The Deliverator – Wannabee

I purchased a new RF wireless keyboard for use with my media center PC, an Adesso model WKB-4000US. I was a bit dissatisfied after long term use with my previous RF wireless keyboard, a BTC model mentioned in a previous post. I found the BTC’s handles, which made it soo easy to grasp off the coffee table also made it barely fit on the coffee table. The receiver unit would also periodically hang, requiring a USB replug and reassociate to get it back up and running. I also found the “joystick” mouse a bit cumbersome for rapid fire couch browsing.

The new Adesso keyboard is much lighter than the BTC and takes up a much smaller footprint on the table. It is easy to pick up thanks to the generously sized integral wrist rest. In the center of the wrist rest resides a generously sized touchpad with left and right mouse buttons and a “touch to scroll” area built into the touchpad. The keys themselves are wonderfully rigid, with no side to side slop and a satisfyingly clicky response that is all too rare in these later days of computing. The receiver unit is a simple little USB dongle. The unit operates in the 2.4ghz range, but I have noticed no interference with my WiFi networks and the range on the keyboard is excellent. I have had no issues with it since initial pairing.

Really, my only gripes with this keyboard are very minor:

– The pairing button on the USB dongle is rather small, requiring a mechanical pencil or similar tool to press.
– The scrolling area is easy to accidentally move into while exhuberantly cursoring about
– $90 pricetag is over twice the cost of the BTC keyboard, although this is still much cheaper than the overpriced Gyration RF keyboards, which have a rather poor build quality in my experience and tend to have keys come loose. The Adesso feels very solidly put together.
– No media buttons on keyboard might be an issue for some people