Get BlackBerry Nostalgia With This iPhone Keyboard Attachment
At some point in time, many of us owned or wanted a BlackBerry phone. And now, you can get a BlackBerry keyboard for your iPhone with real buttons. A new Clicks case with a hardware keyboard for recent iPhone Pro models is launching at CES 2024.
The iPhone launched in 2007, marking the shift from physical keyboards to on-screen keyboards. Clicks Technology, took to Instagram to show off its nostalgic Clicks Keyboard. It resembles the bottom of a BlackBerry silhouette. The unibody silicon case houses the keyboard accessory, seamlessly attaching to an iPhone through either a lightning port or USB-C, depending on the model. This setup allows for complete QWERTY keyboard functionality.
The attachment is yellow and gray, acting as a plug-and-play smart case with no Bluetooth connection required. They also mention that the keyboard has no battery of its own and adds no additional weight to your phone. Those using the attachment can still charge their phones with the attachment with a pass-through port on the bottom with no case removal required. They also added a backlight feature to the attachment.
Clicks attachment shortcuts.
The Clicks attachment also supports IOS shortcuts and voice-to-text. Users can press “CMD + H” to hit the home screen or “CMD + Space” to open Search, among other functions. According to their post, the physical debut of the attachment will take place at CES 2024.
The Clicks Keyboard starts at $139 for the iPhone 14 size, as mentioned in the Clicks video announcement. “We’re not just replicating what’s gone before. This is a keyboard made for the iPhone,” Michael Fischer, co-founder of Clicks explains. He points to the keyboard’s number format; where the original BlackBerry keyboard placed numbers 0-9 in the traditional dial pad format on the left-hand side, the Clicks Keyboard mirrors the IOS layout and lines them out on top.
The Consumer Electronics Show or CES is an annual trade show where the latest in technology is announced and presented.
The Clicks keyboard is available now at Clicks Technology’s website.
Vintage Gadgets: Outdated Tech That Still Sparks Joy
A Physical Calculator
You probably haven’t seen a calculator in ages, but a Reddit user chimed in to say that, for them, the old-school scientific calculator beats the one on your phone or any app. They simply put it like this, “Honestly, a standard scientific calculator is just easier to use than your phone’s built-in scientific calculator.” It could be the fun button-tapping sound or the nostalgic thrill of typing in cheeky words with numbers that makes this person prefer calculators.
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Watches That Only Tell The Time
Smartwatches may pack in loads of features, but there’s a catch – they need regular charging and maintenance, and their battery life is shorter. On the flip side, traditional watches are a low-maintenance choice with longer battery life. In fact, a Redditor mentioned they still rock a “a lovely, inexpensive, bombproof, analog, big face Casio.” They also pointed out that smartwatches aren’t allowed at their job, so their trusty Casio gets the job done.
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CD Player, MP3 Player, and Vinyl Albums
If you’ve put a ton of effort into collecting CDs and vinyl records, and creating some killer playlists, why ditch them, right? One person told their story about growing up in the ’90s, building a massive CD collection, and stashing them all in one of those Case Logic CD binders. They fondly shared, “I still keep it with me in my car and it’s a wonderful trip down memory lane every time I open it. I laughed and cried a little when my kids friend asked me what it was and I said, ‘CDs’ and they followed up with, ‘What’s that?'” But also: not everything is available on streaming services. That obscure soundtrack or tribute album from the ’80s? Licensing issues may have prevented it from hitting the streamers. Love Joni Mitchell? Well, Spotify doesn’t have her catalog. Sure, you can subscribe to another service, but if you kept your old vinyl and have a turntable, you can listen to it the old school way.
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"I Love Wires"
You have people who can’t stand a tangle of wires in their tech setup, and then there’s that Reddit user who’s all about the wired life. They firmly believe that wired networking is “not obsolete or outdated.” According to them, it’s superior in every aspect, except for the mobility it lacks compared to wireless. They put it simply, “Wired is the ideal, you only go wireless if running cable is unfeasible for the situation.
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A Regular Doorbell
A regular doorbell does its job well. It lets you know someone’s at the door. On the other hand, a video doorbell does the same but with the perk of letting you see and hear the person at your door, even if you’re not home. Someone mentioned they’d be up for a smart doorbell if it kept the data local. They said, “I don’t want anything being sent online, so I might need to set up my own system… I’ll just stick with the traditional kind.”
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Physical Buttons
A Redditor shared their affection for good old physical buttons, arguing that not everything needs to go the touchscreen route. They stressed the importance of having car radios equipped with buttons rather than screens, believing it’s a safer choice. They explained, “It’s easier for me to push a button to change the music while keeping my eyes on the road/ I can’t do that if my car has a screen. It increases distracted driving incidents.”
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