User Experience

The Logisys keyboard worked as expected, being easily detected by all our Windows-based machines both at the BIOS level, and in the OS itself.  Furthermore, it performed equally well whether connected via USB or PS/2.

The macro buttons also performed as expected, to no surprise at all.

The lighting was excellent in dim environments, and the milky color of the keys allowed for easy identification of desired key.  However, after our five month trial period, the black "A" silkscreen is about 75% worn off.  I wonder if this is covered by the warranty?

Typing is easy and relatively similar to typing on any laptop.  However, the keys are a bit on the light side in terms of spring resistance.  I prefer to have keys that require a tad more pressure before yielding a connection.

The key layout is mostly standard, but ONE major factor frustrated me constantly - the proximity and size of the backspace key to the Ins key.  The backspace key is only single-width, plus it is so very close to the Ins key.  Missing your mark on the backspace key lands your finder on the Ins key, resulting in the "Overwrite" mode in most Microsoft Office apps such as Word and Outlook - very annoying.  I understand the proximity of the keys is a design requirement to reduce the size and cost of the EL panel as much as possible.  However, if they had just decided to reduce the Enter key to a rectangle instead of the "L" shape, then they could have made the backspace key double-width, and therefore easier to strike.

The EL illumination itself posed some issues when connected to various USB devices that are strictly designed to provide not one picoAmp more than 500mA per port.  It seems that the EL inverter causes the keyboard to draw more than its fair share of 500mA of 5VDC.  Some USB hubs shut off the port the keyboard is connected to, while others function normally.  Turning off the EL via the on/off button yielded better results with problematic hubs.

The most critical failure occurs when this keyboard is connected to KVM switches with hotkey capabilities, especially the USB ones.  After a few hours of use, the KVM switch begins to lose connectivity to the keyboard.  Its hot key sequences no longer work, sometimes resulting in a damaged KVM.  Others are more robust, resetting its internal fuses after cooling down.  Again, the added current draw of the EL is the cause of the problems.  Turning the EL off may solve the power issue, but then why buy the illuminated keyboard in the first place?

Regardless, this performance is still unacceptable.  Perhaps there is really no away around getting more power into this keyboard, other than a separate power source.