'Apple designs Mac-Inside-a-Keyboard device to evoke memories of 1980s home computers'

Apple is exploring the possibility of integrating a full-featured Mac into a keyboard reminiscent of 1980s home computers like the Commodore 64 and Sinclair ZX Spectrum.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office revealed the concept in a new Apple patent application titled "Computer in Input Device," which describes a thicker Magic Keyboard-style chassis , integrating "all the components of a high-performance computer" under the hood.

The patent describes the premise of such a device, which can be plugged into a separate external device via an I/O port for receiving data and power monitor and wirelessly pair with a trackpad or mouse for additional input.

While portable computing devices, such as laptops and tablets, can be docked in an office or home office station and include a secondary monitor to provide a computing experience similar to that of a desktop computing experience, these devices still require a Set additional input devices to emulate desktop computing devices. Additionally, the primary display of devices such as laptops and tablets often may not be used when the device is docked to a station that includes a secondary display, adding potentially unnecessary size and cost to such portable computing devices .

The computing devices described herein may incorporate or otherwise house one or more computing components within an input device to provide a portable desktop computing experience in any location with one or more computer monitors. For example, users can transport the computer with its keyboard attached instead of carrying an entire laptop or tower and keyboard. Since some form of input device is typically required to interact or interface with a computing device, including input device enclosures or computing components within enclosures can eliminate the need for redundant sets of input devices and reduce the need for handling by the user. Additionally, input devices can eliminate additional components, such as a monitor, that are not needed when used with a stand-alone computer monitor,

By including the computing component in the keyboard, Apple recommends This could allow users to carry a single device that can provide a desktop computing experience in any location with one or more external monitors.

In some embodiments, the device includes a trackpad "coupled" to the housing, while in other embodiments the device is foldable and the keyboard area includes an "accessory display" that displays graphics, Or the keyboard itself is displayed virtually from a projector contained within the enclosure. The remainder of the patent explores in detail various configurations of internal computer components within the space provided by the keyboard chassis.

Apple has filed patents for keyboards in the past that included the use of a Touch Bar-like touchscreen panel that stretched across the entire keyboard layout, but this is the first to suggest actually integrating the computer into the keyboard itself.
As with any filed patent, the technology is unlikely to appear in any products anytime soon, if at all, but it does provide an interesting look at how Apple is thinking about potentially replacing or A Mac design that comes with the Mac mini, which allows users to bring their own monitor, keyboard, and mouse.

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