Photo: Logitech

When the people at Logitech sat down to design a new keyboard, what they were looking for was a keyboard that could somehow power itself. What they produced was the Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard K750, the company’s first solar-powered keyboard, a keyboard that delivers quality performance even in areas with low lighting.

The keyboard powers itself in any area where even a small amount of light is present, making use of solar panels integrated within the keyboard. Charging cables and batteries are not needed and, despite needing light to run, the keyboard can still operate for up to three months in total darkness.

Makes use of solar power

We have all become familiar with Logitech’s low-power mice, which can last for months on just a single charge. The Wireless Solar Keyboard K750 complements these, by powering itself using its own integrated solar panels.

At only one-third of an inch thick, the keyboard is ultra slim and boasts a full set of laptop-style keys. The ambient light solar panels running along the top of the keyboard means that the user does not have to plug the keyboard in to charge for up to three months, even if it is left in a dark drawer the entire time.

Connects wirelessly

Logitech’s Wireless Solar Keyboard K750 comes with Logitech’s own Unifying Receiver, a USB device allowing the user to connect the keyboard wirelessly to the computer, however the receiver can make use of a special device that can allow the user to synchronise up to six different Logitech devices to one USB.

Another great feature is the inclusion of a solar power application that can be downloaded, providing the user with the option to install a lux meter that measures the battery power and ambient light for the keyboard. The Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard will start shipping later this month.

Photo: Stock.Xchng

Though we’re all in love with touch computing, it will be decades before we see the physical keyboard or mouse go the way of the dodo (if at all). Since the keyboard is a primary way we interact with our computers, it’s probably smart if we buy a really good one. Here’s a brief guide to lead you when buying a keyboard.

The cardinal rules

As with everything, your keyboard must adhere to some cardinal rules before you even consider it. These are overall size, keys size, spacing and feedback. Your keyboard needs to just the right size.

Too small is too cramped and too large requires too much movement to press keys. Steer clear.

The size of the keys themselves is also critical because that determines how suitable it is for your large (or tiny) fingers, and how far apart they are will affect pain in your hand from prolonged use, as well as the speed you can type at.

Finally, the feedback you get from your keys should be good, too. This speaks to how good it feels to press the button, and how long it takes for them to release, again, too. This has a direct effect on the speed and viability of your touch-typing.

The only way to ensure a keyboard you’re considering passes the cardinal rules is to look up reviews about it if you’re buying online, or to try it in-store first.

The purpose

Once you’ve ensured any keyboard you consider passes on the cardinal rules test, you need to give thought to what purpose it will serve. Are you just looking for a standard, fairly priced, multi-function keyboard, or do you need something more specific like a gaming keyboard? These considerations determine what extra functions your keyboard ships with, as well as the shape of the keyboard, too. Buying a keyboard is honestly a process given insufficient attention when people assemble their computers.

The aesthetics

As unintuitive as it may be to you, only now should you consider how the keyboard looks. You rarely look down at your keyboard when you type, anyway, so you shouldn’t let a fancy looking keyboard take preference over a functional keyboard.

Always remember the cardinal rules

Even if you want to cheat and ascribe undue value to aesthetic appearance, you should never forget the cardinal rules when buying a keyboard. Remember they are the keyboard size, the size of the keys, key spacing, and feedback. Say it three times so you never forget. Now you’re better equipped to buy the right keyboard for yourself.

Photo: Microsoft

The next in Microsoft’s line of gamer-friendly keyboards is the Sidewinder X4. Its key selling point is its industry leading anti-ghosting keyboard.

Feature set

At an estimated £49.99, gamers can pick up this keyboard that will allow them to press 26 keys at once. While this may sound excessive, it is not uncommon for games like real time strategy titles to require several key inputs at once or in quick succession. The problem – which has been called ghosting – is that many keyboards don’t register these inputs, and the Sidewinder X4 fixes this problem. Microsoft claims a layer of touch sensitive material that acts as a multitouch interface fixes this problem. Regarding onboard features, the keys have adjustable backlighting, dedicated media keys, programmable keys and macro keys for recording and repeating commonly performed actions.

Photo: Microsoft

Who Else Is This For?

Though the Sidewinder was built specifically with gamers in mind, it is useful for anybody who needs fast key strokes recorded. Power Photoshop users who use a myriad of shortcuts, developers who often have to input several keys in quick succession for testing purposes and, even for musicians who, given the keyboard’s touch-like capabilities, can programme the keys to behave like touchpads in audio applications.

The Feel

The keys feel hefty and the keyboard is very robust and firm, something users who’ve become accustomed to flimsy budget keyboards will notice immediately. The spacing of the keys is well suited to people with large hands, but scales down nicely as well. The keyboard is set to release in March and it is currently unconfirmed whether the keyboard will be available in different colours.

