Wireless keyboards and mice

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski]

I been thinking about buying a wireless keyboard and mouse combo but the problem is that I do not know much about them. I was wondering if anyone here had good or bad things to say about them and if there was brand I should consider buying.

[Jobber of the Week]

Does your computer have Bluetooth? Would you consider buying a Bluetooth connector, such as a USB device, for it if it didn't?

 

In general, Bluetooth is the superior wireless method.

 

That said, if you can afford it, Logitech's MSRP $100 Bluetooth mouse is great. For Bluetooth keyboards, Apple's make very good use of their batteries. They are oriented for Mac people, but I use mine with a WinXP PC all the time. The only thing slightly confusing about using it is that your Windows key and Alt key are switched around (the Apple key = Windows key, Option key to the left of it = Alt key.)

[MarvinisaLunatic]

Over 2 years ago I won a free Logitech Cordless Duo. They were both awesome, although I doubt I would have paid $80 at the time for both.

 

Since then the mouse, which had really bad battery life and the paint coating coming off, was replaced with a Microsoft Wireless Intellimouse Explorer 2.0 (I got it at Staples last december for $7 on sale). I like this mouse a lot more because it gets much better battery life (I've left the mouse on (no on/off switch) for almost 6 months straight and Im still on the same set of batteries) and it has the 4 direction scroll wheel. Its also a bit more comfortable to handle..

 

The only bad thing is I have 2 recievers now since the Microsoft mouse isn't compatible with the Logitech reciever, but I still need the logitech reciever for the keyboard, which is still going good and I have no problems with it.

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski]

I do not have Bluetooth connectivity.

[areacode212]

I bought this wireless Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer for about $10 at CompUSA a few months ago--it's probably the same kind Marvin has. It works great, and I've never had any response problems with it. If you can get it for a similar price, I recommend it. The only things I don't like about it are:

 

a) the wheel doesn't "click" when you scroll up & down. It moves smoothly, which makes it a pain in the ass for games (switching weapons, force powers, etc), and for fast-forwarding/rewinding DVDs

 

b) you need to push down extra hard on the middle button (the wheel). It's easy to get used to this, though.