Hardware Bistro

Product: Wireless Handheld Keyboard
Manufacturer: efo
Supplied by: efo
Price: 40USD/RM135
Launch Date: Sep 2009

 

Today we would like to take a look on an interesting device; a wireless handheld keyboard from efo. efo wireless handheld keyboard is a RF wireless keyboard, mouse and touchpad; 3-in-1 device. Besides that it also works a HTPC, IPTV, CARPC remote control and keyboard which is pretty fascinating. Without further delay, let us continue to deep dive this device.

 

Company Profile

efo is a Hong Kong based e-commerce company which focuses on remote control such as wireless keyboard, HTPC remote control, USB Lan interface, RobotCam, wireless security and so on.

 

Features

- 3 in 1: Keyboard, mouse and touchpad
- Rechargeable Li-ion batteries: Last longer - up to two weeks between charges.
- Short recharge time: Around two hours can fully charge the battery.
- 2.4G DSSS: Enjoy long-range wireless control from up to 10 metre (33 feet) away.
- Indication light: Multiple indication lights for signal, data transmission and power.
- Touch Pad: Use as point and click - no mouse is required for simple portable operation.
- Backlighting: Makes text entry effortless - even in low light.
- Compact: Perfect size for portable (85 X 135 X 10 mm).
- QWERTY keyboard: Standard Keyboard layout for convenience input.
- Light weight: Only with 60 g.
- Plug and play: no need to install software.

 

Specifications

- 2.4GHz DSSS radio transreceiver, 10M/32feet radius
- Dimension: 85mm x 135 mm x 10 mm
- Weight: 60 grams

 

Compatible and Application

This product is compatible with PLAYSTATION3, Xbox 360, WII etc. game station.
Also applicable for the lecturer, meeting presenter, classroom teacher, sales manager or anyone using a projected image.

 

Package & Contents

 

efo wireless handheld keyboard is packed with a transparent plastic container which able to gain more attention from the crowd. Besides that the plastic container is re-sealable which allows user to repack it or store it when it is not being used. At the back of the plastic container, there are user'a manual, dongle and charging cable.

 

efo wireless handheld keyboard is a wireless device so a dongle as the receiver is necessary and besides that a USB charging cable is included as well to charge up the efo wireless handheld keyboard. No specific user's manual is included but a brief information can be found on the packaging. A complete manual can be downloaded from efo's website.

 

A Closer Look on efo wireless handheld keyboard

 

Basically efo wireless handheld keyboard is a newly launched RF 3-in-1 device; keyboard, mouse and touchpad. Besides that it also wroks as HTPC, IPTV, CARPC remote control and keyboard which enhances its ability and capability. There are two colors available at this moment; black & white which should be good enough for such new device in consumer & commercial industries.

 

Since efo wireless handheld keyboard is a handheld device hence it must come with comfortable size for carrying it around. The physical dimension of efo wireless handheld keyboard is 85 x 135 x 10 mm (W x L x D) which is just nice for a man but slightly bigger for a lady; maybe efo should produce another smaller version to enlarge its market. Anyway efo wireless handheld keyboard is extremely light weight; just around 60 grams.

 

As we mentioned before efo wireless handheld keyboard is a 3-in-1 device but why do we really need it. This device is useful for portable usages/applications especially for presentation or maybe industry PC. Of course efo wireless handheld keyboard can be used for other usages as well like HTPC setup which is pretty useful for movie or other multimedia applications with an appropriate distance.

 

The top grey area of efo wireless handheld keyboard basically is a mouse and touchpad; works exactly like a notebook touchpad. Such mouse & touchpad is extremely ease of use and consumes like space area unlike those traditional ball/optical/laser mouse. FYI efo wireless handheld keyboard only comes with single touch not multi-touch function like Mac machines. On top of the efo wireless handheld keyboard, there are five LED indicators to indicate its activities (recharger, power source, RF status, battery power and cap lock).

