(Credit:
Mobile Mechatronics)
If you're an iPhone owner who just hates typing on the device's virtual keyboard, Mobile Mechatronics has something for you: the iTwinge, a $30 BlackBerry-style, slide-on keyboard that mounts right on the iPhone.
Now iPhone purists are probably thinking this should be called the iCringe, but if you're heavy into texting and e-mailing and aren't proficient with the virtual keyboard, I can see some merit to using this device. However, it obviously covers up a good 40 percent of the iPhone's screen, which would seem problematic.
According to Mobile Mechatronics, the iTwinge Keyboard is a typing "Skin" for the iPhone that "enables faster and more accurate typing through the use of our patent pending Twinge Technology." Also, according to the company, studies show that an average user will improve their typing speed by 30 percent to 40 percent and reduce typing errors by 70 percent to 80 percent.
The lightweight keyboard sleeve--it weighs an ounce--attaches to the bottom of the iPhone and mimics the iPhone's virtual keyboard (it appears that touching the keys simply transfers the touch to the virtual keys below). According to the company's FAQ section, it slips on and off in a second and is durable (see a video of iTwinge in action here). It's also worth noting that it apparently draws some power from your iPhone, but only a tiny amount.
Mobile Mechatronics indicates that the iTwinge is also a training tool for those transitioning from a phone with a physical keyboard to the iPhone's virtual keyboard and that it has an iPhone app in development that helps "users build muscle memory & improve typing skills."
The iTwinge is scheduled to ship on November 17 and the company is taking preorders now. We assume Mobile Mechatronics has Apple's blessing to sell this, but it's worth noting that Apple has refused so far to approve or create Bluetooth drivers that would let you use a wireless keyboard to type on the iPhone. I've written about the whole iPhone Bluetooth keyboard fiasco in the past, and I still can't understand why Apple wouldn't give its users the option of using a Bluetooth keyboard with the iPhone.
Anyway, what do you guys think of the iTwinge? Is it intriguing and innovative or a waste of money?
(Source: Engadget via ChipChick)
(Credit:
Mobile Mechatronics)
Next year's iPhone might be hiding a keyboard underneath that touch-screen, according to a report.
(Credit: CNET Networks)Could Apple have a slider-style iPhone up its sleeve?
That's what The Register thinks, reporting Monday that Apple has shown off prototypes of an iPhone with a hardware keyboard to certain executives at wireless operators. The current iPhone famously comes with only one hardware button that returns the user to the home screen, with the rest of the buttons enabled in software.
The lack of a hardware keyboard is said to be a detriment for business users who are hooked on their BlackBerrys, and the iPhone's touch-screen keyboard certainly does take some getting used to in the first couple of weeks. The report suggests that a hardware-keyboard iPhone will be out around this time next year assuming Apple can work out the kinks.
I can't decide what I think about this notion. It's not completely out of the question that Apple would at least be thinking about a slider-style phone; some designs are quite popular with young and old alike. And we've long expected Apple to eventually release a family of iPhones similar to its strategy for the iPod product line, with different form factors and capabilities targeted at different groups.
But Apple has invested so much in the software that runs the iPhone that I would be surprised if it changed the game so early in the life of the product. Apple CEO Steve Jobs has said several times that the beauty of the touch-screen approach is that any button you need can be simply programmed with the software, rather than having to develop the software around the buttons.
Since the iPhone was released last year, there has been a noticeable uptick in phones with touch-screen interfaces from other phone makers and carriers. Still, as The Register notes, an awful lot of slider-style phones are sold every year because people still like keyboards.
We do know that Apple has applied for a patent on a clamshell-style iPhone, so it might be heading in that direction before it tackles slider phones. There's certainly plenty of room for several different styles in the fast-growing smartphone market, and Apple might be wise to hedge its bets.
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