Geek-Cube: Geeky Peripherals
As I stated in last week’s column, ergonomics is very important. Another thing I mentioned is that there are a number of cool goodies for geeks at the office and at home, so I thought this week I would share a few of my findings on the Internet with our lovely readers. Now, your office might not let you use your own goodies, so make sure you ask first if you plan on using them at work. At least be vewy vewy qwiet.
There are a number of goodies out there as well as plenty coming out. These are the ones that caught my interest:
TRON Razer Backlit Keyboard
Could you see this in your cube?
I love TRON, so this makes me happy. Disney teamed up with Razer to make this pretty sweet keyboard and mouse combo in honor of the upcoming TRON: Legacy. The keyboard has a detachable ten-key pad and programmable keys, but it also comes with an ergonomic mouse with a 5600dpi 3.5g gaming grade sensor. To apply this back to work, having a detached ten-key pad makes things a lot better for more comfortable and efficient data entry. Let’s not forget that it also looks really cool. The combo will be about $250, and it due to be out later this year.
AirMouse
The AirMouse.
Who says you need a mouse at all? The AirMouse is a glove with sensors that fit over your palm and first two fingers. This way you don’t have to worry about conforming your hand to the shape of a traditional mouse or have to deal with dust inside the mouse. The website claims that your accuracy, speed, and endurance will increase by using it, and that it holds the hand in a neutral position to minimize pain and chronic problems. It comes in different colors with different attachments and is intended for multi-taskers. The Demo video is pretty interesting to watch, and certainly the inventor had good intentions, but it remains to be seen if it’ll be practical for the real world.
Studybed
It's a Transformer!
While this might not be something an employer would offer in the standard cubicle job, this would be a perfect item for a student or an at-home professional, especially someone lacking for space. Remember Hide-A-Beds? Well, instead of a couch, it’s a desk. When folded up, it’s a wide desk with plenty of room for a monitor, books, keyboard, mouse, anything. When it’s pulled out, it’s a comfortable bed. In the demo videos on the Studybed website, objects on the shelf seemed to stay steady when in motion, so one wouldn’t have to worry about their setup. Now, I haven’t seen anything about this being sold in the US, but for UK folks, you’re in luck. Prices range from £1250 – £1495, and they come in a number of sizes. Come on, sell them over here! We need space-saving goodies, too!
As I said earlier, I know there are plenty of options out there. There’s computer mice in the shape of arrow cursors and patterned after NES controllers. There’s even a special keyboard just for playing World of Warcraft. Who wouldn’t want a piece of geeky goodness like these on their desk at work, hm? Personally, I want the Studybed for my cubicle.
Geek-Cube is a weekly column about integrating your geek life with your work environment.
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