Das Keyboard 5Q brings you cloud notifications on your keyboard, but do you want that?
The first cloud-connected keyboard is aimed mainly at gamers.
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Do the words "cloud-connected keyboard" excite you? Manufacturer Das Keyboard hopes they do with the official announcement here at CES of its 5Q keyboard, which connects to the internet. The keyboard originally debuted on Kickstarter in June.
OK, so its cloud connectivity means it can pull down email and other notifications, but it displays these with a series of colored lights, not actual text. Green = You've Got Spam! It will get notifications from IFTTT, Zapier or any cloud application with a public API.
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If the software doesn't exactly sound thrilling, this actually looks like a decent piece of hardware. It has a new Gamma-Zulu mechanical switch developed by Das Keyboard in conjunction with Omron of Japan. It has a 1.5 mm actuation point (compared to the MX Brown's 2 mm) which may make it more attractive to gamers.
Das Keyboard says the RGB-backlit switches will last twice as long as traditional switches, with up to 100 million actuations.
Finally, it wouldn't be a Das Keyboard without an oversized knob, and so the 5Q comes with a "Q button" that controls the cloud-based software in addition to functioning as a volume knob.
The Das Keyboard 5Q is currently available for preorder for $229, which converts to about £185 or AU$310.
