Introduction
There are many reasons to invest in a wireless keyboard. Some people like to place the keyboard out of sight when it's not in use. The same could be said for their mouse. For other folks, just having wires laying on their desktop looks too messy. Gamers on the other hand usually go for the wired devices unless wireless mice and keyboards are very responsive - any lag can spell death in a first person shooter game like Doom III. Can a wireless keyboard and trackball combo meet the needs of all these people? We are going to find out by reviewing the XGene Imperial 2.4GHz Wireless Keyboard +Trackball device. This unit (supplied by Performance PCs, where it currently retails for $64.95) combines a solid-feeling keyboard with the functionality of a trackball mouse built right into it.
(click to enlarge) | | Figure 1 The XGene 2.4 GHz Keyboard. |
In figure 1 above you can see that this XGene wireless keyboard is rather compact. It's not what I'd call featherweight, but I estimate it's between 2 and 3 pounds in weight. You could place it on your keyboard tray, on top of the desk, or even your lap if you're on the sofa. In fact, it fits quite well on top of your legs.
Let's take a closer look at some main selling points, and then review the specifications. As you can see in figure 2, we have a built-in trackball that is of course a mouse. The left and right mouse buttons for this trackball are on the left side, as shown in figure 3. This means you can use your left and right hands to control the mouse actions necessary to navigate web pages and things of this nature. But what about scrolling you ask? No problem my friend. Figure 4 shows the scroll wheel, which is located on the left side too, but on the front edge of the XGene wireless keyboard. There is another left-click button, but it's on the right front edge, as shown in figure 5. This is one button we need to test for sure.
(click to enlarge) | | Figure 2 The built-in trackball is very convenient for right-hand thumb use. |
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(click to enlarge) | | Figure 3 Left and right mouse-click buttons are where your left hand can reach them. |
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(click to enlarge) | | Figure 4 There is a scroll wheel, but it's on the left front edge. |
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(click to enlarge) | | Figure 5 Left-click button on the right front edge takes some getting used to. |
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Besides the standard QUERTY keyboard layout in this "made for IBM compatible computers with Windows 2000 or above" XGene wireless keyboard, we have some extra functionality/hot keys added above the standard function keys. These hot keys work with Windows operating systems, which we'll test later. On the front-left (figure 6) we have the "back", "forward", "IE", "e-mail", and "My computer" hot keys. On the front-right (figure 7) we have the "change tracks", "stop", "play/pause", "mute", and "volume down/up" hot keys.
(click to enlarge) | | Figure 6 Front-left hot keys. |
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(click to enlarge) | | Figure 7 Front-right hot keys. |
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Ok, let's see what XGene says on their web site:
Features:
Streamlined full-featured RF keyboard with built-in trackball optical technology
2.4Ghz radio frequency, 15 meters effective working range, USB port
360-degree navigation, sleek and elegant design
With notebook keyboard module design, enables mobile operation and effortless typing
Requirement:
Mac and Windows 2K, XP, and above compatible (I'm not sure about Mac compatibility however)
Specifications:
Product
Frequency: 2.4Ghz
Channel: 8 Channel
Optical trackball: 800 DPI
Hot Key: WWW, Pre-page,
Next-page, Volume-up,
Volume-down, Mute, E-mail,
My Computer, Play/Pause,
Stop, Pre-track,
Next-track, IE
We now have a pretty good idea what this item is, so lets do some hands-on testing and see if the XGene wireless keyboard is worthy of your hard-earned dollars.
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