[alnamvet68]

For me, it will never be worth the wait so long as they have $0.10 worth of cheap vinyl, and $0.25 worth of rubber, coupled with a $5.00 poorly secured keyboard, and sold at $120.00, RIM will be waiting long past the next millenium before they get a piece of my financial good and plenty.

[webosdropout]

Depends what you want it for. I bought one and quickly gave it to my wife who loves it.

I do all of my hard work on my laptop. Any files I need I port it over to the PB and uses it a lot for business presentation. Since I dont do any heavy typing on it, the screen keyboard works just fine. I found the weight and extra thickness was taken away from the portability I needed for my work.

However, my wife would rather use her PB than a laptop and she loves it.

[apengue1]

I like it a lot. It was different at first, and took getting used to, but it has really grown on me and I really enjoy having it. Its a little heavier but it really doesn't bother me. Imagine just carrying a novel around all day, that's honestly what it feels like.

[Thunderbuck]

For me, it will never be worth the wait so long as they have $0.10 worth of cheap vinyl, and $0.25 worth of rubber, coupled with a $5.00 poorly secured keyboard, and sold at $120.00, RIM will be waiting long past the next millenium before they get a piece of my financial good and plenty.

With all respect, the keyboard/case combo does NOT feel cheap. Both pieces are quite solid and the touchpad works really well.

[alnamvet68]

With all respect, the keyboard/case combo does NOT feel cheap. Both pieces are quite solid and the touchpad works really well.

I have absolutely no doubt that it works very well. In fact, it is the one accessory I have been waiting for from RIM since I support and advocate going OEM for all one's accessory needs, What I take issue with is the extremely poor choice of materials in this package, that I would not even care to b1tch about if the item was sold, at say, $49.95 MSRP; but at $120.00 MSRP, I just don't see the value. I would gladly pay full price if it was in real leather, and if the keyboard was somehow incased or clipped in securely as the PB currently is. Cheap vinyl and 4 corner rubber bands for the keyboard just doesn't do it for me.

[Old Davy]

I too, absolutely wanted this OEM keyboard with trackpad, which does indeed connect and work reliably with no droputs for me. Wake up the Playbook, toggle on the Bluetooth, switch the keyboard on and within seconds the mouse arrow appears ready to navigate. This is after initially pairing the keyboard with its unique 6 digit code, of course. "Set it and forget it" I have also paired it to the 2 other PB's, which is done with a generated code unique to each tablet.
After all the research I decided not to wait until the keyboard 'might' be released as a stand-alone accessory.
Since I jumped on the Source pre-order at $99 with in-store pickup I got it at the lowest early adopter price. Consider it as a $60 super slim keyboard with trackpad in a $39.99 case.
As mentioned by several folks, although the RIM case is well made and solid I too take issue with its design & function implementations.
So, I built my own by modifying the leather ROOTS Portfolio case from Crackberry Store.ca for $29.95. Now I have the case worthy of the Playbook, that I wanted.
If you haven't read about and seen what I did it was posted about here:

Official Blackberry Mini Keyboard Now Here!!!!!

This is only one of many options possible if you seek a case for the PB & KB to suit your needs.

As for the OEM case I sold it - without the keyboard - to a buddy at work who stores his slim daytimer and other ducuments where the KB used to be. Being skilled at thumb-typing on his Torch (which I will never be), he's bridged to his PB.

[greatwiseone]

I picked up the mini keyboard last week, and I'm generally pretty happy with it. I had to go offsite for work and had to make some changes to the document and so I fired up Citrix after tethering my BB to the PB and edited the document using the mini keyboard.

The keyboard's made very well and so is the case (basically a modified journal case).I find the whole combo slightly heavy given how light the PlayBook is. I have the convertible case as well, and so one way is just to carry the mini keyboard using something else (i.e. the neoprene case) and keep my playbook in the convertible case.

The only issue I have with the mini keyboard is that it's hard to do the gestures on the touchpad (probably cause it's the first time I have used a multi-touch keyboard).

It's an expensive purchase, but since I use the PlayBook for work and I type all the time, it's been great.