 

For the keyboard of efo wireless handheld keyboard, there are 48 active keys which carries 48 functions + 32 Shift functions for numbering and unique characters; a compact QWERTY keyboard. One of the great advantages of efo wireless handheld keyboard is the backlit keyboard which allows easy typing even in low light condition; press "RF" key to control the backlit and most of the rows are lighten up by orange LEDs but the 3rd row is a bit dim as it is only supported by 2nd & 4th row LEDs for lower product cost purpose.

 

In term of connectivity, efo wireless handheld keyboard only comes with one connector and one switch which are located at bottom of the device. The mini USB connector is used for charging purchase as efo wireless handheld keyboard is built-in with rechargeable Li-ion batteries which can last for two weeks of moderate usage and it only requires two hours to fully recharge the device. The switch is a normal power switch to turn on/off the device,

 

Here are two bundled accessories for efo wireless handheld keyboard; dongle and USB charging cable. The USB dongle is a RF receiver dongle to transfer the command of the efo wireless handheld keyboard to the system such as mouse movement and typing commands. We prefer a much smaller dongle such as Bluetooth dongle which is totally invisible even after plug in. 

 

Here are some of the detail for efo wireless handheld keyboard; black and white. We prefer a black version one which looks more professional as the white one looks a bit cheap and fragile for us. No offend to anyone as I believe some customers will still go for the white one. The working distance for efo wireless handheld keyboard and the receiver dongle is up to 10 meters away; pretty good enough for HTPC setup and presentation.

 

Installation, Testing & Performance

Before we started to test out efo wireless handheld keyboard, we have fully charged the device to ensure it performs as good as it is. It takes around 2 hours to fully charge up the device which is pretty reasonable and it can last couple of weeks for moderate usage since such device will not consume much power. One of the advantage for efo wireless handheld keyboard is neither software nor driver is required; just plug and play which is perfect for computer noob. The receiver dongle has to be installed on one of the system's USB port and no manual tuning is required while the USB cable is only required for charging up the device.

 

Test Bed

Processor: AMD Turion X2 Dual Core Mobile @ 2.2GHz
Memory: 3GB DDR2
Hard Drive: 320GB Fujitsu HDD
Graphic Card: ATI Radeon HD3450
Router: TRENDnet TEW-639GR
Optical Drive: Dual-Layer DVD RW +/-
Speaker: Edifier R501
Mouse: SteelSeries Ikari Laser
Mouse Pad: SteelSeries QcK+
HeadSet: SteelSeries 3H
Operating System: Microsoft XP Pro SP2/Vista Business
Ambient Temperature: 27 Degree Celsius

For better understanding regarding efo wireless handheld keyboard, we have embedded this video file from efo website in our review. In term of testing & performance, we have tested the typing & mouse moving of this device, we found that it is extremely easy to master it and the performance is as good as the integrated keyboard and mouse of a system. The keypad spacing between each others are good enough even for a man to type it flawlessly. Overall efo wireless handheld keyboard has delivered what it supposes to have, thanks to efo's R&D team for delivering such great device.

 

Verdicts

Looking for a portable all-in-one keyboard, mouse, touchpad? Then efo wireless handheld keyboard is one of the best devices that you should have it. efo wireless handheld keyboard is ideal device for presentation where user can remotely control the mouse moving and keyboard typing. Besides that it can be used for other usages as well such as HTPC media application and so on. Other benefits of efo wireless handheld keyboard are full size QWERTY backlit keyboard, rechargeable battery, RF wireless connectivity, plug & play installation and so on. USD40 is just reasonable for such great device and it comes with 1 year warranty so don't miss such good deal if you are seeking this useful device.

Pros: 

+ multiple usage; keyboard, mouse, touchpad
+ Long RF working distance; 10 meters
+ Slim & light weight
+ Full size backlit keyboard
+ Rechargeable Li-ion battery
+ Software/driver is not required; Plug & Play

Cons:

- Prefer a smaller dongle

Thanks to efo for providing this sample for us to review.

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