Freedom Bluetooth Wireless Keyboard Review
I’ve always been a huge fan of bluetooth keyboards. So when I received the Freedom BT Wireless Keyboard for my Treo 650, I was eager see what it could do.
The keyboard is 6″ x 3.75″ x 1″, weighs 7 ounces, and comes with a zippered case. It arrives folded up like a clam. The outside has an attractive sliver and black pattern.
It’s powered by 2 AAA batteries that are thankfully provided by the manufacturer. (I hate whey my gratification must wait for a battery run to the store!) With the bluetooth connected continuously, the device stays powered for several days. Left in standby mode, the batteries last at a week.
To open the unit, there is a catch on the side that slides. Once laid flat, you slide another locking catch at the top of the unit, and push the keys together.
There is a stand that tucks away into the framing. The stand is spring loaded and can be locked in between the two halves of the keyboard or can stand alone. The Treo 650 is a little top heavy. So some care must be shown in standing up the device.
If you look closely at the picture above, you can see that there is a power switch in the lower left corner of the opened keyboard. There is also a small LED that flashes green every 2 seconds to let you know that you have a connection.
Before using the accessory with your Treo 650, you must install software from a CD. (Alternatively, you can download the software directly to your device by using Blazer to visit http://www.frekey.com.) The driver software enables you to both connect to your keyboard and configure it for use. You can set various features, such as the typing repeat rate and typing repeat delay. Lastly, it allows you to assign 10 function keys for applications.
One complaint that I have is that the keys are not full sized. On the other hand, the form factor is small without sacrificing a full set of keys. (There are 65 of them to be precise!) I find the trade off acceptable. The keyboard works well for writing memo’s, emails, todo lists, and other documents.
Pros
1. Wireless with no cable to connect or carry
2. A full set of 65 keys
3. Compact and lightweight design
4. Long battery life
5. Free carrying case
6. Low price
Cons
1. No full size keys
2. Care must be used when setting the Treo in the stand
Conclusion
The unit is sturdy and reliable. It’s a must have accessory for anyone doing a serious amount of text entry and traveling. The cost is $99.00 retail (though it’s on sale in mytreo.net/store for $89.95), which is substantially cheaper than the Thinkoutside BT Keyboard and other bluetooth keyboards.
Related Links
Click here to purchase this product from mytreo.net/store!
Filed under: Accessory reviews
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I just got one of these Freedom keyboards too. I can’t say I’m quite as excited about it. In general you can kind of use it. I really hate the tight squeeze you have when trying to type with these tight keys.
I really wish someone would come out with a full size keyboard like what we use to have with the classic Palm III’s and Palm V’s that would physically connect to the keyboard and not do the wireless approach.
My big problem with this keyboard was that it did not support the 5-way navigator even though the instruction manual says it does. I’ve checked periodically to see if there has been a new driver posted that corrected this shortcoming, but so far there does not seem to be an update. It’s a big minus to always having to use the stylus to navigate.
Hi guys first of all I’m very sorry your not happy with your keyboards. If you can return them I would do so. Secondly, my review of this keyboard was just my opinion of it at the time I received and used it. I have nothing to do with what is purchased to sell at this website. Yes I review for this website but that’s it. If your looking for a keyboard with fullsize keys I suggest you take a look at the Thinkoutside BT Keyboard. It cost more but does have fullsize keys and works very well. I have one of those personally as well. Again, guys I appreciate your comments good or bad and respect your opinions, but I don’t get paid by this website or any other. I do this on my own merrit and my reviews are my honest opinions. I hope you both find keyboards that suit your needs.
Cheers, Derek Simmerman
I think the hardware is pretty good and as usable as likely possible for that size package. Mine doesn’t sit exactly flat right now - I hope the hinge gets a bit looser with some more use. I like that you can also leave the two halves spread apart - a little bit more ergonomic. The bluetooth range is pretty impressive with the Treo.
However, the palm driver is annoying because:
-it requires a screen tap to start (first start driver, then tap on a tick box, then switch to desired app) no 5-way support
-it requires a screen tap to finish (a warning dialog pops up to say connection has been lost, and that dialog does not support the 5-way)
-it doesn’t automatically reconnect
-it has support for activating only a few common on-screen buttons (The driver for the GoType keyboard can activate any button using a shortcut system - this is a much more flexible system)
-you can’t activate and navigate the menus
-in essence, you still need your stylus or built-in keyboard to get some things done.
One tip - if you are unhappy with the key layout, with a bit of looking around, you can edit the driver in a hex editor to reassign the key values. I’ve done this to add the most common foreign characters as ctrl-key combinations. For some stupid reason, whoever designed this keyboard believed that people would type the copyright symbol more than umlauted characters which are as common as abc’s in european languages… Entering accented characters is an exercise in complete frustration requiring at least five key strokes to enter one character!!
Let’s hope the driver is improved. Another example, the shortcut for ‘backlight off’ brings up a custom brightness slider that can’t be controlled from the keyboard or the 5-way. Crazy.
A few minor driver changes would make this keyboard much better.
It doesn’t automatically reconnect with the palm even if you have it set to reconnect in the BTKeybd program or not. Each time the keyboard is turned on you have to manually go into the BTKeybd application to pair with it.
Also If I try to sleep the palm it wakes up the palm twice with an error message in the BTKeybd. The same error also apears twice when I turn off the keyboard. I find this very annoying.
As a Warning. Freedominputs tech support seems to be unresposive. I created a ticket on their website and it has been open without comment from them for a month and 4 days. I put in a request for followup after 6 days and a request to see if a human had even looked at the ticket but they hadn’t figured out the solution 8 days after that. Their live internet support hasn’t been up any of the 12 times I have checked during the past month even during times where UK time would be between 9 and 5.
I have read and details seem to confirm that this is actualy a OEM of chainpus’s smartphonemate bk600 product. http://www.chainpus.com updates there software versions faster than freedominput. They use a zipped folder for the installer so mac users can get the PRC out of the files folder. However a benefit of freedom keyboards is that while you are on the road you can go to http://www.frekey.com and download it directly to the treo. In either case uninstall old versions first as updating without deleting can cause issues.