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IK Multimedia announces iRig KEYS portable keyboard for iOS devices, ships this fall for $94

Billy Steele — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 18:47:00 -0400

If you prefer a set of keys to power your mobile recording sessions instead of a guitar adapter of some sort, you're in luck. The folks at IK Multimedia have just revealed the iRig KEYS portable keyboard peripheral for iOS devices and both Mac and Windows PCs. Packing 37 velocity-sensitive mini keys, the add-on touts a three full-octave range, modulation / pitch bend wheels, an input for a sustain / expression pedal and an assortment of controls for customizing your sound just so. Should you feel inclined, this iRig offering connects via USB to a computer for an "in-studio," desktop tracking experience. The unit is Core MIDI compliant and sports plug-and-play functionality alongside the outfit's SampleTank family of apps. Said software can function on its own on the PC side or as a plug-in for more robust offerings like GarageBand, Pro Tools, Cubase, Sonar and the like. Itchin' to snag one? You'll have to wait until sometime this fall, but when it arrives, the KEYS will set you back €74.99 ($94).

Gallery: IK Multimedia iRig KEYS

Filed under: Peripherals

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Source: IK Multimedia

Matias One: hammer out an iPhone masterpiece on the best keyboard of the '90s

Daniel Cooper — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:34:00 -0500

Between touch-screens and rubber-backed keyboards, we're getting further away from the tactile, mechanical keyboards we grew up with -- except for gamers, who have embraced mechanical keyboards for the improved response times and, of course, the great noise they make. Canadian peripherals maker Matias is adding to its line of Apple Extended Keyboard-inspired typing-decks with the Tactile One: with Bluetooth iPhone control. Imagine how fast (and how noisily) you'd be able to hammer out a text message on one of these things, because it's all we can do right now. A Mac / PC edition will be available in April for $200 and you can pre-order it from the store right now. There's PR after the break, if you really need some clicky-clacky convincing.

Filed under: Mobile

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BoxWave Keyboard Buddy iPhone case review

Jacob Schulman — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 17:09:00 -0500

Ever since Apple added Bluetooth keyboard support to iOS, manufacturers have been working to deliver products that add a hard keyboard to the iPhone with at least a little bit of style. We've checked out a number of these before -- namely the Nuu Minikey and the TK-421 -- but we've yet to find anything that actually makes it worth the extra bulk (not to mention battery consumption). BoxWave's Keyboard Buddy is yet another sliding keyboard case built for the iPhone, but is it better than the rest? Read on past the break to find out.

Gallery: Keyboard Buddy iPhone case

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Nuu MiniKey for iPhone 4 preview: yep, another (bulky) keyboard case

Ross Miller — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 13:55:00 -0500

A number of iPhone keyboard cases have popped up lately, from the TK-421 flip-out case (which we reviewed) to the BoxWave Keyboard Buddy. We've spent the better part of 24 hours using an engineering sample of Nuu's MiniKey QWERTY slider for iPhone 4 -- expect "a few minor changes to be made" before actual launch -- that the company was kind enough to send over. So, how's it stack up?

Gallery: Nuu MiniKey for iPhone 4 preview

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iType keyboard brings a physical keyboard to the iPhone, but there's a catch

Jacob Schulman — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 14:29:00 -0500

Attention iPhone owners that have been praying for a physical keyboard forever: your prayers have been answered... kind of. Ion Audio has debuted its iType iPhone keyboard at CES, and we can confirm that it does indeed work as advertised. Once you pop your iPhone or iPod touch into the dock at the top of the board, you're free to type away to your heart's content -- if you're in the iType app, of course. Unfortunately, because of the closed nature of most of the iPhone platform, you can't just start typing in any iPhone app; you have to type in the iType app and then copy and paste to the app you want. It's surely an annoyance, but if you're sick of the soft keyboard and need some relief, it's your best option for now.

Gallery: Ion Audio iType hands-on

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4iThumbs overlay adds a tactile keyboard to your iPhone... sorta (video)

Darren Murph — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:10:00 -0500

The iPhone keyboard (or the lack thereof) has been a polarizing point for many, and while we've seen a workaround or two in our day, we've yet to see a solution to the lack of tactility as beautifully simple as this. 4iThumbs is a screen overlay that adds minuscule bumps on your iPhone display -- bumps that correspond to where the keys are when using the vertical keyboard. 'Course, these things are apt to bug you when using the horizontal keyboard (or no keyboard at all), but we're guessing the heavy texters in the crowd won't mind. Have a look at the videos below the break for a better idea of what you're about to get yourself into. Oh, and be sure to pick up a pair of Awethumbs while you're at it -- we hear these two go great together.

Update: A horizontal version is available, hooray!

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How-to guide details PS/2 keyboard-to-iPhone mod, just for you

Darren Murph — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:50:00 -0400

Oh sure, we've seen hacker after hacker brag about their success in connecting some sort of keyboard to Apple's iPhone, but have any of them bothered to take the time to explain the process behind the magic? Exactly. The man behind AwghBlog, however, is a kinder, gentler soul, and he's found the time to detail in quite specific terms how he connected a legacy PS/2 keyboard (you know, the one you're not using any longer) to Apple's cash-cow of a smartphone. Best of all, the guide actually explains how to build a PS/2 keyboard-to-iPhone converter, so you're not necessarily tied to a certain board. Hit the read link if you're down for a weekend project.

[Via MAKE]

Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals

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How-to guide details PS/2 keyboard-to-iPhone mod, just for you

Darren Murph — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:06:00 -0400

Filed under: Handsets, Apple, Mobile

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DIY external iPhone keyboards get a tad more practical

Donald Melanson — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 11:31:00 -0500

That 360 Chatpad hack we saw back in November was certainly an impressive enough proof of concept, but if you want to get a bit more typing done with a bit less clutter, you'll no doubt be quite a bit more impressed with this latest mod by the very same Ralf Ackermann. This setup uses a Robotech Bluetooth module that's placed in a modified battery sleeve and connected to an unlocked iPhone (or iPod Touch) which, in turn, communicates with the keyboard using the Bluetooth SPP profile (a VNC server and a few other tricks also come into the picture). Of course, that's still a long ways from an officially supported solution, but if you're looking to give it a go, Ralf is promising to dish out the necessary schematics and source code soon.

Filed under: Peripherals

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