Microsoft Wireless Comfort Desktop 5050 (PP4-00001)

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Ill start off this review by saying that I do like this keyboard. The mouse, eh.. its all right but theres some minor gripes. One gripe universally that affects both the mouse and keyboard is the USB dongle. Its a bit too long and I would prefer the dongle from the MS Sculpt keyboards or Logitech transceivers. Theyre just smaller, more compact, seem more durable and doesnt get in the way. Ill review the mouse and the keyboards pros and cons separately. Keyboard: Pros: Not a split keyboard so its a bit smaller in width than most ergo keyboards which ensures closer mouse placement for less RSI strain. (Plenty of people forget about mouse placement and how it affects you). Its keys are quiet and it gives a durable feeling to it overall. Simple and effective layout for an everyday user. The palm rest is nice and the overall keyboard has a sleek and cool look to it. Cons: You have to download the driver from Microsofts website to customize the extra keys (1-5) and to see if the lock keys are activated. When accessing some of the lock keys, ex."Function lock", which I and many others prefer a regular toggle button and not a lock function; it doesnt indicate whether its activated without the driver. A simple light indicator to show whether the keys are "locked" or not would be helpful. I also dont like the fact that theres 2 removable "legs" to raise the board. I would prefer everything be attached so theres no extra pieces that could get lost. Lastly, theres a couple of buttons that youre not sure what it does and it would help if the manual indicated their functions. (TIP: the button next to the right ALT is a switch task button, and you might need the driver for it to work properly. At least, Im pressing it without the driver, and nothing is happening). Mouse: Pros: Its a larger mouse so it fits in the palm of your hand fuller, which can be helpful since you dont want to be gripping too hard or over-exerting your hand muscles. Cons: The mouse is just a bit awkward itself. The back and forward keys are on both opposite ends of your hands so your ring finger would unconsciously hit the forward key when just holding the mouse. One note: I couldnt find an ON/OFF button on the mouse (apparently its on the bottom, but I mustve missed it when I looked there). So there you have it. A good keyboard (albeit a few gripes) overall with an okay mouse combo. Decent affordable price. A bit more compact which is nice for RSI/Carpal sufferers to have closer mouse placement. Its probably one of the more affordable keyboards on Amazon that doesnt cut too many corners on quality.

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I like this keyboard and the mouse primarily for its design and aesthetics. However its been only a week since I bought it and the mouse is already having issues. It just stopped working. I read somewhere online that taking batteries out for a while will help. I did this and it actually helped to make it work again, but obviously this is a some type of an issue that will most likely keep happening. Also the first few days of use it was noisy and each click felt like pressing a squiky spring. It went away but it was somewhat annoying. I was going to return it but I do like the keyboard enough to want to keep it even if I end up using a different mouse with it. There are a couple of things that could be improved. As some other reviewers mentioned, the USB stick is too long and it sticks out. Compared to all the other ones out there, this feels somewhat outdated. Not a major issue for me since I use this at work and on a desktop computer and I dont really see it, but I can see that this may be an issue for someone with a laptop or some other smaller portable device. There would be a possibility of breaking or loosing it with movement. Something to keep in mind for sure since this would render the keyboard useless. The keyboard keys are nice, not too soft or too hard, just right and relatively quiet. The wave design makes it comfortable and ergonomic for an extended time use and I like the built-in wrist rest. One thing I dont like is that the special function keys are different size than other letters and in order to press any of them fingers have to slide down and away from the rest of the keys. I have to look down to see what Im pressing. They are also almost flat with the keyboard which doesnt really make sense to me but again these are not primary keys so Im not too hung up on it. I still like the keyboard and most likely will keep it.

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A keyboard is a keyboard, right? No, this one is awesome! The gentle curve of the keyboard makes it so much easier to type when you sit in a corner with an arm propped up on each side. I never realized how much my wrists were angled on a straight keyboard until I started using this one. Ive always typed very fast, and with this keyboard, I can type even faster because it sits just right for me. Its super comfortable, including the wrist support. I downloaded the Microsoft driver to configure the hotkeys, but probably wont bother. I find it easier to mouse over to what I want rather than look down and find a key. But its there if I decide that I want to configure it. This keyboard is definitely more expensive than most, but it is a Microsoft product, and they generally have a lengthy life. So far, its great, and Ill update if something changes. Ive been using this product for nearly a month and changing my review to a 4 because the mouse is awful. Throw it away kind of awful. It is big and loud and has no redeeming qualities other than it works. The clicking sound is incredibly loud and annoying. Im throwing away the mouse. But, I absolutely love the keyboard!

