Mini-VIK vs WK-610 - USB Keyboard Reviews

1. Introduction

I never would have imagined that I would sit here one day and find myself evaluating keyboards. To be honest with you, I took them for granted though I had a personal preference to what kind of keyboards I liked. First, here's my prejudice: I like Microsoft keyboards. I love the way the keys feel and the tactile response of the keystrokes. I like old IBM style keyboards even more. Yep.. the clickity clack noise of those keys were music to my ears. I also HATE and despise mushy keyboards and to that end, I don't particularly like keyboards made by Apple. I'm sorry but I just can't type on them all that well. (Perhaps I just can't type?) So what prompted me today to look into a couple of keyboards was a result of the ProGear tablet that I had purchased from SonicBlue a month ago. A tablet is nice and dandy but until hand writing recognition is nailed to perfection - nothing beats having a good keyboard lying around. Using a Microsoft or a Logitech keyboard for something like a tablet would really be overkill. Heck the keyboard would be twice the size of the tablet so that just would not do. What I needed were some small sized keyboards that were really meant to be mobile in nature and design. The other important requirement for the small keyboard was that they were USB based. Why you might ask? My ProGear only has a USB port. So today, we'll evaluate two fairly different keyboard designs that will strike (parden the pun) different audiences: The Grandtec mini-VIK keyboard and the OVA Technology Slim Media Keyboard WK-610.

2. The GrandTec Mini-VIK USB Keyboard

In case you hadn't figured out the meaning of VIK, it stands for "Virtually Indestructible Keyboard". I've personally seen the regular VIK keyboard at my local CompUSA stores and I think they're just plain ugly. However the mini-VIK keyboard caught my attention because 1) it was USB based and 2) it was actually black in color. Where did I find this keyboard? again - CompUSA. So without further ado, let us introduce the specs for this keyboard.

Number of Keys: 85 keys

Dimensions: 12 x 7 x 1/4 inch (width is including the USB connector. Without the USB connector, the keyboard is roughly 5.5 inches long)

Mini VIK Box

3. OVA WK-610 Slim Media Keyboard

I found this keyboard through a posting on the Yahoo! group for ProGear. I'm amazed that someone even managed to find this keyboard since it's so obscure in naming. After google'ing the keyboard model number, I managed to find one vendor who sold this keyboard. KD Computers had this keyboard and they shipped it out to me in only a few business days. Why did I end up getting a hold of this keyboard? Simple - I wanted a small keyboard that was also solid in design - something that I could use while lying on my bed or on my couch. This keyboard also stands out in the fact that it comes with a small 2 port USB hub. Here are the specs for this keyboard

Number of keys: 91 keys with 3 of the keys for ACPI function (sleep, wake, power)

Dimensions: 11.5 x 5.5 x 1/3 inch roughly.

WK-610 Box

4. Performance and Evaluation

IMHO, keyboard evaluations are extremely subjective. One person's horrible experience is another person's pleasure so go figure. In light of this, I'll provide you with personal observations of the two keyboards and leave the decision hopefully in your hands.

The following is a picture comparing the two keyboards in size. As you can see the WK-610 keyboard is actually slightly smaller than the mini-VIK.

Comparing the two USB keyboards

4.1 Mini-VIK Impressions

First off, let's start with the mini VIK keyboard. I think it's COOL that I can take a small keyboard and roll it up and basically pack it away for later use. The keyboard is extremely light and portable and would make a great on-the-spot keyboard. Remember the piano in the Tom Hanks movie "Big"? Well that's what the mini-VIK reminds me of except much smaller in size. Most of the keyboard is actually fairly well spaced though a few keys annoyed me. Perhaps it's just me but some keys felt better than others when I depressed them.