Highly recommended to those who use the PB for work A LOT. I'm not sure if people who are using just to browse the web and play games really need it.

[hreiner1]

yeeeeeeeeeeeeeees its worth the wait

wait 6 months and you can buy it for $69 on UBid or EBay

[cycomyk]

I picked up the mini keyboard last week, and I'm generally pretty happy with it. I had to go offsite for work and had to make some changes to the document and so I fired up Citrix after tethering my BB to the PB and edited the document using the mini keyboard.

The keyboard's made very well and so is the case (basically a modified journal case).I find the whole combo slightly heavy given how light the PlayBook is. I have the convertible case as well, and so one way is just to carry the mini keyboard using something else (i.e. the neoprene case) and keep my playbook in the convertible case.

The only issue I have with the mini keyboard is that it's hard to do the gestures on the touchpad (probably cause it's the first time I have used a multi-touch keyboard).

It's an expensive purchase, but since I use the PlayBook for work and I type all the time, it's been great.

Highly recommended to those who use the PB for work A LOT. I'm not sure if people who are using just to browse the web and play games really need it.

thanks for taking time and for your input

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk

[cycomyk]

yeeeeeeeeeeeeeees its worth the wait



wait 6 months and you can buy it for $69 on UBid or EBay

LOL! true that

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk

[cycomyk]

update: cancelled.

___________________________________
Blackberry 9900
Blackberry Playbook
"Carpe Diem"

[mmcpher]

I just got mine after a long wait. I should search this, but it doesn't seem to have predictive text. I just opened native email and on the keyboard/case, no predictive text. But, with the same email open, if I go to the touchscreen, swipe up the onscreen keyboard and start typing, the predictive text reappears?

[cycomyk]

I just got mine after a long wait. I should search this, but it doesn't seem to have predictive text. I just opened native email and on the keyboard/case, no predictive text. But, with the same email open, if I go to the touchscreen, swipe up the onscreen keyboard and start typing, the predictive text reappears?

good for you i don't know, predictive text doesn't make any sense IMO for a netbook like setup, for a cellphone or tablet yeah

___________________________________
Blackberry 9900
Blackberry Playbook
"Carpe Diem"

[sjefferson21]

IDK its probably just me but I like the keyboard on the pb. Just depends on how you're typing on it (one handed, or holding pb like a phone and using thumbs).

[cycomyk]

IDK its probably just me but I like the keyboard on the pb. Just depends on how you're typing on it (one handed, or holding pb like a phone and using thumbs).

you are not alone, it's a joy to type on the PB keyboard, im actually getting good at it and fast too

___________________________________
Blackberry 9900
Blackberry Playbook
"Carpe Diem"

[sjefferson21]

you are not alone, it's a joy to type on the PB keyboard, im actually getting good at it and fast too

Yup! I put it work when its in landscape mode

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk

[cletis]

...You lose predictive typing, which is kind of a drag...

And on top of all the other things I HATE about the SwiftKey keyboard, this points up the biggest one: THE PREDICTIVE TEXT IS PART OF THE KEYBOARD, AND NOT THE OS. It is a MAJOR mistake to take away AutoText and give us SwiftKey instead, and the fact that you lose SwiftKey altogether -- and then you have neither -- when using an external keyboard is reason alone to BRING BACK AUTOTEXT.

[cletis]

PROS:
- Better keyboard than on-screen keyboard
- Decent battery life (just leave it on)
- Splashtop HD works very well with it (or very difficult to use without physical keyboard and trackpad)
- Trackpad is very useful (especially in Spalshtop HD)
- High quality product, well made

CONS:
- Touch typing is still not possible as keys are too small and arranged in different ways than full size
- No battery level indicator (was hoping PB would provide such)
- Trackpad doesn't have buttons (certain functions via Splashtop is not possible)
- Heavy together with the case that comes with it

Thank you. I was going to post that I wish someone would spend the money to purchase both this keyboard and the other one I'm considering -- the Matias Folding Keyboard -- and then compare them for me, so I don't have to. But this bit alone was enough to make the call for me: "Touch typing is still not possible as keys are too small." I will buy the Matias. For me, what's the point of adding a physical keyboard to the PB if it doesn't give you the functionality of a physical keyboard?

