Cheap PalmOne Portable Keyboard for Palm III and VII (Electronics) Price

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Customer Reviews of PalmOne Portable Keyboard for Palm III and VII

You've just returned to your hotel room after an important all day conference, your head brimming with ideas. You're a woman (or man) of the 21st century, you've got your Palm Pilot at the ready, and you're all set to record the amazing things that are popping into your inspired brain.

Then, you remember the incredible hassle it is to actually USE a Palm Pilot for this sort of task. Sure, it's OK for notes or quick jots of phone numbers, names, or reminders, but when it comes to pinning down the flow of thoughts, it's a pain in the hand.

Enter the portable keyboard! This little gadget is truly a lifesaver for all Palm Pilot users. After the Palm Pilot, seeing a keyboard folded into a smart zippered pouch may not be very impressive -- until you use it! Everything you need is arranged neatly inside this smart little case, and you get to open it ... just like Christmas!

The Palm Portable keyboard is not much bigger than your Palm Pilot. Yet, waiting inside this practical looking case is an instruction manual, software CD, and the answer to your Palm Pilot prayers: a complete, finger-comfy keyboard. It's so easy to use, you may not even need to read the instructions.

All you do is remove the contents of the zippered case, and unfold the keyboard! When completely unfolded, it's the same size as your desktop keyboard.

Once unfolded, just pop the CD into the Palm HotSync to install the Palm Pilot Keyboard software, and connect your Palm Pilot where indicated. Viola! Now you have the speed and data entry control only a keyboard can provide.

This is a match made in Palm Pilot heaven! It takes only minimal power from your Palm Pilot to run, and it works like a charm. The keyboard is the same size and has the same basic feel as your trusty home PC keyboard. It's small enough to slip into your pocket along with your Palm Pilot so you can take it wherever you go. It unfolds and assembles in seconds, so there's not much wasted time getting those thoughts down when you need to. When you're finished using it, this handy keyboard folds down to a little pocket-sized, eight-ounce packet.

This keyboard makes it easy to take notes at meetings or conferences, or any place when you're away from your desk. You can use it to record lengthy notes at business meetings or to compose and respond to email. It's simple to navigate to your address book, appointment calendar, or any other applications. It also comes with nine user-programmable keys.

The keyboard even saves wear and tear on the Palm Pilot itself since by using the keys you no longer use the screen as much.

And the price is right. It's really a great bargain!

Is there a downside? Well, you may need a bit of time adjusting to the height of the keys on this new toy. Although it works just as well as the keyboards you've become so fond of, the key height is a bit different.

Some hard-core typists may feel odd about the right shift key being a bit more to the right than they're used to. These are minor quirks however, and nothing you can't get used to quickly.

Also, the little keyboard stand is a bit tricky to set up. You've first got to slide it straight out from the back of the keyboard, then hold it at a 45-degree angle, and flip out the back portion to attach the Palm Pilot. Once you get this process down, however, you'll find that this fragile looking stand does a great job of holding the Pilot in place while your fingers fly smoothly over the keys.

The support desk at Palm Pilot is great with resolving any setup problems:...

This Marvel of Engineering Is Broken After Only Two Months?
Based upon comments read here, I purchased the keyboard and in no time at all, I was hooked! What a marvel of engineering, I thought. I've used it almost every day since August. No more tapping on tiny keyboards or slow Graffiti for me. Two days ago, with no warning, my Palm began believing the keyboard was the Hot Sync cradle. Error message after error message, reset after reset, each time I put the Palm in the keyboard cradle, it crashed. Called customer service....30 minute wait. They tell me to delete the keyboard software from the Palm and reload. Did that. Nothing. Same error message. Same confusion. Called again. Another 20 minute wait. This time, I am told that it is probably corrupted software, which sounded odd to me because no software was being used except Keyboard and it was brand spanking new. I suggested that it probably was a hardware problem. The technician did not appreciate my expertise. This time I was told to reset the entire Palm. Yes, that's right, push the stylus pin in that little reset hole in the back and erase every single thing and start from scratch. I did that. Took two hours. Guess what? Nothing. Same error message. Same confusion. Called Palm again. Seems it is probably a hardware problem. Needed to arrange an exchange. Took another 30 minute wait. APPARENTLY THIS KEYBOARD IS BREAKING DOWN ALL OVER THE PLACE. CAUTION. THIS HAS ONLY BEEN ON THE MARKET A FEW MONTHS AND THEY ALREADY HAVE "REFURBISHED" KEYBOARDS READY FOR EXCHANGE. It would've been a dream, if it worked. Problem is, it doesn't.

It's been fixed!
People have complained about how the keyboard delays when typing. I'm a slow typist, so it doesn't bother me too much. But for you fast typists, go to [the product's website] to get the new keyboard driver, version 1.2. It fixes the problem of a delay. Now all they need is something to keep it rigid for typing in my lap. Then it would be perfect.