A fair assessment of a keyboard is only possible after protracted use, and it is too soon to be concluded whether the Sidewinder X4 lives up to it’s promise.

Offering the user unique computing experience, Asus Eee PC 1000H-WHI066X in pearl white colour has 7 hours of battery life. Its exclusive Super Hybrid Engine ensures that the battery lasts long while its Super Hybrid Engine offers performance and power consumption modes that allow easy adjustments in accordance to various needs. Ideal for travelling, the netbook from Taiwanese manufacturer Asus comes with an exclusive 10GB Eee Storage. The file-encrypted Eee Storage with 5GB worth of downloads has easy accessibility from both Windows and Linux platforms. An exciting machine, it has a large 10 inch screen that allows comfortable viewing of documents and web pages. Its keyboard is almost the same size as standard keyboard size and is very convenient to use. You can choose from a total of 4 custom-coloured designs to suit your personality. The Eee PC’s surface has inlaid motifs that are beautiful and do not fade with time. A robust machine, it has a scratch-resistant surface.

Weighing a mere 1.45kg, it is truly a portable notebook with an Intel Atom N270 processor that runs at a speed of 1.6 GHz. The Asus Eee PC 1000H-WHI066X Pearl White netbook has high speed connectivity with Wi-Fi 802.11n and built-in Bluetooth that allows easy data transfers between devices. It comes loaded with a full range of applications that enhance communication and computing experiences. Its built-in devices include stereo speakers, wireless LAN aerial and Bluetooth aerial. It has a card reader and a 160GB hard drive, which can store all your data, files, music and other media. Equipped with a 1GB RAM, it also has a Sound card and an integrated 1.3 mega pixel camera. With Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition as its operating system, it comes with a 2 year warranty.

The latest in business phones from Nokia is the E-series of phones. The smallest among these Nokia devices is the E55, which is one of the most attractive phones ever launched by the company. With the Qwerty Keyboard and being very light in weight operating the phone is a pleasure. The E55 has a screen which is 2.4 inch wide. Nokia has made sure to keep the phone ultra thin and is 9.9mm in width.

You can comfortable read your emails as this device has the feature of landscape viewing. Nokia has taken special care to tackle the problems of those who are suffering fumble fingers, and then there is a pleasant surprise for you as with the special superior predictive text features built into the phone that will automatically correct words that are incorrectly spelt. The phone will also gain knowledge of new words automatically.

Besides the business use of the phone E55 also supports N-Gage gaming to freshen you up in case one gets overworked. Further if you do not have a good sense of direction, you need not have to worry if you are carrying your E55 phone as you can easily find your destination with the A-GPS system which is on board.

The other popular features of E55 include a standard camera of 3.2 mega pixel attached with the facility of flash for taking pictures in dim or no light. You also have the media player and the music player. The Nokia E55 also has a RDS Radio and quick access features of Home, Email functions, Calendar and Voice UI so that without touching one will be able to manage the device. You will also have the advantage of having the first Nokia Phone released which is compatible with the OVI app store.

The E55 model comes in two beautiful white aluminium and Black aluminium colours.

A Wireless Numpad is one of the coolest notebook accessories you can have. It is meant for those who don’t have a standard keyboard on their laptop, which is admittedly a lot of us. In order to shrink the size of notebooks, many companies remove the numpad from laptop keyboards. While some people find it cool, others find it annoying, especially when they have to do calculations using the linear number keys.

The numpad is very essential if you want to avoid figure mistakes and calculate with speed. The Wireless Numpad is a great add-on for the notebooks. It adds to the functionality of the notebook and offers the comfort of a full-scale desktop keyboard. The Wireless Numpad has got a 19 key array offering all the numpad functions, plus it also equips 13 hot keys that can be used for triggering various functions such as Mouse Left Key, Mouse Right Key, Num Lock, Window Magnifier, www, Email, Media, Power Point, Word, Excel, Play/Pause, Prev Track, Vol +, Stop, Next Track and Vol – commands. This makes the work much easier. It also lets you control the multimedia on your fingertips. Although it doesn’t offer a calculator like the Trust Wireless Calculator KP-4100p numpad does, the Wireless Numpad does offer two mouse buttons with a high precision 1000 dpi resolution trackball. Some of the numeric keys have dual functionality and the user can access both of them by turning the Num Lock on or off.

The Wireless Numpad works on the 2.4 GHz radio communication and links wirelessly to the notebook. All you need is one free USB port to plug in the wireless USB receiver and 2 AA batteries to power the numpad.

