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Ideazon
Zboard
Interchangeable Keyboard System
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Tom Laverriere
December 23rd, 2003
Every
once in a while a company will develop an
innovation that makes an ordinary piece of
hardware exciting. In the arena of input
devices, more specifically, keyboards, there have
been many innovations to aid with the ever
monotonous task of typing. Keyboards now
come in all different types, sizes, and colors and
the latest craze are the wireless keyboards that
allow for a more organized, "wire-free"
workstation. But most of these keyboards
still function the same as any other, with perhaps
a few specialized shortcut keys for commonly used
applications added.
Over
at the HotHardware labs, there are many
applications we use where the keyboard could be
just a little more friendly. This is most
noticeable when playing games. The bottom
line is fingers are only so long, and with the
complexity of games today, that requires being
able to reach many keyboard buttons with one hand
since the other hand is usually being occupied by
the mouse. That's not always fun and we can
say that it's cost us a few frags over the years
when you're reaching for the strafe key and end up
hitting something else instead. A keyboard
with all the right controls in a small area would
make gaming a whole lot easier, and maybe even
more enjoyable.
Well
friends, we are here to tell you today that we may
have found the answer to our keyboard dilemma.
We're not talking just about gaming applications,
we're also talking about productivity applications
as well. How can a keyboard be set up
well for a gaming application and a office
application at the same time? The
answer is, it can't. The folks over at
Ideazon however, have what might be the best
solution. Today in the HotHardware labs, we
have Ideazon's ZBoard interface. ZBoard?
You're probably picturing a keyboard shaped like
"z". Actually, at first glance, the ZBoard
doesn't look any different than your run of the
mill keyboard. But once you tap into all the
features this nifty piece of hardware offers, the
possibilities seem endless.
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Specifications / Features Of Ideazon
Zboard |
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Do you have
what it takes? |
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ZBoard with Crossfire Interface
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Click Images for Full View
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Package
Contents
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Minimum System
Requirements
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- Zboard
PS/2 base unit (without interface)
- Wrist
rest
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Installation CD
- User
guide
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- IBM
Compatible system (no Macintosh, SGI,
etc.)
- PS/2
port free for keyboard use
- 500MHz+
CPU
- 128MB
RAM
- CD-ROM
drive
- Up to
25MB of hard drive space
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Microsoft Windows 98 SE / 2000 / ME / XP
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Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5.0
or higher
- Whatever
software application you Zboard Keyset(s)
is/are designed for (games, productivity
tools, etc.)
- Zboard
Keyset
- Sound
card and speakers for Zboard nice to
have for multimedia controls
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| Above is
a picture of the ZBoard base with the Crossfire
interface snapped into place. We'll get into
more detail about the "snapped into place" comment a
little later. Just keep that stored away in
the back of your mind for now. We found it to
be a little disappointing that the ZBoard base does
not ship with an interface to at least get you
started. Let's take a look at the packaging
and its contents.
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Click Images for Full View |
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Front of Box
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Back
of Box
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Contents
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Bundle
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Zboard
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Zboard w/ Interface
As you can see from the pictures above, the ZBoard
ships with a couple of user's manuals to get you
started in a hurry, an installation CD, a wrist
rest, and the base unit itself. The picture
above with the box open and the ZBoard with an
interface snapped in is a little deceiving because
this is not what you will find if you were to
purchase this product. Take a look at the
middle picture in the bottom row. That is the
ZBoard without any interface snapped in and that is
how this product ships to you. The interfaces
that can be snapped in our sold separately from the
base unit. In any event, you get the idea of
what the ZBoard looks like without an interface and
with one. What is an interface you ask?
Let's take a look.
Above we have
pictures of four different interfaces that can be
used with the ZBoard base unit. As you can see
each interface is divided into three sections which
allows them to be folded up nicely and put away for
easy storage when not in use. To apply the
interface to the ZBoard base unit, you simply start
by placing the leftmost section into the leftmost
part of the base unit and then push each section
down until it's perfectly in place on the ZBoard
base unit. The rightmost section has a clip
that you snap down to the base unit to secure the
interface from coming off while in use. It's
very simple and makes changing from one interface to
another very easy; it only take a matter of seconds.
What we found to be
the most interesting was the Medal of Honor
interface and the Crossfire interface. Notice
the close up of the controls on the Medal Of Honor
interface. It's a beautiful thing to have all
those handy controls in a small area that is easily
accessible with just one hand. As with
anything, we found there is a bit of a learning
curve when using these controls while playing Medal
of Honor. It's all a matter of what each
individual is used to. It doesn't take long,
however, until you're using the interface like a
champ. As far as making us better gamers,
that's a matter of taking the time to practice, but
if you asked us if the keyboard made it easier to
game, we'd have to say yes.
The beauty of the
Crossfire interface is that it can be set up to work
with many games, not just one, and actually can also
be used for Medal of Honor. You'll notice that
the controls on the Crossfire interface are very
similar to the controls on the Medal Of Honor
interface which make both very effective in gaming
environments. The other feature to notice
about the interfaces geared towards gaming, is that
they are a bit awkward to type with. The small
round keys can be a bit hard to find and tend to be
a problem for the ole fat finger syndrome, but
again, that's not the interface's primary function.
We know you're
thinking it so we'll get right to it. How does
the ZBoard base unit know which interface is snapped
in? It's in all in the software. Let's
take a look at the installation and software
provided with the ZBoard.
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Setup, Installation & Final Thoughts
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