Home > Consumer Reviews > Apple - Keyboard - 109 keys - QWERTY - USB - white

I bought this keyboard simply because I was getting bad neck and back pains using my iBook and finding it very difficult to type for long periods of time - which was driving me mental since I had loads of coursework to do.

Firstly, it looks absolutely brilliant. I have quite a limited amount of desk space, so I didn't want to buy a keyboard that had a large foot print. The Apple keyboard doesn't have any plastic around the keyboard itself, and none of those stupid "multimedia keys" that no one ever uses, like the vast majority of other keyboards, so it takes up a small amount of space. The white keys look great and the base of the keyboard is clear, allow you to see the white plastic underside of the keyboard, which looks quite cool.

I have been finding the keys slightly heavy to press - however this may be because I have been using a laptop keyboard for the last 9 or so months. They have a very nice click to them and feel to them that just screams good quality, especially in comparison to the 6 year old keyboard on the other computer in my house. From what I can see through the clear base, the keys which are most frequently used, like the space bar and return, have a spring mechanical type system that ensures that the keys don't become too soft over time. All the keys appear to be individually weighted too - i.e. the vowels and keys that are commonly used by stronger fingers require a greater force to press. As far as I know, keyboards of this price don't usually have this.

It has all your usual Mac-only keys: apple/command key, option, volume keys, optical drive eject etc. It also does not have a "num lock" key, which is great - I used the number pad a lot and the num lock key being off is always annoying - as it also seems to be slightly pointless now on modern computers.

Other users have complained about not being able to see the caps lock key's light. I never noticed, until I read review and it prompted me to look. Admitedly, you can't see it from more than 60 degrees away, but how often do you slouch that far back when typing? I can still see it's on when I've got my desk lamp shining too.

Key bounce? Not at all. The USB hub is quite handy too, although it's only USB1.1 I believe, so it's only useful for older or slower devices, such as mice and so on.

The USB cable that is connected to the keyboard is intentionally short, so that it is just the right length to connect to an iMac. However, it does come with a matching white Apple extension lead, which I would guess brings the length overall to about 2.5-3m.

Overall, very well thought out and quality product. I would recommend it and it looks reaaalllyy nice with my iBook, JBL Creature II Speakers and Griffin iCurve laptop stand!

Apple's new USB keyboard is minimalist. It occupies the barest amount of desk space that a fully-featured keyboard could, having only a single thickness of plastic around the edges. Where most keyboards have a top and bottom 'shell' with the keys protruding through the former, Apple have done away with this. (Perhaps this is no bad thing, since the earlier keyboard's clear plastic surround meant that you ended up displaying a variety of hairs, cake crumbs, etc. that were almost impossible to dislodge.)

The keys are a little on the 'heavy' side, requiring more force to depress than some models, but the whole thing is still nice and 'clicky'. Good for lengthy typing sessions. Gone is the facility to fold feet out in order to vary the angle of the keyboard - but since everybody always used these, Apple have tilted the keyboard by default. And there's less to break off as a result. This design has clearly been driven by part count reduction.

The keyboard also functions as a two-port USB hub. (This being basically the only reason to consider it over its wireless sibling.) Where the earlier Apple USB keyboard had a USB port at each end of the keyboard, the ports are now located at the back, either side of the cable. They aren't nearly as easy to plug memory sticks into as the old design, but at least the ports are now the 'right way up', allowing the activity light on a memory stick to be seen.

Perhaps the worst feature is the Caps Lock key, which features an LED to show when Caps Lock is engaged. The hole for this light is tiny, and angled upwards. Unless you are leaning right over the keyboard, you can't tell if it's set or not. (Until you start typing.) Far better were Apple's oldest Mac keyboards, where the Caps Lock key latched down when set, like a real typewriter.

Bought this for my pc as I wanted a plain classy looking keyboard, and apart from a few differences it works fine with windows (XP that is). Two extra usb ports on the back of the keyboard are a bonus as well.

This would be a good design if the keys didnt bounce and produce double characters a lot of the time

........non for me at all!

Very smart and tactile, the keys have just the right feel for fast typing and the spacing has been perfect for me.

I can imagine it will get dusty but the looks are so good it will make me be a cleaner person :-). Its a shame some reviewers have found repeating keys a problem but I can honestly say that I havent had a moment's worry. Recommended.