Best Keyboard and Mouse/Trackball - Whatcha got??? - Page 14

THIS ONE???

???

Don't know about Assassin, but that's the one I'm using. I liked it enough I bought a second one for another computer.

I bought it !

Lenova site had it for $51 and I got 10% off for new customer.. seemed worth it

Hi,

I see Lenovo has a good promo for back friday on the N5902 (35$ before tax/shipping).
I don't have any wireless keyboard yet for my (pseudo) htpc machine.

Would the Lenovo N5902 be good enough to play point and click adventure games like the Monkey Island serie, etc... , where you need to be able to move the mouse precisely ?

Or is something with a trackpad like the RII N7 better for this kind of use ?

Thanks !

doh...bought mine a week before for $46 :-P

Mouse isn't accurate enough for what you describe (or rather I doubt your thumb will be because mine sure isn't :-)

One other thing you should know is there are no function keys (F1-F12). And the backlight is uneven.
Those are the only real negatives though. The scrollbar is nice. The mouse is accurate enough.

I was looking at that new nMedia that was shown on the page before and also the Logitech diNovo Edge not sure if I would like that touchpad seems tricky. Is that nMedia out yet. Any other suggestions to look at.

Rather have a mid/full keyboard than those mini's. Something with good mouse control would be nice as well.

lol....one friggin' LED is all they needed to fix the darkness in the middle

And I paid $46 for mine

It's not bad though the Rii might be better from the youtube vid I saw of it...backlight is more even...has function keys. Not sure if that touchpad works though...bet it's a cheapy...

FYI, the Lenovo N9502 is $35 shipped today for Cybermonday.

One other quirk w/ the N9502 for Linux users is the "/" key is a two key combo...Fn and another key. Pretty annoying for typing in paths
Just letting people know about the quirks (most at this pricepoint do have quirks, and even at the Dinovo Edge pricepoint, some people hate the touchpad). For the backlighting, I've never seen anyone mention it and initially thought I had a bad one...until I saw Lenovo's video on youtube...

From what site? Shipped for $35 that is.

From here :

shop.lenovo.com

(sorry, I am not allowed to post URLs)

$35.99 plus tax but including 3-day shipping. I just got myself one

Sorry..didn't see that question until today..it was a Cybermonday thing:
http://bensbargains.net/search/lenovo%2520n5902/?sr=1

It's still $36 today though:
http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/c...E567C67D3FA082

I'm having a hard time deciding on a remote/keyboard option and after going through the thread, it seems like there are 2 well received options: Rii n7 mini keyboard and the lenovo 5902; with sales they're both about the same price.

I'm wondering if anyone has had the opportunity to try both the n7 and the 5902 and can provide any insight or comparison between the two?


Also on page 12 post #351 podopple posted another keyboard/mouse combo. This one is even cheaper it seems to be going for under $30 has anyone tried or seen reviews of that one? It's hard to find anything about it since it looks to be completely unbranded in most cases and on some sites marked as "eapply"

Anyone like the Smart USB mini 2.4GHz Wireless Air Fly Mouse Keyboard Lazy Men Mouse for PC Tablet?

I just got the Logitech K400 wireless keyboard from Amazon. It's almost 14" wide including the 3" touchpad. And it came with the 2 AA batteries. So far it works quite well. My PC is about 12'-15' behind me and just around the corner from a wall & a few feet behind a half height wall and the keyboard still works. Either the RF signal goes through the wall or the waves spread out enough to go around it, but it works.

And I can walk about 8' further & it still works if the keyboard is facing the PC, but if I block the signal with my body then it will not work. IOW it works at least 20' from the PC if I'm not in the way.

This keyboard received some favorable comments about range which is why I bought it. I've been checking Amazon waiting for a good price & got it for $29.99. I was going to post the price but when I went back it had already changed into the mid $30s, which it usually was.

Two thumbs up for me.

I didn't end up getting it because I wanted something that works with the ps3 as well. The form factor is not the best either in my opinion.

man im so confused with all the options out there. i'm looking for a keyboard/trackball/pad myself, and i want to be able to use it with the following devices

-PS3

-Sony XBR46HX909 TV

-Motorola 1216 PVR STB (Bell Fibe Service) This device can now accept a usb keyboard due to the microsoft media room update, making it easier to search for movies and on-demand content

-My non-bluetooth laptop (only when connected via HDMI to the TV)

-Western Digital WDTV Live Plus media box

All the devices have USB ports, only the PS3 has integrated bluetooth. So do i get a bunch of bluetooth dongles, add them to the other devices and pair them to a single keyboard, or do i do the same with a bunch of RF dongles? I've seen solutions using KVM switches, but i figure if im only going to be entering text into one device at a time i don't think its necessary to physically switch signals every time...i guess the biggest concern would be compatibility with all the devices and a bunch of aftermarket dongles.

thoughts?

