Google Spreadsheets has recently added an interesting feature: keyboard accelerators for menus, but it only works in Chrome. You can now press Alt+F (or Ctrl-Option-F for Mac) to open the File menu. Then type one of the underlined characters to select an option. It’s now much easier to use features that don’t have keyboard shortcuts, just like in a native application.

Chrome is the only important desktop browser born without menus and that’s probably the reason why web apps can override shortcuts like Alt+F. It’s important to point out that you can use shortcuts like Alt+F and Alt+E to open Chrome’s wrench, but not in Google Spreadsheets.

While Chrome’s interface was so great that many other browsers used it as an inspiration, Google Docs continues to use the old-school menus from Microsoft Office 2000.

Google Operating System

I don’t have sales figures, but based on buzz and reader commentary, the Asus Transformer was a pretty popular Android tablet in 2011. It’s a new year though and Asus has kicked things up a notch at CES with the Transformer Prime and Nvidia’s Tegra 3 processor. The Tegra 3 is a quad-core chip with a fifth core for light tasks, which helps battery life. And there are a dozen GPU cores as well, which makes for the best gaming on a tablet I’ve seen yet.

Here’s a quick look at the Transformer Prime, which now runs on Google’s latest version of Android: 4.0.3, or Ice Cream Sandwich. The tablet can run for up to 12 hours on its own, but the keyboard dock option adds another 8 or more hours, making for an all-day tablet. The keyboard is quite usable; similar to the keyboards on Asus netbooks, and docking the tablet adds a mouse pointer on screen. My initial thoughts on the trackpad are mixed: It works but isn’t quite as smooth as I’d like.

A full review will follow, but for now, enjoy a tour of the thin and light hardware, as well as some browsing, high-definition video viewing, gaming with an Xbox controller and a highlight of some Asus customizations. I’m curious if this tablet and keyboard combo can replace a laptop for people with minimal traditional computing needs.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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• The rise of tablets in the enterprise
• A Media Tablet Forecast, 2011 – 2015
• Mobile Q4: The scramble for spectrum continues

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Microsoft has just announced its new Bluetooth Mobile Keyboard 5000, a new wireless keyboard made specifically for devices such as tablets. It is available now for $ 49.99. Read more…

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The Samsung Stratosphere has landed in the Neowin offices and we take a look at Verizon’s first 4G device with a QWERTY keyboard; but will the keyboard trump the fact that it has older hardware? Read more…

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Razer has announced new versions of its BlackWidow gaming PC mechanical keyboard that include a new key set, making it quieter to use. Read more…

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Neowin takes a look at the unreleased Comfort Curve Keyboard 3000. Ergonomically designed to provide comfort for your wrist. Read more…

Neowin.net

AT&T’s version of the hotly anticipated Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone appears to have a slide-out hardware keyboard, something we’ll never likely see on Apple’s iPhone. The reported keyboard is shown on the Boy Genius Report site, which has an image of what clearly resembles a Samsung smartphone running Google Android 2.3.4. The four-row keypad is supplemented by two tall, thin buttons on the left and right; each doubles as a button for the four capacitive touch buttons on the display for search, home, menu and back functions. AT&T still sells the lion’s share of iPhones, but a high-powered Android handset with a hardware keyboard could sway some away from Apple.

I have no doubt that when Apple introduces the next iPhone model, AT&T will still continue to sell millions of the device. Surprisingly, even though the iPhone is on many networks around the world and available on Verizon since February, AT&T appears to have sold 17.1 percent of all iPhones last quarter. Apple reported sales of 20.34 million iPhones and just days later AT&T claimed 3.6 million iPhone activations in the same time period. That’s a big number in relation to all iPhones sold.

As strong as those numbers are, there’s still money being left on the table, because no matter how good the software keyboard is on the iPhone, there are consumers that simply won’t consider it due to the lack of a hardware keyboard. I’ve heard this complaint time and again in various conversations and it comes more from women in my experience. It turns out that women with long fingernails — again, based on my conversations — can’t easily use a capacitive touchscreen keyboard. That’s just one example of many I hear; talk to a long-time BlackBerry user and you’re likely to hear a similar aversion to touchscreen keyboards.

So while the Samsung Galaxy S II is no iPhone when it comes to software or ecosystem, it may drive sales on AT&T’s network for those seeking the touchscreen smartphone experience but with the addition of a hardware keypad. The Galaxy S II is certainly powerful enough to please with Samsung’s 1.2 GHz dual-core processor; early benchmarks from the overseas model show it to run rings around most other smartphones. A Super AMOLED Plus display brings vibrant colors that draw the eye. And even with a peppy processor, early reviews show the phone capable of lasting a full day on a single charge. It’s no wonder the Galaxy S II is the company’s fastest selling smartphone with 3 million sales in 55 days.

