IOGEAR Spill-Resistant Desktop: Ultra-Slim Low Profile Keyboard with Optical Mouse

Cool Yule rating: 2 stars

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Cool Yule rating: 2 stars

Price: $33.49 (Amazon.com)

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Description: The IOGEAR spill resistant keyboard (model GKM512) has a profile modeled after a laptop keyboard. It has all the keys you normally associate with a desktop keyboard – F1-F12, number keypad, etc. – as well as dedicated multimedia buttons (fairly standard nowadays). Other than its low profile keys, where it sets itself apart from the competition is in its durability – the keyboard takes a spill and keeps on ticking … or typing, as the case may be.

The first thing I did after plugging in the keyboard was pour a cup of water on top of the keyboard. The keyboard works as advertised, functionality of the keyboard wasn't impaired. I'm lucky my editor suggested putting down some paper towels before trying this. I expected there would be a small liquid reservoir built into the keyboard to absorb spills, holding them until you can run over to the sink and empty the liquid yourself. Unfortunately, the keyboard has no such feature. Instead, designers simply left some holes on the bottom, which liquid automatically drains through – a definite problem if you have a small workspace, and your desk is cluttered with items you would rather not see getting wet. Personally, I would rather lose a keyboard to water damage than an iPod or a BlackBerry, both of which are often plugged in next to my computer at home. Fortunately, the workspace at the office is far less cluttered, so a little water spill is of no consequence. The keyboard has "stilts" on the back that prop it up, but they only provide an inch of so of extra height on the back. Still, the added extra height did feel nice, even if barely perceptible.

Given the price, the keyboard and mouse combination are a good deal. The keys on the keyboard are fairly responsive, travel well, and take little time adjusting to. They also make a bit less noise than a traditional keyboard, an advantage when typing during a phone call. A small complaint – the Backspace key above the Enter key is smaller than I'm used to. In fact, the Enter key is much larger, occupying not only its usual rectangular space, but also the space above that the backspace key is normally reserved for. Think of it this way: you can place an entire quarter on the Enter key, and place a dime next to it – the two will sit alongside one another, entirely on the Enter key, and do so without touching. It is massive. I have no idea why anybody would design a keyboard this way, as most users press Backspace far more often than "\". (Editor's note: Old-school keyboards used to have the large, "carriage return" style Enter keyboards – perhaps a shout-out to the past?) You get somewhat used to this, but it's somewhat of a persistent annoyance.

The multimedia keys work as advertised, although like my favorite mouse, the skip, fast forward, play and pause functions only work when iTunes (my music player of choice when not using Pandora) is open and focused. Volume keys work regardless, which is most important.