging $200 you should really be able to see more than 15 lines of text at a time. I know the idea is to be distraction-free but it’s hard to justify over a basic writing app on the phone you already own, which includes a nicer screen.
I have working keyboards in my possession that this thing cannot connect to.
- No ADB port for a Mac keyboard
- No Sun Type 5 Mini-DIN
- No PS/2 port
- No PC keyboard port
- No Newton serial keyboard port
- No RJ11 for an LK-201
So much for universal.
If you’re charging $200 you should really be able to see more than 15 lines of text at a time. I know the idea is to be distraction-free but it’s hard to justify over a basic writing app on the phone you already own, which includes a nicer screen.
In the video they show the 3 text size modes. The smallest text size only shows 8 lines, even though the text on the screen claims it goes to 11: https://youtu.be/5hV8xfhdk7c?t=208 (3:28) I can't imagine 15 lines of text on a low resolution screen like that.
I like the concept of the device, but I must not be the target audience at all. I can't imagine spending time writing on a low-resolution, tiny LCD display like that for any extended period of time.
Even the response time of the LCD looks painfully slow in the video. The letters slowly fade into view as they're being typed. They only show the typing for a couple seconds so if you blink you'll miss it in the demo video. This is in contrast to the campaign's claims of zero latency and high responsiveness
Apparently there's a market for it, though, because they have a lot of Kickstarter backers.
"Universal keyboard compatibility" -- bah! I have working keyboards in my possession that this thing cannot connect to. - No ADB port for a Mac keyboard - No Sun Type 5 Mini-DIN - No PS/2 port - No PC keyboard port - No Newton serial keyboard port - No RJ11 for an LK-201 So much for universal.
Do you have any interesting layout and language variations?
If you wanna DIY then you could achieve something similar with the open source ZeroWriter https://github.com/zerowriter/zerowriter1
Why is this so expensive? Raspberrypi zero 2w + some stripped down OS that boots directly to an editor, lcd display and a nice case would be much cheaper. Also easier to implement other stuff, like different fonts, use your own 'cloud' to sync stuff (and not being forced into a subscription), etc.