Customer Reviews

Adesso 2.4 GHZ WIRELESS SLIMTOUCH TOUCHPAD MINI KEYBOARD SILVER W/BLACK KEYS ( WKB-4000US )

5 star:		(93)
4 star:		(66)
3 star:		(22)
2 star:		(17)
1 star:		(24)

 

 

This unit will deliver silky smooth operation consistently if you follow these tips.

1. Don't forget to hit a key twice (recommend SHIFT) to wake it up.

2. If you are dropping keys or have choppy mouse movements:
A. Try swapping with known good batteries.
B. Reposition the USB adapter. I got much better range by using an USB extension cable to relocate the adapter. Just moving the adapter six inches away from the computer case made all the difference. It eliminated keyboard dead zones.
C. Avoid wireless conflicts between the keyboard and wireless router by locking your router to a different wireless channel. Try channel 11. I found lower channels would conflict with the unit. Conflict issue is indicated by choppy mouse movements coinciding with wireless activity. Possibly wireless phones or microwaves could interfere too.
D. Switch wireless router's operating modes away from 802.11b. Try 802.11g-only or 802.11n-only if possible. I was able to more channels wireless router channels when I changed modes.
E. If shortcut keys ( Alt-<key> ) aren't working, it's because num-lock is on. I prefer to set the BIOS to turn off num-lock when booting.
F. 802.11 wireless activity will interfere with operation. Look for ways to reduce 802.11 activity.
G. Best to have a clear line of sight between keyboard and USB adapter. A couch's back or a body can greatly weaken the signal.

3. If the unit is dead, you may have accidentally pushed the USB adapter's tiny "sw" button. It's used to pair with your keyboard. Re-pair by pushing sw again and pressing keyboard's FN key within 15 seconds.

Thanks to the myriad of reviews, product works exactly as expected. Yes, it works well with Vista without drivers. Yes, it makes a great HTPC wireless keyboard. Yes, it has a flimsy feel. Yes, its a bit too expensive and needs competition.

I'm using a D-Link DIR-655 Wireless N Router. Excellent device. Recommended.

Got this for my home theater pc. It works great! Range is about 10 feet or so.

For all those reviewers complaining about the auto power off and no on/off switch. To wake up the keyboard, HIT THE ENTER KEY TWICE!!!!!! You DO NOT need to take out the batteries. This is documented in the product lit, just not very well - hence the 4 stars.

I think this is probably the best product amongst wireless keyboards you might use with a living room PC, though the only other I've tried is the Microsoft Remote Keyboard for Media Center. The problem with that keyboard is its awful pointing stick; though it does get more flexible with use, it's not nearly as good as the pointer sticks you find on IBM Thinkpads.

This keyboard has good key feel, a built in pointing device, and is a nice size (about 8.5x11) for the couch. Unfortunately, it sometimes, and often enough to be annoying but not enough to be unusable, stops responding. Missing a keystoke or two, or not responding to your touch on the pad. A second later it will start acting normal.

I have this behavior even with 100% fresh batteries, and I'm not mistaking it for the auto-sleep function. I mean, you'll be typing, and it will stop responding for a few seconds.

Perhaps this is a wireless issue; it does use the crowded 2.4ghz band and I live in an apartment and run a wireless network. Then again, I figure that's true of many people who would buy this product...so it'd be nice if they could design around those impediments.

I suppose it's also possible I have a defective keyboard, but enough people have commented on this as a problem that I suspect it's just the design.

So. Works pretty well, but I'll have my eye out for any new products in this vein...


***UPDATE***

I contacted Adesso about my problems and they suggested that I return the keyboard under warranty. Doing so was fairly painless, it took a week out and a week back (UPS ground, I pay to get it to them). But: new keyboard still has the problem of intermittent response. It seems to me that having it on my lap or on a flat surface like my ottoman blocks the transmitting antenna; it seems to work fine if I hold it with just one hand and type with the other--but that's not a very usable operating position...

I was looking for a wireless keyboard and mouse so I could connect a PC up to my television. I wanted the keyboard to be fairly compact, similar to a laptop's in size, and useable from about 10 to 15 feet away.

I did not even know that a wireless keyboard with built-in touchpad was available until I saw the Adesso WKB-4000US. Going on the recommendations of reviewers on the website where I purchased it, I was hoping that this would be exactly the solution I was looking for.

Well, I can say with absolutely no hesitation that this is an excellent product! There is no software to install; simply plug a little USB transceiver into the PC while it is powered off. Power on the PC, push a little button on the transceiver and the hold the "Fn" key on the keyboard. That's it!

The WKB-4000US uses IR for communicating with the transceiver, so you can be a relatively long distance away from the PC, and it does not even need to be in your line of sight.

I am writing this review sitting comfortably on my couch about 10 feet from the TV, and there is no indication whatsoever that the keyboard is not wired. The response is as fast as I can type (which is about 85 wpm), and the touchpad works exactly like the one on my laptop. There is even a scroll "strip" on the right of the touchpad that simulates the wheel on a mouse, which is a nice touch.

The feel of the keys is strong and not cheap, with just the right amount of pressure. I really like the fact that this keyboard weighs only about 1 pound or so with the 4 AAA batteries installed. There are 2 'Windows" keys, 2 CTRL keys and 2 Alt keys on either side of the space bar.

If you are looking for a numeric keypad, you won't find one on this keyboard, but just like a laptop, if you activate Num Lock, a number pad is created over the m, jkl, uio and 789 keys.

The left and right mouse buttons are just below the touchpad.

