Microsoft is trying to improve its already high-end Surface keyboard with a new feature, which could hint at a possible hardware redesign.
According to a new patent for the Surface Keyboard (via Windows Report), Microsoft is planning to incorporate a haptic feedback feature.
Currently, the Surface Keyboard uses a mechanical keyboard that balances the use of compression pads, scissor switches, springs and rubber housings under each key, to provide a natural travel of 0.02 to 1.00 millimeters, in an effort to offer the best typing experience.
The current Microsoft keyboard has unintentionally become the primary carrier of the detachable keyboard experience.
With this new patent from January 2019, it appears that Microsoft is set to introduce a new “tactile element” as well as a “tactile unit” that will exist alongside the mechanical keyboard and will provide an additional physical tilt sensation.
As Apple did with the MacBook touchpads, Microsoft could also create a future where the user becomes accustomed to haptic feedback much more than typing on a regular keyboard. In a future where haptic feedback is the norm, Microsoft's Surface keyboard could be a welcome evolution.
