Optimus Popularis Resurrected; Due 2011

After months of silence, Art Lebedev Studios have poked their head above the parapet to announce that they're still working on the Optimus Popularis keyboard we last saw renders of in May 2008.  Unlike the Optimus Maximus, the Popularis won't use OLED for its display-bearing keys.

They'll still be full color, we're told, just not OLED.  That seems to suggest that Art Lebedev will be using LCD in some manner, but we're still not entirely sure on any hardware details; the company is promising more of those – together with some new images – in June.

As for the launch, mass production is tipped for later in 2010 with the Optimus Popularis not going on sale until sometime in 2011.  Back in 2008 the company was talking about a sub-$1,000 price tag, in contrast to the Optimus Maximus' considerable $1,500+, but it remains to be seen whether they can achieve that.