Customer Reviews

Freedom Bluetooth Keyboard for PDA and SmartPhones - Blackberry Palm Treo HTC Samsung Motorola iPAQ Nokia Dell HP

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Pros: Nice case, good feel, works great with Linux, reasonable battery life.

Cons: Difficult to grip the slide to unlock the keyboard for folding, impossible to see SPP/HID mode switch, almost impossible to get working with Symbian 60 phones

I bought this to work both with my Nokia E71 (S60v3 phone) and as an external keyboard for an Asus EeePC (running Eeebuntu.) It works great with the EeePC; I have no complaints about it when using it as a normal Bluetooth keyboard with a PC.

However, the phone support falls flat. A special driver application is needed for it to work with the E71. The keyboard was detected precisely once and worked well enough during my initial test. All further attempts have been an exercise in frustration (but wait, there's more at the end.)

The driver app could not detect the keyboard, even after rebooting the phone, reinstalling the drivers, deleting the keyboard from the list of devices, attempting to pair it via Bluetooth, changing batteries in the keyboard, trying both the HID and SPP settings, and updating the Nokia's firmware. It literally worked one day and was dead to the world the next. During this entire time it worked fine with the EeePC.

I had written the driver app off as an utter piece of crap but made one last check of the documentation to make sure I hadn't missed any steps before writing this review and in fact I had not. Having nothing to lose, I pressed the big "B" Bluetooth reset button used to reset the keyboard when using it with WinCE/Windows Mobile phones. Or with non-Blackberry phones, depending on where you look in the documentation.

There's no mention of the B button in the Symbian 60 connection documentation at all; it only shows up in the Windows Mobile docs. However, the pictorial overview of the keyboard mentions that the B button has to be held down for 5 seconds prior to connecting with non-Blackberry phones. So it's not clear if this is documented or not; it isn't if you only follow the S60 instructions.

By some miracle the phone was once again able to connect to the keyboard. It still worked even after rebooting the phone and changing out the keyboard's batteries. Yes, I checked to make sure it didn't mysteriously fail on me again.

This might be a coincidence; hopefully not, otherwise it means the keyboard does not reliably connect to the phone. Regardless, this burned a lot of my time trying to track down and is far more effort than I'd expect a normal user to go through. I expect most people would just send it back or throw it against a wall.

In summary, the keyboard works great with a PC and on the rare chance you can get it to connect to your phone.

[NOTE: There is now software that solves my initial problem. See UPDATE 12/10/09 below my original review.]

I installed the new BlackBerry OS 5.0 the day before this keyboard arrived. I tried all the tricks listed in reviews here and elsewhere, but to no avail. I finally wrote to their tech support and got this message back:

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Sorry for the delay in replying to your ticket. Unfortunately at present the freedom universal keyboard2 is not compatible with the the new Blackberry OS5, due to the modifications RIM has made in its new OS system. We have been testing all of the unofficial Beta's of the Blackberry OS 5 that were release but due to them being so buggy we haven't be able to made any alteration until RIM officially release the new OS which was last week. Now it has been released by RIM themselves we will work on a solution or have an updated driver to get the keyboard working again with this new Blackberry OS system.

I have added you to a mailing list so as soon as this is available I will email you with the solution.

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I will edit this when I get more information. Soon, I hope, because I really want this keyboard to work.

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UPDATE 12/10/09

It works! On November 19 I received an e-mail that said there was a new driver for this keyboard, plus instructions on how to install it. (The instructions are below.) I was busy with other stuff, but I just now did approximately what the instructions said. They seem to omit relevant information, like where to find programs, but it wasn't too hard. And it works great!

Then I did what I had intended in the first place: Made the keyboard work with both my BlackBerry and my wife's BlackBerry. First I turned off Bluetooth on mine. Then I followed the instructions in order to pair the Keyboard to make it work with my wife's keyboard. I turned Bluetooth off on her BlackBerry, turned Bluetooth on on my BlackBerry, and then the Keyboard worked with my BlackBerry. I switched back and forth several times. Cool. (We rarely take notes at the same time.)

So, I've updated my evaluation from one star to 4 stars. Why not 5 stars? I've only been using the keyboard and its software for a few minutes, so I'm still nervous. But I am also quite pleased!

Here are the instructions I received from the manufacturer. The worked pretty well with my BlackBerry Storm 9530.

