chiclet keyboard

n. A keyboard with a small, flat rectangular or lozenge-shaped rubber or
plastic keys that look like pieces of chewing gum. (Chiclets is the brand
name of a variety of chewing gum that does in fact resemble the keys of
chiclet keyboards.) Used esp. to describe the original IBM PCjr keyboard.
Vendors unanimously liked these because they were cheap, and a lot of early
portable and laptop products got launched using them. Customers rejected the
idea with almost equal unanimity, and chiclets are not often seen on
anything larger than a digital watch any more.

