When Captain Kirk first flipped open his communicator in 1966, he transported the portable personal communications device into mainstream culture.
Today’s Web-enabled PDA/mobile phone combinations such as the BlackBerry®, BlackJack™ and Treo™ represent the potential of our connected future. Yet as powerful as these devices are, we have a long way to go before they can deliver the speed and ease of use that we experience while plugged into our office PCs and laptops.
While processors get faster, smaller and more efficient every day, the greatest room for improvement lies in the interaction with those processors. Innovation with monitors, pointing devices, and keyboards – I/O (Input/Output) in the lingo of computer engineering – has lagged behind.
That all may change with the introduction of flexible LCDs, multi-touch interfaces, and the new Bluetooth Laser Virtual Keyboard by i.Tech ($179.99 at ThinkGeek.com).
We asked our resident electrical and mechanical engineer, Kevin Dahlquist, to take the Bluetooth Laser Virtual keyboard or VKB out for a test drive. He expected a high-tech novelty. What he found was a practical device that offers a glimpse into the future of communications.
Virtual Keyboard Compatible Devices
PDA’s
Acer N50
Asus MyPal A716
Dell Axim 50 X50V
HP iPAQ 1940
HP iPAQ 2210
HP iPAQ H2700
HP iPAQ rx3417
HP iPAQ rx3715
HP iPAQ 4700
HP iPAQ 5550
MIO 336 BT
Palm Tungsten T3
Palm Tungsten T5
Palm Zire 72
Palm TX
Palm LifeDrive
SmartPhones
HP 6300 Series
HP 6500 Series
Dopod 535
SPV E200
Dopod 565
i-mate SP3
Qtek 8010
SPV C500
Dopod 576
Xphone II
Dopod 585
Xphone IIm
Dopod 699
M2500
Qtek 2020i
XDA Iii
Dopod 700
i-mate PDA2K
MDA III
Qtek 9090
VPA III
XDA IIs
Dopod 818
i-mate JAM
M500
MDA Compact
Qtek S100
XDA mini
M2000
MDA II
Qtek 2020
XDA II
Audiovox xv6600
PPC6601 Harrier
I-mate JasJar
Motorola A1000
Motorola MPx220
Nokia 3650
Nokia 6600
Nokia 6260
Nokia 6630
Nokia 6680
Nokia 7650
Palm Treo 650
BlackBerry 7100
BlackBerry 7250
BlackBerry 7290
BlackBerry 7520
Samsung i730
Sony Ericsson P800
Sony Ericsson P900
Sony Ericsson P910i
Xplore M68
PCs & Laptops
Windows 2000
Windows XP
Windows Vista
RED LASER by Kevin Dahlquist
Bluetooth Virtual Keyboard Brightens Mobile Communications
The small, nondescript black box stands on my desk, like Kubrick’s monolith, with no hint of its function.
But when I press the streamlined button on i.Tech’s Bluetooth Virtual Keyboard (VKB), the device springs to life. Its function is revealed. The glowing red outline projected via laser shines neatly in front of the box, transforming a flat surface into a clearly defined computer keyboard. No wires, no physical keys. Just light.
The visuals alone would be enough to qualify the VKB as cool. But i.Tech has combined form and function. Armed with remarkable sensing technology, the VKB offers a convenient, accurate wireless keyboard.
Although I expected a novelty, I discovered a practical peripheral – far more than just another electronic paperweight. I’d been warned to resist the temptation to open it up and view the cornucopia of parts inside (hey, I’m an engineer). So I explored its performance.
Here's what I found:
The sensor technology has limited range. The top rows of virtual keys perform
better than those on the bottom.
There’s no tactile feedback, which takes some getting used to. You can’t rest your fingers on the virtual keyboard. So, it helps to get your fingers used to high-stepping to help define keystrokes. Interestingly, you don’t actually have to touch the surface of your virtual keyboard – just get a fingertip to within about 1/16 of an inch from the surface and the key will trigger. If you let a finger linger on the VKB, it will register the activated key over and over again much like a traditional keyboard.
Patterns, colors, and texture on your typing surface don’t seem to have any major effect on the VKB’s ability to accurately sense keystrokes. The device works as well on dark desks, as it does lighter ones. However, it does require a flat surface. While it won’t work in direct sunlight, I was surprised to see that even in a light shadow on concrete it was correctly registering keystrokes.
Among my more amusing discoveries: Most people nearby will be drawn to the glowing red light, intrigued to know what the VKB does, how it does it, and where to get one. While it’s a great time saver in a hotel room, you might spend more time talking about it and less time using it should you pull it out at the airport. You can also project momentarily a ridiculously sized keyboard on any surface before the sensor gives up and shuts down. And dogs that are fascinated by laser pointers are overwhelmed by a full laser keyboard.
Further experiments proved that you can fool the device by moving it across particular objects. I put a hot dog on my desk and moved the keyboard over it. The hot dog set off the keys. Same with a peanut.
When it really matters, and with a little practice, the VKB provides all of the features that you have come to expect from your desktop keyboard. The VKB’s rechargeable battery will last about two hours and is far quicker to type on than the tiny thumb keyboard on mobile devices.
The VKB is just a peek into the future of the technologies that will be integrated into the next generation of mobile devices on their mission to become true desktop replacements. The VKB makes the future look bright.