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I had a much earlier model that I loved, so I bought this one thinking it would be as good or better. The mouse is a piece of junk. It is an optical mouse and the mouse pointer is jerky and jumps all over and is extremely difficult to control. Ive changed mouse pads, cleaned mouse pads and mouse. I moved the USB thing to a different USB port closer to the mouse. Still it jumps around a lot. It seems to be worst when it is dark. The keyboard is ok, but the old one was better. No light for caps lock or number lock keys. Function keys are TINY. So is the Esc key. Sometimes the first few characters dont type. Im going to toss these and go to a local store to buy another keyboard and mouse.

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Dont know where to start even. The KB has programmable" function keys plus extra keys on top. But nothing works "out of the box." For example Im used to hit the F2 in Windows Explorer to rename a file that is selected. In Excel, F2 allows to edit a cell. These things do not work. I downloaded the Microsoft utility for the KB/Mouse and it "allows" you to assign functions to all these keys. But it does not say how. I have no clue how to make F2 do the regular things using the utility. The mouse scrolling is slooooooooooow. Again the utility allows you to change the speed with the scroll bar between "slow" and "fast". But nothing really happens. You use the scroll wheel in the center, and the page barely moves. Moreover the reaction of the scroll wheel is very poor. You start turning the wheel for a while before the scroll function catches on. I have been using this KB/Mouse for over a week.and decided to trash it. A waste of time. And Im using it with another Microsoft product, a Surface Pro 3! No excuses.

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had it for a month. At first missing keystrokes but now completely disconnecting. Hopefully just a bad one and i can get an exchange. Update. Product is absolute garbage. I was issued an exchange and the same issues. random disconnecting and forget about typing in your windows log on. It will not catch the first key entered. I swapped in a cheap dell wireless keyboard and mouse and they work flawlessly. I disable the bluetooth sleep function too and the same issue. First time i have ever felt so compelled to write a bad review for something but i would hate for anyone else to waste money on this product.

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So, I got hooked on "Microsoft Ergonomic" keyboards since the late 1990s--I guess almost 20 years now. Generally, these have been very comfortable keyboards that just "felt" right and were very easy to use as a result. This particular keyboard does follow in this tradition on the physical level. My hands are relaxed when typing, and its all good. Unfortunately, the "wireless" function is not working right. Very frequently, the first character I type is ignored. This is especially painful when the first key-down is a ctrl or alt combination, which means that something else is selected and it gets replaced with the ctrl/alt combo char vs the control sequence being executed. On a more basic level, renaming files with F2 or refreshing firefox or chrome browser with F5 also does not work because keyboard presses are just sometimes ignored. Somehow, Microsoft lost its track. Cant blame it on the OS--they own this also. Maybe non-MS HW is best now. Dont know. Im sticking to wired HW for now (non-MS) and will figure this out for myself. Meanwhile, I would recommend you stay away from Microsoft keyboards.

