Save content
Have you found this content useful? Use the button above to save it to your profile.
Logitech MX Keys
Logitech
Logitech MX Keys

Tech Review: Logitech MX Keys Advanced Wireless Illuminated Keyboard

by

Philip Fisher explains why the latest keyboard from Logitech would make a good addition to every accountant's Christmas list.

7th Nov 2019
Save content
Have you found this content useful? Use the button above to save it to your profile.

Having gone overboard on the MX Master 3 mouse, it is pleasing to report that the companion keyboard launched by Logitech at the same time is also a great asset for any home office.

The goal was to find a wireless keyboard that could make working on a laptop more pleasurable and, ideally, reduce the risk of physical harm through RSI. It followed that any keyboard which works with a laptop would be equally effective with a desktop PC/Mac set-up, if not more so.

Before even switching the MX Keys on, a couple of features are apparent. First, this backlit, low-profile keyboard looks sleek, sloping gently down from back to front but still feels very stable. Secondly, for an extra £9 the package can include a specially designed wrist support, that is freestanding and, while it could be a little wider, should ease the pain for anybody suffering from RSI or keen to keep it at bay.

One regular accountant’s beef about laptop keyboards is that they do not have a number pad. That is an obvious advantage with a more spacious but still compact unit of this type. In addition, the keys are larger and have a soft feel.

The concave keys, which help to reduce typos, are automatically illuminated at an appropriate level when your fingers get close, creating an enjoyable impression when the light is low.

If there is one small criticism, so much has been packed in that some keys can be slightly confusing, featuring multiple symbols, presumably either to allow international use with reprogramming or switching between PC and Mac. However, given that the keys are in standard positions for UK use, it doesn’t take long to get used to them.

As this columnist is not a touch typist, he enlisted the assistance of a journalist friend, who confirms, fingers flying across the keys, that this is the best keyboard that she has ever used.

Set-up is simple and it is possible to operate up to three targets at the same time using either Bluetooth or wireless dongle – the former obviating the need to block up a valuable laptop port. These could be computers, tablets or even mobile phones covering almost every operating system you can imagine including Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS and Android.

Using a flow-enabled mouse eg MX Master 3, it is then possible to move between them seamlessly and even copy from one screen/computer to another. Alternatively, buttons enable instant switching between units.

Power comes to an internal battery via a USB-C cable, similar to those used for the newest mobile phones. This comfortably lasts for a minimum of a week and potentially far longer. In fact, during several weeks of testing using the off switch overnight, it never stopped working.

Once again, like the MX Master 3, the keyboard is fully programmable using the Logitech Options program. This means that around 20 keys can be adapted to users’ personal preferences. These can also be set up to operate in different ways with different programs, most usefully those in the Microsoft Office suite.

The list price is £99.99 or £109 with the wrist pad.

In summary, if you can ignore a little bit of extraneous data on some keys, this keyboard looks and feels fantastic, operates smoothly and quietly, protects users from the ravages of RSI and has every imaginable command at stretch of a fingertip.

Replies (3)

Please login or register to join the discussion.

avatar
By meadowsaw227
13th Nov 2019 10:25

Is there a left handed option !
For the number pad that is ! .

Thanks (0)
Replying to meadowsaw227:
Philip Fisher
By Philip Fisher
18th Nov 2019 11:48

Here is the answer from Logitech

"There isn’t a left handed version of the mouse or keyboard, but research has found that in the case of the mice, left handed users find it easy to adapt to using the standard mouse and there is usually little requirement for left handed versions!"

Thanks (0)
avatar
By tracey2412
13th Nov 2019 15:28

I've been using a Logitech K800 keyboard for about a year & it's the best one I ever had, worth every penny of it's appx £80 (I can't recall exactly). Other 'decent' keyboards I bought lasted about 6 months before the lettering wore off the keyboard!
But admit to a bit of envy with this one as I already use the MX mouse which is another brilliant thing - no RSI niggles since using it.
This keyboard might just sneak onto my 'to buy' list when I eventually need a replacement.

Thanks (0)