Redesigned Typo 2 physical keyboard for Apple's iPhone 5 & 5s now available for preorder

After being slapped with an injunction because of similarities to BlackBerry keyboards, the Typo physical keyboard for iPhone has been redesigned in a new second-generation model that will begin shipping in mid-September.

In what was likely a bid to avoid future litigation, the new Typo 2, which is now available for preorder, is redesigned with a look that further differentiates it from the keyboards on BlackBerry smartphones. The product is backed by celebrity presenter and radio host Ryan Seacrest, who helped drum up hype for the first — now banned — product earlier this year.

The Typo 2 is now available from its official website for $99, with the first orders shipping in mid-September.

"Typo 2 was born out of a desire for efficiency," the product description reads. "For several years, many of our friends and colleagues carried two phones: one for typing and correspondence and an iPhone for virtually everything else."

The people behind Typo believe that physical keyboards are superior to the virtual buttons featured on Apple's iPhone. Their product was in development for two years, and the company calls it "an indespensible business tool that people simply can't live without."

The original Typo Bluetooth keyboard launched for iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s early this year, but was quickly met with a lawsuit from BlackBerry which alleged the design too closely represented its own popular physical keyboards. BlackBerry quickly won an injunction and barred sales of the Typo in the U.S.