Miss the good old-fashioned manual typewriter? The USB Typewriter, a "new and ground-breaking innovation in the field of obsolescence", according to its creator, turns the old machines into retro-style keyboards that hook up to any USB-capable computer to let you type like it's 1948.

Jack Zylkin, who humorously describes himself as "a reclusive genius with 57 cats", created the peripheral with materials provided at Hive 76, a maker co-op in Philadelphia where Zylkin does his tinkering. In the video below, you can see it click-clacking away attached to an iPad.

The USB Typewriter consists of a sensor board that clips underneath the typewriter key and a USB interface board that features an Atmega168P microcontroller chip, a USB Type B socket and supporting components like a power supply, crystal oscillator and USB voltage conversion. The USB interface board controls the operation of the sensor board, sending keystrokes to the host computer over USB.

Software design is based on the open-source Arduino microcontroller platform.

Typewriter aficionados trying to keep one foot in this century can purchase a USB Typewriter at crafts site Etsy for somewhere between US$400 and US$500 (yikes!), or buy a kit and make one themselves. Zylkin also does custom jobs. He promises the mod won't change the outward appearance of the typewriter (except for the USB adapter itself, which is mounted in the rear of the machine). Liquid Paper not included.

Via CNET News.com