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Update: After a month or so of using this one, I noticed this keyboard wasnt really as ergonomic as I thought it would be at all. I have an extra one of these and noticed one weekend my hands got all tingly trying to type quickly on this thing. I stuck with it for a while, but realized that i wasnt really getting what i truly wanted out of this keyboard which was something i could type on a lot for long periods of time and feel comfortable with, while at the same time being able to type super fast. I was also somehow getting tendonitis on a few of my fingers from using this and other so-called "ergonomic" keyboards. Your mileage may vary, but this whole experience has made me realize whats ergonomic for some people may not be so ergonomic for others and that just because a keyboard has a higher price tag does not guarantee quality whatsoever. There have only been a few keyboards where I know i could do this for sure, namely the Logitech MK120 keyboard, and now the K740 which im having a blast typing on. As for the Comfort Curve, ill probably keep it around as a backup and sell the extra one i have in my room, but i wont really miss it that much. It turned out to be a mediocre keyboard at best. The Ergo 4000 i found to be even worse with its super mushy keys and the several times i developed some RSI problems using that one. I am very picky with the keyboards i use because i do a lot of writing at my job and after work i also do coding on the side, so its super important to me that i have something where i can feel comfortable typing on for hours on end and sadly, i dont think this keyboard was truly the best fit for such a purpose. I never used the mouse on this one, and heard there were tons of problems with it. This is the best keyboard Ive ever used hands down. The keys feel just right and for my small hands, everything about the design just works super well for easily reaching the keys without having to think too much about where they are. Im a very fast touch typist, and tried other keyboards, but they kept slowing me down and irritated my hands a lot, like this mechanical keyboard I was using at work for a while. Ive tried the Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 for a month and could not get used to the split design at all and always felt like I had to press very deep to get something to register on the screen, making my hands really uncomfortable. I recently tried out the Logitech Comfort Curve for a few days, thought it was better than a lot of keyboards I used, but couldnt stand how noisy it was and the keys on it were too firm for my tastes. I use this with a small Logitech mouse and have been excited just to type again because of how nice, soft and comfortable the keys are, reminding me a lot like how the keys on my MacBook Air I used to have were. They dont exasperate any RSI issues Ive had in the past either. Works perfectly with Linux. You just need to put in the batteries, stick the dongle on your USB, and youre good to go. I cant imagine using anything else now. Comes in handy for all the marketing and copywriting material I have to come up with at work each day, and then all the coding and programming I do when I get home, so with all the typing I have to do each day, a great keyboard is a must. Also, heres a tip when youre shopping for ergonomic keyboards. Whats "ergonomic" for one person might not be for others. Go to a store like Best Buy and try out the keyboards there before buying and when you find the one that seems to feel amazing in your hands, go with that one. Thats how I figured out this was really the right keyboard for me without having to spend more time ordering online, using the keyboard for a few weeks and then realizing it still wasnt the best choice for me.

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I absolutely love this product! I purchased this combo to replace the wireless mouse and keyboard that came with my new computer. I am not a fan of wireless keyboards and mice and the original ones that came with my computer illustrate my pet peeve; theres a lag between when I press a key or click on the mouse and when it registers. I am extremely happy to say the Microsoft 5050 combo is lightning fast. When I press a button on the keyboard or move the mouse, it registers on the screen instantly. I also like the contour of the keyboard with the built in wrist rest. The keyboard itself is very quiet and feels solid. The mouse is also solid with a nice rubberized coating on the sides. This is such a well built product that just works. My only complaint is that the USB dongle is large. It isnt one of the tiny ones used by Logitech wireless products. This Microsoft dongle is the size of a standard flash drive. It isnt a huge deal but I would have preferred a smaller USB dongle that isnt sticking out of the side of my all in one computer.

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The Keyboard- Isgood except that the function keys are way to short. Microsoft should have left them at the same height as the rest of the keys. If you dont use the function keys in excel regularly this keyboard is for you, otherwise think twice. It will take some time to adjust to the lower keys. Additionally there is very little spacing between keys and and the keys are slightly bigger. If you have fat fingers stay clear as it is very easy to accidentally hit the wrong key. Lastly there is not a light that indicates if Caps Lock is on. Yes you can find out by typing but that seems like a pretty generic thing to have on a keyboard! If I could I would go back to my old keyboard by the "C" key kept breaking. The Mouse- The mouse way to wide. The back and forward buttons are way too big and very easy to accidentally push. Luckily if you are ok with disabling them completely there is a way, it just isnt easily found online. See instructions below- Go to [...] Then scroll to "X-Mouse Button Control" review as the first review is no longer compatible for Windows 10. Download the X-Mouse Button Control and edit mouse button 4 for back and mouse button 5 for forward. Also note that when using the buttons the back is on the left and the forward is on the right. Since Im disabling it not an issue but I have heard rumbles from people they dont like this and would rather them be switched. By downloading the above you can swap them. Note I do no work for X-Mouse Button Control I was just very frustrated with the mouse as I kept losing nearly complete e-mails because I would accidentally hit the back button.

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