Google Japan has a tradition of showcasing nonsensical keyboard designs every year, but the company's 2024 design is by far the craziest. Recently they introduced a mechanical keyboard with keys on both sides. The company has adopted the design pattern of the Möbius strip, which makes it usable on both sides. This double-sided Gboard has an unusually large number of keys and a unique twisted circular design, including some features that gamers love. Firmware and 3D printing instructions are available on GitHub.
The new Gboard consists of 26 connected modules, each with 8 keys, for a total of 208 keys, more than double the number of keys on most popular keyboards today. The demo video looped and showed employees the direction of the 360-degree keyboard, like an accordion, and employees used the keyboard in a circle. This design also makes the keyboard more convenient to carry and hang.
While no one is serious about using such a keyboard, it packs a variety of features that are common in high-end models. The MX keys are hot-swappable, and each key has RGB lighting, making it a bit like a Christmas decoration when used. The downside is that it can only be connected to a computer through the USB-C port and cannot be used wirelessly.
Although the orientation of the double-sided layout is functionally useless, this unique way makes room for extra keys, which can be useful for Japanese keyboards. Japanese contains more symbols than English or other languages that use the Roman alphabet, which makes typing more complicated. A 208-key keyboard may make it easier to type certain characters. In addition, images on Google's website show that the new Gboard contains keys for emojis and other mathematical symbols.
Compared to previous designs like the 2021 cup keyboard, the 2022 five-foot straight line design, or the 2024 keyboard cap, the Mobius band keyboard appears more ambitious. Curious users with experience with custom keyboards can download firmware and 3D printed blueprints from GitHub.