For just $139, this startup turns your iPhone into a BlackBerry-era relic

Clicks Technology is today unveiling the Clicks creator keyboard for the iPhone. It’s less “the future” than an unpleasant glance back to a world we thought we had left behind, in a nostalgia-tinged flashback to the days of BlackBerry and Nokia, where pressing physical buttons was the pinnacle of mobile communication.

“We use keyboards on our desktops, laptops and tablets every day — so it’s kind of odd that we abandoned physical buttons on the smartphone,” said Michael Fisher, co-founder of Clicks Technology. 

The thing is, we haven’t abandoned physical buttons. It turns out there are hordes of Bluetooth keyboards out there that fulfill that role just fine — and that the on-screen keyboards (with their swipe / predictive text / spell-checking features) are simply a better solution for on-the-go users. The tiny little BlackBerry-style buttons were always an unmitigated disaster, and there are really excellent reasons that tech died out a long time ago.

The Clicks keyboard brings the “benefits” of touch and typing together. By moving the keyboard off the display when typing, Clicks almost doubles the available screen. Yes, you can now see all your typos in HD clarity.

This falls firmly into the “just because you can doesn’t mean you should” category, if you ask me. Image Credits: Clicks Technology

And for those who really miss the good old days of typing on a physical keyboard, the Clicks creator keyboard offers real keys. Now, you can feel the physical pain in your fingers as you type out your memoirs on the go.

Keyboard shortcuts are another “innovation” coming with Clicks. iPhone users can now use shortcuts like CMD + H to navigate to the home screen, or CMD + Space to launch Search. It’s a whole new world, right?

Clicks connects directly to iPhone through Lightning or USB-C, completely ignoring the wireless world in which we spend most of our lives.

For the mere price of $139 (USD), you can own this piece of innovation. The company is opening its order book today, and says it is shipping February 1.

So, if you’re looking for a touch of nostalgia, a pinch of inconvenience and a dash of unnecessary physical effort, the Clicks keyboard might just be for you.