CES 2009: ASUS Eee Keyboard Touchscreen Close-Up

Of all the new products ASUS announced at CES today, the Eee Keyboard is one of the most interesting.  A full computer built into a QWERTY keyboard, as well as Ultrawideband HDMI and WiFi b/g/n, it also has a 5-inch touchscreen for shortcuts, media browsing and use as a virtual mouse.  While just a prototype at the moment, ASUS were cagey about its potential for market availability; SlashGear spent some more close-up time to see exactly what that touch-display can do.

For a prototype, there's plenty of functionality.  From the main menu you can access calendar, photo gallery, media player and an internet browser; there are also simple usability apps such as a calculator, alarm clock and system info.  Ports include at least two USB 2.0, HDMI, VGA, wired ethernet and audio in/out (as well as having an integrated microphone and speakers).

This is one of those products that we'd really love to see come to market.  All-in-one computers integrated into keyboards aren't new, but they don't tend to look as slick as this Eee concept; that's likely thanks to the smaller Atom platform.  The addition of Ultrawideband HDMI, too, should answer one of the big usability issues with HDTV-connected devices: having to reach around the back of the set to unplug it.