I haven't used bluetooth very much, but from what I understand most bluetooth devices can only be paired with one or two devices at a time, and can only be used with one at a time. This means to use a single keyboard with 5 different devices you'd either need to find a bluetooth keyboard capable of being paired with that many devices or you'd have to constantly re-pair it with the different devices. Something like this maybe, which can pair with 6 devices. And, of course, getting all the devices to use bluetooth (I suspect a couple of them cannot; and a bluetooth dongle/keyboard is not the same thing as a RF keyboard; only the later appears to be a USB keyboard to the host device). The WD might accept Bluetooth; the Laptop and PS3 can; the other two probably cannot.

Also, just because the TV has a USB port doesn't mean that it can accept just any USB device; most TV's only support USB external storage devices for playback of pictures and, sometimes, movie files. And most keyboards do not have a universal remote built in.

A USB KVM would probably do you more good as it will give you more options for a keyboard and mouse/trackball which will work for you. The problem there is finding a 5+ port KVM that supports the video options you need (is everything HDMI?) that doesn't cost you an arm and a leg.

Very informative thanks! i think i could do without the keyboard link to the Tv since i use the PS3 for Netflix and all. My biggest concern is the STB cable box, and as you mentioned, it might not pair with a bluetooth device. Aside from an expensive KVM switch, do you think it would be possible to use some kind of USB splitter where i can attach the RF dongle and then split that signal to all the other USB ports on the other devices?

My google searchers have only brought up a reverse solution in which several USB devices are funneled into one output...

USB doesn't "split." Now that you mention it you may be able to find a USB Switch, something like this. That's all a KVM really is, except it has a Video switch built in as well. If you get a Keyboard/Mouse combo you probably won't need more than one switch. Whether or not a particular Keyboard/Mouse combo will appear as a proper keyboard for a given device is tough to say though.

Just don't confuse a USB Switch with a USB Hub. A Switch allows you to plug one device into multiple computers. A Hub allows you to plug multiple devices into one computer.

that looks like it should technically do the trick, i wonder if they work similar to KVM switches where you can assign a hotkey on the keyboard to switch between the devices instead of getting up and manually selecting the input each time...minor detail i guess but still..

any suggestions as to what would be keyboard/trackpad option? i've been checking out a lot of IOGEAR products with mixed reviews on the track pad/track balls

Probably not, as most are designed to share devices like printers or harddrives, not keyboards.


Unless you need a full size keyboard I highly recommend the Lenovo n5902. I have two for two different computers and think they're the shiznit for HTPC usage. Small, inexpensive, good touchpad/mouse controls, backlit. The only real complaint I have is that, for some reason, they didn't include function keys (F1-F12).

So i found this item

Only thing is, does it work only one-way? that is to say in the diagram is shows 4 PC's going in and one output to a printer, but i need the reverse: one keyboard that can be switched out to 4 devices...

All USB communication is bi-directional. A printer can send it's status back to a computer, and a keyboard can tell the computer what key just got pressed. A computer can tell a printer what to print, and it can tell a keyboard that the capslock key just got turned on by another keyboard so it should turn on its own capslock light.

Yes, that switch should work. It can connect one USB device (whether it's a printer or keyboard) with multiple 'computers' (where 'computer' is any host device that can use a USB device).

My short and unsuccessful quest for an "all-in-one" device has ended. I'm going keyboard.mouse combo + universal remote.

I bought and returned a diNovo Mini. It was just too unreliable. Maybe I got a lemon? Either way, I still have a Lenovo 5901. I liked it a lot until the track ball all but stopped working. That and no backlight sucked.

How is the mouse pointer on the 5902? And how is the scroll bar? It seems to meet all of my needs and it's on sale for $40 shipped right now. Should I go for it or is there something better to pair with a universal remote to meet htpc needs?

Where ?

I'd give it a try at $40. shipped. The original failed for me because of no backlight...

From Lenovo.

http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/c..._menu_area=yes