Let's talk about the features Microsoft advertises on its product tour mini site.
Great comfort: It's generally more comfort than a traditional keyboard once you get used to the curved layout and thin profile keys. Don't forget to spread out your arms. Other than the surprisingly low cost (for a ergonomic keyboard), I bought it for another reason - good spacebar design. (Well, the spacebar on my copy of the keyboard has a problem that I'll discuss in a moment) I do touch typing and almost always use right thumb for space key. Spacebar on a traditional keyboard has sharp edge towards your thumb pad. Just put your thumb on a spacebar and you know what I'm saying here. The spacebar and all other keys on this row of the comfort curve keyboard have been tilted towards the user and have reduced thickness at the bottom so the thumb touches the flat (slightly curved) surface of the keys. Some traditional keyboards now have similar design but cost more and they are hard to get. However, the spacebar on my copy of the keyboard apparently was assembled incorrectly. The tiny metal support wire/hinge under the key is not snapped in place therefore the spacebar makes noise all the time when typing on other keys. It's easy to fix once I pry open the spacebar and snap in the metal support wire. The spacebar is still kind of loose due to its large size but no more unwanted noise. The quality problem makes me worry about Internet purchase because of inconvenience of return/exchange. My experience tells me that recent Microsoft hardware quality is inconsistent (probably like its software). I bought a Wireless IntelliMouse Explorer early this year and it had a near dead button (push very hard to make it work).
Another annoyance is the tiny Ctrl keys. Due to the layout design, Ctrl keys are fairly small and easy to miss. I'd rather have smaller Win keys to give space for larger Ctrl keys. Or at least the Ctrl keys don't have to be rounded aggressively at corners. More expensive Microsoft Nature Ergonomic Natural keyboard seems to have slightly bigger Ctrl keys.
Easy setup and use: No software is required. The keyboard has USB connector and no USB-to-PS/2 adapter is provided in the package. It probably will work with a USB-to-PS/2 adapter based on what system requirements info says from the Microsoft website. Because it's a USB device, make sure your PC BIOS USB keyboard support is enabled or you lose keyboard control until USB HID (Human Interface Device) driver is loaded.
Spill-resistant keys: This is largely true as long as you don't tilt your keyboard too much or spilled water/coffee below the keys doesn't overflow to the desk. Each key is supported by a cylinder which raises high above the base plate. Base plate has four tiny drain holes. Pry open just one key and you'll understand. I don't know how special function keys at top of the keyboard are protected. They may be more vulnerable.
Save desktop space: False! This keyboard is slightly larger than my Dell Quiet keyboard. It's much bigger than some compact keyboard with razor-thin edges. Basically it takes no more space than your old traditional keyboard.
Ultra-thin profile: Not sure I'll like it or not. Time will tell. It makes me feel like using a notebook but key travel may be comparable to a desktop keyboard. The tactical feedback is close to a notebook keyboard but I can still type pretty fast.
Some other notes:
Special function keys are useful. No software is required but they only work with certain software and cannot be customized. Pictures on Microsoft website are tiny so let me tell you what these special keys are: Back, Forward, Volume Down, Mute, Volume Up, Play/Pause (above vol down, mute, vol up keys), Web/Home, Search and Mail. There is also a Calculator key next to the keyboard status LEDs.
Finally, Microsoft gets rid of the quirky edit keys layout (keys above reverse T toothpick arrow keys) that was popular in its last generation keyboards. The comfort curve keyboard has traditional layout for those keys and that's important to me. I wouldn't use any keyboard without this layout.
So far I'm happy with the purchase. It's a nice and cheap keyboard if you're looking for an ergonomic one. Hopefully, the shortcomings I mentioned above can be fixed in the next version of this keyboard. It's not bad for a v1.0 comfort curve keyboard.
UPDATE: Each special key can be customized once latest IntelliType Pro software is installed. Although Microsoft harware download web site doesn't provide a driver for this keyboard, guess what, this keyboard is listed as the very first one in Keyboard model dropdown list in keyboard settings.
After eight months of use, I still stand behind my comments and it still gets 4 stars :) Microsoft Comfort Curve Keyboard 2000 (B2L-00002) - Comfortable - Microsoft - Ergonomic Keyboard - Curve'
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