Introduction
So continues my eternal quest to make my system have as few wired connections as possible.
I've been looking for a wireless keyboard to go with my wireless mouse for some time now. My main constraints were No Lag (I game on the PC,) and Battery life. (I hate changing batteries/recharging). Of course, the cost should not have been too high.
Looking at general reviews, my options were...
Logitech diNovo Edge - This got ruled out right at the beginning. Cost too much. (135$!!!)
Logitech diNovo for Notebooks - Advertised and sold as a means to hook-up with Notebook docking stations/notebooks. It's a full sized keyboard, so works with desktops as well.)
Logitech Cordless Desktop Wave Keyboard - This came with a mouse as well, the mx1100. Not sure if I wanted to pay for another mouse.
Logitech had a sale on the diNovo for Notebooks and I couldn't resist it at that price (20$)!
(As those choices indicate, I may be a bit of a Logitech fan for peripherals.)
[BREAK=Packaging and Build Quality]
Packaging
The keyboard arrived in pretty cool looking packaging. (Logitech seems to have some pretty good people designing their retail packagins. I really appreciate retail packaging. I tend to hang on to all the original boxes. ) Included in the box were
The Keyboard
The USB Receiver
Manual
CD with Logitech's SetPoint software.
(4 AAA Duracell Batteries)
Another nice feature was how white plastic tabs were inserted into where the batteries makes contact, so as not to drain it when it's sitting in a warehouse.
Build Quality
The build quality is awesome. The keyboard has a very solid heft to it. It's slightly slanted to provide that wrist angle that makes keyboards comfortable to use. The hand rest has a nice smooth metallic finish.
The space between the keys has a nice glossy finish, though it can also be a fingerprint magnet. Another great feature is the small transparent pinhole in the Caps Lock key that glows when the Caps Lock is activated. A really nice touch.
[BREAK=Setup and Setpoint]
Setup and Setpoint
The setup was really simple. I didn't even need to restart my computer. I unplugged my old keyboard and plugged the receiver for the new one in. All I had to do was turn on the keyboard via the switch located on the top and start typing. The extra keys like the Calculator, Volume Controls and Mute worked right out of the box.
For additioal customising, one has to use Logitech's software, Logitech Setpoint. I alread had it running with uberoptions installed (had installed it for my mouse.) The Setpoint software did not detect my keyboard till I restarted my computer.
The number of options is mind boggling. I changed my Eject key to display a 'My Computer'. All the function keys can be set. You can disable the Caps Lock key, the WIndows key. Basically, anything you want to do.
[BREAK=Usage]
Usage
Now we come to the most important, the actul usage of the keyboard. I'll elaborate on the features I think make this a very good keyboard.
1) Keys - Logitech calls this the PerfectStroke key system (they like giving fancy names...). These are short travel keys like the ones you find in Laptops. It feels awesome to type on. Not too much travel like a mechanical keyboard. I've also seen some keyboards that decrese the play too much and give the keyboard a very touchscreen feel. Fortunately, the diNovo does not make that mistake.
2) Keyplacement - The keyplacement is like in most normal keyboards. The Function Keys (and other top row keys) are the thin ones found on laptops. The delete key is the long one, with the height of 2 keys. One issue I did have is hitting the eject key accidentally while trying to hit backspace. I have remapped that key to My Computer, so it's not as distracting as it could have been.
3) Ergonomic Construction - The keyboard is very well designed. The hand rest is not too large or not too small. (For me. I guess this may vary from person to person. I have very normal sized hands/finger.) The keyboard is weighted so that it doesn't move around on smooth surfaces. It also has rubber feet to improve traction.
4) Range - I've tried using the keyboard from about 10 feet away and have had no problems. I've gone into the next room and hit the spacebar (pause button) and it worked fine.
5) Gaming Performance - Having no lag was pretty important to me. I had Timeshift installed (a pretty decent game actually.. a fast no-thinking required, shoot-everything-that-moves FPS. But, I digress..). There was no lag in either that game or Quake 3 (where every bit of lag is easily noticeable)
6) Connectivity - Like I had mentioned, I could start using this without a reboot. I didn't know if that was because I had Logitech Setpoint already installed. So I tested it out on my friends laptop (Vista x64). It got detected and worked great. I also connected it to the PS3 and it works with that as well. I can browse Techenclave from my TV now!
7) Battery life - Logitech claims a 3 year batter life on 4 AAA batteries if it's switched off when not in use. I don't like the hassle of swithing on and off, so I replaced them with rechargeable AAA batteries. Logitech Setpoint says I have about 95% battery life left and Setpoint does tend to underestimate battery life left. This was starting from a fully charged set, after using the keyboard for 2-3 weeks. That's great battery life, as things stand.
[BREAK=Final Thoughts]
Final Thoughts
Overall, this is a great buy. For 20$, I should have bought one more and used it at work (I may do that, when the price drops again). Let me put up the main points.
+ Positives
1) Keystroke length is awesome and the keys feel good.
2) Ergonomic. Feels really good in the hand.
3) Great battery life. (Extrapolating from 3 weeks usage and from online reports.)
4) No lag, Decent range, Good connecticity to different systems
- Negatives (These are not big issues, just minor nitpickings. I have no major complaints about the keyboard. A few of these may be a deal breaker for some people, so thought I should mention them.)
1) The angle of the keyboard cannot be changed.
2) The eject key is too close to the backspace key.
3) Glossy areas which can get dirty easily
4) A few people have mentioned issues with lag for a few of the keyboards.(Logitech has been great though, replacing them free of cost.)
Thanks for reading the review. Please do post about any mistakes you may spot, I'll go ahead and fix them.