Of course the smaller size also results in some problems. First off, the keyboard is much too mushy for my own tastes. Without the tactile feedback that I am used to, I often had to look at the keyboard to see if I was even pressing the correct keys. I couldn't tell if the flat out design actually helped my wrist as Grandtec states on their packaging but I can imagine that over time you'll probably feel a bit better from the sheer fact that your hand is not at an angle offset of your wrist. My two major complaints with the keyboard layout lies with the shift keys and the backspace key. Both keys are way too small and for some reason the shift keys are broken up into 2 keys. I imagine it's too allow for easy rollup of the keyboard but I tend to hit directly in between the 2 shift buttons on the left hand side of the keyboard. And when I make a typo mistake and reach for the backspace key, it's not where I expect it! That's basically because the backspace key is the size of a normal key on this keyboard. Please make it larger Grantec. But on the plus side, it's got that cool factor of being able to be rolled up and stowed away. I had no problems connecting this keyboard to a USB port on a Windows XP laptop. No external drivers were necessary of course. So if you're a person who likes the mushy, extremely low tactile response keyboard, then you might actually like this product. I for one will only use it when I need a portable keyboard to carry around.

Box Opened	The mini VIK Keyboard

Now you see it...	Now you don't	From the bottom

4.2 WK-610 Impressions

After using the mini-VIK keyboard, I came to realize that I really missed having a solid framework for a keyboard. Why? Sometimes you just need to lie on your couch and you can't have a mushy keyboard placed on your lap. It just doesn't work all that well. When I opened the box containing this keyboard, I nearly fell in love with it at first sight. The color scheme was nice and the sheer size of this keyboard astounded me. Not only was it a bit shorter in length and width than the mini-VIK, it also had two USB ports in the back of the keyboard!

Ahh but how does it feel baby? Well the small size again makes an impact but in a different way compared to the mini-VIK. Whereas the mini-VIK had normal sized keys minus the shift and backspace keys, the WK-610 key size were slightly smaller than your normal key size. The key size(length) for the WK-610 is roughly 1.0 cm whereas a Microsoft Office Keyboard has keys that are 1.2 cm wide. In fact the mini-VIK also has 1.2 cm keys. This makes a big difference to someone who's used to the layout of a desktop keyboard. Though it's not hard to eventually familiarize yourself with the WK-610, it would have been nice to have slightly larger keys. However, I suppose that would increase the length of this keyboard. The WK-610 actually reminds me of some really small ultralight notebooks out there the keyboard space is limited. The ACPI function keys worked perfectly under Windows XP and I had no problems in waking up my PC from sleep. Another slightly annoying problem with this keyboard is of course the keystroke depth. The tactile response is better than the mini-VIK but I still yearn for more. I press a key for only a short distance and the key is registered. I'd like a little more distance before that happens but again - that's just me. Let's not forget about those two USB ports in the back. They definitely do work and offer even more "usefulness" to this keyboard.

WK-610 in the box	Side Profile	Back with 2 USB ports

5. Summary

Summarizing this isn't exactly easy since the keyboards in many ways strike different target audiences. They both offer portability due to their small size. However the miniVIK offers the most portability due to the very nature of it's makeup. You can bend, fold, and squeeze that keyboard into tight corners and spaces. The same can't be said of the WK-610. If you're also a person who makes a mess with coffee spills or food crumbs then the miniVIK is a great solution for you due to the fact that none of that mess is going to interfere with the keys. However if you are looking for a solid small keyboard that gives you some expandability to boot, then the WK-610 is an ideal solution. It's perfect for places where real estate is at a premium. It's also small enough to carry with you in a briefcase or backpack but it can't possibly fit into areas that the miniVIK can. In the end the right USB keyboard will depend upon your own tastes and of course, needs. Do you like mushy soft keys? Then the mini VIK could be good for you. Do you like a more solid keyboard with a minimal tactile response? Then the WK-610 is for you. As with many things in life, you can't have them all when it comes to small USB keyboards. There is always an area that is sacrificed in favor of something portable.

Oh, for all of you SFF people out there - the WK-610 looks pretty sweet next to a cube like PC like a gBOX or a SS40G in my opinion.

gBox with the USB WK-610 Keyboard

If you have any comments about this or any other USB keyboard solution, please comment about it in the forums. The thread for this article can be found here