Introduction

Cordless products are certainly becoming more commonplace nowadays due to the advent of lower-cost wireless/cordless technologies, and greater adoption from end-users. Indeed, it is no longer considered "cool" or unique just because one has one or more cordless products; due to customers' increasing demand for cordless products, the market has been flooded with them, allowing access to more than just the elite or rich. Many people now enjoy the use of cordless technologies and they have a particular application with computers due to the massive amount of computer peripherals available and the requisite cords that most of them carry. One particular area that cordless technology has caught on fairly fast is the keyboard and mouse sector. These are the input devices that most anyone who uses a computer will have to master in order to effectively communicate with the hardware. Without an easy-to-use and accessible input device, an expensive computer can quickly turn into a pricey peculiarity.

Logitech has been anything but complacent in the arena of cordless products, having released many cordless products in just the past year or so, most of them being either keyboards or mice or combinations of the two. It can be somewhat daunting to go to the local Computer Store Chain and see rows upon rows of keyboards and mice, some cordless, some not, all lined up and beckoning for your purchasing dollar. Logitech keyboards and mice can usually be depending upon to deliver a good feeling and experience due to their extensive experience in making input devices, however, some of their recent cordless keyboards and mice seemed to be aimed at the high-end, offering all sorts of bells & whistles. But what if the user just wants a simple and down-to-earth cordless keyboard and mouse, without any unnecessary accoutrements that the user may not need or want? Logitech seems to be catering to these sorts of people with their newest combo, the Cordless Desktop Express, a self-branded simple setup that aims to be an "express" to use. Let's see what it really is.

Specifications

As far as I can tell, (from usage and what I've read), the Cordless Desktop Express does not use any new-fangled cordless radio technologies or anything like that. Instead, it most likely uses the same cordless tech. as previous Logitech models such as the Cordless Navigator Duo or any of their previous cordless keyboards, with the exception of any Bluetooth products they have. This can be inferred by the lack of any note on their product's website mentioning some new technology in flashed-up marketing terms. From this, some of you will realize that this also means that the mouse in the package does not use the RF technology present in the MX700 and MX Duo products that allows the mouse to communicate "faster" with the receiver and update the cursor position on screen at a faster rate. This will unfortunately have a negative effect on the mouse's performance, as with a corded mouse you aren't limited by the refresh rate of the receiver but only by the PS/2 or more commonly nowadays, the USB bus.

• Place the radio receiver out of direct sight to keep your desktop free from clutter

• Launch your web home page or e-mail program straight from your keyboard

• Control the volume on your music player right at your fingertips

• Start your calculator onscreen with a single button

• Spill-resistant keyboard means little accidents won't cause panic

• Keeps pen or pencil handy with the built-in pen holder

• Customize your experience with the MouseWare software

• Enjoy extended battery life thanks to Logitech´s proprietary power management technology

• 5-year limited hardware warranty

• More information available here.

The keyboard's design is a new one for Logitech, and one that I haven't seen elsewhere. As you'll see in the pictures below, it adopts a slightly new layout that many new keyboards from both Logitech and Microsoft seem to be using. As a result of the new layout, it's slightly less long (or wide if you like) than many keyboards out there, and thus if desk space comes at a premium for you, this keyboard will bother you less. The mouse is the same as one of Logitech's newest cordless optical mice, with just a different colour scheme in place to match it with the keyboard. The newer mouse doesn't have any special features over previous cordless optical offerings in that it is your basic three-button/wheel setup. You can see that with the all-new design in the Cordless Desktop Express combo, Logitech was aiming to release a new product and not just a rehash of a previous design.

As you can see, the Cordless Desktop Express comes well-packaged and includes an optional, detachable wrist-rest. The packages includes (along with the keyboard and mouse), the receiver, a detachable wrist-rest, setup guide/pamphlet, software CD, 2 AA batteries (for the mouse) and 2 AAA batteries (for the keyboard). Basically, the package comes with everything you need to use the product, and it's nice to see that Logitech didn't try to save a few cents by not including batteries. The setup guide is a large pamphlet, and easily explains, with pictures, how to setup and use the devices. This virtually ensures a pain-free setup.

