Review on Rii X8 Portable Mini Wireless Keyboard with Touchpad Mouse Combo - 2.4GHz, 8 Colors RGB Backlit, Rechargeable Battery - Compatible with Google Android TV Box, PS3, PC, Pad, Nvidia Shield by Steven Doty

I have had several units of this type over the years and this is one of the best overall. However, it's not perfect. I don't like it when the right and left mouse buttons are semi-soft face buttons. They should be solid plastic shoulder buttons like any other model. The shoulder buttons are just easier to press and press in combination with other buttons. Combinations that are very easy to perform with other devices are actually much more difficult with this device. I also generally dislike the harshness of all the face buttons. Typing is less fun and more tedious than it needs to be. I've had cheaper devices with keys that were softer, felt nicer, and gave a nicer typing experience. I'm also disappointed by the lack of rollover. Hint words with 2 identical letters in a row, the second letter is almost always left out. Words like "look" end in "lok" unless I'm paying close attention and intentionally slowing down the typing speed for that word. This keyboard badly needs something like N-key rollover to solve this problem. The lack of a print screen button or combination of functions is also disappointing. The battery life of this device is also shorter than we would like. This is not much less than other similar models. But I've had some devices that last longer before needing a charge. However, the battery life of all the different devices I've tested is less than I'd like, so take that as a statement that the battery life could have been better rather than it's terrible. My last major complaint is the battery indicator. I've found that this device isn't very good at telling me when the battery is low. I've had several occasions where I've used the keyboard. and all of a sudden it just goes dead. When there is a low battery warning it is very subtle. I've had other devices that make it very clear with flashing lights and even start using a clear power saving mode when the device is on but shuts down quickly. after there was no action for 2-3 seconds. This saves battery and gives me a relatively long time to use the device, but I'm aware that it needs to be charged. Well what I did The scroll wheel is by far the best part of this device. Any other small wireless keyboard manufacturer should include this feature, it makes a world of difference compared to using a trackpad for scrolling. The scroll wheel could be a bit more precise. when I encountered several situations where while watching a video I tried to use the scroll wheel to move forward or backward in the video and the video jumped further than intended. This is something that doesn't happen with a standard mouse scroll wheel. So when you dive into the scroll wheel, the interpretation of the wheel spin could be tweaked a bit, making this feature almost perfect. I also like the overall shape of the device, it's curved in all the right places for a comfortable hand hold. The shell is also good compared to some other units I've used. The only thing that could be an improvement here is that I've had a few devices that came with some sort of velvet cover and that would be a nice addition. to this device. However, this is a minor thing and not the most important part that needs improvement. The feel of the case is quite appropriate and not deterrent. I also like the multiple lighting options, especially the tri-color mode. However, the dark blue mode could still be improved a bit. I've found that with this backlight mode, every other button is slightly dimmer than the others, to the point where the dimmer buttons are harder to read. I really like this color, but the key backlighting for the dark blue mode needs to be more balanced and maybe a bit brighter for it to be more comfortable. It would also be great to be able to choose colors and color positions for tricolor mode instead of just having a pre-selected option. I don't know how feasible it is, but it would be. All in all, until something better comes along, I recommend this device to most others. The scroll wheel alone is worth it. is a noticeable difference from other devices and a definite downside, albeit not a crippling one.