London Design Week 2012: Wood for Your Input Device

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Continuing with a theme, Orée is a new company offering a “range of lasting & customizable handcrafted tech objects made out of premium materials,” the first of which is simply known as “Board.” Of course, the premium peripheral has keys as any text input device, offering all of the functionality of a bluetooth keyboard in a handsome handcrafted maple or walnut package

The Orée Board is eco-designed: each unit is made from a single piece of wood which is cut into three “sheets” to preserve the wood grain across the shell and keys while also minimizing waste. We select wood varieties which are made to last, offer elegant aesthetics and that create a warm tactile experience for the user. We source them from sustainably managed forests to offer the most natural, durable and renewable material on Earth. In addition, the Orée Board is powered by a low power Bluetooth 3.0 chipset from Broadcom and a high quality key mechanism to offer extended durability.

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As with Michael Roopenian’s “Engrain” keyboard, “Board” is intended to be a “lasting personalized object that [has] a soul and puts people in touch with the most natural material on earth.”

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Of course, the French company is well beyond the prototype phase: tech entrepreneur Julien Salanave founded the company earlier this year in Languedoc in Southern France, and Tent London (which opens on Thursday) will see the launch of Orée with the “Board.”

Orée is the result of a unique partnership between a technology entrepreneur, a product designer and a master woodcraftsman (“Compagnon”). Orée is about reconciling tradition & novelty to create exceptional objects through an exclusive combination of timeless woodworking techniques passed down through generations of French woodcrafters & cabinetmakers with cutting-edge milling technology.

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