Bluetooth keyboards (and mouse)
==============================

I have started to use touchscreen-based devices (an Ubuntu phone and the Ubuntu
tablet) relatively frequently and thus I have had to get a Bluetooth keyboard.
With the phone the hardware keyboard is not so necessary: for SMSs and for
short notes (usually few words long) the on-screen keyboard is adequate. It is
often done in places where is no space to comfortably place the external
keyboard. There are few situations when the keyboard is definitively useful:
ssh sessions to remote host, writing of long texts and maybe input of
complicated mathematical things. But not much more (I don't do programming on
the phone).

With the tablet the situation is different: it has large screen and it is often
used for more prolonged work with much higher demand for comfortable text input
(for tasks like writing records, programming and so). The Ubuntu Touch for
tablets also has a full OpenOffice, for example so more complex work can be
done here. Since the last system update (OTA-13) it is possible to use
on-screen keyboard with the (so-called) legacy applications (the Firefox, the
OpenOffice) but it is of course not comfortable.

I found that use of a mouse is very comfortable for many tasks - I use Lenovo
Bluetooth mouse here (the small one). There is not much to say about it: it
just works. It is precise, reliable, comfortable and it has long battery life.
And it is in the traditional ThinkPad colors and finish!

The keyboard is a longer story. I started with the Lenovo Wireless keyboard
with a trackpoint. It is not bad (a nice layout, a good feel of keys, the good
trackpoint) and it worked well. But - the keyboard is unfoldable and
unprotected - I had some case for it but at one point I broke several keys.
Their mechanics is surprisingly thin and fragile and thus near unrepairable.
:-(

Then I decided to get something less expensive and also smaller (the Lenovo
thingy is larger than the tablet) even for the cost of having non-standard key
size (smaller than a normal keyboard). So I got a HP Bluetooth keyboard. It has
quite normal layout and accepts AAA cell. I have it from the beginning of summer
and batteries are still OK. Its use requires more concentration and more
patience, of course. It is also smaller than the laptop so it is easier to
protect it.

But it is still not foldable. I had some good experience with the Stowaway
keyboards for PDAs (I had one for an iPaq PDA and still have one for my Palm
III) so I decided to got Stowaway Sierra which uses Bluetooth (I wrote about it
in one of previous posts). It is not bat but being an older technology it has
one problem: it needs relatively long time for reconnecting. The Ubuntu devices
are aggressive in putting the Bluetooth devices to sleep when they not use and
the time is not configurable. On the Lenovo or the HP keyboard the reconnection
requires few second after key press. But here the time is much longer which is
very uncomfortable. In other hand, it is a full-size keyboard which is very
good for prolonged typing. If the typing is continuous then there are no
problems and it is almost ideal solution.

After some research I found the Jorno keyboard [1]. It has similar size when
closed as the Stowaway has but it is smaller when it is opened. But it is also
more stiff and it keys have better feedback when pressed. It has also a nice
case which can also serve as a stable and comfortable stand for a prone or the
tablet. I have it for a short time so I have not identified any issues.

If is good to mention that  none of these keyboards has issues with randomly
missing or repeating keys as it was common with older Bluetooth keyboards. I
experienced this in the past when I used Nokia Internet tablets with external
keyboards (Nokia a HP keyboards, if I remember correctly).

Update:
I used the Jorno on a short trip (note taking, WWW/gopher navigation and so) and
I have found no major shortcomings (I'm not sure if F1-F12 keys work as they
are are accessed as  Fn+number - and I actually didn't used them so far).
Typing still requires some concentration so it is slower than typing on a
normal keyboard but it is much faster than typing on the on-screen keyboard.

The nice thing is that no LED is active when keyboard is use: the blue light
only works when the keyboard is waiting for connection and the green/led light
is visible only few seconds after keyboard is started m it shows if the
keyboard is enough battery energy).


Note:
The Jorno [1 ]itself is a bit strange brand. The keyboard was started as a
Kickstarter project [2] but one can easily find that the actual thing is differ
from the design which was originally proposed. It was also delayed. Actuallty
one can find a thing whic his nearly identical to the Jorno - the EC Technology
one [3]. It looks like that the Jorno is actually a rebrandes on from the EC
Tech. The only notable addition is a Jorno's comboded keyboard case/tablet
stand which is surprisingly useful (I got my Jorno as a cheap second hand item
so I can enjoy the stand  - but it does not make sense to buy a new Jorno just
because of the stand).


References:
-----------

[1] https://jornostore.com/
[2] https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jorno/jorno-the-pocketable-folding-bluetooth-keyboard
[3] https://www.amazon.com/EC-Technology-Portable-Bluetooth-Keyboard/dp/B00QT8WQ86

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