FutureFive New Zealand - Consumer technology news & reviews from the future
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Magic Cube Bluetooth Portable Laser Keyboard
Sat, 1st Oct 2011
FYI, this story is more than a year old

In the year 2011, we strive for utmost convenience in all things technological, and what, pray tell, could be more convenient than a portable keyboard the size of a cigarette lighter? Impossible, you may be thinking. How could such a small keyboard be easy to use? Wouldn’t all the keys be too close together? Our fingers too big? The accuracy of our typing compromised? To answer your protestations, let me introduce the Magic Cube Bluetooth Laser Keyboard, brought to you by Celluon.So how does it work?The Magic Cube connects to your MAC or iOS powered device via Bluetooth and is powered by an inbuilt battery to support its laser and optical recognition systems. Each battery charge gives the Magic Cube a 150 minute power kick, enough time to do a substantial amount of typing. The box itself is about the same size as a first generation iPod, and stands alone with a surprising amount of stability, and the laser projected keyboard it produces is the same size as your usual Mac book keyboard, complete with rounded keys.Sounds great, but lets talk function, namely typing accuracy. The literature surrounding Magic Cube states that it can recognise up to as many as 400 characters per minute. However, according to tech reviewer Victor Agreda Jr this simply is not realistic due to "a lack of tactile feedback and the need to look at the keys while typing.” This causes a high number of mistakes and need for back track. However, maybe this is just telling us our typing skills need evolving?At the end of the day, the Magic Cube is a fun and exciting idea with a great amount of novel appeal. In theory, once the design kinks such as typing accuracy are straightened out, The Magic Cube will be great for any professional who prefers to take their work to go.