There’s an interesting new way of input on the iPad Mini, courtesy of the Phorm Case, that rises up a series of physical buttons. The company Tactus has created the Phorm cover, that only works on the iPad Mini right now.
At first sight it looks like a regular iPad Mini case, but if you slide a switch at the back, physical buttons will appear out of nowhere on the device’s virtual keyboard area. The accessory will hold a bit of fluid in order to make the floating keyboard work. If you slide the button back, the buttons will disappear completely and reveal only the flat screen.
Tactus CEO Dr. Craig Ciesla claims that the case has helped various testers improve their typing speed and accuracy, plus typing satisfaction. The Phorm can be preordered right now, at $99, or this summer at $149. The transparent QWERTY keyboard appears exactly on top of the virtual keys, offering a guide for the finger placements and taps.
The design team includes the firms that were behind the Beats by Dre and an ex BlackBerry keyboard designer. Be sure to check out the video below:
