Tap Strap 1 Wearable Keyboard and Mouse
Works with Any Device, Any OS, Anywhere. Tap is a virtual input device that uses chords to register text. There are no keys involved at all – no projected keyboard, no invisible key patterns and no holograms. You type characters and commands by tapping a combination of fingers on any surface. The Tap Strap has accelerometers built into each finger-ring, which collect motion and acceleration information from your fingers. That information is analyzed by a small computer chip, which is built into the thumb ring. The output character is then transmitted via Bluetooth to the paired device.
- All-In-One, Plug & Play Wearable Keyboard & Mouse
- Type into any environment – VR/AR/XR, Smartphone, Tablet, PC, SmartTV & Projectors
- Works in any language! Easily load a custom TapMap in your native language.
- Ambidextrous – Works the same for right and left hand
- Fully Customizable – Personalize your Tap using the TapMapper Tool or our open-source SDKs
Amazon.com
eBay
Ryan L. Kopf –
This product is a wonderful idea, but needs significant refinement before it will be seriously useful. First, I spent a while learning the keyboard, which was pretty neat. The design and placement of most of the keys was pretty easy to pick up. But things started getting wonky the moment I tried to type more than a dozen words a minute – not that I didn’t know which fingers to tap, but Tap would regularly mis-read my taps as other characters. Particularly when the tap requires two fingers, such as the middle finger and pinky to type “z” would often also register the ring finger as tapped as well (in fact, typing those two fingers by themselves is a challenge all of its own that took time to overcome).Right now, all keys are based on a series of taps. A space, one of the letters you type the most, requires tapping all five fingers – and if any one of them doesn’t register, you don’t get a space. It also isn’t integrated in any way with good quality autocompletion or swiping technology – meaning typing on a screen is still far more efficient if you’re going for speed, and it’s incredibly easy to mess up with this.Really, what this needs is GESTURES. More difficult taps or multi-taps should be converted to swipes. Imagine, swipe four fingers downwards for a space, swipe your middle finger up for a period, squeeze your index finger and thumb together for the enter key. Right now the limitation of this device only reading taps is it’s biggest weakness, because emulating an entire keyboard with a series of currently-poorly read taps does not give you any speed to work with.Would probably be useful for games designed specifically with this device in mind.
Chris Campbell –
I can’t find myself using this product more than I want to at its current state. There definitely is a lot of room for improvement.1. The learning curve and AI is really fun, and I enjoyed learning how to type on this keyboard.. but I feel there can be easier gestures for letters & I may be inclined to write a more in-depth QA email about this in the future for the product at its current state2. With the above comment being said, this product really would be a lot better if it came in a pack of 2.. I’m not sure what the profit margin is to make these, but if enough people can bring down the wholesale price of this item to make it a possibility, please offer a discount for early backers in the future if you ever plan on selling a 2 handed set. It simply makes sense for many reasons:2a. Having 2 hands allows for easier typing gestures naturally2b. You can use one hand for typing (Switch to a mouse / keyboard mode) and the other for the mouse.3. Although the program insists it becomes easier to type on non-flat surfaces, I find this to be untrue. In VR, it is absolutely necessary to allow this device to have good enough sensors to let me type on the side of my torso or my stomach or even the top of my forearm.. of course I can stand at a flat surface high enough to type, but at that point I would be more inclined to type with a regular keyboard if I have that option.4 and MOST IMPORTANTLY. The real pitch of this product for me was to be able to have the convenience of typing whenever I needed it. No need to lug around a keyboard in my backpack, or having to find one blindly while in VR.. but even after mastering the typing gestures, I find myself typing the wrong keys when I know I’m doing the correct gesture.. the sensors are just not accurate enough to naturally type quickly without making tons of mistakes.The product does have a potential for a hands free typing future.. but it needs a lot of work. My shot-in-the-dark suggestion would be to try tapping into some kind of infared technology that understands my finger placement betterTLDR; Lots of potential, the sensors are just not good enough to use conventionally yet, and will be a hobbyist keyboard for a while. But I have no doubt in my mind that this is the future to a degree. The potential is amazing
F. Jones –
A) You are never going to want to wear this thing throughout your day.B) You aren’t going to want to put this on/off each time you start/stop working, and since you don’t want to wear it throughout your day …C) It DOESN’T look cool.D) They seem to have improved accuracy relative to what early reviewers were seeing, but the gestures this device is forced to use (as it is limited to taps) are horrendous.If you are willing to learn a new way to type, just get DOTKey. It does everything this does but better; and it costs WAY less.
Stefano Solinas –
Let’s start by answering the 2 top questions:1) Is is easy to lear? Yes, it’s easier than you think, especially if you are used to finger movements (touch typing, piano, guitar, etc)2) Can it replace a keyboard? well, no. It can assist you in specific situations where a keyboard is not easy to use (VR, presentations, etc) but I don’t see myself using it when I’m using my laptop.The construction is quite good. It fits most hands (but if you have big hands it’s not for you), one of the metal things felt off but I glued it back. The battery looks ok but no replaceable, it has a mouse functionality which seems to work.Short version, buy it if you want to be in the future but do not buy if you want a keyboard.
Davis –
In mid-December, I purchased a product called TAP, a “wearable keyboardand mouse.” It is a 5-ring banded device that sits on one’s knuckles, andallows one to type with finger chords and scroll with palm gestures. Theconstruction of the device is from five accelerometers placed in eachring.I purchased the TAP with the intention of developing for it, to read theaccelerometer data. I wanted to know how I was throwing a bowling ball,and wanted to tune my consistency during throws. To my surprise, theirdeveloper’s documentation offers only the highest-level of interfaces,giving only finger-index positions and the duration of a tap. In orderto do what I wanted to do, I need proper device access.I contacted the company several times over the next month: either givedeeper developer access, or let me return the item. Nobody responded onthe Amazon merchant page, so I sent an email, then another, then calledthem, then sent an email to the person listed on their WHOIS record(tapwith.us), and eventually called Amazon to resolve the issue.A support woman offered to call TAP about the problem, and they spoketo someone while I was on hold. Then, I was able to get a return labelfor the product.I feel that TAP could have been a useful tool for many finger-sensitivetasks, like bowling or other sports. The device retailed for $179, whichis expensive for a 32-character keyboard that requires an operator tolearn fingerings. However, it’s an appropriate price for a hobbyist whowants to learn to bowl better. Unfortunately, they lost a customer.
Jon –
Ordered the large set, but even then it is so tight around my fingers that it hurt. I don’t have freakishly large hands… Stay away unless you have small hands. Probably good for some people, but for me, personably its a 1 star, because its useless for me.