My Only Real Concern With Regards The Finished Pandora

[gibberish]

now i know that mweston was having trouble pressing the keys due to them not having the extra 1mm on top, but i wonder - how easy are the buttons going to be to press in the final product?

i understand that it is mainly designed for thumb typing, which probably wouldnt pose any problems but if i decided to type with my fingers instead - am i going to have to JAB at the keys almost vertically to get a key press out of them, or can i just flit my fingers accross them semi flush to the keyboard whilst giving them a swift tap to get them to register too?

i understand that nobody really knows yet... but was that the AIM whilst designing the keyboard or was it considered unimportant because it is designed for thumbs....

 

[God Ginrai]

now i know that mweston was having trouble pressing the keys due to them not having the extra 1mm on top, but i wonder - how easy are the buttons going to be to press in the final product?

i understand that it is mainly designed for thumb typing, which probably wouldnt pose any problems but if i decided to type with my fingers instead - am i going to have to JAB at the keys almost vertically to get a key press out of them, or can i just flit my fingers accross them semi flush to the keyboard whilst giving them a swift tap to get them to register too?

i understand that nobody really knows yet... but was that the AIM whilst designing the keyboard or was it considered unimportant because it is designed for thumbs....

It's supposed to be similar to a button push, because of the fact that we wanted to be able to allocate the keys as extra buttons.

-God Ginrai

 

[logokas]

If you want to know how they feel like, then try any controller that has a keymat based button system. That's just about any controller out there, actually.

I expect them to be fairly easy to push with the coating applied, even with other fingers than just thumb. Plus they become softer after a fair bit of use, so eventually the wear will make them more usable for regular typing.

If you're worried about it, you can always get a small BT keyboard, or even that tiny laser keyboard they sell in thinkgeek. Nifty thing and doesn't waste space, either.

 

[TaG]

The biggest problem is if you have fingers like sausages...

 

[Chip]

The plastic coating will add some height, and the case being screwed together will make the buttons protrude a bit more as well.

 

[Etinin]

You can't really expect a device the size of a pandora to have a keyboard anywhere as good as mechanical keyboards or even standard rubber dome keyboards. I don't think it would be wise to do anything other than thumb (or any two fingers) typing with the Panda's keyboard as it would be too small for touch typing.

 

[God Ginrai]

You can't really expect a device the size of a pandora to have a keyboard anywhere as good as mechanical keyboards or even standard rubber dome keyboards. I don't think it would be wise to do anything other than thumb (or any two fingers) typing with the Panda's keyboard as it would be too small for touch typing.

Rubber dome? o_ô

-God Ginrai

 

[Chip]

Rubber dome? o_ô
Almost all desktop and laptop keyboards use a rubber dome-switch keymat (as opposed to microswitches for each key). The domes (for lack of a more geometrically correct term) have a conductive pad on their undersides. When the key is pressed, the dome squashes, and the pad completes the circuit. The Pandora keymat is a dome-switch keyboard.

 

[God Ginrai]

Rubber dome? o_ô
Almost all desktop and laptop keyboards use a rubber dome-switch keymat (as opposed to microswitches for each key). The domes (for lack of a more geometrically correct term) have a conductive pad on their undersides. When the key is pressed, the dome squashes, and the pad completes the circuit.


Ah, k. Thanks.

-God Ginrai

 

[adamorjames]

Rubber dome? o_ô
Almost all desktop and laptop keyboards use a rubber dome-switch keymat (as opposed to microswitches for each key). The domes (for lack of a more geometrically correct term) have a conductive pad on their undersides. When the key is pressed, the dome squashes, and the pad completes the circuit. The Pandora keymat is a dome-switch keyboard.

I think mine is an exception. Dell Vostro 1500.

 

[senquack]

The only button that will be hard to press is the Shift button. For you, though, it is clear that will never be a problem.

 

[gibberish]

The only button that will be hard to press is the Shift button. For you, though, it is clear that will never be a problem.

Tosser


thanks everyone else, i suppose we'll just have to wait and see.

 

[Bosbeetle]

I think the pressing problem is because of the prototype rubber mats. This mat is a bit thicker and harder to press.

Correct me if I'm wrong

 

[mali]

You are right.

 

[gibberish]

i do realise this, but i just wanted to know what was the aim when designing this keymat. the buttons are very small, and there is no "mechanincal" spring in them so they will push down a lot different than a normal keyboard... i just wondered if they will require more force to push than a normal keyboard would.

 

[joa]

with the size of the keyboard it would be hard to type will more fingers anyway... I think with the size the feel will be perfect and after a few hours we'll be typing quickly without any problems... (with thumbs)

 

[Bosbeetle]

And the forum will be cluttered with "posted from pandora" posts

 

[Tor]

And the forum will be cluttered with "posted from pandora" posts

More probably with 'pwteed frm pampra' posts, at least if my thumbkbd experiences count..

 

[pelrun]

and there is no "mechanincal" spring in them so they will push down a lot different than a normal keyboard...

There are no springs in normal keyboards either.

 

[Zeno Arrow]

I'm imagining the button action and typing speed will be much like typing on a mobile phone to write a text message. You can get pretty fast at doing so just by using your thumbs. Of course it isn't going to match touch typing speeds on a full size keyboard, but it's fine for on the go.