OK, please don’t tell iClever, but I’ve had this (and I’ve used it) for a number of weeks now. Even though it’s been right in front of me, I totally forgot to do the review. At least it means that I know all about it though, which is a good thing.
So, buy from Amazon USA (for $29.86) or Amazon UK (£30.99). Free delivery too.
Out of the box, the keyboard is definitely very slim indeed and the actual keys and “travel” on each key is identical to a modern laptop. There’s no legs for adjusting the height of the keyboard and, if you’ve used a “standard” keyboard for a while, you’ll find that your hands are arched less as you use this particular keyboard.
Charging is done via a microUSB port on the side of the keyboard and this seems to go directly into the batteries on the rounded rear section which props up the keyboard. As I’ve mentioned in my intro, I’ve had this thing for weeks (actually, months) and I’ve never had to recharge it. It seems to go on forever and there’s a clever power-down system that kicks in when you stop typing for any length of time.
The key layout, on the one I have here from the UK site, is the UK with the £ sign on the number 3 and the @ symbol as shown. However, the one thing that did bug me was the placement of the backslash \ and the pipe |. If you work in IT these two symbols are used quite a bit in Linux and when you’re trying to access UNC paths, and having to change my muscle-memory was a bit of a challenge. That, plus the fact that I had to press the “Fn” key to access these two symbols meant that I was swearing a bit when I first switched to this. You can see above that they’re on the “Z” and “X” keys.
Below, the NumLK, function, caps lock and other LED’s are present on the curved top edge.There’s also an on / off switch which I’ve never really used as it does all that for me.
The setup, as you’ll noticed I’ve not covered, is extremely simple. Plug a very tiny dongle into the back of your laptop or PC and then turn the keyboard and mouse on – it’ll pair up and Windows / Chrome easily detects the kit without fuss over the 2.4Ghz connection.
The mouse is flat, almost like the perfect “skimming pebble” and again, if you’re used to a more arched Microsoft mouse it’ll be a challenge to switch, however it is worth it. On the top is a DPI button which lets you switch to your desired sensitivity – either 1000, 1200 or 160 dpi. It worked very well.
The keyboard and the mouse are sleek and super-slim. They’re ideal for travelling with and the keyboard is extremely quiet to use. There’s a soft matte finish and the keys are easy to use, locate and see. No creaks, no tapping noises. Brilliant.
As I’ve used this for such a long time, and I’ve not switched back to my older keyboard, I’m pretty confident and comfortable with it now. It’s a really sweet slim keyboard which is also easy to clean as the keys are so flat. Don’t forget that you will need to get used to the placement and access of those \ and | symbols.
Want one? Buy from Amazon USA (for $29.86) or Amazon UK (£30.99).
