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IBM USB Keyboard with UltraNav ( 31P8950 )

IBM USB Keyboard with UltraNav ( 31P8950 )

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: If you like your laptop keyboard, you'll like this product
Review: I bought this keyboard when I was trying to replace my MS Natural Elite keyboard with something that included a pointing device. I liked this keyboard enough that I didn't return it, but I'm back using my Microsoft Natural Elite because I've gotten so used to the keyboard layout.

Unlike some other combination keyboard/pointing devices, this one works very well. They keyboard feel is quite good, with a very short, sharp throw on each key, and a well positioned and easy to use pointing device. The only problem with this keyboard is that it is laid out like a laptop keyboard, which means that some keys are too small and oddly located.

In all, its a good choice if you want a keyboard on your desktop that matches the keyboard on your laptop

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: If you like your laptop keyboard, you'll like this product
Review: I bought this keyboard when I was trying to replace my MS Natural Elite keyboard with something that included a pointing device. I liked this keyboard enough that I didn't return it, but I'm back using my Microsoft Natural Elite because I've gotten so used to the keyboard layout.

Unlike some other combination keyboard/pointing devices, this one works very well. They keyboard feel is quite good, with a very short, sharp throw on each key, and a well positioned and easy to use pointing device. The only problem with this keyboard is that it is laid out like a laptop keyboard, which means that some keys are too small and oddly located.

In all, its a good choice if you want a keyboard on your desktop that matches the keyboard on your laptop

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Thinkpad keyboard for the desktop
Review: Simply put, the keyboards IBM puts in its Thinkpad line of notebooks are the best keyboards I've ever used. The keyboard here is just a large-model Thinkpad keyboard done up for the desktop with USB (with a built-in two-port USB hub). As such, it's perfect. I've wanted one of these since I first laid fingertips on a Thinkpad keyboard in 1997.

I'm a 100 word-per-minute touch typist who's seen a lot of keyboards -- I learned to type on a manual typewriter in the early 1970s and spent summers in college earning money as a keypunch operator on teletype-like keyboards. Before this keyboard, I was always on the lookout for a better keyboard.

The throw of the keys on this keyboard is a lot less than that of a standard desktop keyboard. And although the keys feel somewhat "clicky" (good for feedback), they're also relatively quiet (good for neighbors and family). The key layout is just like on the Thinkpad. I use the windows key a lot, but you can rebind one of the ALT keys in your operating system.

The keyboard extends a long way below the keys, just like the bigger Thinkpad's keyboards. I find this provides perfect palm rests for me.

I would've gotten this just for the keyboard. But there's also a trackpoint built in. And my fingers want to use it due to long experience on IBM notebooks. Of all the notebook pointer technologies, this is the only one that works for me. It works better than other company's implementations of track pointers (like on a Toshiba my wife had). Trackpoints don't bounce on planes or trains like the touchpads. Applying "belt and suspenders" caution, IBM also included a touchpad and two sets of mouse buttons (one high and one low); the pair closest to the keyboard are very convenient for dealing with the endless series of dialog boxes in modern applications.

All told, this keyboard helps my typing speed and accuracy. And even though I'm a speedy typist, my typing and mousing is still the bottleneck in most of the work I do on a computer.


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