[alt_advocate]

Hi folks,

I am currently shopping around for a nice mini keyboard to go with my playbook cause I am going to be using it for school and I plan to take many notes with it on the Eversoft app (:

I came across this "IMATION BLUETOOTH MINI KEYBOARD BKB-250" and I was wondering whether it is going to be compatible and stuff? Can anyone offer any insights? Thanks!

Here's a link of the product - Courts Singapore Webstore - Great value, smart choices for your home

Best Regards,
alt_advocate

[Mr_Bunny]

Hi folks,

I am currently shopping around for a nice mini keyboard to go with my playbook cause I am going to be using it for school and I plan to take many notes with it on the Eversoft app (:
I came across this "IMATION BLUETOOTH MINI KEYBOARD BKB-250" and I was wondering whether it is going to be compatible and stuff? Can anyone offer any insights? Thanks!

I couldn't say for sure but I did a lot of reading before I purchased mine and it seems the playbook is compatible with most any BT keyboards, haven't read of one yet that was unable to connect.
If it's within your budget I strongly recommend the Backberry one made for the Playbook, I've had mine now three weeks and am very pleased with it, everything in one compact unit, I'm still on the first charge and from what I've heard I expect it to go a month, as for typing on it I had my wife try it and she can speed right along ( it's disgusting how fast she can type )

Hope this helps.

[thatplaybookguy]

I use a ps3 bluetooth keypad. Looks just like the one on any bb phone, performance is the same as a bb phone. Can be used as a mouse as well. Costs $30.

[jamesharmeling]

I use a ps3 bluetooth keypad. Looks just like the one on any bb phone, performance is the same as a bb phone. Can be used as a mouse as well. Costs $30.

Please post a direct link text to the one you have. I searched Amazon and quite a few showed up using your description.

[Gooseberry Falls]

Agree that the compatibility with BT 2.0 HID devices is good with the Playbook. I've connected old BT mice and an android keyboard. If the keyboard is billed for android or iOS, don't expect the special function keys to work. I would place more emphasis on being able to type on the mini keyboards. You might want to look into the foldable type that are larger but still portable. Also heard good things about the BB keyboard. Good luck in school.

[alt_advocate]

Thanks for all your replies guys. Just a quick opinion check btw, how important do you think it is to have a touchpad function on a mini keyboard? Or do you think using your wee fingers are good enough? I just want to get my notes up and running! On a sidenote, maybe I should just use the eversoft app on my BB bold to get the notes up haha (especially during lectures). Sigh I am really in a fix guys!

[B. Diddy#CB]

I recently got a Playbook for my wife and have tried several Bluetooth keyboards without much success. The Azio mini keyboard worked ok, but the keys were too small. A RockSoul keyboard was too stuttery, omitting too many keystrokes. Another keyboard from ProHT/Inland paired but didn't respond.

FINALLY, I found that the keyboard designed for the Acer Iconia tablet (of which I have two) also pairs nicely with the Playbook, suffering no keystroke dropouts. The build is very good, the keys are a good size and have a nice feel, and the whole unit is very light and portable. There are a bunch of function keys specific for the Iconia, but it's no different than many of the Ipad specific keys on most other keyboards.

I got mine from an eBay seller, supposedly brand new (although might be refurbished). Good price--$39! Here's the link:

Ultra-Slim Bluetooth Keyboard for Acer ICONIA Tab A500, A500 | eBay

[Gooseberry Falls]

Just a quick opinion check btw, how important do you think it is to have a touchpad function on a mini keyboard?

Probably not that important just to take rough notes. But to fix or edit when you get home you might. Touchpad or travel mouse for quick cursor positioning.

[Wbrian]

I use the HP wireless keyboard. It's spectacular...

HTH,
Brian

[BBBlake]

I'm using the eWonder BT Keyboard/Case paired with a Dell 5-Button Travel Mouse. For about $50 I have a 1.75lb. laptop replacement. I can even use this badboy in the cheap seats of Spirit Air.

[tinbilly]

Hey guys,

I guess you guys own a blackberry also. So why bother to use any other bluetooth mini keyboard, when you can use your BB as a tiny keyboard for your PB. I own a BB9700. So here's my experience using my BB as a keyboard to compose an email on PB

- Connect both BB & BP via bluetooth
- Run the BB Bridge and use your BB as a remote control for the PB
- When using the BB keyboard to compose a message on PB, the trick is to use the on-screen keyboard on PB to key in the first 1-2 letters. Then you are free to go.

