Google Japan unveils conveyor belt keyboard as a playful Gboard concept
Google Japan has unveiled a conveyor belt keyboard as its latest playful concept to promote Gboard, its Android keyboard app. The device is a joke rather than a product for sale, continuing a long-running tradition of inventive prototypes that draw attention to alternative ways of typing.
The concept is presented as a one-handed keyboard that reduces fatigue by bringing keys to the user’s fingers on a moving belt. Google has shared build plans on GitHub for people who want to make their own. The annual concepts began with a drumset keyboard in 2010; later ideas included Morse code, bubble wrap and a teacup keyboard, with Morse code input eventually added to Gboard in 2018.
- Google Japan’s conveyor belt keyboard is a promotional joke.
- DIY plans are available on GitHub.
- It continues Gboard’s annual run of unusual keyboard concepts.
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Gboard is Google’s keyboard app for typing on Android phones. Google Japan has used playful inventions to show different ways people might enter text, including keyboards based on Morse code and everyday objects.
These concepts are not usually products for sale. Some have also inspired features: Gboard added Morse code input in 2018. The conveyor belt idea continues that series, and its shared build plans let people try making the device themselves.
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Originally published by Engadget as “Google Japan created one of the strangest keyboards ever, and we’re dying to try it”.