• Amkette Wireless Trackball Keyboard [Review]

    Amkette Wireless Trackball Keyboard [Review]

    Roydon Cerejo, Jan 05, 2010 1300 hrs IST

    A good idea but badly executed

    Lightweight, wireless 2.4GHz, compact

    Trackball and keys aren't very responsive, tacky look and feel, build could have been better, expensive

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Performance

There is no setup involved here, just plug the dongle in and you're all set. Once you do that don't forget to hit the power button on the keyboard once to turn it on. Once it's synced, this same button can be used to shutdown your PC. The keyboard automatically switches off once the dongle is removed, so you save battery.


Let's start with the keys first; the primary keys along with the numerical ones are sized well and are relatively easy to type on. The feedback of the keys isn't great and many a times while typing the keystrokes aren't registered. They also make quite a bit of noise, which could annoy people sitting beside you. The rest of the keys are sadly too small and many a times get in the way while typing.

Amkette has thrown in two 'Windows' keys, which could have been avoided, while the 'Del' button is placed right next to the left arrow key, which is a major design flaw. The other shortcut keys are fine and work well but looking at the whole build of the keyboard, it just feels and looks cheap and tacky. The high gloss finish makes things worse by attracting nasty fingerprints.

The one saving grace would have been the inclusion of a trackball but sadly it has not been implemented well. The specifications state an 800dpi resolution, which is actually not much and translates into very slow movements. It's also not very responsive, as you have to move the ball a lot to move the mouse pointer from one end of the screen to the other, but even then it is not very accurate. Overall, it doesn't seem Amkette has paid much attention to the aesthetics of the keyboard and even the build could have been a lot better.

Price

You would think that with all these flaws it would at least be cheap enough, but that's not the case here. The MRP of this keyboard is a whopping Rs. 2,999 and it comes with a one-year warranty. The actual street price is a little lower but even then it turns out to be very expensive. If you aren't crazy about the track ball, then Logitech's basic wireless keyboard sells for around 2.5K, which definitely is a lot better.

Verdict

Amkette has tried to solve a major problem of HTPC users, that of getting a mouse and a keyboard into a single device. The Wireless trackball keyboard is a great idea but we feel the execution could have been a lot better. For the asking price, the build quality is quite poor and plus the whole gloss finish isn't very appealing. Also, the key strokes many a times don't get registered, which can get really annoying when typing. The trackball isn't very easy to use either.

Overall, the Amkette wireless keyboard is a huge disappointment and we don't recommend it, especially at its asking price.


Test unit sourced from EXL PR

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Discussion Board
(5) Comments
robbie
,Mumbai, on May 20, 2010 12:47 AM
pathetic keyboard. dont buy it.
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Neeran
,Goa, on May 21, 2010 12:20 AM
Hey Robbie. I don't agree with you. Since I have been using this Keyboard from last couple of months, I must say that this keyboard is very useful for every PC user. Both individual and families. I better name is REMOTE CONTROL of the COMPUTER.. It simply increased the enjoyment of my digital life...
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Vinay
,Pune, on May 21, 2010 12:55 AM
Well this product is very advance and not for beginners....... lol....
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Ranveer
,Ahmdabad, on Jan 10, 2010 02:07 PM
I've been using this keyboard for the past 3 weeks for my HTPC. I've also been travelling to work with it once in a while. It's beautiful looking and always manages to get me compliments. The glossy finish although it attracts fingerprints, was an attraction for me. Within a 10 ft radius the keyboard is very responsive. No problems as such, but going outside that radius there is a dithering of trackbal sensitivity, though the keyboard was fine. I think since there are no other options in this category it was a worthy buy. overall i think if the trackbal was either a little bigger or heavier this keyboard would be perfect.
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Harman Preet
,Patiala, on Jan 05, 2010 10:51 PM
hmm.. just bought Logitech MK250 wireless kbd+mice @ 1400/- with bill.. :)
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