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geekmaster · 12-25-2011, 11:31 PM

The original poster did not say WHY he wants to add a *real* keyboard to a "kindle (or other e-ink device)". From MY point of view, it is rather hard to touch-type on built-in kindle keyboards (including the older keyboards with "chicklet keys" and the new K4NT and KT "onscreen keyboards").

Personally, I think that the kindle eInk display with a folding keyboard would be a great device for writers on the go, especially in an outdoor environment (such as sitting at a picnic table). A Kindle 3G and a folding serial keyboard both fit in a handbag or a large jacket pocket. You do not need much computing power to compose text, and the kindle contains enough storage to hold a LOT of text. Readability, portability, battery longevity, and ease-of-use are primary concerns in this case, and a kindle with a foldable keyboard certainly fits all of those categories quite nicely.

There is not yet a standard off-the-shelf device with a useful keyboard, sunlight readable display, and long battery life (that I am aware of, at such an affordable price), so hacks such as requested by the original poster are desirable to satisfy such a desire. A kindle with full-size tactile-feedback keyboard such as the surplus foldable serial keyboards from PDAs would certainly fill that need, and I want one too. That is EXACTLY why I bought some cheap keyboards off ebay awhile back (for about $5 each including shipping).

@yifanlu: I have seen your old "what's the point?" posts about adding keyboards to kindles when this topic came up in the past. Why does it bother you? I do not think I could come up with a satisfactory reason to convince you when your mind is already made up. Is "because I want it" a good enough answer? (P.S. I very much respect all your non-keyboard posts that I have read so far, but I disagree with your opinion of using external keyboards and mice with kindles. I am thankful that my Kindle 3 has an easily accessible serial port, which is one reason why I have three of them, and serial mice and serial keyboards too. I have written more than a MILLION lines of code in my life, and it would have been nice to have done more of that out in the fresh air and sunshine.)

12-25-2011, 11:31 PM	#18
geekmaster Carpe diem, c'est la vie. Posts: 6,433 Karma: 10773670 Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Multiverse 6627A Device: K1 to PW3	The original poster did not say WHY he wants to add a real keyboard to a "kindle (or other e-ink device)". From MY point of view, it is rather hard to touch-type on built-in kindle keyboards (including the older keyboards with "chicklet keys" and the new K4NT and KT "onscreen keyboards"). Personally, I think that the kindle eInk display with a folding keyboard would be a great device for writers on the go, especially in an outdoor environment (such as sitting at a picnic table). A Kindle 3G and a folding serial keyboard both fit in a handbag or a large jacket pocket. You do not need much computing power to compose text, and the kindle contains enough storage to hold a LOT of text. Readability, portability, battery longevity, and ease-of-use are primary concerns in this case, and a kindle with a foldable keyboard certainly fits all of those categories quite nicely. There is not yet a standard off-the-shelf device with a useful keyboard, sunlight readable display, and long battery life (that I am aware of, at such an affordable price), so hacks such as requested by the original poster are desirable to satisfy such a desire. A kindle with full-size tactile-feedback keyboard such as the surplus foldable serial keyboards from PDAs would certainly fill that need, and I want one too. That is EXACTLY why I bought some cheap keyboards off ebay awhile back (for about $5 each including shipping). @yifanlu: I have seen your old "what's the point?" posts about adding keyboards to kindles when this topic came up in the past. Why does it bother you? I do not think I could come up with a satisfactory reason to convince you when your mind is already made up. Is "because I want it" a good enough answer? (P.S. I very much respect all your non-keyboard posts that I have read so far, but I disagree with your opinion of using external keyboards and mice with kindles. I am thankful that my Kindle 3 has an easily accessible serial port, which is one reason why I have three of them, and serial mice and serial keyboards too. I have written more than a MILLION lines of code in my life, and it would have been nice to have done more of that out in the fresh air and sunshine.) Last edited by geekmaster; 12-26-2011 at 12:20 AM.