I did not see a name on this. But, thanks for your very comprehensive
review.
Best, Bob Ringwald
-----Original Message-----
From: David via Talk
Sent: Monday, January 6, 2020 9:47 PM
To: WE English Mailinglist
Cc: David
Subject: Roll-up Keyboards
Roll-Up, or Folding Keyboards...
It's been a few years, since I owned one. So please take the following
for whatever it is worth. Also, be notified, that the opinions presented
here, are mine and might not be fully representative for everyone.
Still, I will spend a few of your minutes, walking you through a few
considerations in the matter of this kind of keyboards.
Design: and Construction
First of all, let's get it all straight:
The keyboard is made up of silicone, a versatile and flexible material.
The construction is completely sealed, meaning that the keyboards are
dust and spil proof. Should it ever get dirty, you literally can wash
the whole thing under the faucet in your kitchen. Upon wash, simply hang
it over a rod or something similar, and let it dry for a short while. It
even is claimed to be alcohol proof, though I have not tested that feature.
Have you ever seen the baking mats in silicone? Ever touched one of the
thicker ones? These keyboards are based on a mat - not that much thicker
than a silicone baking mat. let's estimate the thickness of the base of
the keyboard, something like 1 1/2 bank card. Now imagine, that you
place some keys on top of this silicone base, and you are pretty close
to the final outlook of the product.
each key, would be approximately the size of a four-knobbed lego brick;
both in square, and in hight. And, take the knobs off the lego brick,
you will get just about the shape of each key as well. They are straight
cut square. Place these keys on your silicone mat, spaced about tenth of
an inch apart. Remember, all the bricks are cast in silicone. Inside
each (brick) key, is a tiny mechanical switch.
To the touch, the whole keyboard unit, is a bit sticky; like all
silicone products. Your fingers sure won't slip, as you type. Some might
find the whole texture a bit uncomfortable, and it sure does take a
little to get used to.
In one end, you will find the unit has what appears like a rectangular
box - something like 1.5 or 2 inches in width , running down the whole
side of the keyboard. Inside this "box", is where all the electronics of
the unit is located. In the rear end of the "box", you will find the USB
cable, which is used for connecting to the computer. It is a fixed
cable, and once broken, the whole unit is merely for the trash bin.
Reason why they are called Roll-Up, or Folding keyboards, is because you
litterally can roll them up, starting from one end. All rolled, the
keyboard would be the size of two pocketbooks, stacked on top of each
other. Being manufactured from cast silicone, the unit does not weigh
much more than a modern cellphone. All-in-all a quite portable version
of a keyboard.
For your records, the keyboards comes in several sizes and versions. You
would find units holding like 85-keys, comparing to the one you
typically would see on your laptop. And you will find units, holding
102, or 105 keys, comparing to the standard keyboard you are familiar
with on a desktop computer. Well, and then you can get separate numeric
keypads, also in this roll-up flavor. Size is not much different from
what you are used to, except from the extra space needed for the
electronics "box" mentioned earlier.
Typing Comfort
The whole keyboard is a bit flimpsy. Being manufactured for roll-up,
there is no built-in stiffening support in the unit. Putting it on your
lap, attempting to type something, simply will not work. Pressing a key,
the unit just will bend. This all mean, that you want to have a firm
surface - like a desk - for placing your keyboard onto, whenever you
want to operate your computer. If you planned for using the roll-up
keyboard on the bus, train or airplane, you at least will need to have
some kind of table of a certain firmness, for your operation.
The keypressing, is rather firm. It really takes some effort to perform.
Not too much to be wondered, when you give it a bit of a thought. Look
at your standard keyboard. Each key is a separate unit, travelling
freely up and down; totally independently from the others. On the
roll-up models, each silicone key (brick), is molded as part of the
whole unit. The keys do not travel. You press on the key, almost like
you would press the bubbles on bubble plastics, that you know from
shipping materials. Pressing on the key, you therefore will have to
force the silicone of the brick to bend, enough to activate the tiny
switch inside. Typing for prolonged time on this kind of units, might be
a challenge. If you are used to old manual typewriters, you will
remember how hard you had to knock the keys. Have you never used
anything but modern soft-operated keyboards, you will likely find the
roll-up models rather heavily worked. I doubt anyone could keep up their
typing speed, on the roll-ups.
The switch is situated in the center of each key. Still, it is possible
for you to hit the side of the key. Doing so, though, will not activate
the switch, meaning that you will find that the whole thing is a bit
sensitive to correct positioning of your fingers, right on topp of the
keys. Personally, I found the typing experience a bit wobblish, again
taking quite some time to get used to.
Since one of you mentioned having had a stroke, I would presume that you
might want something that is stabil, reliable and steady in operation.
Of course, if you find that a standard keyboard is too easily
keypressed, the roll-up models might be something to be considered. And
even if all the keys are evenly levelld, they are quite distinct spaced
from each other - something that occationally will be a challenge with
laptop keyboards, where the keys are such close to each other, that it
is quite a job to distinguish one from the other. Still, due to the
firmness - and somehow wobbling feeling of the roll-ups, I am not sure
if that is what you might all be looking for. And since you will be in
need of a firm underlaying surface for your typing job, you will be
somehow limited in where and when you can get your computer work done.
Prices used to be quite affordable. EBay, Amazon or the like, might be
good places to start out. If you want to give it a roll, it should not
break your account to do so. the fact that the keyboard will be rolled
up, and unrolled numerous times, definitely will cause some strain to
the construction. The unit I did own, did not last all that long. Yet,
that could be due to my personal usage, or it might have been a hidden
weakness in that particular unit. Base on the limited experience I have,
I would not be able to tell the longitivity of the roll-ups in
comparison to the standard keyboard. And it might certainly depend on
how many rollings you do, what treatment you give the thing through
travelling, and so forth.
What i would suggest for you, is to look around for a standard keyboard,
made in plastics or even in metal. See if you can get a somehow
compressed one. There are models on the market, with just a tiny bit
smaller keys, meaning that the over-all size of the unit will shrink.
Depending on how big your laptop is, you might be able to find a
keyboard of standard manufacturing, that would fit inside your laptop bag.
I hope my above explanation was somehow understandable, and helpful. To
me, the roll-up keyboard was a funny and interesting experience. Whether
I will go for another one of them, I really cannot tell. It at least
will never again be my main keyboard. Mainly due to the slow-down in
typing rate. Also, I way too often find myself doing my typing right on
my lap, and for such, I need a keyboard that can be operated without any
further underlaying support.
For those of you who like to play music on your own, let me just tell
you that even electronic pianos, and music keyboards, are available as
roll-up models. They too have the issue of needing a firm surface to be
operated on. But due to their keys being much bigger, and the fact that
they are constructed to be touch sensitive, they are far more easily
operated.
This just for your curiosity.
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