Keyboards: Not Just A Peripheral Anymore

Keyboards offer more than just keyboard functions today. They incorporate many other technologies, such as bar code decoders, magnetic stripe readers, and even smart card readers. To find out more about these changes, Business Systems Magazine spoke to representatives of two keyboard manufacturers. Mike Harvey, keyboard marketing manager at Cherry Electrical Products, and Vincent Shu, general manager at Unitech, were interviewed. They agree keyboard vendors are adding new features and seeking new applications to remain competitive.

The Keys To Selling Keyboards
Both Harvey and Shu agree emphatically on a primary way for VARs and systems integrators to sell keyboards today. And that is to sell the application, not the keyboard and its features. As Cherry's Mike Harvey put it, "We don't merely sell peripherals - we sell applications." He suggests that VARs ask potential customers how they plan to use the keyboard. When VARs determine that, they can explain what a given keyboard can do for that application and sell the keyboard on that basis. For example, a fast food restaurant might wish for a keyboard with a magnetic stripe reader and customizable keys. By knowing a vendor's full line, the VAR can suggest the model specifically designed for that purpose.

Another way VARs have found success, is to identify and seek out the niche markets which depend upon customized keyboards. Shu suggests that VARs get to know the needs of specialty markets. Another way VARs can sell keyboards is to keep abreast of the changes which have already occurred with the technology and those on the horizon.

Changes In Keyboards Which Make Them Easier To Sell
The keyboard industry has undergone some dramatic changes since the keyboards were originally made as simple input devices. One changes is Universal Serial Bus (USB) technology, a new way for a keyboard to interface with a PC. According to The Computer Desktop Encyclopedia, with the USB, just a single connector in a PC is sufficient to support up to 127 connected peripherals. Harvey points out that this allows keyboards to be "plug and play" devices, since they are so easy to install. Another major change in keyboard technology is the ability of keyboards to read smart cards. (Smart cards are plastic cards with a built-in microprocessor and memory and are used for a variety of applications, including financial and healthcare. When inserted into a reader, they process transactions 'on the card' without the need for a central computer.) These smart cards enable increased security, reduced cost and greater efficiencies.

These benefits accrue because each smart card contains information that is unique to its owner. An example is related by Harvey. "In healthcare, a keyboard might have a smart card reader on the top and on the side. A patient could place his smart card in the top slot, a doctor placing his in the side slot. The two cards could communicate within the keyboard. The doctor's card would, in affect, say, "I'm a doctor. Open up and let me in." The patient's card could, in affect, say, "Prove it to me." The two cards would then interact and confirm the doctor's legitimacy. Another change in keyboards involves biometrics. A fingerprint recognition device can be placed on the keyboard. People would have to have their prints verified.

There are even more changes destined for the future in keyboards. For example, some vendors are working on radio-frequency technology. This will allow customers to use a wireless keyboard to communicate with computers tied to their television sets, making them interactive.