The last time we can recall someone attempting to combine MIDI and QWERTY keyboards into a single product was the early ‘00s. The result was Creative’s Prodikeys, a splendidly Heath Robinson contraption that looked as mad as it sounds.
Sadly, it never really got any traction – unlike its excellent product demo video – but with its slick design and all-aluminium case, the new Polyend Keys might stand a better chance.
Designed for “both everyday computer use and making music,” this dispenses with the idea of trying to incorporate proper piano-style mini keys and instead reconfigures the top line of function keys on a QWERTY keyboard so that they correspond to the positioning of the black notes on a musical keyboard.
This means that, as well as being a mechanical typing keyboard, the Polyend Keys is also a three-octave MIDI keyboard, and there are nine controller knobs and a little screen, too. The inclusion of USB and TRS MIDI ports means that you’ll be able use it with both software and hardware instruments, and it’s battery-powerable.
It’s an idea that seems so simple that you wonder why no one has come up with it before, though questions remain. Polyend Keys is currently in prototype – it’ll get its first showing at the Cologne gamescom this week – and we’re yet to hear anything about velocity- and pressure-sensitivity.
There’s also the issue of playability to consider: will the Polyend Keys offer a markedly better experience than simply using your standard QWERTY keyboard in combination with the ‘musical typing’ function in your DAW?
We’re certainly keen to find out, and the good news is that further information – including on price and availability – is coming soon. In the meantime, you can sign up to receive updates on the Polyend website.
