Installation

Installation is as easy as plugging in cables. You should first make sure that USB is enabled and supported on all of the computers you wish to connect to the KVM switch. Then, plug in your monitor, keyboard and mouse into the console connections. The monitor cable plug should go into the port labeled "Console VGA", and your mouse and keyboard should go into the USB ports with the mouse and keyboard pictures under them, respectively. Optionally, your speakers and microphone can also be plugged into the respective console audio ports as well. There can be some chance for confusion, as the VGA 1 connector, that's supposed to go to the videocard of the first computer is intermingled with the console connectors. However, the quick-start guide has everything labeled and well defined.

KVM Cables.

Audio, USB and Video cables.

Not a lot to plug in if you don't use the audio switching.

The cover nicely shrouds the cables as they come out.

After the console has been connected, you have to hook up each computer. Each KVM cable set comes with everything you'll need to hook up one computer to the KVM switch, but the cables are NOT included with this KVM. They must be purchased separately, with a 10ft cable set having a MSRP of $30 USD. There are four connectors you'll have to hookup: The VGA cable, the USB cable (which is for both the mouse and keyboard), and the speaker and the microphone audio cables. The other end of the USB cable plugs into a single USB port on your computer; both the mouse and keyboard signals are sent to this one port.

Upon bootup, Windows XP recognized the KVM connection as two HID (Human Interface Devices), a standard keyboard and mouse. Because of this, the special functions of your mouse and/or keyboard may be lost. Specifically, if you have a keyboard that has multimedia or extra keys, or a mouse with extra buttons, these may not function properly with this KVM. This is a problem that has plagued many KVMs, but I have seen a few PS/2 ones that allowed for the use and proper function of special buttons on keyboards and mice. There are two ways to switch between computers: You can just press the button corresponding to the computer on the KVM (direct) or use the keyboard hotkeys. The hotkeys consist of pressing Scroll-Lock twice (the KVM will beep then), and then pressing the number (1 to 4) of the KVM port you wish to switch to. You can also switch the next or previous active port by pressing Scroll-Lock twice, then pressing the Up-Arrow or Down-Arrow. A feature called AutoScan mode, where the KVM automatically cycles through the ports in 10 second intervals, can be enabled by double-tapping Scroll-Lock, then pressing '0'. To stop Autoscanning, the spacebar is used.

Obviously, the hotkey feature is very useful should the KVM be out of reach where you positioned it. Additionally, pressing Scroll-Lock twice accidentally is very unlikely, in my opinion. The only place I could think of would be in Milkdrop (a plugin for Winamp) where Scroll-Lock is used to toggle whether or not a visualization preset is locked. No matter which way you switch between ports on the KVM, an audible beep is heard when switching.

Testing

The major thing I did not like about this KVM is that because the keyboard and mouse were treated as a composite USB device, special features and additional buttons on the mouse were lost. This could have been remedied by keeping them on separate connections, or perhaps by including the support for PS/2 devices. Switching between ports was flawless, either by the direct method or using hotkeys. However, video performance was a little degraded, to the point where a slight "ghosting" effect was barely visible from white objects on dark backgrounds. This was hardly noticeable until one looked very closely at the screen, but nonetheless may be annoying. The keyboard support was a little quirky at times. For example, when holding down the CTRL key for more than a few seconds, the KVM would sometimes "forget" that this key was being held down, so when doing a paste (CTRL-V), sometimes just a 'v' would show up. The mouse response was unaffected by the KVM, though.

Conclusion

I was disappointed by this KVM. The USB-only support may be something to wonder at, but in my opinion it was not implemented all too well. The fact that your brand-new mouse with buttons galore may be reduced to just a "HID-compatible" mouse is compounded by the fact that some USB keyboards don't work well with this KVM. With Belkin selling another KVM, just like this one, but with PS/2 AND USB support for only $10 more, I don't really see any reason to go with this unit. I've had no problems with the PS/2 support of the other KVM like I've had with the USB support of this KVM. PS/2 keyboards worked well, without problems, and special buttons on PS/2 mice maintained their functionality with the use of the slightly more-expensive Belkin unit. If you're looking to get a Belkin KVM, save an extra $10 and get the one with PS/2 as well as USB support.

Pros

• Easy to hook up computers - unit is well labelled
• Cables aren't overly expensive
• Audio support is nice and well-needed feature for SOHO users.
• Hotkey switching works well
• KVM doesn't take up too much room, so it can be put away, out of sight, easily
• 5-year warranty

Cons

• USB-only support causes mice to lose "special" button functionality
• Holding down Ctrl, Shift or Alt for a few seconds seemed to negate their effect.
• An KVM from Belkin with all the features of this unit PLUS added PS/2 support is only $10 more
• Expensive

Lastly, I want to hand out a big thanks to Belkin for providing this KVM to review. Although I didn't like it too much, they have other KVMs that have different features. And keep in mind, the other KVM I reviewed last year is still working great!

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