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by jwells89 887 days ago
I can’t see carrying one of these for use with a phone/tablet (at least not with this version’s chunkiness) but something like this with a trackpoint added would make a great companion for a home theater PC. Even better if it had multi-pairing so it could switch between a PC, console, streaming box, etc.

Currently am using a Lenovo ThinkPad Keyboard II for this purpose which is pretty good (dual RF/BT modes let me switch between devices, trackpoint is better than the chintzy integrated trackpads in most couch-keyboards), but something that takes up less coffee table space and is more like a remote would be even better.

2 comments

Have you looked at the handheld keyboard-trackpad units that Rii makes? They don’t quite tick all your boxes, but I think it could still be a step in the right direction.

I am quite happy with my Rii I8X. The trackpad exceeded my expectations—I have no complaints. Having it centred makes a big difference, compared to the wobbly experience with the full-size units where it’s on the side.

My one complaint is that I can’t quite touch-type on it. But that’s probably OK if it’s for occasional use with an HTPC.

I think other brands make similar keyboard units with mini trackballs, but I don’t think I have seen any with trackpoints.

There are tons of these devices, I got one for $10 or so, it's the size of a mobile phone and comes with a full keyboard, trackpad, media keys, mouse keys, etc.