The first thing you'll note about the keyboard is the new layout; well "new" is a relative term since this layout is basically the same as many newer Microsoft keyboards. The first thing you'll notice is the changed grouping of Home/End, PageUp/PageDown keys. The delete key here has been made double-size, and lies vertically next to the PageUp/PageDown keys. The Home and End keys are above these keys. The insert key has been relocated to group with the Print Screen/SysRq and Pause/Break keys, and the Scroll Lock key is completely gone! Nowadays, the Scroll Lock key isn't used much, but if you do happen to use it, even occasionally, this keyboard will be more than a hindrance for you. I don't think this key should have been left out. The keyboard also does not have its bottom row of keys sloping down towards you like many recent Logitech keyboards offer. Though some may find the sloping/slanting design better on their hands, I personally did not find it to be a hindrance nor an improvement.

This keyboard also deviates from previous Logitech models by not printing commonly-used shortcut key combinations on the sides of the respective keycaps. Though not an essential feature, it would have been nice to see. The detachable wrist rest, like most recent Logitech ones, is both easily attached and removed; while some people prefer its use, I generally do not use these rests.

The quick installation guide isn't very in-depth, but it needn't be. For the most part, this keyboard and mouse is fairly easy to setup, and if you run into major technical troubles, it's most likely a sign of a defective unit. The software includes both Logitech's iTouch software (for the keyboard), and its MouseWare software. Both installations are optional, and if you are someone who doesn't like unnecessary software potentially slowing down his or hers tricked-out and tweaked system, you can be sure that you'll be able to use these devices without any extra nagging software. However, for the keyboard in particular, the software will allow you to get the most use out of these input devices.

As mentioned before, the keyboard is very compact thanks to its new key arrangement, and doesn't take up much room in either dimension of length or width. Though it's not listed has being a "zero-degree tilt" keyboard, it's just as flat or flatter than any other Logitech keyboard I've seen. The design also makes it quite thin, so this keyboard is not very bulky at all. If you're not big on the whole flat-keyboard thing, there are two feet at the top of the keyboard than can be extended to elevate it somewhat; however the keyboard just won't have the same sort of slant as many older models would. Because of its diminutive size, the keyboard is very light, but as a result, doesn't feel as rugged as some.

Here you can see the new Home/End key grouping in more detail. The larger delete key and relocated insert key aim to remove the accidental activation of overwrite when doing a lot of typing and deleting. While this will be good for most of us, who don't use the insert key, some people still use the insert-key shortcuts so for them, the relocation of the insert key to a higher location with the Print Screen and Pause keys will be a bit of a shock. However, more disturbing was the removal of the Scroll Lock key; there isn't even another key with which it is paired up with as secondary feature - it's completely gone! There is even no status LED for it on the receiver, only the LEDs for Caps Lock and Num Lock. While Scroll Lock is hardly used, some KVMs use it to perform switching functions, and as a result, this keyboard won't be able to be used with them. Keep this detail in mind. While I don't mind the relocation of barely-used keys, I don't think they should be completely removed, unless the key is marked "DO NOT PRESS" or "PRESS HERE TO END THE WORLD", or something similar.

The above picture also shows how the removal of the right-side Windows key allowed for a tighter grouping of the arrow keys in relation to the main group of keys. The arrow keys have also been slightly displaced downwards; I didn't find this new layout bothering me at all. The numpad grouping remains the same.

On the right-hand side, you'll see the first group of extra keys, marked "Back", "My Home" and the Volume controls. All of these work as advertised in Windows XP, even without the installation of the iTouch software. I don't know how much I'd use the Internet keys, but the volume controls are pretty handy. All of the extra keys are made of curved plastic and feel a little more "mushy" than the regular keys - though you won't be typing with these, so that shouldn't matter.

