[mythtv-users] wireless keyboards

[pvrman at xemaps.com]

Chris wrote:

>What kind of wireless keyboards/mouse combos are people using with their
>myth boxes?
>
>I'm finally going to move my box down near my big tv and need a good
>working solution for a wireless keyboard/mouse
>


If you want a keyboard solely for your HTPC usage, it is much more 
convenient (in my experience at least) to NOT have a separate mouse, but 
to have the mouse built into the keyboard. Such a kb/mouse combo may not 
be the best thing for regular PC usage, but when you are using your HTPC 
in a living room, with little to no surface to use the mouse on, you 
will consider the kb/mouse combo a blessing.

I had heard good things about the LiteOn Airboard keyboard, so I finally 
went ahead and bought one from Digital Connection when they had it on 
sale for $29 + $6 shipping.

http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Keyboard/sk7100.asp

It is a keyboard with a "mouse" built-in. The "mouse" is actually a 
little joystick with the buttons right below it. I like the size and 
feel of the keyboard, but after using it for about two weeks I still 
HATED the joystick mouse. It is very hard to control the cursor movement 
with this "mouse" and it irritated me even for nominal usage. Also, the 
Airboard is IR based, and while the angle is pretty good, it still is 
somewhat directional and needs line-of-sight to work right, which is a 
little bit annoying.

I really wanted a keyboard just like the Airboard, but with a built-in 
trackball and not a joystick or thumbpad type mouse. Recently I found 
just the thing I was looking for, so I immediately ordered one. I 
received it early this week and so far I am loving this. The keyboard is 
great and the trackball is very smooth too. The size is just perfect for 
my hands ... not too big and not too small. Another huge advantage is 
that this keyboard/mouse combo is RF based, so it is not directional.

http://www.cmicomputer.com/cgi-bin/quikstore.cgi?detail=yes&product=pwkbmswl
$34 shipped


I have also used the following keyboard, which also has a trackball 
built into it, but it is not as nice as the above one (from CableMart). 
The keyboard is okay, but the trackball is slightly jerky. However, even 
this trackball is musch better than the joystick "mouse" in the original 
Airboard.

http://www.coolerexpress.com/wikewba.html
$33.99 + $7 shipping

Note that this keyboard is IR based too. However, it is smaller in size 
compared to the Airboard type keyboard, so this might be an advantage in 
certain cases.

Good luck !

pvrman


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