Those who desire a roll-up keyboard to use with their tablet can breathe a sign of relief, as LG has just entered the market with its new bendy keyboard.
Dubbed the Rolly Keyboard, LG has designed a full-size QWERTY colourful keyboard for smartphones and tablets, which can roll up into a stick for improved storage and portability.
Of course, it is smaller than a regular keyboard, coming in at 17mm, but it also uses Bluetooth technology to pair with devices and runs on a single AAA battery.
The Rolly will launch this September in the US and will hit the UK and the rest of the world later.
Seo Young-jae, VP of innovative personal devices at LG, said: “LG Rolly Keyboard is just one of the many premium input devices we’ll be unveiling in the coming months as we expand our accessories offerings.
“The goal was to create a product that could add more value to LG smartphones and tablets at the same time offering a unique design proposition that hadn’t been explored before.”
The trend for compact devices looks like it is increasing, as Microsoft previously unveiled its Universal Foldable Keyboard, which folds in half, making it much easier for users to carry the device around with them in their laptop bag.
Could this spark a new craze where we may see more foldable accessories? It seems possible, as more and more consumers look for portable devices that they can squeeze into their pockets and bags.
This also shows that consumers are still on the lookout for keyboards and that there is indeed a market for these devices.
GfK reported an increase in tablet keyboard sales late last year.
Perhaps the fact that more consumers are using keyboards with their tablet could indicate why tablet sales are now starting to stabilise, after many vendors witnessed a decline. For example in July IDC revealed that the worldwide tablet market has declined by seven per cent year-on-year during Q2 2015.
Whether these portable keyboards will replace the traditional device is unlikely, but now that more firms are tapping into this trend, these portable products certainty have scope.