Two Videos of E-Lead's Noahpad in Action 114
Engadget has a couple of great videos depicting the new 'Noahpad' laptop offering from E-Lead. This laptop offers a new kind of touchpad that is integrated with the keyboard. An interesting idea to be sure, but I doubt I could ever get used to typing on something this strange.
Add this to the Top 10 Worst Keyboards of all time (Score:4, Informative)
Re:They call that a keyboard? (Score:3, Informative)
Not if you rewrite the keyboard driver (Score:3, Informative)
I'm not sure you are.
Quite simply, since the keyboard is also a touchpad, there is no need for you to actually depress the button to record a keystroke. A simple touch will do it. The depressing of the keypad is good for other functions, such as:
(1) Mouse button. No different than a mouse.
(2) Function keys/shift. Hit your key lightly, and it's a key. Hit it and depress, and it's a function key.
I imagine that you could even select a function key with one hand, temporarily redirecting the other hand to an alternate usage. For example, select "c" on the bottom row, and you immediately put the other hand into greek (or hebrew, or math) characters. Select "Z" on the bottom row, and the other hand is shifted. Select "B" on the bottom row, and the other hand is mouse.
For a greater extension, imagine that you have the same four "function" keys across the bottom of either keyboard. Then you essentially have four full keyboards of functions.
In other words, even if this laptop were in Windows and completely unusable, it would be great to get this little gadget into Linux, and rewrite the interface.
Now, my only other concerns are (1) uploading/downloading ease (does it have USB for a USB drive?) (2) expandable usability (printers, cams, etc: USB would be fine) (3) Power concerns (how long does the battery last? Does the battery feature pyrotechnic surprises?) (4) Durability.