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> Review :: i-tech Bluetooth Virtual Keyboard, Rating 3 out of 5
smeg36
post May 7 2006, 04:41 PM
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Bluetooth Virtual Keyboard
By i-tech
MGN Rating -

Rating Legend

1 star: Find something else; save your money
2 star: Below average; not recommended
3 star: Average; performs as advertised but not inspiring
4 star: Good; worth the money
5 star: Great; best of its kind on the market

Review by Smeg36
Review Date / May 7th, 2006

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Intro

The i-tech Bluetooth Virtual Keyboard has been out for a little while now. Many comprehensive reviews have been written detailing every aspect of the "keyboard" (if you can call light being projected onto a surface a keyboard!). When it was first announced, prior to being released, it was widely thought of as vaporware. A product that would never reach the market. All naysayers were silenced when i-tech successfully released the virtual keyboard, revolutionizing the whole concept of PDA text input.

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Concept

Imagine the possibilities. Imagine the year 2020. PDAs with roll-out, 10" displays and built-in projecting keyboards. No need to fumble with a stylus on a screen or cramp your thumbs on a thumb board. Instead there's a little hole that a keyboard image is projected out of. That is the idea I always think of when I imagine the possibilities of the i-tech Bluetooth Virtual Keyboard in the future. The concept of using light projected onto a surface to pickup finger movements and input them as text on a device in incredible. Truly genius. The product making it to market when so many thought it wouldn't is impressive. But is the technology ready? Can it perform?

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Practicality

So how does this amazing concept actually perform? Well, here's some text I input into my old Samsung i730 using the VKB in Pocket Word:
QUOTE
A note typed in Pcket Word to show the ccurzacy of the VKB. Haven't edited any of the content of gthis note so hyou can get an a curate representation of the accuracy of the keyb oard. It took me \about 1 minute to type this note. I am still gettimg the hang of the keyboard, a d I am getting faster and more accurate with use.

The fact of the matter is the concept seems to have preceded the technology. The VKB is perfect for amazing anyone and everyone. The WOW factor is off the charts; by far the most impressive piece of hardware I've ever laid eyes on. It does suffer from being a first generation product though. I can't think of a single product that didn't have problems with the first generation. Anyone tried an old, original Pocket PC? How about an Orange SPV Smartphone? Both very unstable. But look at the great products that were spawned from them. I hope the same holds true for the VKB. The potential of this product is astronomical.

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Conclusion

The concept is unbelievable. Bringing it to market was impressive. It's perfect to impress your friends, family, mother-in-law, co-workers, and just about anybody else in the world. The actual functionality lacks somewhat from being a first generation product that was probably way beyond it's time, but nevertheless the VKB is one impressive piece of hardware. With persistence in working out the issues it has, the VKB could be a very useful addition to a PDA/Smartphone.


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musicman247
post May 11 2006, 08:13 PM
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Question: When using the keyboard, do your hands have to be in a specific position, or can you "hover over the keys like a real keyboard? Is typing on it fluid, or do you have to learn a new style?
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smeg36
post May 11 2006, 09:57 PM
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You do have to adjust the position of your hands slightly. I had to arch my finger a bit more than I do on a standard keyboard to get it to recognize the taps. If you practiced, you could get it fluid, but nothing like a standard keyboard.


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gregger
post May 18 2006, 06:11 PM
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I think this techology has some promise, especially if it were one day paired with a projection unit on the back that could show a higher resolution image on a wall. Then you could take notes, share presentations, or just work from a PDA.

Of course I would expect the PDA to be more like a real computer at that point. You have to think that all this specialized OS nonsense is going to drop by the wayside after Vista and these devices will run a real OS that either syncs with your desktop (completely... because you'll have a high capacity parallel storage media hard dive with hybrid flash on it for better battery life), a "real" OS, all the connectivity you could want in the device... what's missing is good input and screen real-estate.

Roll out screens would be one option, but you have to lug around a lot of crap at once. Also, they might be hard to congregate around.

I have a physical Bluetooth keyboard for my 8125 and the accuracy of it is better than the projection VKB (from your quote), but it still can suffer. In fact, if I'm using WiFi AND the Think Outside keyboard at once, the BT keyboard has significant issues.

Cool technology though!
TTFN
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