Please try and share your stories.

[fs9]

You guys with those playbook-friendly keyboards, could you try something? Please, type 'c and ~a and let us know if you get proper output, like � and �.

Some of us speak and write in languages like Portuguese or French and are having issues. I can tell at this point that Apple BT keyboard works mostly fine but won't output any accented characters, so it's pretty much useless for work. I'd appreciate very much your help in narrowing down our possibilities.

[FF22]

I notice you discovered the other thread. I recall testing it a while back and ran into accent problems, too. I don't think those have been fixed, although there is a newer OS since I tested, I think. I wonder if anyone has actually reported this on the rim official forums.

[bigbaldbloke]

A big word of warning to the OP - BT keyboards tend to use either the HID profile or SPP. SPP is where the bluetooth is used as a virtual serial port and isn't around as much anymore, but PlayBooks only work with HID. It's worth contacting the seller to clarify which this uses.

[Wongsky]

Not specific to the keyboard mentioned, but I occasionally use a bluetooth keyboard with my PlayBook. I have a couple of Kensington keyfolio keyboard cases (the universal one for 10" tablets) - that I got for my Android tablets. I've used them with my Android tablets, and have spotted some behaviour when using it with the PlayBook that I hadn't noticed when using with my Android tablets.

The keyboard(s) pair fine with the PlayBook and it's all straightforward to use them - but when typing (and I haven't been terribly scientific about this, I've just noticed it happening a few times) on the PlayBook, if you hit 2 keys at the same time, it seems to lock up the bluetooth keyboard side of things for about 10-15 seconds. At first I thought it was horribly unreliable and would just stop responding from time to time, but it seems as if it's either 2 keys pressed at the same time, or 2 keys used too quickly.

As I said, didn't notice it when I used them with my Android tablets, and they are supplie as part of a semi-reputable case / keyboard solution - although in reality, may be remarkably similar to the cheap, far-east keyboards you see cheaply on ebay.

[bigbaldbloke]

Here's mine.

Works a charm, although the split space bar can be a challenge as I tend to hit the bit in the middle! I wanted a folding one so that I could carry PB, keyboard and HDMI cable in an A4 folio. All that I need now to make it perfect is a flat charger..........

[Wongsky]

Not specific to the keyboard mentioned, but I occasionally use a bluetooth keyboard with my PlayBook. I have a couple of Kensington keyfolio keyboard cases (the universal one for 10" tablets) - that I got for my Android tablets. I've used them with my Android tablets, and have spotted some behaviour when using it with the PlayBook that I hadn't noticed when using with my Android tablets.

The keyboard(s) pair fine with the PlayBook and it's all straightforward to use them - but when typing (and I haven't been terribly scientific about this, I've just noticed it happening a few times) on the PlayBook, if you hit 2 keys at the same time, it seems to lock up the bluetooth keyboard side of things for about 10-15 seconds. At first I thought it was horribly unreliable and would just stop responding from time to time, but it seems as if it's either 2 keys pressed at the same time, or 2 keys used too quickly.

As I said, didn't notice it when I used them with my Android tablets, and they are supplie as part of a semi-reputable case / keyboard solution - although in reality, may be remarkably similar to the cheap, far-east keyboards you see cheaply on ebay.

Just as further feedback to this, I've been using the same keyboard with my Android tablet and it works fine with that, no hangs and I could type quite quickly with it so obviously some sort of compatibility issue with the PlayBook.

[fs9]

A big word of warning to the OP - BT keyboards tend to use either the HID profile or SPP. SPP is where the bluetooth is used as a virtual serial port and isn't around as much anymore, but PlayBooks only work with HID. It's worth contacting the seller to clarify which this uses.

Now that you mentioned it, I paired the Apple keyboard with my windows 7 PC and everything shows it as a HID-compliant device, with no mention of a SPP profile whatsoever. Still, PBOS can't seem to recognize properly the keystrokes that would form the accented characters. Sure, it works mostly fine, I even used it to play Alley Cat on a DOS Box, but my intention is to minimize luggage by leaving the laptop at home, and not being able to accent characters is a no go.

I'm not buying that steep keyboard from RIM when this is obviously a software flaw. Should anyone be able to test accents, please do let us know.