Google Japan has a history of humorous keyboard concepts that challenge common notions of computing input. The latest concept, the Gboard Stick Versionplaces each key on the same row, so hunting and pecking can take a more linear approach.
As shown in Google Japan YouTube In the video below, it appears that Google Japan is actually prototyping a long keyboard. Google won’t mass produce or sell it, but it’s there GitHub files available with open source software, circuit diagrams and design drawings to build the keyboard yourself. The GitHub page carefully notes that “this is not an officially supported Google product.” Google Japan blog post said that starting Saturday you can make a Gboard Stick Version with a 3D printer.
Google Japan’s video for Gboard Stick Version.
As designed, the keyboard is an unusual 5.25 feet (1,600 mm) long. If you’re thinking that’s long, the company says the original prototype was 7.87 feet (2,400 mm) long. A total of 17 boards are used in the keyboard, including 16 for the installation of keys and a control board.
Google Japan jokingly claims that this design is more convenient for cluttered desks, storage, and finding the right keys while typing. Google Japan’s video shows the keyboard in alphabetical order, as the user starts typing by touch, memorizing the distance of individual keys from the left margin. Alternatively, it is “easy” to find the letter P by knowing, for example, that it is the 17th key from the left (the first key from the left is the search key, not A). It’s certainly simpler than hunting and hunting up, down, left and right in a traditional keyboard layout.
Google Japan page for the keyboard also suggests that you can use it with QWERTY or ASCII code layout.
The many detailed use cases for this range of keyboards are obvious jokes, from measuring your child’s height and using them to throw things over the back of the couch to using them as a walking stick or “debug module.” turns the keyboard into an error catcher in case you encounter errors while coding (get it?).
But one benefit we can really get behind is how much personal space the keyboard naturally takes up in the office and beyond:
Google Japan’s unusual keyboard concepts have been around for years to promote Google’s Gboard keyboard software. Past iterations included Gboard teacup version and Gboard Spoon Bending Version.
