Microsoft Wireless Desktop 800
| Wireless Keyboard and Mouse combo |
Flashback:
Often, when I used to work on my old desktop (ancient actually), I used to fiddle around a lot on my chair. Because of my changing positions, I often used to change the position of my keyboard and mouse to suit my angle. The old desktop had a wired keyboard and mouse and used to bear the brunt of all the pulling and shoving of its wires.
Fast forward to today:
This time when I went out to buy a new desktop, I decided, I would go for a wireless keyboard/mouse combo even if its a lot expensive than the conventional wired set.
AND, was that a good decision or what !
Now not only can I continue with my ever-fiddling changing-positions habit, but now I can even lie down flat on the bed, watch a movie comfortably and control the desktop without moving an inch of my butt. It doesn't seem much to read, but for a lazy person like me, its a godsend.
Hello people, my name is Amit and today we will be doing an unboxing and a little review of the Microsoft Wireless Desktop 800 keyboard/mouse combo.
For those who don't like to read much, please click on the youtube video I made just for you. For those who do, please click and view it afterwards
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoLFyFg1Pm4&autoplay=1[/media]
I bought this set for Rs. 1100 from Cost to Cost, Nehru place, New Delhi. Currently the lowest price its listed on eBay India is Rs. 1350 + shipping. So, a nice deal to begin with.
It works on the usual 2.4 GHz wireless connection and works upto a radius of 15 feet, which I guess is more than one needs to work on a computer. I, so far, cant find a reason to work on a PC from a distance more than that. It works on both PC and Mac and comes with a 2 year limited warranty. Its pretty light, does not feel more than 250-300 grams.
This combo came in a bright red box and included the following items:
- A Keyboard
- A Mouse
- A Transceiver
- 4 Duracell batteries (2x AA and 2xAAA)
- A Product Manual in various languages
- A pictorial setup card
- 3 other cards, one each for the keyboard, mouse and transceiver.
THE KEYBOARD:
The keyboard has a nice glossy, shiny finish, its good to look at and makes your PC look elegant. There are a total of 109 keys, only 4 of which are special buttons.
Calculator || Play/Pause || Mute || Volume down || Volume Up
The keys are tightly packed but do not give an impression of a cluttered/congested keyboard. Most people today are used to of working on laptops and netbooks, this keyboard is and feels much wider and comfortable.
The keys while typing don't really give the pleasure of typing on a TVS Gold, nor does sound like a el-cheapo keyboard at the same time. Instead of the click-click sound of the TVS, this is more like the tap-tap kinda keyboard.
The bottom part is white in colour and looks great, it has two flaps that can be opened to keep the keyboard at an angle. There is also a battery compartment which takes 2x AAA batteries. These batteries, according to Microsoft are supposed to last for 15 months of normal usage, which is pretty long. There is also a battery indicator light on the front, a steady 5-second Green light turns red when battery needs to be changed.
The Negatives:
There is absolutely no light or indication to show that the CAPS Lock key is ON or OFF. This I feel is a big mistake by Microsoft as its very irritating to not know whether your caps lock is on or off. I myself have made a few wrong password attempts and later realizing that caps lock was on.
There is also no ON/OFF switch for the keyboard.
The Function keys are smaller in size than the normal keys. They are also placed at regular intervals. I now have to actually look at the keyboard to press an f5 for example. Usually, there is a gap between f4 and f5 which makes it easy to just run your hand over them without looking and pressing.
THE MOUSE:
The mouse is a black, light weight 2 button scrolling mouse, with 1000 dots per inch responsiveness. It fits the hand very well and clicks well too. On the back the wireless transceiver can be stowed, it is pretty small (yes smaller than the Logitech transceiver) and snaps in tightly, thereby avoiding any chance of misplacing in case you need to transport the mouse.
There is an ON/OFF switch at the back, an optical sensor and a compartment for batteries. It works on 2x AA batteries which need to be inserted at an angle and then pressed to fit properly.
On the front of the mouse, there is also a battery indicator green light, you would need to change the batteries if it turns red. These also are said to work for around 15 months of normal usage according to Microsoft.
There was absolutely no setup required, I just needed to plug in the transceiver into one of the USB ports and have the batteries in the keyboard and mouse. The mouse needs to be switched on though.
Overall, I would rate this product 3 on a scale of 1-5 only for its looks and price. This is perfect for a Home PC with normal usage and for people on a budget. Gamers and developers might wanna look at better options.
Thank you and don't forget to look at the youtube video above, please comment here or on youtube and let me know if I should make more reviews.
