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Logitech Keyboard Elite Black (USB/PS/2)

Logitech Keyboard Elite Black (USB/PS/2)

List Price: $39.99
Your Price: $28.89
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: What Ruins A Great Keyboard?
Review: SPYWARE.
GATOR IS EVIL.
LOGITECH IS EVIL FOR ALLOWING GATOR (or in this case, it's alias, WILD TANGENT) TO SNEAK INTO OUR COMPUTERS VIA THEIR SOFTWARE.

When you install the software that you NEED in order to use all your nice fancy keyboard shortcuts, you're unwittingly installing HIDDEN AND DEFINITE SPYWARE FROM GATOR. This is absolutely ridiculous, and we as consumers SHOULD NOT TOLERATE THIS TYPE OF SHADY BEHAVIOR FROM COMPANIES LIKE LOGITECH. This is ABSOLUTELY INEXCUSABLE because:

1) LOGITECH DOES NOT TELL YOU YOU ARE INSTALLING SPYWARE.
2) LOGITECH DOES NOT GIVE YOU THE OPTION TO INSTALL THEIR SOFTWARE WITHOUT THE SPYWARE.
3) LOGITECH DOES NOT GIVE YOU THE OPTION TO REMOVE THE SPYWARE.
DO NOT promote this kind of offensive business behavior. Tell Logitech that you don't support their utter lack of business ethics by NOT BUYING THEIR PRODUCTS.

PS - The default OFF setting for the F-Lock is also stupid. Maybe Logitech intends to fix this issue with a software patch that, SURPRISE, comes piggybacked with more SPYWARE.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great keyboard
Review: The buttons are very useful. Mutt button is perfect for phone calls when you are jamming away!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Smooth but big
Review: the cons:
1. the keyboard is big and bulky

the pros:
1. long shift key
2. internet keys
3. scroll keys
4. volume & mute keys
5. keyboard is quiet
6. usb & ps2 attachments
7. for its size it is light

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good replacement keyboard, with one oversight for mac users
Review: The elite is a very nice keyboard with plenty of functionality (provided you install the drivers), but there is one problem for anyone who wants to use this as a mac-replacement usb keyboard. It has no pass-thru usb port.

oddly, this seems more the rule than the exception, but it was very important for me. in turn, i did need to return the keyboard for one off-brand keyboard that didnt feel as good but did have 2 usb ports built into it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Just remember to update drivers
Review: The keyboard looks great with its space age design and cool black and silver colors. At first, my volume control did not work; however, as soon as I installed the updated drivers from the Logitech website, my volume control dial worked perfectly. The functionality of the keyboard is diversed, and exceptional.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Nice feel, don't like the F-lock
Review: The keys have a solid feel, quiet operation. That's what matters most to me.

It has the usual features of a multimedia/internet keyboard, plus a scroll wheel that works just like a mouse's scroll. If you have a scroll mouse, the scroll on the keyboard is no big deal. Certain keys have labels that show the typical Windows shortcuts (e.g. contol-V for paste) which I find handy.

One thing that I don't care for is the F-Lock. It is the same thing as num lock, but for the function keys. It is naturally off so that the f keys can be used for other functions. I prefer to use the f keys for their original purpose. But you can't set the F-Lock to come on at every boot up, so you always need to remember to turn it own. I noticed that most of the new Logitech and Microsoft keyboards were like this. I wish it could be configured in software to control this default setting.

It comes with a 5 year warranty, which should be sufficient. Best Buy tried to sell me a service agreement on this, saying that "a lot of people return these". My experience with Logitech is that they are reliable.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Would be nice if....
Review: They had more linux support for it.

Nice, quietish keyboard. The extra buttons might be nice under Windows; I've had to manually map them under Linux. I wish Logitech had support for us Linux people.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great Gaming Keyboard, not so great for everyone else.
Review: This is a phenominal gaming keyboard. The keys have that mushy quality feeling that gives the right edge to gaming. This helps you allow the ones living with you to sleep peacefully while you stay up gaming all night. But if you're like me and don't play games your whole life, then you may want a different keyboard. For people that type a lot (programmers, linux users, people that have jobs) this may be a worse choice. The keys are so soft that they require you to push harder (or maybe they just make you think you need to push harder). This creates unecessary strain on your fingers and wrist. Gamers, this is the keyboard to get. But if you want more than a gaming keyboard, you MAY want to try a different one. Right now I am using a Dell keyboard that i am perfectly happy with. However, if you are looking for an upgrade, I'd suggest a Logitech keyboard.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best keyboard in existance!
Review: This is far superior to any other keyboard I have ever seen! OK, the F-Lock is a pain, but if you have Windows XP, it's not an issue. In XP, the F-Lock will be on if it was on before you shut down. The scroll wheel is pretty cool, even if you have a scroll mouse. The Programmable function keys are very useful, and the regular keys (standard 104) bounce back like I've never seen before. Overall rank - 6 out of 5!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: MAC users, beware!
Review: This keyboard has been buggy for me on two separate computers (both Macs) both running OSX. On both I experienced a weird glitch: If I hit the right command (apple) key and the shift button at the same time it would lock up my keyboard permanently until I un-installed and reinstalled the keyboard driver using an old, functional keyboard.

What makes this especially weird is that the keys work fine independently from one another in combination with any other keys. Likewise the left command+shift key combo works just fine. What's the big deal? Well as a professional artist, I use photoshop which includes tons of keyboard shortcuts including such common uses such as "print preview". I had to go out of my way to unlearn the reflexsive key combo. I probably locked up my keyboard 10 times before it finally unlearned to use those keys (on the right only).

Tech support was absolutely no help. The told me they couldn't help me because I was running an OS they didn't yet support (10.3).
Fine... I'll suffer along till they catch up.

Months later when they finally updated their driver to match Mac's current OS, it did nothing to remedy the problem.
I call tech support again and they tell me it's my computers' fault- both of them.
What a strange coincidence that their keyboard supposedly works on ever other mac in the world accept the last two I've owned...

Fast forward a few more months and I have an unrelated computer glitch which requires me to reinstall my system folder (unfortunately eliminating the keyboard driver as well) I go to their site to download the latest driver and now Macs are no longer supported for this keyboard! No driver, whatsoever.

I call support and I get an equally confused and rude gentlemen who suggests (no lie) that I try unplugging the keyboard and typing on it for thirty seconds. No idea how he thinks this will fix the lack of software but I play along, if only for the sake of a memorable anecdote.

Surprise, surprise- it still doesn't work when I plug it back in. After 10 minutes of haggling with the guy trying to explain the simple concept of needing mac-specific software for his computer product he tells me he will send me another, newer, elite keyboard. After giving all my information I try and ask for a little reassurance: "Will this one be supported for macs"?

Long pause...

He's "pretty sure", but he's-- (get this) TURNED OFF HIS COMPUTER FOR THE DAY, SO HE CAN"T LOOK IT UP FOR ME. (?!) Mind you this was at 4:30pm in Logitech's Eastern time zone.

Great, thanks for your help. If you need me, I'll be out on my front steps holding my breath for this new, possibly-functional, keyboard to arrive.

Perhaps this keyboard works fine for PC users, but if you're a Mac person, RUN, do not walk away from these guys. Although I can't imagine their tech support is any better for PC folks.

So avoid this keyboard and moreso, this company. Unless, of course, you're a masochist for laughable customer service, in which case I can't recommend them highly enough.


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