Thumb board brainstorming
 

I've been thinking about a thumbboard for the 770. Here's some thoughts, share yours. (Perhaps someone with some fabrication/electronics experience can indulge in making one)


Here are some things I've thought of:
- A form factor roughly half the side of the 770 (split down the length) that would mate with the 770 via either the USB port or headphone jack or both. The protruding part housing the ports could prevent twisting. Something else will be needed to anchor it to the device, maybe a 1/2 inch long sleeve that the 770 can slide into.

- Input via either the USB port (which would require software drivers and a power source (see thoughtfix's USB hub) or the speaker jack. The speaker jack? It supports those mic/headphone combos... if the device sent a signal of differing pitch to the jack, a driver could read this and input it as a keystroke. A passthrough headphone jack could be located on the bottom of the KB. So far as the USB method goes, if the thumbboard accessory had another jack on it, the thumbboard's internal batteries could be a combo powered USB hub/thumbboard. I like the USB hub combo method better.

- Ports would be blocked. Aside from the microphone, the other three could have passthroughs available. There don't seem to be any useable surfaces to mate a KB to (sides are too awkward and there are often-used buttons up top)

Anyone up for brainstorming?

Why not mate via bluetooth? Then none of the ports would have to be blocked. I'm no expert, but I'm sure that designing the hardware/software involved to make a keyboard interface through the headphone jack would take a LOT of time/effort.

Price. There are mini BT keyboards out there already but they'd be hella awkward during a bus ride.

I would definitely want it to have the 770 dock with it in one way or another so it becomes a single unit. After all, the whole point is to walk around with it and not have anything flimsy. someone mocked this up a few months ago and I think this would be a good direction.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...eee/770oqo.jpg

That is what I was thinking but add a battery for usb host power-up and rs-mmc->SD/CF converter (maybe even a full size usb port for thumbdrive)

Luna: From what I remember, the RSMMC card won't be detected if the cover is open. You could probably file it off and push in the hinge to trigger the switch (if that's the case) but then it'd be exposed all the time.

That picture is exactly what I had in mind, using the cover as a stabilizer is an excellent idea.

Will USB keyboards work? Might just be a matter of dissecting an off the shelf product and packaging it right.

This idea is purely brillaint. I would love the idea of a thumb-board. Don't get me wrong, I've gotten rather used to the on-screen thumb board, but I want something that allows more control while at the same time allowing me to have a full screen.

Has anybody had a chat with Nokia about this?

Well, they lurk here I'm sure. :) I used to have no issues with the onscreen KB until I got wireless working on my Fedora Core laptop and started using a real keyboard again.

I guess there were two things I wanted to do:

(1) If a USB keyboard will work with the 770, gut it, put it into a smaller form factor with the switches hooked up to thumbkeys and that (2) slides into the cover for stability.

i guess the 770 is really a beta product seeing how scant the accessories that are out there from Nokia. I mean, you can't even buy a replacement cover from them. I really wish someone there would kick some executive to introduce this though.

Yeah seriously. I'd said a while back that a 'modular' approach would kick ***. Basically a self powered USB HDD. (Kind of like my 40GB mp3 player *cough*). A self powered USB webcam. Etc, etc. I can understand Nokia not wanting to jump into the peripherals market 'cause that's a HUGE undertaking but given they did something right by not making all of those bells & whistles integrated, now it's the time for add-ons.

What I *want* to do (but need to research more) is gut an existing USB keyboard (haven't found any USB thumbboards), and cram the guts into something like the picture you previously posted. Voila. Problem is nobody is really piping up, but guaranteed if it was completed and pics were posted this thread would nail 500 posts in a day. *sigh* :rolleyes: