A Closer Look

Once out of the box we find that the keyboard has a very streamlined look and feel to it. It is definitely "Ultra Slim" and the two-tone black finish is excellent. The layout of the keys is pretty standard, with the exception of the large Enter key, moving the Backslash key to the left. Right away I also noticed how much the keys resemble that of those found on most notebooks. On the left end we can see the hot keys that are internet related. These keys are hard coded for the Home, Back, Forward, Email, and Favorites functions. Beneath there is a hot key for the Search function within the Windows operating system. On the right end at the top, we can find hot keys for the Sleep, My Computer, and Calculator functions. To the right, we can find hot keys for Media Player functions. There is a hot key to launch Windows Media Player, Back Skip, Forward Skip, Play, Mute, and Stop functions. Beneath those we can see the Media Wheel for volume adjustment, and three LEDs for Num Lock, Caps Lock, and Scroll Lock indication.


On the underside of the keyboard we find the rubber feet towards the front used to increase friction and keep the keyboard stationary during intense usage. To the rear we find the risers that simply snap into the open or closed position.


The phrase "Ultra Slim" is not an understatement. Check out the cross section view alongside a U.S. dime as a reference. The extremely low profile of the entire keyboard is amazing. Even with the risers in the open position we can still see that the keyboard can provide a comfortable and natural angle for the user.


Here are some additional shots to give you a better idea of the size of this keyboard. It is plain to see the similarities between the keys of the Ultra Slim and those of the Acer notebook. In the other picture we can see how the standard multimedia keyboard from Micro completely dwarfs the Ultra Slim. However, the Ultra Slim looks more natural and less clumsy than the giant.


Here we can see the USB to PS2 adapter as well as the USB connection from the keyboard itself. Once connected to the computer, we find that the LEDs on the keyboard are very bright. That gave me an impression that they might become a distraction during usage.