If you're still scratching your head trying to figure out why the Noahpad has such a funky keyboard/touchpad, you're not alone. Fortunately the company has put out two videos showing the keypad in action. Unfortunately, it still looks a little crazy.

For one thing, it doesn't appear that you'll have any tactile response when you depress individual keys. While the combination keyboard/touchpad might be easy to use in mouse mode, I can't imagine it'll be efficient for touch-typing. In fact, if you watch through these demonstration videos, you'll note that you rarely see anyone actually typing on a Noahpad. Instead they're just kind of waving their hands across the top most of the time. When the demonstrator tries to hit an individual key, his hands move much more tentatively.

And don't get me started on the "1024 x 768" resolution display which really just appears to be a 800 x 480 pixel screen that allows you to scroll from side to side and up and down. In other words, you'll never be able to see everything a whole window at once, which will probably drive you a little crazy.

[via Engadget]

Here's another video of E-Lead's Noahbook from the CES floor. Although the demo unit is turned off during the first two minutes for some reason, if you skip ahead you can see the mini-laptop up and running. I learned four interesting things from this video:

1. The Noahpad quite clearly runs Ubuntu
2. The rep claims that it takes about 20 minutes to get used to typing with the screen flipped around. I don't really believe him, but who am I to say?
3. When you flip the screen the orientation automatically adjusts
4. In the last few seconds of the video you can see that the touchpad moves when the booth rep clacks on it semi-forcefully. It looks like the build quality on the Noahpad is a bit lacking.
   

I honestly don't know why E-Lead felt the need to reinvent the keyboard and mouse with this device. I think if they had put out an Eee PC clone that runs Ubuntu and has a screen that folds all the way over for watching movies they would have had a winner on their hands. But that keyboard looks more likely to slow you down than to make you more productive.

Related Posts:

• How the Noahpad works - Video
• Noahpad might just be the craziest PC ever
  
• The Noahpad at CES

You're not alone if you've been having a hard time figuring out how the Noahpad's touchpad/keyboard works. Luckily the folks at Ultra Mobile Life put together a little video from the CES floor showing all the details and quirks.

I'm a bit turned off that there's no way to use the mouse and keyboard functions at the same time. You essentially have to hit a button to activate mouse mode every time you want to move the cursor and then hit the button again to start typing. I also think divided keypad will work well for thumb typers, but if you want to touch type it looks kind of disastrous. I can type just about as quickly on my Eee PC as I can with a full sized laptop, but I doubt I could do the same with a Noahpad.

The virtual on-screen keyboard that pops up when the keyboard is flipped around into tablet mode is interesting, but I imagine it'll take a while to get used to typing backwards. And since the keypad is virtual, you won't have the tactile feedback you get with a regular keyboard.

And finally, I'm still confused after watching this video about the screen resolution. He says 1024, but I kind of get the impression that what he means is you'll be able to view windows that take up 1024 x 768 pixels by sliding them around a standard 800 x 480 pixel screen.

[via jkOnTheRun]

I had kind of expected E-Lead to be showing off a mockup of the Noahpad at CES this week, but as Engadget found out, the company has a working prototype to show off. There's not a lot of additional information to report on the specs, aside from the fact that this puppy sports a 1GHz Via processor.

But if you want to see some close up shots of the virtual keyboard as well as the unit folding over backward to hang out on a coat hanger, check out the Engadget gallery.

So last week we got a first glimpse at a new Eee PC competitor called the Noahpad, but very few details about the actual device. Well, now the Noahpad web site is up and running, and the company behind the tiny computer is sending out press releases and planning to show off the device at CES. And I have to say I'm both impressed and baffled.

On the one hand, the Noahpad looks pretty slick. It's got a 7-inch display like the Eee PC, but you can fold the PC up and use it in tablet mode, which is something you cannot do with the Eee PC. While the display is not a touchscreen, you can still use the device with the keyboard folded under, because the Noahpad doesn't have a regular keyboard. Instead, it combines a keyboard and touchpad, which means you can either type on virtual keys or drag your finger across the touchpad to move your cursor.

The device also tries to make the most of its 7 inch screen by letting you move large windows around on the screen. The web site is a bit unclear in this point, but I believe what this means is that the Noahpad has a standard 800 x 480 pixel display, but can virtually display 1024 x 768 pixel windows by letting you focus on different areas of the screen. This would be similar to the way the Eee PC operates under Windows XP, except the Eee PC utility only lets you display 800 x 600 pixels.

The web page also touts the fact that you'll get extra long battery life if you use an external battery. But curiously absent is any information about the internal battery. There's no word on pricing yet, but according to the press release, the Noahpad will be competitive with the Eee PC.

OK, so far, aside from the weird keyboard and lack of details about the OS, battery life, storage, RAM, or processor, it sounds awesome right? Sure, why not. But then the web site gets all crazy with offbeat suggested uses for the Noahpad:

No, seriously. They supply a shoulder strap for taking your Noahpad on the go. Or they recommend folding it over and putting it on a hanger to avoid getting wet if you use it in the kitchen.





Somehow I'm a bit skeptical that these things are ever actually going to see the light of day. But I'll definitely be looking forward to any hands on reviews people post if they can find a prototype at CES.





[via Engadget]

Releated Posts:

• E-Lead has a working prototype on display at CES
• How the Noahpad keyboard works - Video

The success of the Asus Eee PC appears to be prompting a lot of other companies to offer low cost, low profile computers. A few weeks ago Everex announced that it would be launching the Cloudbook in January. And now it looks like Taiwanese PC maker E-Lead is getting into the game with the Noahpad.

Like the Eee PC and Cloudbook, the Noahpad will be a small computer running Linux. Unlike the Eee PC and Cloudbook, the Noahpad will actually come with an operating system you may have heard of and used: Ubuntu 7.10. The machine is also capable of running Windows XP, but you'll have to install it yourself.

The Noahbook will sport a 1GHz Via Eden processor, 512MB or RAM, a 7 inch display and 512MB of RAM, 802.11b/g wireless, and speakers, and a microphone. As you can see from the image, it also has a split-keyboard. I've never particularly been fond of full-sized split keyboards, and I kind of wonder how easy it will be to type on a tiny one.

No word on how much the Noahpad will cost or when it will be available, but we'll probably get a whole lot of details sometime next week when E-Lead shows the Noahpad off at CES.

[via Engadget]