Foldable NFC keyboard could tempt Android users Japanese electronics firm Elecom is claiming a world first with the launch of an NFC-enabled portable keyboard designed to work with Android smartphones – a gadget which could appeal to time-starved, fat fingered mobile workers. The keyboard, designed in collaboration with Norwegian firm One2Touch, is similar in layout to a …
"Who actually has the thought pattern of "lets put a battery in there that can't be replaced or charged?"
Someone who's just worked out that it could be used for 8 hours a day for 18 months on a non- replaceable, non- rechargeable battery, considered what that actually means in terms of a more likely usage pattern for a gadget like this, and then looked at how much they can save on the cost by missing out the battery access and/or charging circuitry. This might also explain why it's NFC rather than Bluetooth...
Throw away instead of charging... Not very green is it!
And at that price, not what I'd call disposable.
I'm sure given the silicone construction, it wouldn't be long before someone cuts it open and finds a way to power it externally.
Now the other problem I see is the layout. I can't imagine it's too nice to type on spaced like that, and it also limits the user base... If the gap is for a smartphone, a Nexus 7 won't fit. If it's 7" tablet sized a bigger one won't fit, and phones will look a bit lost in the middle.
Surely a better design would be to have a standard keyboard layout and have the NFC part unroll to the top? (and a way of charging it of course).
I think I'll stick with the Nexus 7, OTG cable and mini USB keyboard all the same. Somewhat cheaper and not like typing on dead flesh!
Uh, it's made of silicon, right ?
Silicon has a dismal resistance to a cutter blade, but reacts well to sticky tape.
I think there will be a load of DIY battery-changing tactics in short order.
And if you screw up with the cutter, well the replacement isn't all that expensive. Actually, the new battery would probably be as expensive as the keyboard. Hmm, why bother then ?
Maybe that's the idea.
"And if you screw up with the cutter, well the replacement isn't all that expensive. Actually, the new battery would probably be as expensive as the keyboard. Hmm, why bother then ?"
Am I missing something, or did the article state that the keyboard costs £152.47?
Doesn't sound cheap to me.
Is the keyboard paired with the device, or will any one of them work on any phone using the software?
I'm thinking of a hacked one set to transmit the right key combinations to, say, dial a premium rate number, over and over as a 'drive by' attack in a busy train station.
And is the keyboard data encrypted? Right bit of hardware (a cantenna or even a receiver stuck to the underside of a train table in the hope of getting lucky) might suck up any passwords/credit card details entered via the device.
I think that might be why NFC has an advantage here... only has an active distance of a few centimetres....(think oyster card activation distance and how you still have to virtually touch the contact plate to get let through the barriers at rush hour).. Can't recall exact distance but it isn't far.
I seem to remember UK.gov making that claim about the RFID in the spangly new radio passports that they forced everyone into getting.
Then those cheeky chappies at NO2ID find out that the range is a few centimetres.. IF you are being nice, and ONLY using standard equipment that follows laws on radio emissions and the likes. Otherwise you can get a range of anything from a couple of metres up to about 90 feet or so.
"Now for the major draw back. According to Elecom, the device will feature a built-in battery that apparently cannot be removed or charged. It will last for 18 months if used for eight hours per day, but after that, the user is forced to buy a replacement keyboard."
This is quite likely to run afoul of EU law on waste electronic equipment.
Of course, it's also quite likely to run afoul of a scalpel wielded by a suitably creative-minded person.
quote: "I note that they describe this device as "waterproof". Good luck to them - most manufacturers today prefer the term "water resistant", it's much friendlier when it comes to a court case (for example). The device will never be made which can properly be termed "waterproof"."
Well, unless it has a single, contiguous (no glued seams), injection molded silicone cover. Is a block of "pure" silicone waterproof? Is a seamless block of silicone formed around a component considered waterproof? Personally I'd accept block of silicone = waterproof to any reasonable definition of "waterproof" (e.g. IPx8 certified).
Sounds slightly less silly than "water resistant to 3km" as seen on some premium divers watches, which to my mind should also be considered "waterproof" as practised by consumer goods. How many of them will actually see use submerged below 1000m, never mind 3km? ;)
It's much harder to make a device waterproof when there's a battery compartment that you need to avoid shorting out, or a charging port.
I'd guess that's the reason the batteries aren't replaceable.
Unfortunately for the manufacturer, none of this changes the fact that they're charging about $200 for a disposable device (which, for the greens among us, is also not recyclable without more effort than post users are willing to put out). Few people would pay 5x as much as a normal bluetooth keyboard that could be recharged, for a disposable one that only lasts 18 months (assuming their battery life estimates are accurate, which battery life estimates never are).
Would anyone seriously expect to use this for anything approaching 8 hours a day? That's like using it to replace all other computers / tablets / typewriters(!) you ever use!
I suspect even an hour a day would be pushing it for most people, which then extends battery life to 10-15 years. So not convinced the battery life is an issue - though still wouldn't buy one; if I'm typing enough to need an extra keyboard then I want a bigger display too.
Assuming it does take that little power why could they not have it solar or inductive loop charged , even if they didn't have the charger to go with it right now they'd probably have a couple of years to design one.
Next one could be OK.
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Oh my mind, it's not safe to be in here....
How long before the first in utero pad? get junior choosing his classical "intelligence enhancing"music before his 0 birthday.
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