Here's another USB gem from Japanese gadget giant Thanko. Its full-size USB keyboard is broken into four connected quarter segments, allowing it to be folded over into a pocket-size rectangular shape. With the growing popularity of portable notebooks and tablets with smaller, cramped keyboards, having a full-size keyboard like this to tote around in your pocket might be a nice complement.
Thanko's keyboard is indeed full-size. The key pitch (distance from the middle of one key to the next) is 19mm, and the body dimensions measure 13.8 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches (350 x 129 x 10mm). Compare this to its diminutive size when folded, which is 3.6 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches (91 x 129 x 20mm). It's fairly lightweight as well, weighing in at just over 8 ounces. The keyboard works with standard Windows and Mac operating systems.
To see exactly how the keyboard folds, check out Thanko's promo video below. When it's initially unfolded the keyboard does have some gaps between the segments, but they ingeniously slide into place thanks to some clever design.
Thanko's keyboard combined with an iPad could make for an intriguing combo to take on a plane, provided that you have the necessary USB adaptor of course. Throw in this retro phone handset and you would be the most annoying seat-mate ever!
For now, Thanko's keyboard can be purchased via the product page, but stay tuned to novelty sites like ThinkGeek as likely resellers of this device.
