Filco releases Majestouch Minila Air (Bluetooth)

[fruktstund]

Link to press release

Bad translation (my Japanese isn't what it could've been and I have no Idea of how to English) of press release:

Diatec, the company developing the Filco brand, on 5th of September 2013 announced "Majestouch MINILA Air", a "double thumb-function-key" layout mechanical keyboard connected by Bluetooth. The line-up consists of the Japanese-layout "Majestouch MINILA Air JP" and the English-layout "Majestouch MINILA Air US", each of which comes with either Cherry brown, blue, black or red switch models, which makes for a series of 8 keyboards in total. The assumed market price is 13,800JPY and the keyboards will be available from the 20th of September.


A wireless version of the smash-hit new small-size mechanical keyboards

Majestouch MINILA Air JP68
Assumed market price (including taxes) 13,800JPY (planned selling-start 9/20)
FFBT68M/NB (Brown switches)
http://www.diatec.co.jp/products/det.php?prod_c=1464
FFBT68ML/NB (Black switches)
http://www.diatec.co.jp/products/det.php?prod_c=1465
FFBT68MC/NB (Blue switches)
http://www.diatec.co.jp/products/det.php?prod_c=1466
FFBT68MRL/NB (Red switches)
http://www.diatec.co.jp/products/det.php?prod_c=1467
Majestouch MINILA Air US
Assumed market price (including taxes) 13,800JPY (planned selling-start 9/20)
FFBT67M/NB (Brown switches)
http://www.diatec.co.jp/products/det.php?prod_c=1468
FFBT67ML/NB (Black switches)
http://www.diatec.co.jp/products/det.php?prod_c=1469
FFBT67MC/NB (Blue switches)
http://www.diatec.co.jp/products/det.php?prod_c=1470
FFBT67MRL/NB (Red switches)
http://www.diatec.co.jp/products/det.php?prod_c=1471

A new number of additions to the Filco Majestouch MINILA line of compact mechanical keyboards have been announced. The wireless Majestouch Minila Air model connecting by Bluetooth 3.0 will start selling in 20 days. This is good news for the people who've been wishing for a wireless model in a small form factor.

It has all the features [of its predecessor], and also keeps the layout of two function keys (Fn-keys) on both sides of the spacebar, the "double thumb-function-key layout" as it is. This means you can type fast and reach every function of a full-size keyboard from the home-row position by using your thumbs. It uses the charming and rich keystroke feeling Cherry MX switches from the electronics manufacturer ZF Electronics. One can choose their preferred keystroke-feeling from the four different-feeling brown, blue, black and red switches. In addition, 6 keys at the most can be pressed at one time, the key spacing is 19mm and the keystroke is 4±0.5mm. From the DIP switches located on the bottom side you can, for instance, choose to change places of your CapsLock and Ctrl, or customize your layout by assigning other keys to different places.

The MINILA keyboards use a common housing with the dimensions W297×D124×H40-46mm, and the weight of 680g is entirely the same. It uses a Bluetooth 3.0 connection interface and can be connected to devices utilizing the Bluetooth interface, such as a Windows PC, an iPad, an iPhone, an Android device, a Playstation 3 or one of many more. It can be multi paired and connect to a maximum of 3 devices, although there's a possibility the number of devices you can connect to at the same time might vary depending on circumstances.

I have no idea what I translated just after those links, before that image, but it's just marketing stuff anyway. (Since I can't sleep this felt like a good way to waste some time.)

Personally, I think this sounds good, and makes the keyboard much more appealing than the original edition, but I'll wait until I've heard about the battery life before getting happy.

[Cafeine]

Nice, can't wait to see if he got the same battery life than the Matias BT.

[Muirium]

This is fantastic news!

First: Filco's really upped the stakes in the Bluetooth keyboard game. Isn't this the first Cherry MX based Bluetooth keyboard available outside Japan? A very welcome addition to the wireless realm indeed. And not a moment too soon.

Second: Great name. Dead simple to describe this little bugger to people. Manufacturers so often forget the need to do that. (Leopold!)

Third: I bet the Minila is based on Filco's new controller, and that the Majestouch 3 gets Bluetooth too! Worldwide, like the Minila. The as yet imaginary TKL is on my wishlist, based on this alone!

And finally: the wired Minila had a removable controller, as does the MJ2. I'm intrigued to see if the Air has the same with a separate Bluetooth controller, so you could swap out the first while keeping the second. That'd be huge! Even if it's just one unified matrix + Bluetooth controller they have in there, it could be most useful for making Bluetooth custom keyboards…

[JBert]

Argh, it still has that weird 0.25 / 0.25 / 0.25 stepping.

[002]

Argh, it still has that weird 0.25 / 0.25 / 0.25 stepping.

This makes me sad. The same thing on the HHKB JP is really a pain in the arse.
For a long time I didn't even know what made the board feel weird to type on til it was pointed out to me by Trev.

[Muirium]

It's still a Minila! (The stagger and the deeply compromised mush of a layout on the right really put me off.)

But it's the first (broadly available) Bluetooth keyboard by Filco. And much more than Matias, they influence things. Think of what's to come! A Bluetooth Majestouch 3 TKL for a start.

[fruktstund]

I agree, this at least gives some hope for the future of Bluetooth keyboards!

(I'm still dreaming of a 60% wireless keyboard with a Topre-JIS bottom row... :<)

[Muirium]

Now that Filco's got the ball rolling, Bluetooth Topre is suddenly less of a fantasy. And the HHKB Pro 3 is well overdue…

[Grond]

I still prefer the 60% case and layout, but this is definitely good news.

[BimboBB]

I never missed a wireless keyboard. and i even like cables.

but okay...for a few people that might be quite interesting.

[ne0phyte]

Now that Filco's got the ball rolling, Bluetooth Topre is suddenly less of a fantasy. And the HHKB Pro 3 is well overdue…

Nooo I can't justify another HHKB but I NEED want a bluetooth one

[ماء]

Nah,i prefer BT than WL I could not type a long distance

[Muirium]

Bluetooth's ability to switch between multiple hosts is the best thing about it. Getting rid of wires is nice, but every switchable Bluetooth keyboard is its own little KVM. Well, a third of it anyway.

[Hypersphere]

I was just about to post this, when I saw that someone had beaten me to it.

For those who like wireless input devices, this signals a good move on the part of Filco. No doubt other companies will follow with BT versions of their mini boards.

I'm hoping that RF will introduce a 60+% board of their own with Topres and dye-sub PBT caps. I would prefer a wired version, but a separate BT model would be okay as well.

[cookie]

BT HHKB 3! NAO!