OrbiTouch Keyless Keyboard Review 347
robyn217 writes "When I last looked at strange, new keyboards (here's the previous thread here on slashdot), I thought I'd seen it all... not even close! I just reviewed a new keyless keyboard, called the OrbiTouch, and gave it a run for its money. It's literally made up of two humps--it reminds me of holding onto my knees rather a keyboard. To type or mouse, you need to move the humps around in a synchronized manner. It's twisted--but it's better for you to decide for yourself--here's the article, OrbiTouch Review: A Keyless Keyboard with lots of pictures. Think you'll give it a test drive? Will it survive the year?"
price (Score:5, Insightful)
Make it a single ball for 1 hand (Score:5, Insightful)
Besides, that many keystrokes combined with a good mouse might make sims such as Americas Army quite a bit more interesting
ugh. (Score:5, Insightful)
When are we going to have some real changes? I want something that allows me to enter data as fast as I can think... Why can't we come up with a better general input device??? Keyboards SUCK!
Re:price (Score:5, Insightful)
Keyboard standardization (Score:3, Insightful)
--D
DVORAK (Score:3, Insightful)
Really, instead of some huge leap, i suggest switching away from QWERTY first. Qwerty was made to slow typing, by making you reach for keys. The reason for this being that the original typewriters would jam if you typed too fast. Obviously, this leads to carpal tunnel, and all that good stuff. DVORAK and some other keyboard formats are made to make it easier, faster, and easier to accurately type. I'm not switching yet, but i'm thinking about it. One of my friends did, and he loves it.
New keyboards are neat and all, but they're still first designs, first revisions. If i'm to try something new (new to me), i'll wait for a year, and see if it's really beneficial. If it is, then i'll look at the cost, and if it's worth it. At this time, this product seems to be more eye candy and "if i have more toys, i win" than actually worthwile. Point: if my g/f wants to use my computer, do i have to switch keyboards? Really, i don't see the $600 benefit in that. not yet at least.
Re:ugh. (Score:5, Insightful)
CPUs can be improved a lot, but the keyboard has been doing its job just fine for a long time. If we're still using the same design as 10 years ago then it means that simply no improvement is needed.
Other fancy replacements didn't gain any noticeable market share. Voice recognition is still far from perfect and is noticeably slower. I suppose a direct interface to the computer might finally replace the keyboard, but I doubt that will become available any time soon.
Re:price (Score:2, Insightful)
120+ wpm (Score:3, Insightful)
Also, though I haven't looked at it in comparison to letter frequency, their schema for keystrokes seemed suboptimal, but still pretty good. For example, transitioning from "t" to "h" (arguably one of the most common two-letter combinations in all of typing) requires going from up,right to right,left instead of just leaving one dome the same and moving the other. Same thing with going from "i" to "n" (also very common), you have to go from up,down to down,lower-left. It's a minor thing, but it seems that attention to these things could have a significant impact upon the ease of use (less motion required, which is supposed to be one of their big selling points), and the speed at which people can type on it (if you don't have to move as far, you key faster - kinda like how Dvorak is more optimal than QWERTY).
notepad? (Score:3, Insightful)
Ahhhh, 2nd year CS students could write a better editor.
vi, my friend, vi
even emacs is better
No wonder he worried about CTS
Major Difference (Score:2, Insightful)
Most users want what they are comfortable with. Relearning how to type every two to three years would be a nightmare. This is why applications generally keep the same interface over consecutive versions. Under the hood, they are better, but to the user they appear mostly the same.
Things are done this way because they work.
Negative! (Score:3, Insightful)
Input devices such as keyboards and mice need to be intuitive and easy to use. Keyboards are very intuitive, a panel full of labeled buttons is presented. Pressing one of the buttons prints the label on the screen. Even very young children have no problem figuring out how to use a keyboard. Indeed the only thing you need to "learn" about using a keyboard is the actual key placement as a QWERTY is not intuitive key placement for the uninitiated. Just watch a five year old at the keyboard and you will know what I mean. Then imagine th same five year old trying to figure out the OrbiTouch.
I'm afraid to say that we cannot expect further advancement beyond the regular keyboard. It has been advanced to the fullest useful level possible. To get to the next level a totally different input device will be required, not a keyboard at all. The last such step that we have seen in input devices was the mouse, now >30 years old. The next step in input devices will be either voice recognition or some form of direct mind-to-pc interface. Right now, voice recognition seems to be the closest to reallity but, given its imaturity, it is still a few years off.
Uh, FPS? (Score:2, Insightful)
WPM? (Score:5, Insightful)
How fast can you type with this thing?!
The reviewer should consider using the thing for a month (exclusively), and tell us whether he learned how to do use it in the end. Furthermore, he should tell us what his WPM is with a regular keyboard, and what his WPM is with this thing is (in a month's time).
The assumption with giving him a month's time is that the novelty (for me) would last about a month. If most people wouldn't be up to keyboard speed in a month, I can't imagine many people sticking to it.
Re:price (Score:3, Insightful)
They came up with it, researched and designed the handrests, and programed the software. They could probably sell it for less, but even if they could sell it for the exact same amount as a normal keyboard they wouldn't get a lot of market penetration. For the people who really need it the price is fine, and it will allow them to actualy recoup those costs.
Re:price (Score:3, Insightful)
Well, I can find a Kinesis [kinesis-ergo.com] for $191, around the same price as a regular high-end keyboard. Or for that matter I can switch a standard keyboard to Dvorak layout for free. Both of those options are better than a normal qwerty board.
Very few use either though. People don't think it is worth it: they think it is to hard to learn, or just too expensive when they get a keyboard free with the computer. ZERO would not be enough to get most of my family to try my Kinesis, and it is standard qwerty!