As portable as keyboards have become, you still need some space to keep the thing – some kind of bag for travel, and a flat surface to use it on. Well, it’s no more portable than a hat keyboard, now is it?
Every October 1st, Google Japan likes to celebrate the 101-key keyboard by creating something revolutionary off the top of its head. (10/1… 101… get it?) This year was no exception – they created GCAPS, a ballcap-like device with a switch inside.
To use it, you rotate the cap left and right until the desired character is reached, and the rotation is detected by the gyroscope. You then press down on the top of the cap to send the key code via Bluetooth.
Under the hood, the hat uses an M5Stick C Plus and, to our disappointment, a micro switch that wasn’t even made by Cherry. Oh well – we got on the clicky side, so that’s great in our book. Surprisingly, there is a skull/cap skeleton on which a platform can be built to press a switch. Like Teaboard and Long Boi Keyboard, this thing is completely open source.
Since it is typed in Japanese, there is no word on whether it is typed in all capital letters, although we like to think that it will represent the exact thing it represents. Be sure to check out the product reveal video after the break.