Wireless keyboard + num pad and mouse

[potz1024]

Hi all,

Need to replace my parents wireless Apple keyboard and Magic Mouse. The keyboard is the small one without the numeric pad, and a few broken keys. I know you can repair/replace keys, but they could really do with a numeric pad. The magic mouse has a broken battery cover clip etc.

Now, I don't know if its just me, but Apple seem to have lost the plot a little when it comes to pricing of keyboard and mouse accessories, £208 (129+79) for a keyboard and magic mouse seems a little crazy to me.

So, can anyone suggest any similarly nice alternatives at a cheaper price, from logitech etc? We like the flat design rather than anything over mechanical.

TIA

:wq

 

[BigMcGuire]

Cheap keyboards are cheap for a reason. That said, $129 + $99.99 is a bit steep imo, but having had Logitech keyboards ($20-$120+) I can say that the Apple keyboards come with quality.

The only problem I have with the Apple keyboard with numeric pad is that it is WAY too long and I have to hold my arm out too far for comfort to use the mouse.

To answer your question:

My wife has used this for the last few years and really likes it: https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-K75...+keyboard+mac&qid=1550594721&s=gateway&sr=8-3 --- highly recommend getting a USB extender so you can put the receiver right next to the keyboard.

https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Any...RZN2K4QM2WNHM0BCDZEV&qid=1550594849&s=gateway

I have used cheap $20 bluetooth keyboards. Between missed keys, connection issues, taking forever to wake up (going to sleep every 10 seconds) --- just not worth it.

 

[dwig]

Personally, over the last 35 years or so, I've encountered few keyboard failures. Those I've encountered were with thin keyboards on notebooks (~20 years ago on Dells & Thinkpads) and with recent Apple keyboards (3 failures in our office in the last 2 years). I've yet to have a Logitech keyboard fail.

I have a small Logitech K380 (bluetooth, no num pad, pairs with multiple devices, supports iOS macOS Android & Win) that I like. It's a close size match to the Apple wireless equivalent. My wife has a K800 that she likes (lighted, num pad, uses a dongle). Both have been used for over 4 years on various machines. Logi offers a variant of the K380 that has a num pad called the K780. It has the same key mechanism but is heavier and less portable. I got the K380 because it was easy to pack for travel.

Being left-handed, I don't encounter BigMcGuire's issue with full width "extended" keyboards as my mouse is on the left, near the main keys, rather that "way over there" on the right past the num pad. Right-handers may find the more compact num pad arrangement in keyboards similar to the K780 and those found on some larger notebooks preferable to the standard "extended" keyboard pattern found on most desktop keyboards with num pads.