Pics of Apple's New Slim Keyboard

[Takuro]

As you might already know, Apple iMac line is due to get a major update as soon as August 7th, sporting a new ultra-slim keyboard. The good folks over at Engadget now have photos of what may actually be a late-development stage iMac keyboard. If authentic, the pictures verify two earlier rumors: First, that the new iMacs would have a new aluminum finish. Secondly, that the keyboards would have keys similar to the low-profile buttons currently found in MacBooks.

 

Although data within the pictures indicates that they have been run through Photoshop at some point, Engadget strongly believes that their source is credible. According to the photos, the keyboard has a new Expose and Dashboard button. This explains how Dashboard, which by default doesn't have an icon in the Leopard dock, will be accessed.

 

iMac Keyboard Snapshots: (courtesy of Engadget)

• Overview Shot
  
• Frontal View
  
• Back View
  
• Frontal Zoom
  
• Back Zoom
  
• USB Port
  
• Keyboard Against a Ruler
  

The last two photos reveal just how thin this keyboard really is. Compared to a standard USB female input, the main board and keys combined are slimmer. This truly is the smallest Apple desktop keyboard ever made.

[Suzuka]

I really REALLY hope thats not what it is

[gubbel]

i think it is quite ugly....

[exg5]

we seem to have a problem, how exactly does one use the new mute button if it is paired with the F10 key like on the laptops. I don't see a "fn" key anywhere on the keyboard. Therefore, there is now way this can be real, all they did was take a photo of the macbook keyboard and improvise the eject, and volume keys to make it fit in. Shame though, because I think it looks really cool!

[Ed]

I think it's nice! just colour it black and I'm sold very minimalist. very Apple

[Takuro]

I personally think its a little ugly too. Maybe its just he lighting, but the aluminum finish looks sort of orange. Aluminum is one thing and glossy white is another, but to combine both is admittedly really awkward.

 

Then again, Apple is moving to a transparent menubar in Leopard. If there was a leaked screenshot, most people probably wouldn't have believed it 2 months ago. Look at what they did to the poor System Preferences icon in the latest Leopard seed.

 

Personally, I'm baffled about where Apple is headed design-wise, but it seems their hardware might take as radical turns as their OS has.

[insanelyinlove]

Quite lovely. A little bit of Mies and a little bit of Marc Newson. Very stylish indeed.

[Danyel]

Hi Takuro:

 

Thanks for sharing this with us! Looks great.

 

--danyel

[skyhighmac]

Is apple redesigning their mouse too?

[NeSuKuN]

I think it's nice! just colour it black and I'm sold very minimalist. very Apple

I think the same, gimme a black version and I'll get the first they sell.

[cringemaster]

Looks nice (and real). i do think that it is strange to mix the matte white with aluminum, but imo, change is good

[GBK.Xscape]

hmmm, this is a hint at what the actual iMac will look like, in all other iMacs the keyboard has matched the actual computer so going on that idea the iMac will have a brushed metal finish as the Macbook Pro and Mac Pro have. I guess only time will show........

[Xenctuary]

we seem to have a problem, how exactly does one use the new mute button if it is paired with the F10 key like on the laptops. I don't see a "fn" key anywhere on the keyboard. Therefore, there is now way this can be real, all they did was take a photo of the macbook keyboard and improvise the eject, and volume keys to make it fit in. Shame though, because I think it looks really cool!

There is a function key. It's located where the help key usually sits.

[jackt283]

Yeah with a black version I would be impressed. White is so horribly easy to make so incredibly dirty. I wonder if the will do it?

[Pantalaimon]

I thought i was the only one that thought it was terrible O.o

 

I mean, that's the ugliest keyboard EVAH

[JaE-V]

definitely buying but doubt that ill use it over the other mac keyboard unless the keys are as smooth

[Neilis]

Ugh. Ugh. . . . . . Ugh.

 

That thing looks like a touch typist's nightmare. The keys look like those found on a laptop, which is just insane. Why anyone would subject themselves to such torture when the requirement for portability isn't there is beyond me. I don't think this is real though. It screams "CHEAP!" to me, which just doesn't seem very Apple.

 

Personally, my next keyboard will be a Matias Tactile Pro (http://matias.ca/tactilepro2/index.php). Costs $150 (when it's available again. their first batch sold out), but there's just nothing like the feel of a real mechanical switch clinking and clanking on every keystroke.

[Soliber]

@Neilis:

Why would that be insane? I would prefer laptop keys over normal ones, anytime >_>

[U.C.]

Nice, but only one USB port??

 

Dunno about the colors though, looks a bit weird.

