Review: Microsoft Natural Ergonomic 4000

Posted Thursday, March 16th 2006

Keyboards are often the most overlooked piece of hardware - people will usualy buy whatever is the cheapest, and use it as long as it lasts. I was using my Microsoft Multimedia Keyboard for almost two years, and although nothing was technically wrong with it, it became too loud and the keys started becoming sticky. So, after some carefull consideration, I got my hands on the Microsoft Ergo 4000. I say careful consideration because it’s been a while since I’ve used an ergonomic keyboard, and I was afraid that I wouldn’t get used to it.

Extra Buttons
People like to debate whether having a multitude of extra buttons on the keyboard is usefull. There are the purists that like to have nothing but the standard 102/103 keys. I on the other hand, like extra features, as long as it’s not overdone. My old Multimedia keyboard had several media control buttons, and a few other misc configurable buttons. The Ergo 4000 is similar, but the number of extra buttons have been reduced. There are volume +/- buttons, a mute and a Play/Pause button, as well as a calculator and web/search/mail buttons.
The “Favorites” buttons however, are a cool feature. Five, fully configurable buttons, that you can use to start any application. So you can use them to automatically start your favourite IM client, or media player, or whatever else you use on a regular basis.
Under the spacebar, back and forward buttons are available. They seem usefull, though I haven’t used them much yet. I’m just used to using the back & forward buttons on my MX500.

There is a “Zoom” slider in the middle, between the two sections of keys, though the main use I have for this is scrolling. Instead of using the mouse, scrolling can be done directly via this slider, and it’s a great feature.

Everyday Use
Many people stay away from ergonomic keyboards because of the key layout - and rightfully so. There is a slight learning curve when first using one - however, it’s not as scary as most people thing, and over time (I’ve had it for over two months now), I’ve become really accustomed to it. I might not type faster then I did with the old keyboard, but I type just as fast, and there’s the added bonus of my wrists not hurting anymore. The keypress is very good, and the keyboard isn’t noisy at all, which is very important to me.

I’ll be the first to admit that the first week of use, I was doing many mistakes, but once I got used to the keyboard, that changed. I find it to be very comfortable for day-to-day use, and I definitely like how sturdy and heavy it feels. At no point did it ever feel like it might slide away or feel fragile. And the front wrist support is very good and feels quite supportive.

People that have used Microsoft keyboards in the past, will know the F Lock function, through which various other functions are assigned to the F1-F12 keys. I’ve personally never used this, so I’m not going to comment on usefullness.

Overall:
I constantly use the computer, so having a comfortable keyboard is crucial. I’ve used various keyboards over the years, and I can honestly, after two months of use, say that the Ergo 4000 is the most comfortable keyboard I’ve used. The learning curve was not steep at all, and quite short, and I enjoy the extra buttons. It also looks very stylish sitting here on my desk. Gaming is not an issue at all, and overall it’s a great keyboard.

Good:
- Looks and feels great.
- Very sturdy.
- Very comfortable.
- Very mild learning curve.
- Extra buttons are useful and not overboard.

Bad:
- Ergo design might put people off.
- Slightly pricey.
- A bit big.
- Questionable usefullness of F Lock function.

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Review: Transcend T.sonic 620

Posted Sunday, November 27th 2005

I got tired of lugging around my aging Sony cd walkman. I love that thing to bits - I’ve had it for over 3 years now, and it has served me very well - in fact, it still works as flawlessly as the first day I got it. But it’s rather heavy and large, and I got somewhat tired of carrying it around, so I decided to get an mp3 player!

There are two main types of mp3 players out there - hard disk based (iPod & co.) and the flash memory based - the group that today’s topic of discussion belongs to. The Transcend T.sonic 620.

Main Features:
Capacity: 1 GB
Supported Formats: Mp3, WMA, WAV
Battery: 1 AAA battery, good for 15 hours (manufacturer’s claim)
Up to 20 preset radio stations.
Voice Recording
Repeat Function
User EQ & built-in EQ presets
+ more

Daily Use
I guess most people use their MP3 players on a daily basis. Using the 620 was easy enough. On Windows XP, you just plug it in an available USB port (either through the long USB cable, or the mini USB jack), and XP will recognize it as a removable hard disk. Then you just copy files onto it. The good thing here is that you can use it to move files around as well.
It’s limited to 450 files and 50 folders, which is probably more then anyone will ever want (or be able to fit on a 1 gb mp3 player), so that’s not really an issue. It’s also very light. Weighing in at 36 grams (without a battery, ~50 with), it’s very light and doesn’t get in the way. In the box, you’ll find a neck strap, a wrist strap, a carrying pouch (really nice), the earbuds, and 2 USB connectors (one with a cable, long enough, one direct connection jack) and a driver CD.

Sound quality is pretty good, although the earbuds that come with it are quite bad, and a bit too big, so they wouldn’t fit in my ears right. Luckily, I got my hands on some Philips earbuds that work much better, the sound is much clearer and much louder.
Navigating through the player is pretty straightforward, although a rocker-like button would have been much easier to use. Nevertheless, getting around all the options (and there are a lot) is quite easy, and all settings can be easily found.
The one thing that I found to be quite annoying is that there’s no dedicated shuffle button. Instead, I had to go in the options and select the ‘Random Repeat’ option. Not a big hassle, but it would have been easier if there was a dedicated shuffle button, or some sort of shortcut to take care of it.

Otherwise, moving around files is pretty easy. The file browser is easy to navigate, and it’s easy to skip tracks, fast forward through them or rewind them, and the play button doubles as a pause button aswell.

The T.sonic 620 also has a built in radio and a voice recorder. The radio performs quite well and reception is good. Obviously, because of the lack of a dedicated antenna, there is interference, but it’s good nevertheless. The voice recording function might come in handy if you want to take a quick note of something, and there are various levels of quality for voice recording, so potentially, hours can be recorded. Might come in handy if at some sort of a presentation. But ultimatively, I don’t see a real use for it. Still a nice option to have.

According to the manufacturer, battery life is expected to be around 15 hours. While I do think that this is a bit of an over estimation, and that in reality, battery life is around the 12 hour mark, 15 hours can be possible if the player is not tinkered with a lot. It has a screen saver option to preserve battery life aswell. It uses one AAA battery, and I think that this is an advantage over USB-charged MP3 players because there’s less of a dependency on a single point of charging. It also has an auto-power-off feature if the player has been idle for 5 or 10 minutes, and a really good OLED display, which is easy to see at all times.

So to sum up, the Transcend T.sonic 620 is a pretty good little mp3 player. It’s feature packed, has a decent battery life and it’s light enough to carry around and not be a hassle. On the other hand, the crappy earbuds that come with it, and the lack of a dedicated shuffle button are a bit of a letdown. It also takes a while to turn on when there are a lot of files, but that is to be expected.

Positive
- Small & Light
- Good sound quality
- Packed with features!
- Decent battery life.
- Easy to use and to upload files
- Can be used as a removable drive.
- Lots of accessories come out of the box.
- Good display.

Negative
- No dedicated shuffle key
- Crappy standard earbuds

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