Productinfo
Price:
£70Website:
Freedom Best Place To Buy:
Proporta Availability:
Out NowPlatform:
A list of compatible devices can be found in the link above
Description
As we mentioned in our UBiQUiO
review last week the Freedom Universal BT Keyboard is essential the same device, just minus the Skype Functionality. However it does offer a lot more compatibility with other devices, such as Palm and Blackberry (as it has both HID and SIP profile support).
Windows Mobile devices are of course supported as well, but at the time of writing the device did not support WM6, but this should be available any time soon.
Lets delve into the box content first, as well as the protective case, you get a manual with one device unlock code and the keyboard itself which measures 8.5(H) x 285 (W) x 13.5mm (D) when fully opened - depending of course if you view the keyboard horizontally or vertically. And 98.5 (H) x 145 (W) x 19.5mm (D) when closed and weighs 204g.
Linking up the keyboard via Bluetooth was easy but Installation of the keyboard drivers is a touch long winded for our liking, there is no installation CD so you have to download the drivers first from the web and once you have installed the driver onto your PDA, you then have to unlock it via a registration website.
Plus once the device code is used you cannot use the keyboard on another product unless the code is removed by contacting support (as the product key is device specific). This will cause a problem for those who own multiple devices.
The Keyboard itself opens up really easily - with a quick press of a button at the side. Once the keyboard is open you can lock it in place and pull out a cradle system for your PDA to sit on. The cradle could accommodate any sized PDA that we had to hand, including a Palm TX, HTC P3600 and a Symbian 3230 phone.
The keys themselves were comfortable to use and the construction felt a touch better than the UBiQUiO, even though they are technically the same keyboard.
We felt the keyboard was only useful on a flat surface such as a table, as using the device on our lap was hindered by the keys bending inwards at the hinge.
Once again the device is littered with useful shortcut keys for opening Mail programs, but you can customise your own shortcut keys if you so wish (via the driver).
The device is powered by 2 x AAA batteries and has a claimed battery life of 80 hours of continual use and 2000 hours on standby.