PlayStation 3 Chat Pad
Announced practically at the same time as Microsoft's improved Xbox 360 controller, Sony unveiled their latest addition to their line of PlayStation 3 accessories at GC yesterday: the PS3 Wireless Keypad, a QWERTY typing add-on that snaps on to any DualShock or Sixaxis PS3 controller and allows text chat and entry in games.
It's a little weird looking, to tell the truth. The placement above the buttons and D-Pad seem like they'd require you to re-grip the controller every time you want to use it. And one of the touted features is puzzling: apparently, the keypad can be toggled into a touch pad mode, where moving your finger along the keys moves a mouse on the screen. That's... interesting... but surely one of the analog nubs would have worked just as well, if not better.
There's no price yet, but it's due to be released in November.
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No Dvorak, of course.
One step closer to a PS3 version of NetHack!
WTF? why not just add a screen and some speakers on while we're at it?
I think one of the most infuriating things about console games is when they use the analog pad to control the mouse pointer. I want to throw a controller against the wall just thinking about it. the touch pad thing might not be a bad idea. Would probably be better if it was *just* a touch pad though.
That being said, no way in hell would I ever pay for this thing.
The 360 has had a chat pad attachment out for a while now. I have one, and almost never use it, but when I do its so much nicer than having to use the on screen keyboard. That said, the 360's chat pad falls between the hand grips and is very easy to type on with thumbs and minimal shifting is needed to access it. It doesn't throw the controller off balance either. The placement of the PS3s seems a bit odd.
As for the touch screen functionality, I don't see it as much use. So very few (well made) console games even try to incorporate a cursor that it seems like a nonissue. If controllers want to get precision closer to a mouse, I've always wondered why they haven't released a pad with a trackball in place of an analog stick. They take some getting used to compared to a mouse, but the precision is far superior to what console gamers are used to.