Belkin OmniView SOHO Series 4-Port KVM Switch with Audio

Rating:
Summary: Just a warning from an experience with the DVI version
Review: I'm extremely unhappy with the Belkin OmniView SOHO Series 4-Port KVM DVI Switch with Audio. I'm sure most of this applies for the VGA version

1) It is nearly impossible to connect a cable to the console DVI Connector. Belkin had to overnight a special extender to connect the monitor DVI cable to the KVM.
2) Connecting the Power Adapter to the KVM blocks one of the peripheral USB ports.
3) It's absolutely impossible to put on the cover (i.e. cable management cover) if you connect the four (Belkin) cables to it.
4) Connecting only two PCs with a resolution of 1600x1200 to the KVM resulted in green shadows for one connection. (both NVidia cards GeForce 4 (4200 series) and a Geforce 5 (5200 series)
5) The Microsoft Wireless Keyboard doesn't work as stated in the manual. I did manage to plug in the wireless dongle connector to the USB mouse port on the KVM but now I can't use the hotkeys to switch between computers. Belkin has also indicated that wireless keyboards don't always work as stated in the manual

6) There isn't a FAQ or software/firmware upgrade listed for this device. I would recommend checking out the belkin support pages or lack there of.

Rating:
Summary: The switch that doesn't
Review: I'm pretty dissatisfied with the 2 KVM switches I've used so far. This (the Belkin OmniView) is the second one. An IOGear was my first and it suffered primarily from a problem where it masked the true identify of my mouse and keyboard (it only offered "standardized" versions of both to attached systems). They both barely perform the basics.

What's wrong with this unit?

1. It's not trustworthy. It will sometimes lose contact with my mouse, keyboard or both switching between systems.

2. Following the directions to remedy the problems makes the value of this KVM much smaller. Belkin asks you not to use any additional software related to your mouse or keyboard. I'm trying this without success on the mouse and haven't tried it on the keyboard. The major bummer here? I won't be able to use the handy media, Internet, and email features provided on my keyboard. I will say that a Belkin 8-port KVM I have in the office works great with my Microsoft keyboard (including the extra buttons for media/etc.). However, I need this to work with other brands as well (I remotely suspect that wireless keyboards, my primary focus, are even more troublesome since the transmitters don't like losing power when switching systems).

3. Belkin doesn't support today's more enhanced keyboards and mice (I've tried Logitech's and one other brand). The keyboard manufacturers likewise don't support KVMs. What a kroc!

If you can avoid KVMs, do. Try using Windows XP's Remote Desktop feature, creative keyboard/mouse placement and/or just using the handy multi-input features of most newer monitors.

Rating:
Summary: Linksys and IOGear out-perform this failed product.
Review: In my search to find one adequate KVM switch to work with Windows and Linux, I now own five KVM switches (around $450 worth). The Belkin Omniview is the worst of the lot. I have one Omnicube which gets by O.K. A two port IOGear all-in-the-cable model works great, but IOGear's four port models have intrusive keyboard shortcuts that interfere with applications and games. However, the 4 port IOGear model came with a full set of cables. Ultimately, the Linksys SVIEW04 was the grand solution. The SVIEW04 provides all the quality of the IOGear models and also allows the keyboard shortcuts to be disabled.

Unfortunately, the magazines that have been recommending these products haven't been doing their research. You must investigate all the specifications, and you must also read the entire manual before buying. Someone might have noticed that the firmware update feature on the Omniview isn't well documented. Then, there must be testing of all the features with multiple operating systems; and clearly, those recomending these products have failed to do this.

Linksys (the best) and IOGear are clearly better products than this one.

Rating:
Summary: Truly frustrating!
Review: Like a '54 XK120, this thing is beautifully styled, and utterly unreliable. It randomly loses connectivity to both my Intellimouse, and my MS USB keyboard. 30 - 90 secondes go by and then it reconnects, sometimes to redisconnect within seconds, sometimes it'll stay connected for half an hour at a time. Weirdly, it seems to maintain connectivity to the Monitor - though often as a generic display rather than as a flat panel Samsung. I used an IOGear two port KVM successfully until I got the third machine going, but I got sucked in by the style. my mistake! I give it 0 stars for performance, 4 stars for style, average, 2 stars.

Rating:
Summary: Works, but nothing to rave about
Review: Like other reviewers, I am not very excited about mine:
- It was expensive and it takes an unnecessary amount of space on your desk.
- The most annoying is the slow response, felt anytime you hold a key down, like backspace for example.
- If you have a USB mouse AND keyboard, you will not be able to fit two USB->PS/2 converters side by side. You'll either have to get a short PS/2 extension to move the converter outside the KVM case, or get a USB keyboard with a USB outlet on it.
- The flash upgrade feature is useless, Belkin has not posted any updates in a year.

But it works, and that's what counts after all, so if you haven't seen anything better, it'll do the job.

Rating:
Summary: Reliable, but slow and annoying.
Review: Monitor switching between computers is fast, but it takes more than a second to regain mouse and keyboard control after switching.

If using the Logitech mouse driver, scroll wheel functionality is lost after switching several times, and you must reboot your PC to get it back. However, the manual recommends that you remove vendor-specific drivers and use only the Microsoft driver. This works for me & it never seems to drop synch with the mouse or keyboard, but I would like the battery-level indicator for my Logitech wireless mouse, which only the Logitech driver provides.

The hot-key for switching is ScrollLock-ScrollLock, which I prefer to CTRL-CTRL (Linksys KVMs use CTRL) because CTRL is too easy to tap twice by accident.

The KVM beeps when accepting the hot-key and switching between computers, which quickly becomes annoying in a small office environment.

The Belkin also has firmware update capability; however, they have not released any firmware updates yet. If they release something that speeds up the mouse/keyboard and allows me to disable the beeping, I would rate this KVM 5/5.

Rating:
Summary: Works well but it's expensive
Review: This works flawlessly. No ghosting or image degredation. However it's biggest drawback is that you have to buy the cables and they are expensive particularly if youget the gold standard which you should to minimise any ghosting. Others may have used the cheaper cables and they may work but even they are costly. Hopefully the price will come down in time. But if you want something that works go for it. Also you may not need this model with audio inputrs if your speakers have two inpout chanells. SO you maybe able to cut cost that way. Ionly use this fo r two computers.