Kensington 64370 Keyboard for life USB

List Price: $14.49 Discount Price: $9.99

Features:

• Kensington Edge: Spill-safe keyboard with lifetime warranty--never buy another keyboard!
• Keyboard has sturdy metal back plate and sealed membrane design
• USB compatible keyboard for PCs running Windows 98 and later
• 104 key keyboard
• Sleek, slim profile saves valuable workspace, complements professional workstation

Accessories:
Microsoft Natural Keyboard Elite	Roller Typing	Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Deluxe 20	Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing Platinum 20	Typing Instructor for Kids Version 3

Customer Reviews:

Glad it was cheap [Posted on 2008-05-07]
Before going on a trip, I had Amazon ship this keyboard to my destination, so I wouldn't have to carry a full-size keyboard to use with my laptop. I chose the cheapest keyboard I could find, since I won't be carrying it back with me either.

Give that use case, this keyboard is fine. It was cheap, it works, and it seems to be of good quality overall.

But I wish I had read the reviews, which would have told me of the non-standard layout, which cuts my productivity as much as using my small laptop keyboard and screen. If you need "Wake Up," "Sleep," and "Power" buttons (?!), I suppose this keyboard is for you. But only if you can stomach the result: The cursor control pad is pushed down one row. Oh, and they cut the backspace key in half to make room for the backslash key, one row above its usual position, apparently because they think people need an extra-big, L-shaped "Enter" key.

And the feel is squishy and stiff at the same time. Ick.

Looking forward to returning home, where I have several 20-year-old IBM clicky keyboards, still working great and comfortable after all this time. Note to keyboard manufacturers: Some things just don't need to be imrpoved.

Anyway, thanks to Amazon and Kensington for making it inexpensive enough that I don't feel too bad about this learning experience.

Is Lightweight and Has Soft Keys... [Posted on 2008-06-15]
This is my favorite keyboard to use. The keys are soft on the fingers when typing and it is lightweight.

Mixed results and quality [Posted on 2008-06-16]
I wanted a basic USB keyboard. This largely fits the bill except that Kensington felt the need to put an extra row of buttons above the arrows. I constantly run afoul of this in the month or so of use I've had. The formerly 6 keys above the arrows get shoved down and the keys from the function key row drop down where "Insert" used to start to total 9 keys. I hit the scroll lock when I mean to go "Home" and alert my KVM device inadvertently. It must be that I am an old dog. But it's not like the space contstraints of a laptop keyboard, or that the new buttons, "wake up" "sleep" and "power" were missing from my life. One person's value-added is another's pain.
As long as the word "value" has came up, I am chagrined that the keyboard for life has the paint coming off the keys already. I do not have long nails or solvent-laced finger tips so I suspect the quality. Define what is meant by "keyboard for life" - I hope there's no forshadowing in the key labeling fading away so soon.

Great keyboard for the money [Posted on 2008-07-06]
Kensington make a great little keyboard for the money here. Spillproof, sealed membrane top and plus it has the "Sleep", "Power Off", and "Wake-Up" keys on it. We use it on a heavily used house computer which has 4 different users on it and it is holding up well.

I personally use a KeyTronic Lifetime Series keyboard since my skin chemistry is very hard on the lettering on the keys, causing the stenciled letters to wear off quickly. I have had the KeyTronic for 5 years of everyday use and it is a workhorse of a keyboard. However it is twice as much as this Kensington.

I recommend this Kensington for an inexpensive replacement, plus it matches the rest of the "house computer" which is an all black setup.

Great keyboard--feels like original IBM PC [Posted on 2008-07-14]
I just got this keyboard, and I already love it. It has the same satisfying 'clickiness' of the original IBM PC keyboard. The only negative is the size of the backspace key--it's not oversize as it is on many newer keyboards. But that's not a problem for me, as I am used to a smaller backspace.

This keyboard has the 'Wake Up', 'Sleep', and 'Power' keys that most Vista-capable computers support. I particularly like being able to shut the system down with a keypress--I haven't been able to do that since my Mac days back in the late '80s!

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this keyboard, particularly for someone who wants the essentials, without all the 'media keys' and other junk that seem to be found on most keyboards today.

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