NeutralAxis

Maybe you’ve tried wireless keyboard/mouse devices before.  They’re usually good for 3 or 4 feet but then start to get unreliable.  The Adesso 2.4Ghz Wireless SlimTouch Mini keyboard with integrated touchpad (WKB-4000US) is advertised to reach 100ft.  I’m hopeful it will be useful with my Acer AspireRevo running XBMC.

Anyone trying to use a remote control with a Home Theater PC (HTPC) knows what a pain it is to have to input anything with an onscreen keyboard.  Regular wireless keyboards don’t have enough range to be useful in a living room setting.  The Adesso Wireless SlimTouch Mini is a 2.4Ghz wireless keyboard with an integrated touchpad.  The box lists it as being rated to 100ft, 360° connection angle which should be great for living room use.  And while I don’t understand what they mean by it, the box also says it works with your LCD monitor and Plasma TV. Since its RF rather than infra-red, its unlikely to work with any TVs I know of.

The USB receiver is pretty big at 2.5″L x 3/4″W and tapers from typical USB thickness to about 1/2″.  If you have something else in the jack beside it, it may not fit.

The 88 key keyboard is 11.75″x8.25″ (very close to the size of a sheet of letter sized paper),  1/2″ thick, and weighs 1.25lbs.  The touchpad is typical laptop size. and has a vertical scrolling area and left/right buttons.  There is no separate numeric keypad.  It takes 4 AAA batteries.  The box lists compliance with Windows versions back to 98SE.

With XP, the keyboard was 100% plug and play.  I didn’t need to load any drivers or change any settings on the computer.  The keys feel good, and the touchpad works smoothly.

So how’d it do on range?  Not up to 100 feet, but then I didn’t really have any realistic expectation that it would go that far.  I was hoping for 15 to 20 and it easily handles that.  At about 45′ it started dropping characters as I typed the old typists saying. (About 7 seconds each.)

• At 3ft – Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country.
• At 10 ft – Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country.
• At 25 ft – Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country.
• At 45 ft – NOw is the timefor all god men to come toheaid of their country.
  Test 2 at 45′ – ow isthe time foall god men tocome to the aidof their country.
• Beyond that would be outside and its snowing, so you’re on your own at longer distances.

So I’m satisfied with its performance.  I think it will be a nice HTPC addition.