Moving over to the right side, you can see the E-mail and "Calculator" key. While the E-mail key works fine at launching your default e-mail program, I couldn't get the Calculator key to work without installing iTouch, not even after installing and using TweakUI. This is the only extra key that needs iTouch in order to work. By now you may have already noticed that this keyboard doesn't have any "enhanced" function keys. Some of you may already know what this is, and may despise its added "functionality". Basically, the F1 through to F12 keys, inclusive, are re-defined to do such tasks as Print, open My Documents, Undo, etc, and if you want to use them regularly you have to press the F-Lock key to toggle the functionality. I personally never found this feature to be useful, so I welcome its removal on this keyboard, even if it makes it look more "basic" or simple. The "Pen/Pencil Holder", above the function keys, is merely a nice depression in the plastic body of the keyboard, and can be handy to keep a writing utensil nearby.

Lastly, the keyboard is powered by 2 AAA batteries, which are included. They are inserted into the bottom of the keyboard after a small door is removed; here you can also see the connect button that much be used in order to establish a connection with the receiver. To conserve battery life, there are no status LEDs on the keyboard such as Caps Lock. They have been moved to the receiver, which plugs into your computer. This isn't good if you keep the receiver out of sight, but the iTouch software does allow for some form of status monitoring, on-screen. I guess this is just the trade off necessary for good battery life.

The mouse is a standard 3-button/wheel mouse that is designed for ambidextrous use. It's the same design as one of Logitech's newest cordless mouse, with the only change being its colour. There's nothing much to comment on concerning the design of this mouse; its shape slopes away from the palm rest part as most mice do, making it feel fairly comfortable. The wheel has a reasonable level of resistance to it, and provides a nice ratcheting feedback when scrolled. The buttons all provide nice tactile feedback, and the shape of the mouse is such that I had no complaints about comfort during usage. A good way to describe this mouse would be Vanilla Ice Cream: It won't disappoint you, but it won't reward you with anything out of this world.

The mouse is powered by 2 AA batteries, which are included, and they are connected to the mouse in a battery bay concealed beneath the top cover. The top of the mouse body simply slides back to reveal the battery bay. Once the batteries are in, you'll notice that the mouse weighs more than most regular mice; some of you may not like this feel, but personally, I don't mind either way. I don't believe that a slightly heavier mouse would decrease accuracy, but I guess that it would depend on the surface it was used on. On the bottom of the mouse you'll find the mouse's connect button, and the three feet the mouse slides on.

The receiver is basically the same as previous Logitech receivers I've seen. It's shaped roughly like a half-oval, and in addition to have a "Connect" button, it has the LEDs for indicating the status of Caps Lock and Num Lock. The body of the unit is made of blue translucent plastic, giving it sort of an old-school iMacish look, and is reminiscent of the year 2000. Remember back in those days when seemingly everything was made of translucent plastic? Anyways, I just found this peculiar; of more concern is the fact that the receiver only offers PS/2 connectivity for both the keyboard and mouse. A while ago this wouldn't have bothered me since I've always advocated using PS/2 ports for the keyboard/mouse when available, since unlike USB ports, they can't really be used for anything else; there's no decrease in performance in most cases since the PS/2 port refresh rate can be upped to 200Hz, and OSes like WinXP and Win2000 increase the PS/2 refresh rate beyond the default of 40Hz presented in crap like Win9x. In fact, I've used a PS/2 mouse for sometime without any accuracy or precision problems. However, I would've liked to see USB options included since this is the year 2004 and eventually connectivity should be standardized, and all legacy ports dropped.

The receiver is fairly small and so it can be placed out of sight once you're setup; it doesn't look ugly though, so this isn't necessary. The receiver uses RF for receiving signals, so you don't need to consider line-of-sight when positioning it, though you shouldn't put it too near any devices that might cause interference, such as your monitor. In the final shot you'll get an idea of the overall size of this setup; I think that it's well-suited to space limited situations such as dorm/residence rooms and the like.