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Remove Driver (if any installed)
1) On your Blackberry go to the Downloads folder.
2) Highlight this and press the Menu button and Delete
3) The Blackberry may request you reboot to complete remove driver please do so before you continue

Install driver
1) Download the drivers using your Blackberry from www.otadrivers.com
2) Follow the link for the Universal Keyboard2
3) It should recognize you phone and download the correct driver. If it doesn't then select 4.2 driver (includes 5.0 OS) for the Blackberry
4) Once the driver have completed it may ask to change permissions either after the download or when you click on the keyboard icon for the first time.
5) When it does ask to change permission select view and then it should say Input Simulation and Allow next to it. Now press the Back button on the Blackberry, it will ask you to save changes select Yes to continue.
6) Once it has completed the software should be found in the Downloads Folder.

Pairing the Keyboard (only repeat this if not already paired to your Blackberry)
1) Switch the keyboard on in SPP mode (little switch needs to go to the left).
2) On the BlackBerry go to "Options" (sometimes this could also be "Settings" depending on which theme you use) and then go to Bluetooth.
3) If it is disabled you will need to select Enable from the menu.
4) Press the Menu button and then select "Add Device". Select the keyboard from the list and when asked for a Passkey press 0000 on the BlackBerry.
5) Now the keyboard is under the paired devices list, if you highlight this then press the Menu button and select device properties.
6) Check to see if under services it says Serial Port, if it doesn't then press the Menu button then select Refresh Service List.
7) Serial Port should appear under services.

Activating the keyboard
1) Run the Bluetooth Keyboard Software.
2) Click on the "Activate Keyboard" box. The "Keyboard Status" should show "Connecting" and then "Connected".
3) Once it is connected scroll down to the keyboard test box and try typing on the keyboard.
4) Once it is connected tick the "Reconnection" Box and exit the software.

User of brand/generic kybds 15 yrs. Bought for BB8330, still great on 9330. Slightly slow install due to CD has weak How-To instruction docs, but FreKey's seamless BB Desktop sync fix more than makes up for that year old minute or two of hassle! (No more app lost/reload each sync)! Easy in-device setup (2 device screens) takes just seconds to calibrate keying speed/repeat rates. Compact, ability to separate device + kybd (in imperfect office layouts like coffee shops, outside/indoor work sites. Ribbon cable is quite snug, so two kybd halves took long to finally lay flat as I'd like--I still use the 6" rubber backed metal ruler with 2 velcro dots at ends to grip + stabilized it. FreKey's orig model, it's updated now. Would have liked to be able to InfraRed with it. Updated kybds by FreKey are better layout, but larger. Fave generic is Targus, after Palm's very first kybd.

I bought this for typing on my Blackberry while away from my desktop. While it works as advertised, the idea of typing on such a device and trying to read what you've typed on a tiny screen is a concept flaw, IMHO. It works and if you HAD to use it then I suppose it would be okay.

I ended up buying an HP Mini to do the light typing while away for the desk. It works like a charm and there is no issues with conversions to enter the text into Word.

I really love this keyboard that I'm using with my Blackberry Curve. The set up was fairly easy, the only problem I experienced in the begining was with my bluetooth headset- when I added the keyboard, my headset changed from displaying it's name to "unknown device" and then the headset simply stopped connecting with the phone. It was on, the phone had it listed in the bluetooth menu, but then it would say "disconnecting" everytime I tried to connect it. I wrote an email to the Freedom keyboard folks, and within a day or so they replied with some helpful hints. They told me to delete both items (the headset and the keyboard) from the list on my phone, and make sure the keyboard is listed first as a possible device. For some reason with that list order of paired items, I can now have both my headset and my keyboard working at the same time, and calls are very easy to answer while typing emails, or to plan things on my calendar while I'm on the phone with someone, type in new tasks, etc. It's great!

The only other thing I had difficulty with was the combination of the keys pressed in quick succession (the shift and then the space bar) that turns everything I type into little boxes.... This happens to me when I type the word "I" mostly, I type all three keys a little too fast, and the keyboard switches to another language, which Freedom keyboard folks said is Korean, but looks like small boxes on the screen instead of letters. So they said they are working on a software upgrade to repair that key combination, but overall, I have had a great experience with this, and would recommend it to anyone, but with those two bits of knowledge. If you have a headset, delete it and connect the keyboard first, and then add your headset. If you happen to type the Shift key, a letter and then the space bar quickly together, and all your words turn into tiny boxes on the screen, hold down the shift key, and press the space bar again, and you'll be back to normal. Those are the only kinks to be ironed out that I've experienced.

It feels solidly made, and I look forward to using it for years to come!

I was surprised how easy it was to install the driver and how well the keyboard works. I use it with a Samsung Jack smartphone and it works great. I have no problem with set up or durability. I recommend this product.

This is a nice idea. It is a bear for installing on a Blackberry Storm. I am angry I have spent so much time on this and suggest ANYTHING OTHER THAN THIS !

If you have a Blackberry Bold do not buy this product. It does not work on the Blackberry Bold