All in all, I can find no fault with this keyboard/touchpad combo, and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for the compact convenience of well-made, lightweight, wireless keyboard.

I had been looking for a wireless keyboard with a built-in mouse or touchpad to use with my Mac Mini. Another reviewer said he/she had used this keyboard with great success with a Mac Mini so I decided to buy it. My computer is set up upstairs and I wanted to be able to control it from downstairs so I could surf the net, write letters, etc., using my LCD projector and 100" inch screen downstairs.

I plugged in the USB dongle, put the batteries in the keyboard and then powered on my Mac. Setup was unbelievably simple. I read the Adesso instructions for setting up the keyboard but that was not necessary. The Mac recognized that a new keyboard was plugged in and just asked the normal setup questions of hitting the key to the left and key to the right of the shift key so it would know what type of keyboard it is dealing with and I was off and running.

The keyboard works flawlessly. Within 5 minutes, I was operating my iTunes from downstairs and checking my e-mail on the big screen. What a sweet set up.

An added bonus is that this does not interfere with my Apple bluetooth keyboard that I use on my desk with the Mac. I can switch back and forth between the Adesso and the Apple bluetooth keyboards seamlessly.

For what I want to do, this keyboard is perfect.

I was having trouble typing at work on a full-size keyboard where the keys had a long keystroke - often the key I pressed would not appear. With my small hands and frequent use of a laptop keyboard, I wanted something smaller with short keystrokes. The Adesso filled the bill.

Pros:
It has very long 3-4 week battery life (it shuts down after 10 minutes of inactivity but turns on with any keystroke) and is extremely easy to set up. It uses the standard WIndows keyboard and mouse driver. It is light and easy to use in your lap, on the couch, on your desk, wherever. It works from all the way across the room, but who sits that far from their screen? The trackpad is sensitive and responsive. Typing with it is really easy and accurate.

Cons:
No LEDs to indicate when Caps Lock or Num Lock are active.

The trackpad cannot be disabled or configured.

It's awkward to turn Num Lock on and off; just holding down Fn does not give numbers from the embedded keypad. Alt-codes require having Num Lock on.

Summary: Great keyboard, well worth the price.

Finding the right media center keyboard is a real pain in the neck. I've gone through a number of keyboards (such as belkin media pilot and gyration) prior to purchasing ADESSO wireless keyboard and I can't say that I liked any of them. This is the FIRST keyboard that doesn't "eat" letters (up to 14 feet away - haven't tried further) when you type and that has smooth mouse functionality (via integrated touchpad). The touchpad works very good and while it probably woulnd't be the best thing for Doom3 death-match it works great for just about everything else (unlike Belkin's integrated joystick which was a nightmare even for simple web browsing).Since I bought the keyboard (about two months ago) I havent had any problems with it freezing (as some reviewers have reported) after not being used(all I have to do is hit ENTER key twice and it wakes up).

If you're looking for an integrated wireless keyboard/touchpad combo, look no further because this is apparently the only one in existence as of March '06. Luckily, it's not half bad.

The keyboard has a great feel. It's possibly the best-feeling keyboard I've ever used. The keys have just the right amount of resistance and the feedback is perfect as well (a muffled click). It's about the size of a regular spiral-bound notebook and fits easily on my tiny desk. My daughters think it's cute.

The touchpad is just like every other touchpad; it works like it should. The mouse buttons are a bit stiff but they'll probably loosen up with age. It doesn't have a middle mouse button (most touchpads don't) but the scroll strip functions as a scroll wheel and works very well.

I've had no technical problems with it at all. It installed without a hitch in Windows XP, it wakes from sleep mode exactly as it should, etc. I'm not sure about battery life yet but if that's the only problem I'll gladly live with it. It's a bit pricey but the quality is there and it's really the only sane option right now if you're in the market for an integrated wireless keyboard/mouse (the major brands use an integrated nubby joystick or directional buttons instead--neither of which are nearly as effective as a touchpad).

This is the only wireless keyboard/trackpad combo I could find to work on a MAC. I have it hooked up to my Powerbook and a 42" LCD and I can navigate from anywhere in the room. Trackpad and scroll pad work 100%. I would have gave it 5 stars if they made a MAC version with MAC buttons.

I have had one of these for about 3yrs and have finally had enough of it. My biggest gripes are the cheap battery holder door, no low battery indicator, and terrible battery life.

When the keyboard has fully charged batteries it works well, the touchpad tracks great and it is very easy to type on this keyboard. The problem is, there is no indicator that the batteries are dying until the keyboard starts exhibiting very erratic behavior. The first thing that goes is the mouse, it becomes very difficult to track, and it takes longer to wake up the keyboard. On top of that, the numlock comes on automatically as the batteries die; try typing your password with the numlock on and no indication that it is on. There is nothing to indicate when caps lock or numlock is on, and it is very annoying when it turns on in the middle of typing something because the batteries are getting low.

Then the right mouse click starts sticking, and anytime you attempt to highlight something it starts opening windows or scrolling unexpectedly. If this keyboard had a battery indicator, even a little 3 bar LCD battery indicator it would be 10x better.

The other problem is battery life itself. I have tried 3 different types of rechargeable batteries, yet I am lucky if they last more than a few days. Although it cost a lot more I am going to try the Logitech diNovo Edge just because it advertises a 2 month charge. I'll be happy if it just lasts 2 weeks per charge.

The last problem is the terribly cheap battery door. Several times I have had the batteries fall out when I picked up the keyboard, or have had to hold the battery door when trying to figure out if it was dead batteries causing the problems or if the batteries were about to fall out.