[mmcpher]

And on top of all the other things I HATE about the SwiftKey keyboard, this points up the biggest one: THE PREDICTIVE TEXT IS PART OF THE KEYBOARD, AND NOT THE OS. It is a MAJOR mistake to take away AutoText and give us SwiftKey instead, and the fact that you lose SwiftKey altogether -- and then you have neither -- when using an external keyboard is reason alone to BRING BACK AUTOTEXT.

With apologies to Thuderbuck, the loss of predictive text and autotext is not "kind of a drag" but a major, dragging-me-back-to-OS-1.0 defect. At least with the Bridge remote I can gain access to my 9900's custom word substitution.

It is typically maddening of RIM. The new keyboard actually exceeds my expectations and I can touch-type (by my crude standards) on it. It is exactly absolutely-positively what I have been hoping and waiting for. And here it is! And there it goes! Predictive text, out the window! So I'm typing on the keyboard, and it has the courtesy to squiggle-line clear its throat to let me know I've misspelled, but than I can either ignore it, engage in trial-and-error spellguessing (which I'm spectacularly bad at) or else use my 9900 to look up the misspelled words and then correct by hand. Textbook execution.

But I still am happy with it. FWIW.

[balama]

got my preorder yesterday from crackberry.
i'm happy
i purchased the verbatim folding keyboard earlier from radio shack and the case and keyboard combo is thinner and more efficient. but the prop up stand is a little clunky compared to my BB PB convertible case. I tired using my Zaggmate aluminum cover ipad case with the PB but its big too.

still haven't figured out how to use gestures to minimize windows and such

all in all it was worth the 3 month(felt like) wait from the original announcement.

I moved to a 64GB PB from a 16GB (both from cowboom) and also use a black BB PB leatherette envelope case to transport my PB to my car where i have a proclip dash mount to monitor trafiic cams and such.

The keyboard case is much better than just the convertible for office meetings
and also way more efficient than hauling and propping up my ipad to do the same things.
And the multi-tasking, screen and sound is so much better than my ipad original.
Plus the new upgraded browser seems to be way faster than the orignal.
i use a clearwire 4G hotspot modem

still haven't reverted back to a bb phone yet for the bridge since BB10 devices are just around the corner.
Recently converted from a TMo 9700 3G bold to a Nokia 710 4G to get ready for Win8 metro before i got a PB
and kind of regret it now. More mobility with less devices using bridge.

The PB makes the whole BB user experience much more productive than anything else i've seen. I can't understand how a BB phone user could complain about the size of the PB keyboard case keyboard size. most BB users can communicate with just one hand or two thumbs pretty efficiently. I still miss my old palm graffiti interface for writing on a flat screen.

[JerryButtons]

yeeeeeeeeeeeeeees its worth the wait

wait 6 months and you can buy it for $69 on UBid or EBay

Where is this at, searched both Ebay and UBid and not finding any of the official Playbook Keyboard cases. Only the third party ones.

[rotorwrench]

I hope it's worth the wait, because I'm getting one.

[superdookie67]

At first it was a bit hard to type on the keyboard. Having the bottom row directly under the top two rows instead of being offset like normal keyboards still tricks me from time to time. But i absolutely love it for taking notes at school or writing rough drafts for my papers.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9700 using Tapatalk

[cycomyk]

the more i read on comments here, the more I think that I've made the right decision of cancelling my order but goodluck to all still waiting on theirs

___________________________________
Blackberry 9900
Blackberry Playbook
"Carpe Diem"

[RHP23]

the more i read on comments here, the more I think that I've made the right decision of cancelling my order but goodluck to all still waiting on theirs
___________________________________
Blackberry 9900
Blackberry Playbook
"Carpe Diem"

Yeah, I've kind of ruled out getting one also..

big hands, 9930 keyboard over bridge and a macbook pro - nice product, hard to justify the purchase for me, though.