[Detosx]

I'm not a fan of brushed metal but that is an entirely subjective thing. The bog standard Apple keyboard isn't the nicest if you're a typist but you get used to it and it's cheap to replace. My concerns with the pictured keyboard, which looks a little fake to me, is tactile feel. Laptop keys depress a little less than do regular keyboard keys and not everyone likes that. The net result could be that there will be low take up with businesses, which again makes me wonder if the pictured keyboard is a fake. Hopefully Apple will continue to sell the old keyboard. Not at all happy if the keyboard feels like a laptop keyboard.

Ugh. Ugh. . . . . . Ugh.That thing looks like a touch typist's nightmare. The keys look like those found on a laptop, which is just insane. Why anyone would subject themselves to such torture when the requirement for portability isn't there is beyond me. I don't think this is real though. It screams "CHEAP!" to me, which just doesn't seem very Apple.Personally, my next keyboard will be a Matias Tactile Pro (http://matias.ca/tactilepro2/index.php). Costs $150 (when it's available again. their first batch sold out), but there's just nothing like the feel of a real mechanical switch clinking and clanking on every keystroke.

Just read this. From a side view, the back legs of that Matias tactilepro2 keyboard look very fragile to me? The only laptop keyboards that I don't find mildly torturous are IBM laptop keyboards (which have a decent desktop tactile feel, though not an expensive mechanical one), though I haven't tried their new range. Macs are supposed to be productivity driven, that's a big selling feature. Steve does make big boo-boos now and then. I hope it's fake. That said, looks aside, I would of course be willing to give it the benefit of the doubt until I have tried one out in the flesh.

[EPDM]

I like it. I'm a big fan of brushed metal. In 2 years time the white plastic look of the iMacs will look toyish (like the creamy white and transparant blue/grey look from yesteryear). But wood and metal trims are timeless. Just look at e.g. those old B&O Beomaster and Beocenter hifi-sets. They still look futuristic after +20 years.The weird thing is that...when Apple had shiny plastic casings and keyboards (albeit white), they use brushed metal in the OS. Now they start using a (darker) shiny plastic-look in their GUI while they (finally) have brushed metal casings and keyboard.This is completely the world upside down. They keyboard is nice though hopefully the mouse will be equally stylish with brushed metal to accompany this keyboard.Cheers

Quite lovely. A little bit of Mies and a little bit of Marc Newson. Very stylish indeed.

if there was a wood trim involved then it could have been (mis)taken as a Jacob Jensen design :-)

[Neilis]

@Neilis:

Why would that be insane? I would prefer laptop keys over normal ones, anytime >_>

 

Well, Detosx already mentioned it, but the keys on a laptop keyboard have very little travel distance, and not much indication of an actual keypress. For touch typing, that generally slows you down because you have less response from the keyboard. I also tend to make many more errors on them because of the mushy feel, and the seperations between the keys are very narrow and shallow.

 

A desktop keyboard of today isn't a lot better - the keys are still "mushy", but at least there's a but more travel distance, as well as a more definate seperation between the keys. Step up to a good mechanical switch keyboard though (the old IBM ones are popular; I've got a Smith Corona one that I use on PC's but it doesn't have the keys needed for Mac use), and you get a very solid "click" on each keypress. Most of them also have a much stronger spring under each key as well, helping the speed of "coming off" the key to the next one. As a result most touch typists will type faster and with fewer errors with a good mechanical switch keyboard.

 

Personally, with a desktop keyboard I can do 80-90wpm. With a mech switch I've gotten as high as 120 on some tests, but usually am closer to around 100 or so. On a laptop keyboard I can barely get above 60-70 wpm before I'm making too many errors.

 

Detosx: the feet look about as thick as most others, they just look longer. Not sure if that same thicness can support a "leg" of that length. Luckily though, I don't ever extend the feet on my keyboards (I've always preferred that they lay flat), so it won't be a big issue for me.

[jglavin]

^ The fact that it requires extra effort on the mech keyboards doesn't cause muscle fatigue after a while? I can def see how it's easier to type for speed on one, but at what cost?

 

I'm not a professional typist or anything, but I feel that if you spend hours on a desktop keyboard vs a laptop keyboard your hands don't feel as cramped or fatigued on the laptop.

[Ayanami]

You know...my old Acer laptop had really, REALLY springy keys. You definitely knew that you were pressing and releasing keys. That was kinda nice.

That didn't make my transition to Mac easier....

[Urbz]

Hmm... that's interesting... I've never given that much thought, mainly because my whole life I've always had a laptop and a desktop keyboard at my disposal.

For as long as I can remember, I was typing on both. And I've had many, many computers. For me, switching between keyboards is a non-issue. Right now, I have an Apple Wireless keyboard hooked up to my Powerbook, and am alternating between the two.

Now that I've been prompted to test which I type fastest on, I'm sort of noticing that I am more efficient with the Powerbook!

The size of the keys doesn't bother me, but I like being able to press down on a key more easily than some desktop keyboards. Of course, this is only my intuition.

What freeware app could I use to test my wpm?

I'd like to see which suits me best!