Presenting the first Keyboard computer on TE! :D

S

Sei

Skilled
Hey guys!

First of all, I've not purchased this. I received this piece for testing. So, anyone asking for the price or the place where I bought it from, buzz off! :p

Now, coming to the computer. This is from a Chinese company called "Maxtone". I had read that Acer was coming out with a computer built into a keyboard along with a screen on the side. This is different.

This can be considered like a hybrid between your desktop and a netbook. You don't have batteries. It has to be connected to a power source like a desktop. You simply need to connect the monitor and power source to get going!

Specs -

Intel Atom 1.6GHz

1GB DDR2 RAM

320GB HDD

4 USB ports

Inbuilt Mic

Headphone + Mic + Line-In port

SD Card slot

Scroll Pad

DVD Writer

Ethernet Port

Inbuilt Wi-Fi

To please your inner geek, have a look at the pics (Shot with my Spica, since I couldn't get a camera to office)-

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Here you have the CAPSLOCK, NUMLOCK, WI-FI , HDD and Power indicators. You also have a shutdown button and restart button. We have a decent sized scroll pad similar to a one found on a 14" laptop

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The inbuilt Mic

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2 USB ports, ethernet port, display port plus power. There is another slot that has been titled HDMI.USB between the display adapter and power. Guess, they are going to be flexible about this.

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2 USB ports, SD Card slot plus audio inputs

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The vendor hinted the price to be around 10k, but stressed that it is negotiable to a large extent depending on the quantity. Obviously after-sales service remains an issue, but I'm so going to buy this if we manage to get it to around 6k. :p

Initial conclusions -

It came preinstalled with the Chinese version of XP. I reinstalled XP and then dual-booted with Windows 7. The drivers are standard. Realtek for the LAN card and Atheros for the wireless card. Still not received the drivers CD from the vendor so cannot comment on display drivers. Everything runs smooth, no lags. You get as much performance as you get from a netbook. But, not being limited to the small screen helps. The keyboard is of good quality, similar to the ones from Dell or Sony. The finish is decent enough to look respectable.

This is definitely not meant to be portable, since you'd have to lug around a monitor too. But, it is quite a good replacement for a low powered desktop. And IMHO, if the price is between 6-8k, it is definitely worth looking into.
 
^ Haha, no, no DVI adapter as of now. But seeing that it is Chinese, I don't think that it would be difficult squeezing in one! :p
 
for 6k... This is my new download rig.. it be frigging awesome... :D

any chance ordinary end users getting this?
 
^ Like I said, I just received this. I have no clue if and where it retails. If I get hold of some concrete information, I would surely pass it on! :)
 
^Stop showing off a review piece :p

Buy one for yourself and another for me if it is ~6k will pick when I come to Pune ;)
 
with all those wires hanging, isn't it impossible to keep this keyboard on lap or may need to buy wireless k/b :)

still, it would be a steal if you get it for 6k :)
 
^ Like I said, portability isn't the main aim here. Think of it like using your normal desktop computer, but with only 2 wires going out. The display adapter and the power adapter wire. That's it! A very neat setup! :)
 
Definitely an interesting concept, but I'm skeptical of it being retailed for as low as 6k. I think we're going to be looking at around 8k for this.
 
Nice concept.

At first glance, it does not gives any hint that, there is whole computer seating beneath the keys.

It would make one heck of of a download rig at 6k. :p
 
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