Logitech Solar Keyboard Review: Eco-Friendly and Awesome
Logitech has done something rare: With the new Wireless Solar Keyboard, it has genuinely surprised me. I expected the Wireless Solar Keyboard to be something of a gimmick. After all, how useful could a solar powered keyboard be unless your office is located in an atrium? And I assumed that if most of the $79 list price goes in the solar cells, the typing experience would be regrettable.
I was wrong on all counts.
The Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard is a feast for the eyes. It's thin and attractive with a design that borrows a lot from Apple's aesthetic. There are a pair of solar cells across the top, and the keyboard itself features a full number pad, arrow keys, and an extended set of function keys. In other words, it has a full-featured layout.
First, let me address the ergonomics. Despite my concern about the keyboard's typability, I found it to be the best keyboard I've used in as long as I can remember. The keys have a short, solid throw, and they have a reassuring click about them which I've missed in the stock keyboards I've using of late. And if you don't like your keyboard to lie flat, no problem: It has pop-out legs as well.
Now, about the solar charging: It defies expectations. It charges up when exposed to either natural or artificial light, and the room light in a typical office or cubicle is plenty to keep the keyboard up and running. And it doesn't need constant exposure to light, either: Logitech claims that once topped off, it can run for three months in total darkness. So no worries about keeping it under bright lights. When you press a status button on the keyboard, a desktop app pops up to show you the remaining charge on the keyboard's battery, as well as how much light is currently falling on the keyboard.
And while it's disappointing that this keyboard has its own USB dongle, at least that connector is universal -- the Unifying Receiver lets you attach multiple Logitech devices while taking up only a single USB port. Almost as nice as if it just supported Bluetooth.
I didn't expect to say this about the Wireless Solar Keyboard, but it's the best keyboard I have ever used. If you are still clacking away on a mushy $29 wired keyboard, splurge on this beauty from Logitech -- you'll be amazed at the difference it makes.
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