Anybody checked out the "roll-up" piano keyboards? (The kind that are a fabric strip and actually roll up)

I know they are totally cheesy toys, but I've been thinking they may be a good way to input/edit midi when I'm on the road.

My concern is getting tendonitis from playing the thing - seems like drumming your fingers on a desk. (?)

and you should be...far better alternatives like e.. 25 keys
keyboards or mini keyboards.

Now that is a trip - never have seen the music/computer keyboard.

Is this truly better? I'm not looking for a performance keyboard (obviously) just a midi input/edit function. Those keys on the pix look like they may not be much better than flat keys - and thinking about my suitcase space, the whole thing is much bigger than a rolled up sock (size of rollup keyboard). The computer keys would duplicate my laptop... Cool idea though

you'd probably get more tendinitis from playing a real keyboard in my honest opinion.

Search your heart, find your inner courage and, in time, you will be able to face the roll-up keyboard...

Here's what I'm trying to do - I've got a VST on my laptop and am playing it from a small USB keyboard (similar to the one in the post above, minus the computer keys). I really had a hard time toting this keyboard along and wonder if I could perform as easily on the rollup...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQY15ZG6th0

I think the roll up keyboards are a poor substitute for any keyboard that has an actual mechanism. They have no tactile aspect to them. For me, it wouldn't be worth it to get one. I need to feel something moving under my fingers. Most of them don't even have velocity sensitivity.

There are any number of real keyboards that really do work. Most are standard size but just short and have an "octave" slider on them them makes it easy to move the range up or down.

Some have standard size keys
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Axiom25mk2/

Some have smaller then standard keys
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MPKMini/
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/nanoKEY2wt/

An some don't have keys at all
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/onstage-remote/id395108503?mt=8

The last one is the virtual keyboard for an iPad. Even that is better than a roll up. (I have a rollup and it is a fun toy. But that is it, it's a toy. I've also tried the Axiom25. It is a real keyboard that you can actually play, just very short. but if you only play one hand at a time it will work fine. What you sand up doing is recording just the left hand, then with headphone you listen to when you just recorded and play the right hand. Now you have two MIDI tracks. If now and then 25 keys is not enough just go back and edit the few notes. When you are playing and run out of keys play that note an octave down or up, edit later.

One more thing. Have you seen Apple's "musical typing". You can always fall back to that it you lack a MIDI controller.
It works well and is not a bad way to enter MIDI on a Mac. (but WHY did he choose that annoying bell tone? The Mac has a decent steinway tone on it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=rwzgzQfbXVU

The roll-up keyboard sure sounded great when Captain Picard's girlfriend played one, three centuries from now.

Elene

Elene - that is over the top weird - but funny!

I've noticed that some people can sit down and play by ear without having to refer to sheet music so Don't be a looser too quickly my dear friend their are lot of tricks best of luck...