Hasta La Gadget!

Remember Airturn’s Bluetooth foot-pedal, a prototype page-flipper which would allow musicians to turn the “pages” of sheet music displayed on an iPad? Sight-reading musicians rejoice: it’s a prototype no longer, and you’ll be able to buy the wireless controller as of November 16th.

The BT-105, as it is lovingly named, sits on the floor and lets you page back and forth at the tap of a toe. The battery, rechargeable via a USB-port, will last for around 100 hours in standby, and the device should auto-pair with your iPad. Jack sockets let you hook up one or two foot-switches.

You don’t need any proprietary software, either. There are already several third-party apps in the App Store which work with the switch, and any developer can add support with the Airturn Developer Kit. Even better, for those who complain that we have too much iPad coverage here on Gadget Lab, the switch will work with any Mac or PC software that is triggered by the page up/down keys on a regular keyboard. That brings in things like Keynote and PowerPoint as well as most PDF-viewers.

The foot-switch, which quite honestly needs a much catchier name (suggestions in the comments) will cost $69 on launch, which is way cheaper than keeping your drunken aunt topped up with sherry at your next piano recital and hoping she can still turn your music pages for you.

Bluetooth AirTurn BT-105 for iPad Launching November 16, 2010 [AirTurn. Thanks, Hugh!]

See Also:

• Bluetooth Sheet Music Turner Could Help Readers With Disabilities …
• iPad Sheet-Music Foot-Switch is a Real Page-Turner