Gadget: Logitech Wave keyboard

Typing on a good wavelength . . .

Why you need it:

It is ergonomically designed to fit the natural positioning of fingers and wrists to relieve them from excessive strain - a modification which brokers, who spend long hours on the computer, are sure to appreciate.

Key features:

 

  • three-way adjustable keyboard height Image of Logitech Wave Keyboard
  • uniform key size
  • five year limited product warranty
  • comfort wave design
  • music and volume controls
  • launch calculator button
  • web and e-mail controls
  • Windows Vista controls
  • programmable function keys
  • cushioned palm rest for added comfort

 

What's particularly cool about it:

Apart from the way it looks, the Wave keyboard also has the added function of various buttons and controls. Vista users can take advantage of added function capabilities to open Word, Excel, zoom in and out and flick through pages, access the photo gallery, media player, media centre and calculator. Anyone who doesn't have Vista can still load up the internet, messenger and email as well as search the web and PC with the press of one button.

What it will cost you:

$79.95

Where you can get it:

At most major electrical retailers


What happened when AB's Agnes Gajewska tested how easily she could 'ride' the Logitech Wave:

Strange as it may look - the keys literally form waves - it immediately felt comfortable and easy to use and I could type at near normal speed straight off - only confronted with the occasional typo.

Ingenuously, Logitech has added extra function keys - my favourite of which allowed me to load up internet pages with one simple click.

However, my only beef with the Wave also stemmed from the positioning of some of these function keys. For example, the "Insert" key has been repositioned on the keyboard to save users the familiar distress that comes with unintentionally writing over carefully constructed work. The only problem is that, in doing so, Logitech forces you to engage in a game of finger 'twister' between the 'home' key, 'end' key, 'page up' key, and large "delete" key.

The end result is that if you use shortcuts in your typing, you should prepare for a few moments of initial madness, such as where you type at the top of the page instead of at the beginning of a new sentence. If my experience is anything to go by, you are guaranteed to delete a few words as you adjust.

However, this may just be a question of adaptation - when your brain eventually accepts the changes, the particular key layout means that the "Insert" key no longer looms over your work. Overall, I would happily trade in my old surfboard - I mean keyboard - for some comfortable 'wave' typing.


Price: $79.95
Thumbs up: Comfort and added function buttons
Thumbs down: The aggravation of "Key Twister"!
AB gives it: **** [four]