Microsoft seems to have a
keyboard / mouse bundle for every day of the week, but this Wireless Laser Desktop 4000 setup (
the Wireless Optical Desktop 4000 is pictured) has some promising buttonry for making your Windows Vista and Windows Live experiences a bit easier. The bundle includes a Wireless Laser Mouse 5000 and a Comfort Curve keyboard, which features keys for zoom, favorites, Windows Gadget, Windows LiveCall and other hot keys. The mouse does the tilt wheel thing for four-way scrolling, and the pair will be retailing in April for $80.
Update: Added the official Laser Desktop 4000 pic, see if you can spot the difference! (Hint, we can't.)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
whiterhino200354 @ Mar 20th 2007 12:42PM
The Walmart in Dawsonville,GA already has these on sale.
bernard @ Mar 20th 2007 1:01PM
Because it's taking so long to release the Wireless Entertainment Desktop 8000.
s0crates82 @ Mar 20th 2007 1:27PM
Be vary wary of using lots of these in an office environment. When grouped together, signals get crossed, and the software is unlikely to tell you that the batteries in either the keyboard or the mouse are dead (as opposed to logitech stuff).
If you're going to get it for home use, then mazel tov, but if you're considering getting these in an environment where everyone else is using them... don't.
Mathew @ Mar 20th 2007 1:33PM
I just went through a horribly inexcusably frustrating situation "implementing" a Microsoft wireless "laser" mouse with Vista. It didn't work properly with plug & play, didn't find drivers it needed at Windows Update, and the disk it came with wouldn't run because it reported an "invalid operating system" when I tried the disk. I ended up needing to wait weeks for the boneheads to release a patch for their non-compliant hardware. Of course, even with the patch, the mouse caused the screensaver to stop functioning, until of course they released a patch for the patch, with the patch serving the purpose of filtering out non user input on HID devices....
Um yeah, okay, idiot that I am decided, against all my best intuition and experience with MS, to give them the benefit of the doubt on something as simple as a mouse.
The moral of the story? Stick with Logitech, much better hardware, and they know how to make things work with computers, unlike Microsoft...
GorgeousGeorge @ Mar 20th 2007 1:47PM
Agreed.
But I think the REAL moral of the story is not to buy a keyboard that screams "I haven't been laid since 1987" when spotted on your desk.
Simon P @ Mar 20th 2007 2:04PM
Hey, I have this exact keyboard and I definitely remember getting laid in '88. Hmmmmm, maybe it was 1888.......
fred @ Mar 20th 2007 2:50PM
WOW! This is awsome! They remapped a couple of keys for a couple of Vista features to "release" a set that I've had for a year, and a half! That's what I call innovation!
Maestro @ Mar 20th 2007 4:09PM
You forgot to add that when you plug in your Microsoft USB wireless receiver, your screensaver will stop working!
FIX IT ALREADY!
M
Skippy @ Mar 21st 2007 12:14AM
As to how you can tell it's the Wireless Laser Desktop 4000 and not the Wireless Optical Desktop 4000: the clue is on the bottom end of the mouse. Microsoft's laser mice (like the Wireless Laser Mouse 6000 I have on my work computer) have a triangle-shaped "Microsoft Laser Technology" insignia, whereas their optical mice (like the Wireless IntelliMouse Explorer 2.0 I have at home) have an oval-shaped "Microsoft Optical Technology" insignia.
Shrkn8r @ Apr 4th 2007 1:23AM
How do you turn off the Keyboard and the mouse? I know how to use these to shut down the computer, but I cannot find a way to turn off the separate units to conserve battery life.
Please help me!!!!!
Thank you
PS-My condolences extend from 1987 to 2007