According to MacRumors, Apple is exploring the possibility of integrating a fully functional Mac into a keyboard, reminiscent of home computers in the 80s.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office revealed the concept in a new Apple patent application called "a computer in an input device," which describes a thicker Magic Keyboard-style chassis with "all the components of a high-performance computer" integrated under the hood.
The patent describes the premise of such a device, which can be plugged into a separate external display through a single I/O port, which is designed to receive data and power, and is wirelessly paired with a trackpad or mouse for additional input.
The computing devices described herein may be combined within the input device or otherwise accommodate one or more computing components to provide a portable desktop computing experience anywhere having one or more computer monitors. For example, a user can carry a keyboard with a computer instead of carrying an entire laptop or tower keyboard and keyboard. Since some form of input device is often required to interact or connect with a computing device, including a computing component within the enclosure or enclosure of an input device eliminates the need for redundant sets of input devices and reduces the number of components that the user needs to transmit. In addition, input devices can reduce costs and size by eliminating additional components, such as displays, that are not needed when used with a standalone computer monitor.
By including a computing component in the keyboard, Apple suggests that this could allow users to carry a single device that can provide a desktop computing experience anywhere with one or more external displays.
In some embodiments, the device includes a "coupled" to the housing of the trackpad, while in other embodiments, the device is foldable, and the keyboard area includes a display graphics "accessory display", or the keyboard itself is actually displayed from a projector contained within the housing.
The remainder of the patent explores in detail the various configurations of internal computer components within the space provided by the keyboard chassis.
Apple has filed patents for keyboards in the past, including patents that use touchscreen panels similar to the Touch Bar, which extend to the entire keyboard layout, but this is the first patent to suggest that the computer actually be integrated into the keyboard itself.
As with any patent that has been filed, the technology is unlikely to appear in any product anytime soon, but if there is, it does provide an interesting perspective on how Apple might eventually consider the Mac design that could eventually replace or come with the Mac mini, which allows users to carry their own displays, keyboards, and mice.
(7875461)