Tags for this article: laptop, notebook, mobile computing ppt

Spb Software has launched a new revolutionary keyboard especially for the Microsoft Windows Mobile touchscreen smartphones and PDAs. It’s called Spb Keyboard 4.0 and has been designed to make typing easy on the handheld devices. It has been optimized to be used with bare hands. So, if you want to use stylus with it then go ahead and if you don’t then no hassles otherwise.

The Spb Keyboard 4.0 offers three different modes of on-screen text input to its users, i.e. the Full Screen Mode, the Half Screen Mode and the Standard Mode. Another good thing about this newbie is that it is fully customizable and can be decorated using different themes and skins. Its default skin too is very impressive. Along with the bunch of customizations the Spb Keyboard 4.0 also offers dozens of language settings.

From the smartphones and PDAs perspective this on-screen keyboard is very considerate, It features compact memory consumption and gives smart gestures and pop-ups to confirm that the right key is tapped. Spb Keyboard 4.0 complies with the Windows Mobile Pocket PC 2003, Windows Mobile Professional 5.0/6/6.1 and supports all Windows Mobile screen resolutions.

Key features of Spb Keyboard 4.0

• Finger friendly design
• Fully customizable
• Three text input modes
• Supports 35 different languages
• Smart gestures and pop-up menus
• Smart memory consumption

Logitech is always known for its innovative and high quality products. The company has always offered something new and exciting for PC enthusiasts. Logitech often dominates the market for computer peripherals with its distinct products. This time the company has come up with something really amazing, the diNoVo Mini Keyboard.

This is not an ordinary PC keypad. It’s sleek, smart and trendy. It is created for those who want to connect their PC to their TV. It is a miniaturised version of the popular Logitech DiNovo Edge full-sized keyboard. This mini palm sized keyboard has got variety of dedicated hot keys which make it easy for you to manage your entertainment world. Apart from the standard QWERTY buttons it has also got a remote and click pad.

The mini keypad’s main advantage is that it’s Wi-Fi based and also uses Bluetooth 2.0 to connect to the PC. That way you can easily enjoy your favourite shows and control them from a distance, without any meddling wires. It’s dedicated multimedia keys allow you to launch the media centre, zoom in and out of the documents and play, pause, forward and rewind the currently playing audio track or video.

There is also a handy dual purpose ClickPad located on the keyboard. The ClickPad can be used to move the cursor and select the files, or navigate through the menus, while in media center mode. Altogether it’s a very helpful device, and great peripheral gadget from Logitech.

Nokia has introduced two new E series smartphones in London on the basis of the Symbian S60 platform. The E71 model is conceived as the successor to the E61 and has a BlackBerry type construction, with a mini keyboard below the screen ready for entering text. The E66, which is also planned for a July release, is in a casing with a slide mechanism, but only offers a regular mobile phone keyboard. Both devices offer improvements in software.

The display of both Symbian smartphones shows up to 16 million colours with a resolution of 320 x 240 pixels and also serves as the viewfinder for the integrated camera. A main camera with a 3.2 megapixel resolution is integrated in both cameras, and it comes with both an auto-focus and flash on the side. The second camera on the front is designed for video conferencing. A positioning sensor in the E66 manages to turn the display upright when the device is horizontal.

Nokia has come up with some new things for the software of the Symbian devices: the user can either load a business or a private starting screen, in order to strongly differentiate between entries in the calendar or contact list, for example. The system also makes it possible for the user to access a contact directly from the calendar. Nokia additionally included a type of theft protection: if the Smartphone is stolen, then the user can erase their device’s files easily via a text message.

A storage space of 110 MB comes integrated in both smartphones, and it can be expanded by up to 8 GB using microSD cards. The types of broadcast technologies that both devices support are identical as well. Both HDSPA smartphones broadcast, except when in the UMTS network, over the four GSM networks with 850, 900, 1,800 as well as 1,900 MHz, and they offer both EDGE and GPRS. With HDSPA both models only achieve a maximum of 3.6 MBit/s. The other wireless technologies include WLAN according to the 802.11b/g standard, as well as Bluetooth 2.0 together with EDR and A2DP for the music.

Both mobile phones are blessed with a GPS receiver and A-GPS support, with the navigation software Nokia Maps preinstalled. As is usual with S60 devices, office software, a media player for replaying music and videos, as well as an HTML browser and email client come included. The latter offers support for Microsoft exchange, in order to better manage emails.

The Nokia E71 measures 114 x 57 x mm with a weight of 126 grams and manages a talking time of up to 10.5 hours in GSM mode. The chatting time is drastically reduced to 4.5 hours when using UMTS technology. The battery manages 17 days in standby mode using the GSM network and around 20 in standby when using UMTS.

Nokia intends to bring both the E71 and E66 onto the market in July 2008. The Symbian smartphones will then each cost around £330 without a contract.