wireless keyboard/mouse solution?

[jembow]

Hello:

I'm having trouble getting a wireless keyboard to work adequately on my 1.83mhz Mac Mini with OSX 10.5.

I have my Mac Mini in a cabinet in another room around the corner from my TV and need 3-4 meters of range. I turned off the internal Bluetooth and am using a IOGear USB 2.1 Bluetooth Micro Adapter and a ProMini Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard. It pairs up fine but looses a signal at about 2 meters.

I paired the Wireless Keyboard with my Dell WinXP laptop, placed the laptop next to the Mac Mini and have no problems with the desired range.

Any ideas for improvement? If not perhaps there is a wireless keyboard/mouse combo that can work off the wireless network similar to the Mobile Mouse App? (i would use that but my 2.0 iPhone won't recognize wireless networks).

Thanks,
-John

 

[Matthew Yohe]

Why are you not using the internal bluetooth?

 

[jembow]

I tired and had the same result. I did some research and apparently using the Bluetooth dongle increases the range.

 

[mstrze]

This sounds like a stretch...literally...to get this distance. About the only thing I could suggest is to get a USB M/F extension cable and place the dongle closer to where its going to be used?

You can't have the Mini in the same room? You said you have a wireless network.

Also, try placing the Mini as high up as you can to give it potentially better range.

 

[calaverasgrande]

In my recording studio I have been using the old (lucite) BT wireless keyboard with my mac mini. The mini is at least 20 feet away on the other side of a metal rack mount cabinet. Works fine. The BT mouse OTOH does not like being so far away.

 

[jembow]

I have rotated the mini so the dongle is facing the TV direction and was able to increase reception by a few feet...

I have a 10 ft USB extension cable ordered & hopefully getting the dongle up in the air and peeking around the corner will get me to where i need to be. Pretty much a "tin foil on rabbit ears" solution but beats having a 20 ft cord attached to the keyboard...

 

[mstrze]

Is there no way to have the mini in the same room as your keyboard and mouse?

Why does it need to be in the other room?

Serious question...with a wireless network there is no need to have your computer tied down to any one location unless you commonly use your computer in the other room and have some sort of set up that mirrors your display on your TV and want the ability to use it in either room. Heck, my internet connection is in my bedroom, so I have my Airport Extreme in there and a printer and HDD, BUT my desktop is 50 ft away in the office and all of my other Phones and laptops use the wifi signal from wherever they are.

Can you explain your set-up? You might not need to jump through all these hoops. I know it took me a bit to realize that I didn't have to have my computer tied down to my router. So maybe by "thinking different" you might not need this extreme and tenuous bluetooth connection that seems to be more problem than it's worth.

 

[philipma1957]

this is a hi end active usb cable with a smaller head


http://www.lindy-usa.com/5m-usb-2-slimline-active-extension-cable/42817.html


here is a fat head cable.

http://cgi.ebay.com/USB-2-0-Active-...ltDomain_0&hash=item3f059b25bf#ht_3789wt_1141


by the way I had to do what you did and the fat head active cabe was good. if you did not buy an active extension it may not work.

 

[LeathemA]

Bluetooth range is not the problem. It is the location of the antenna. I had the same problem as you and decided to take action.

I have this installed in the security slot on the back of the Mini:

http://www.orbitmicro.com/global/6-ufl-m--rpsma-f--pigtail-p-15030.html
http://www.orbitmicro.com/global/3db-rpsma-9727-p-15054.html

It is a really easy mod to do and I get about 40feet from this configuration. I also upgraded the wireless to a macbook pro n card and used the bluetooth antenna as the second antenna for the wireless card.

With this i get a connection of 130Mbit/s and bluetooth at 40feet, but all i needed was 12.