Tablets: How Would You Solve the Input Problem?

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• synaesthetic - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  This post delivers.

• honasbone - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  It seems to me that when you start talking about adding peripherals to a tablet you begin to rapidly take away from one of this form factors greatest strengths - it's extreme portability. They may not be as extremely portable as a smart phone, but tablets can run a close second. If you're standing up and need to reference a web page, email or take a quick note then the light weight form factor and touchscreen interface make a lot of sense. Doing much more than that and you start hitting barriers of this form factor very quickly. Hence the point of this article.
  
  When it comes to a device that allows for both productivity and extreme portability via a touch screen then I think the solution is pretty clear - It's a MacBook Air type form factor, coupled with iOS and a touchscreen. But it can't just stop there. One more change is necessary.
  
  So that the device can continue to be used as a tablet I would suggest a keyboard that fully swivels back behind the screen - instead of clamshelling shut like a traditional netbook or laptop the device would actually "open" 360 degrees to the locking position - this would be it's closed position which would both allow for the screen to be viewable 100% of the time and for the keyboard to be neatly tucked away when not needed/wanted. But when productivity is necessary you still have a keyboard at your disposal.
  
  A couple issues:
  1. The keyboard needs to be as thin as possible so that the light and thin feel of the tablet is still maintained.
  2. The keyboard would need some sort of cover or perhaps roll bars to keep the device from resting on the keys themselves when the keyboard is tucked away and the tab is on a desk

• damianrobertjones - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  Just spent two weeks with an Asus EP121 and I can state that it's a fantastic device and the on-screen keyboard is fantastic. Also, ZERO issues with Windows 7 due to the screen quality. I'm amazed that people haven't even considered WIndows 7 but that's probably due to pages like Engadget spreading absolute dross.
  
  It also has a Stylus :)
  
  Either way, forget it. I've moved over to an Envy 13 and although I love tablets, I see no reason for one at all. None. This is coming from someone thats owned an Acer 1820ptz, Archos 9, Latitude XT & XT2, HP 2740p, TM2, Viewsonic Viewpad 10, Galaxy Tab and others.
  
  Tablets are a new fad that 'IS' here to stay.

• ludikraut - Wednesday, March 30, 2011 - link

  Yep, this is the answer right here. After toying with and discarding my wife's iPad, I ended up getting an EP121. Have had it for two weeks, and it's absolutely fantastic. The stylus and handwriting recognition are great. If I'm writing a short note, I'll use the on screen keyboard (in either size), but if I need to write something longer, I'll switch over to the stylus. It's also great for sketching. So far the only thing that is better on the iPad is battery life, and at 2.5-3 hours on the EP121 it's really not that bad. Bought mine through a Microsoft store, so it included their signature build ... no crapware to deal with. The EP121 has completely replaced my notebook and my wife's iPad. It's funny, she now tries to hog my EP121 instead of using her iPad. :-)

• marc1000 - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  even the cheapest of nokia phones have voice recognition for a long time... this is usually used fot things like calling or changing a configuration (like turning bluetooth ON or OFF on my ancient E50 that died a few months ago...)
  
  so you coud tap on the input box and the tablet opens the voice recognition app. problem solved for the majority of situations - dictating while on the street is not very smart to do anyway.

• DigitalFreak - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  Use one of those fold-able bluetooth keyboards if you need to type a lot.

• DigitalFreak - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  http://mashable.com/2011/03/05/verbatim-bluetooth/

• teaguejb - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  There have been a lot of good comments so far. The idea that a tablet is perhaps best suited for consumption of content rather than generation of new content makes sense. It's always up to the end-user to use the right tool for the task at hand. That being said, making a degree of content creation more user-friendly is important. Most of the input interface ideas mentioned so far are pretty good ones. Why not include them all? You want speech recognition? It's there waiting to be enabled. You want to use swipe gestures? Go for it. You want a BT keyboard and docking station? No problem...there's one in the accessories department. Ok...this may create an issue with cost of the device. Maybe some tablet makers will take the approach that the more user input options that can be crammed onto the device, the better. Some may try to separate themselves from the field by including unique interfaces on their devices. And still others will take away most interface options in order to save cost.
  
  The only type of interface I would include that hasn't already been mentioned so far is the one Jobs makes fun of--the stylus. I totally disagree with his comment that basically said any tablet designed to be used with a stylus has "done something wrong" or "missed the point." I don't remember the exact quote, but it was something like that. I've been using a convertible tablet for 3.5 years. It didn't change my life the way I thought it would. The reason is primarily because, as someone else pointed out, it's just too darn big and heavy to be a 'digital notepad' which is really what I want. Plus, there's always a laptop right there, which is almost always more convenient than the tablet. For note-taking, I haven't used a capacitive stylus, but the active digitizer on my convertible combined with MS OneNote are great. Granted, it's not as fast as typing, but for ripping off a quick email with just a line or two is perfectly reasonable. Handwriting recognition has been very good. I can't imagine doing much more on the input side than jotting a few notes or writing a brief email, but that goes back to fitting the right tool for the job.
  
  Rather than re-up the convertible tablet, I've decided to go more modular. I'll carry a laptop when I need it (rarely) and I'm waiting for the right tablet/slate with an active digitizer which I will carry most of the time. The 12" version of the Asus tablet looks promising, but I'm really looking forward to seeing the Fujitsu Q550. My convertible is a fujitsu, and it has been great despite being too heavy to use like a tablet.

• crispbp04 - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  add a slide out keyboard. problem solved

• osideplayer - Tuesday, March 29, 2011 - link

  I too struggled with this problem and have found the best solution to be Apple's wireless Bluetooth keyboard. The set up is not clunky at all. I keep the tablet, cables and the keyboard in a messenger bag and only pop it out when I need to use it. With the new smart cover, the tablet is displayed perfectly in landscape and the virtual keyboard automatically minimizes when the keyboard is on. You can check out my you tube video; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFeUcYMyJIg
  I also hear, after extensive use people have been getting use to the "touch keyboard". For example, in my research methods class, a kid takes notes on his I-Pad by simply touch typing. I asked him, "wouldn't it be more beneficial to have a wireless keyboard?" He responded, "I got use to it, its not that bad besides the wireless keyboard is too expensive." Idk.. but taking notes for three hours on a touch keyboard is extremely painful for me.
  I opted for the wireless keyboard, its light, practical and easy to use. It also maintains accuracy better than any virtual keyboard. I'd highly recommend it for anyone doing extensive writing on their tablet. It also works for your android and windows, so its not tied to just one system.