Peripherals maker Finalmouse has been teasing its entry to the keyboard market since the start of 2022. It boldly describes the upcoming keyboard as "unlike anything you’ve seen before," but now we have had a brief glimpse of it in action thanks to eSports fan and media personality Jake Lucky.
A keyboard never before seen has officially been leaked. The supposed Alpha Prototype from @Finalmouse is set with groundbreaking technology. A keyboard with completely interactive skins built on Unreal Engine 5… wtf pic.twitter.com/p9HhuN4DZrNovember 2, 2022
The video shows a typical keyboard layout, but the attention grabbing feature is the screen housed under the keyboard. This screen may not make it on to our Best Gaming Monitors list but there is no denying that this is a novel second display. In the leaked video the keyboard is shown with an aquarium video clip playing. The official Finalmouse Twitter account has confirmed the video clip is genuine. It retweeted the leak, and added that "This is just the tip of the iceberg. Just wait until December 17th."
As well as the video upon which to feast your eyes, this leak also provides a list of specs. Finalmouse has not explicitly confirmed these specs, but it hasn't indicated anything is off target. With that in mind, please check out the astonishing specs (for a keyboard) below but add a pinch of salt here and there.
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Finalmouse keyboard | |
|---|---|
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Switches |
Pre-lubed linear gaming switches, with analog hall-effect option, mounted on 'glass stack'. Keyboard features 8,000 Hz polling rate |
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Display |
High resolution 'gamer-proof' display of between 2K and 4K pixels |
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Display content |
The full coverage keyboard display facilitates interactive skins powered by Unreal Engine 5, or traditional animated backdrops (video files). Source files will be curated in a Steam App. |
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Extra functions |
Built-in Steam Deck style functionality |
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Processing |
Keyboard has its own CPU and GPU to run display software without taxing the PC, and no PC-side software is required. |
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Connectivity |
Uses a single USB Type-C connector for power and data. |
If you are impressed so far, please note that Finalmouse is keen to highlight that the video shows what they call an "alpha prototype," from nearly a year ago. In another Tweet reply, the device maker pointed out to doubters that what they are seeing is a video where the keycap are on and ready to take input. Moreover it asserts that "the final product is on a different league." So, keyboard aficionados, set your alarm clocks for Saturday, Dec 17, and the official reveal.
Using keyboards as screens may seem a little wacky, but we only have to look back to October 2022 for a PC enthusiast attempting to make a massive usable display wall from chaining together 40 aRGB backlit keyboards. This new Finalmouse device is visually much more impressive. One of the big questions that remains for the Finalmouse animated keyboard regards its price. We know it isn't going to be cheap, but the firm's social media account admin seems to skim past any comments and queries regarding pricing.
