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Keyboards for e-book lovers
July 15, 2006 | 1:21 pm
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By David Rothman
More and more, you won’t just be reading e-books.
You’ll also be writing to them–just as you’re doing now when you enter a word to look up.
Interactivity is coming, and the virtual keyboards of the PDA variety might not be enough in many cases.
So how can you most easily enter text? Steve Manes has some provocative thoughts in PC World on the here-and-now of the text-entry issue.
Meanwhile, if nothing else, I’m curious what keyboards people would recommend for PDAs, especially the Palm TX Handheld, which I myself own. I’m wondering about the Stowaway keyboard, in particular. What are the criteria you’d use in choosing a keyboard? Among others I’m considering:
1. Wireless compatibility with my particular machine. My TX has Bluetooth, infrared and other options.
2. Comfort, ease and speed in typing. I don’t want to hurt my wrists if I’m doing word-processing, even though I’d normally use my desktop machine for that. Also, I want keys in reasonable places. You’d be surprised at the curve balls that makers of desktop keyboards have thrown at users in that respect.
3. Compactness.
Related: More information on handheld keyboards, including reviews from CNet and PC World–which, if a bit dated, are starting points of sorts. Also see a write-up on the VKB Bluetooth Virtual Keyboard.
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Comments:
I’ve used the Stowaway on both the Axim and Nokia 770 and have been disappointed. My experiences may be atypical though.
On the Axim, I had lots of trouble getting connected, although once I got connected, I was fine.
On the Nokia, I had no problem getting connected (they have a bluetooth package you download), but it proved to be unreliable. I’m hoping the 2006 version of the OS proves to be better.
If this keyboard worked without problem, PDA’s would really be convenient and productive. However, it has not met my expectation so far.
The Stowaway is very compact, and one or two of the keys feel out of place, but generally that is not a problem. The main problem I experience are driver problems, plus the fact that bluetooth keyboards often do not work in contexts where you must input data by hand (i.e., application dialog boxes). I would check user forums to see what the general consensus is.
As someone who was robbed earlier this year and lost a lot of gear, I’ve tried to mitigate my risk and be extra careful about how often I lug my laptop with me. A PDA + portable keyboard would be the perfect solution…if it worked reliably.
I tried the T3 + infra-keyboard a few years back, but came out feeling too geeky for my own good.
I’m using a Sharp Zaurus C1000, which has a built-in qwerty keyboard, good for thumbing. Despite its seeming puny size, it’s pretty fast for thumbing blogs or forum entries.
Being able to thumb away without a desk is also a plus, but the apparent downside is also that its a tad slower than having full-fingered touch-typing.
I guess that’s a compromise between mobility vs ease of typing, and for me, the Zaurus fits my usage.
Thanks, Snappy. And Robert, I’ll just have to do some more research on the Stowaway; somewhere I read that that TX owners would do well to download the latest driver. David