12 classic keyboards in history

1. The two most widely used keyboards: QWERT & Dvorak

The QWERTY keyboard, also known as the full keyboard, is a keyboard layout where the first six letters in the first row are Q, W, E, R, T, and Y, which is the most commonly used computer keyboard today. Its original design was to reduce the chance of a keyboard getting stuck when two letters close to each other are pressed at the same time. The QWERT keyboard, which reduces the user's typing speed, was widely accepted by users because it was created earlier.

In the 1930s, American Dr. August Dvorak created the Dvorak keyboard. The keyboard was designed to balance the load on the left and right hands when typing, maximize the frequency of alternating between the two hands, and maximize typing speed and work efficiency. The patent was applied for in 1936. Compared with the QWERTY keyboard, which was invented earlier and widely used, the Dvorak keyboard can increase typing speed, but it has not been widely promoted.

2. 3D modeling is only for ergonomics: Maltron

In the development of keyboard industrial design, the PCD Maltron keyboard appeared in 1977, and its unique shape was eye-catching. The keyboard's appearance design is entirely to provide users with more humanized operation. The three-dimensional shape is to better fit the human hand movement, while making full use of the thumb. Users can reach all major keys without twisting their wrists, effectively alleviating finger pain caused by typing on the keyboard. Maltron keyboards are still sold on the market today.

3. Keyless but with a key: Membrane

The resistance felt by fingers touching the keyboard is something most people experience when typing. However, the membrane keyboard, invented in the 1980s, adopts a "keyless" design that prevents water and dust from interfering with the keyboard. Many small portable computers, such as the Sinclair ZX8 and its derivative series, the Sinclair 1000, use this keyboard layout. With the development of technology, membrane keyboards have gradually been eliminated in the field of computer input devices, but they are still widely used in many 2C products, such as the control interface of microwave ovens.

4. The earliest wireless keyboard: Freeboard

IBM, which had been very successful in the business computer field, tried to enter the personal computer market for the first time and launched a low-end personal computer product for families in 1984, IBM PC junior, referred to as PCjr. The most notable feature of PCjr is the "Freeboard" keyboard, which can be regarded as a pioneer concept of today's Bluetooth technology. The Freeboard keyboard is powered by AA batteries and connected to the computer by infrared wireless transmission. The keyboard layout is a "chocolate keyboard" style, similar to the keyboard of Apple's MacBook today. This interface design increases the contact area between the fingers and the keycaps, making keystrokes more accurate and more comfortable.

5. Switch at will: Apple IIc

In 1984, Apple introduced the Apple IIc, its first attempt at a portable computer. This model had a keyboard switch that allowed the user to switch between the default QWERTY keyboard and an optional Dvorak keyboard.

6. A watch with a keyboard: Seiko's Data 2000

In the 1980s, with the development of technology, the size of personal computers was developing towards a smaller size, and watch-type microcomputers came into being. Seiko's Data 2000 and UC-2000 watch computers have a memo function that can store 2,000 characters, but both watches are equipped with a mini external full keyboard to meet the needs of data input.

7. The pinnacle of mechanical keyboards: IBM Model M

The Model M produced by IBM, which became famous in 1985, is a mechanical keyboard with more than 100 keys for corporate users. The most fascinating thing about the Model M for keyboard enthusiasts is that after each keystroke, the mechanical device will produce a classic and loud rebound sound.

8. Simplicity is the key: Happy Hacking

Just as the Model M mechanical keyboard dominated the field of personal computer keyboards, Fujitsu produced the Happy Hacking series of capacitive keyboards in 1996, which reduced the number of keyboard keys to 60. Happy Hacking provides a highly optimized UNIX layout interface. The early Happy Hacking keyboards used membrane keystroke technology, which gradually developed into contactless electrostatic capacitive keystrokes. The switch of the keys is determined by the induced electrostatic capacitance.

9. Folding pocket keyboard: Stowaway

To make it more convenient for users to input data using PDA, Think Outside invented Stowaway, the first foldable full keyboard. When in use, the keyboard is directly connected to the PDA, allowing users to experience the convenience and pleasure of typing; when not in use, the keyboard can be folded into the size of a palm, making it easy to carry.

10. Virtual Keyboard Pioneer Concept: Virtual Keyboard

In 2002, Canesta, a Silicon Valley company, invented the infrared keyboard to take the keyboard's portability to a new level. It uses infrared rays to construct a virtual keyboard interface, and uses a pea-sized sensor to track and record the user's finger movements. Canesta later licensed the infrared keyboard technology to Celluon in South Korea, and the technology was applied to many outstanding products, including evoMouse (an infrared sensor that can replace both the mouse and keyboard functions) and Prodigy (an iPhone battery case with a built-in infrared keyboard). In 2010, Canesta was acquired by Microsoft.

11. Protruding only when in use: Touching Pixels

When users click or touch, mobile devices can provide vibration feedback, and projected keyboards can make clicking sounds. Virtual keyboards cannot provide a sense of touch, nor are they suitable for long-term input. When actually used, people still feel a lack of tactile feedback. In order to solve the shortcomings of virtual keyboards, Tactus invented a "force feedback layer". It is actually a microchannel filled with liquid that can be added to an ordinary touch screen. When input is required, the pressure of the liquid changes to form a bubble-like button. When not in use, these water droplets disappear and become a completely flat surface.

12. Top keyboard for gamers: STRIKE7 Terminator

Different from office software operators and programmers, computer gamers want keyboards with more external hardware functions. The STRIKE7 keyboard launched by Mega Lion in 2012 not only brings users more keys, but also brings unprecedented customization options to improve the overall comfort of use. With a touch screen control module, a detachable main keyboard, a split numeric keypad, and support for macro programming to customize user commands, STRIKE7 has become an outstanding computer peripheral that far exceeds the concept of traditional keyboards.