Matias recently sent me their excellent Folding Keyboard – a full sized keyboard that folds down into a nice portable package, all powered and connected via USB. The box contains the folding keyboard, a nice case to carry it with, a USB cable to connect with and a very short instruction manual. Instructions are basically – plug it in unless you have a Mac. I was shipped the Windows version, the Mac version will be shipping shortly.
On taking the keyboard out of the box I was immediately struck by how sturdy this thing is. There’s a simple lock toggle that keeps the keyboard closed when you want to stow it away and slides back to allow it to fold open. It doesn’t feel chintzy or cheap at all, which is good as it retails for $69.95.
On opening the keyboard the keys feel sturdy and when you place it on a hard surface like a desk or table, the keyboard sits nice and flat. The keys have a nice, natural action although typing fast can get a bit loud. They keys had a nice action to them – not too much resistance, just enough give to let me know I was really typing.
They’ve gone and done in my opinion, a wonderful thing and replaced the pesky CAPS LOCK key with a nice Function key. With this you can access the functions you may be used to on your laptop keyboard with a simple left handed pinky stroke.
It’s definitely nice to have a full sized keyboard along when using my laptop. While I’m used to the laptop keyboard, using a full sized keyboard reduces arm strain and also has other nice features, like a number pad (including a Tab key for one handed entry) and all of my keys nicely spaced out. There are also volume/mute function keys above the number pad. Sitting on my desk, the rubber pads keep it nice and centered.
There is a strange non-battery spot on the left, just above the indicator LEDs (num/caps/scroll) where it looks like batteries may go but there are no connections for them nor a door to close this off.
The one time I had trouble with this keyboard was typing on my lap. The keyboard has a tendency to start folding up as I’m typing. having the locking mechanism be a bit stronger would alleviate this.
Seeing as this is a laptop keyboard, there is one more addition that would turn this from a good product into a great product – although engineering wise it may be hard to place. But a track button and three mouse buttons would make this stellar!
They dimensions on this are 10.08″ by 5″ by 1.18″. Opened, they are 18″ by 5″ by 0.87″. Easily able to fit along with it’s cable into your laptop backpack. The YAG factor is pretty low – it’s weight is about 1 pound and you’ll not notice it in your backpack until you need it. As a caveat, this review was written on this keyboard.
If you’re interested in this, Matias is currently taking pre-orders on their site.
Technorati Tags: matias, folding keyboard, technology, gadgets, reviews, arsgeek
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March 5th, 2010 at 10:21 am
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March 5th, 2010 at 11:11 am
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June 30th, 2010 at 2:27 am
Nice looking keyboard, but sixty bucks too expensive just for a keyboard. Personally I use silicone one that can be folded in every direction I want, and it cost about 12 bucks, and also 100% waterproof.
February 6th, 2011 at 10:22 pm
Great story once again. Thanks.
February 25th, 2011 at 8:42 am
Nice gadget, useful for stupid people, who are nervous
February 27th, 2011 at 7:13 am
Many thanks for a neat site, will add my Digg account!
March 20th, 2011 at 11:03 am
This is new technology, this is the 21st century this gadget is aweful!
June 18th, 2011 at 8:38 am
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July 28th, 2011 at 6:36 am
Do you work for Microsoft?