iPhone 2005 weird "Blob Keyboard" simulator
Hi HN, I teach tech design history, and one of the key stories I cover is the development of the original iPhone keyboard by Ken Kocienda. Reading about it in his book "Creative Selection" is great, but I wanted my students (and now you!) to actually feel this step in the process. So, I built a web simulator of the "Blob Keyboard", Kocienda's very first attempt at a touchscreen keyboard that actually works, from September 2005: Try the Blob Keyboard: https://juliendorra.github.io/blob-keyboard-simulator/blob-k... - Tap for the middle letter - Swipe left or right for the…
iPhone 2005 weird "Blob Keyboard" simulator launched on April 5, 2025 with 129 votes, #348 of 7,818 launches that month and more than 95% of that year's launches.
In plain words
This is an interactive web simulator of the "Blob Keyboard," Ken Kocienda's first touchscreen keyboard prototype from September 2005 during the original iPhone's development. Users can tap the center letter or swipe left and right to select adjacent letters, experiencing how the interface actually functioned. Built for tech design educators and students, it brings historical design iteration to life by letting people interact with an early solution to the challenge of typing on touchscreens when finger size made traditional keyboards impractical.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
In the maker’s words, at launch
Hi HN, I teach tech design history, and one of the key stories I cover is the development of the original iPhone keyboard by Ken Kocienda. Reading about it in his book "Creative Selection" is great, but I wanted my students (and now you!) to actually feel this step in the process. So, I built a web simulator of the…
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