Hardware keyboard aside, potential customers will still focus on iOS vs Android as a major part of their purchase decision. But if these folks consider the two platforms to be “close enough” to parity, a keyboard could help Samsung move more Galaxy S II smartphones on AT&T. And given AT&T’s importance to iPhone sales, that helps Samsung as it battles Apple to become the new smartphone king.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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• Mobile Q2: Smartphone growth surges; iPad’s rule continues
• Mobile Q4: All Eyes Were on Android, 4G and the Rising Tablet Tide
• Report: A Mobile Video Market Overview

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Thanks to its Android strategy, Samsung is quickly rising through the ranks and is soon expected to be the top smartphone seller in the world. The company will surpass Nokia to claim the no. 1 spot as early as this quarter due to a long-term plan that began with the Samsung Galaxy last June. Other Android device makers have reaped benefits too, but Samsung’s approach has been calculated and methodical.

Instead of building a wide range of Android devices, Samsung focused on one, the Galaxy S, and then tweaked it for different carriers and regions, saving on research & development, as well as manufacturing costs. The company also designs and builds its own processors, flash memory and displays, helping to eliminate reliance on component providers. Samsung also has its own media ecosystem for books, music and videos, plus it created a backup plan to Android: Phones running the company’s Bada operating system outsold Windows Phone 7 devices in the first quarter of this year.

Other Android phone makers are trying to replicate Samsung’s approach, but supplement it with new features that differentiate. Smartphones with 3-D video capabilities are appearing, helped in part by more capable chips, graphic processors and display technologies. But consumers don’t want to wear 3-D glasses to view this content and two handsets aim to deliver a glasses-free vision.

The LG Optimus 3D and HTC Evo 3D both use a stereoscopic display to show both pictures and videos in 3-D without glasses. LG demonstrated its 3-D Android phone in February and now says it’s rolling out in Europe. Here in the U.S., consumers will see the HTC Evo 3D on June 24. The phone, for Sprint’s 3G / WiMAX network, will cost $ 199 after contract, comes with Android 2.3.3, HTC Sense 3.0, and a pair of 5 megapixel cameras for capturing pictures or 720p video in 3-D. I took an early look at a review unit to demonstrate how the 3-D functionality works, which surprisingly, was impressive.

Also impressive to many is the Swype keyboard for Android, which now claims 50 million downloads. The unique input system allows you to trace your letters, making for quick text entry with just a single hand. Swype debuted the next version of its keyboard, 3.0, in a public beta this week and it just may have me switching keyboards on my smartphone. The new version includes a tap word prediction function and support for displays up to 960 x 540 resolution. Swype is adding support for Honeycomb tablets as well, allowing for the keyboard to be resized or moved on the larger display of a slate.

Related content from GigaOM Pro (subscription req’d):

• Mobile Q1: All Eyes on Tablets, T-Mobile and AT&T
• A Media Tablet Forecast, 2011 – 2015
• A Global Mobile Handset Platform Forecast, 2011 – 2015

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A few news is coming out recently in relation the first wave of Nokia Windows Phones due to be launching around Q4 2011. AllAboutPhones.nl (via WMPU) reports that Victor Saeijs, Vice President of Nokia Europe, told attendees at the 2011 Mobile Telecompaper Conference in Netherlands that the first wave of Nokia Windows Phones will be initially launching in six European countries – Netherlands, France, Germany, UK, Spain and Italy. He re-emphasized that the Nokia Windows Phones will launch later this year, and mentioned that he was "carrying an early prototype himself but could not show it off".

Further, Anna Leach from ShinyShiny.tv (via WMPU) reports from an Nokia event that a Nokia Windows Phone with QWERTY keyboard might be coming at the end of this year. Here’s quote from her:

A [Nokia] rep said that Nokia wanted to cater to the business market, that Windows Phone was a natural choice for the business user and that business users wanted QWERTY keyboards. I’m taking that as "yes we are releasing a QWERTY phone in our 2011 line-up".

Anna Leach also further confirms the official release date for the first Nokia Windows Phones is Q4 of 2011, and even suggests that we might see one sometime round the beginning of that period. Given that the "Mango" update is due around Fall 2011, and the Acer W4 is set to launch in November 2011, these all coincides pretty nicely with each other to suggest that the next wave of Windows Phones with "Mango" pre-installed should be coming around October-November timeframe, exactly one year after the initial Windows Phone 7 launch. Afterall, Microsoft did say they’ll release "major updates" to the Windows Phone platform in a yearly cycle, right?

LiveSide.net

Microsoft has launched its brand new encrypted Wireless Desktop 2000 keyboard and mouse hardware set. The keyboard becomes the company’s first device to feature Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) 128-Bit Encryption, the same technology that is being used by the U.S. government to keep their wireless connections secure.

According to the…

Neowin.net