Apple’s refusal to add a netbook to its range has left many attempting to use the iPhone or iPod touch as a rough equivalent, but ease of text entry continues to frustrate. Happily, where Apple fall short the developer community delivers, with the simply-named iPhone Bluetooth Keyboard Driver. Soon to appear in the Cydia Store, v.1 of the driver allows you to wirelessly connect a Bluetooth keyboard to the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS or iPod touch.
It’s not a perfect solution: it requires that the device be jailbroken first, and iPhone 2G support is unclear at present. You’ll also need an iPod touch with Bluetooth, too, so that counts out the first-gen model. The software implementation isn’t quite perfect either; v.10 lacks support for cut/copy/paste, you can’t highlight text by holding down shift and using the cursor keys, the CapsLock button won’t work and Apple’s own wireless keyboard won’t quick auto-connect.
Nonetheless, this is a huge step forward for turning the iPhone or iPod touch into a mobile workstation, and those who enter large amounts of text may find the combination of the App Store and this new driver irresistible. No word on when exactly it will enter the Cydia Store.
It’s not a perfect solution: it requires that the device be jailbroken first, and iPhone 2G support is unclear at present. You’ll also need an iPod touch with Bluetooth, too, so that counts out the first-gen model. The software implementation isn’t quite perfect either; v.10 lacks support for cut/copy/paste, you can’t highlight text by holding down shift and using the cursor keys, the CapsLock button won’t work and Apple’s own wireless keyboard won’t quick auto-connect.
Nonetheless, this is a huge step forward for turning the iPhone or iPod touch into a mobile workstation, and those who enter large amounts of text may find the combination of the App Store and this new driver irresistible. No word on when exactly it will enter the Cydia Store.
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