Microsoft Office Keyboard

Rating:
Summary: Microsoft has done it again
Review: When one takes into account Microsoft's success with what I consider to be the best mouse in the market out there--the Intelimouse Explorer (and its Wireless cousin)--and then take into account this keyboard, its hard not to get the impression that someone *really* knows what they're doing at Microsoft. This keyboard truly is a wonderfuly keyboard, in my opinion.

First, addressing its status as a Microsoft Office keyboard--You don't really need office to make it useful. Only two permanent buttons deal with office programs, Word and Excel. All the others are general ones (Web, Mail, Calendar, Files, Calc, etc.). Of course, Office benefits quite a bit from this keyboard.

Pros: As another reviewer pointed out, this keyboard is mechanically great. When you type with it the keys hit gently and you don't end up with a typewriter style sound from your keyboard. The wrist rest at the bottom of the keyboard may bother some at first, but I got used to it and think its quite nice, and helps your hands position when typing. The sidepanel is where this keyboard truly shines: an inch scroll wheel added with cut, copy, paste, back, forward, and application buttons (having the same function as ALT-TAB, causing you to switch between programs). All of these can be useful depending on your habits, but personally, I use the scroll and application switching buttons the most, and use the others less frequently.

Cons: OK, there are some downsides to this keyboard, but none of them are too bothersome, and were significant enough to give it a 4 (if only Amazon allowed 4.5... =). First, theres this function thing they have going on with the Function keys. The function keys (F1 - F12) have their normal function, and also have an "enhanced mode", with special Windows functions such as help, new, open, close, reply, fwd, send, spell, save, print, etc. I'm sure that these are useful to some people, but for the past 5 years I've trained myself to use all the shortcuts. And, unfortunately, the keyboard defaults to enhanced mode and when you restart it goes back to enhanced mode as well. What irks me even more is that they didn't have the brains to put at least some of these enhanced keys to correspond to their normal function. Everyone knows what Alt+F4 does, right? Well, do that in enhanced mode and it opens a new window--and add to that that the close button is only two keys down from it. Why not have Close be on the F4 key? The enhanced key thing is a serious problem that Microsoft has to take care of--its not too inconvienet, but I expect better from them.

Two more comments on key placement: there is only one windows key, and its on the left side. This is just me personally, but I've grown quite accustomed to using it on my right hand. Second, and even more of a pain if you switch between computers (and thus keyboards) often. The delete key is huge. Basically, they took the normal 6-key group of Insert, Home, Page Up, Delete, etc, and made it 2x3 instead of 3x2, and then they took out the insert key and made the delete key 2 keys long vertically. It takes getting used to, and its a pain when you switch keyboards.

I don't want to stress too much the problems--they really are few, and I'm nitpicking here. It truly is a good keyboard.. Microsoft just needs to fix a few things though.

Rating:
Summary: Really a great keyboard, darnit.
Review: While I am truly loathe to give a Microsoft product this high of a rating, I gotta call 'em like I sees 'em, and this is a really nice keyboard. When I first saw it, I snorted and made some derisive remark, but the more I thought about it in the weeks following, the more I secretly lusted after it. Finally, I broke down and purchased it, much to my own embarrassment.

Thankfully, I haven't had any regrets since I did. Once I finally remembered to use the side panel regularly, I got a bit addicted to its convenience; the scrolling wheel is really, really nice, as are the cut, copy and paste buttons. I don't tend to use the application tabber very often, because I'm too attuned to Alt-Tab, but every now and then it's handy, too. I rarely use the back and forward keys, largely because I forget about them, but sometimes I find them useful, too.

It's a relatively quiet keyboard, which is very nice, and it has good tactile feedback - perhaps a bit on the soft side, but I can type almost as fast on this board as on an ergo board. It feels like a quality keyboard, and not a cheap one. The built-in wrist rest is a notable feature, though I'm not entirely convinced that I like it - it makes the board a *lot* larger, and prevents the use of another wrist rest, such as a gel pad (which I prefer.) Also, it doesn't come up high enough to be of use during actual typing, but when my hands come to a rest, it keeps my wrists from unnaturally flexing.

I like the larger delete key in the grouping just to the right of the main keys - it's easier to find quickly, and I seldom used the "insert" key that it displaced. The cord is of adequate length to put on one's lap, which is very nice. It's too bad they don't use the same length for their mousing products, alas.

I have a couple of gripes about this device, though; first and foremost, it's not an "ergo" split keyboard, which is by far my preference. The standard, non-split keyboard design just forces my wrists into a slightly unnatural angle, and wears on me a bit.
Also, the F-lock is automatically disabled upon reboot, which means that all of the function keys revert to their "new and improved" options, such as "task pane," "new," "open," "close," et cetera. It seems to me that MS got this backwards, and that the default should be the standard key functions. Further, I'm sure many people find oodles of use from the new and improved functions of these keys, but personally, I've used them less than a dozen times in the five or so months I've had the product; I find it much more efficient to hit the keyboard shortcut than to take one hand and reach up to the function key row.

Likewise, I seldom use any of the top row keys at all, apart from the volume controls; I have little use for Office at home, but I'm sure those folks at work would use these more often. One helpful bit about the top row keys is that nearly all of them are able to be programmed to bring up whatever you'd like them to bring up. Since this is an MS product, I fully expected the "Web/Home" key to be stuck with Internet Explorer, the "Mail" key to bring up Outlook, and so forth. It almost, *almost*, gives me hope.

I really have to hand it to Microsoft's hardware department; they seem to have their stuff together. It's truly unfortunate that they have to make themselves, y'know, 99% evil through their software and marketing divisions.

So, to sum up a perhaps overly-long review, GREAT KEYBOARD.