Rocketfish Wireless Multimedia Bluetooth Keyboard and Laser Mouse

Gadgeteer Hands On Review by Ryan Preston

December 27, 2007

If you have not cut the cords and gone wireless with your computer keyboard and mouse, now might be a good time to jump on board the bandwagon. Let's review the Rocketfish Wireless Bluetooth Keyboard and Optical Mouse to see if they have what you need to join the revolution.

Hardware Specifications

Color: Silver, Red, Black
Up to 30' wireless range
Keyboard features:
104 keys
10 one-touch multimedia keys
One connect button
Optical mouse features:
4-way scrolling
4 multimedia keys
1000dpi resolution
Battery indicator
One pairing button
On/Off Switch
Ergonomic rubber side supports
Dimensions Keyboard: 1.1 x 19.8 x 8.3, Mouse: 1.6 x 4.6 x 2.6 inches
Product Weight: Keyboard: 1.6 lbs., Mouse: 3.2 oz.
Port Connection: USB
Serves as a Bluetooth hub
USB Bluetooth Adapter support below Bluetooth profiles:
Generic Access Profile (GAP), Generic Objective Exchange Profile (GOEP), Serial Port Profile (SPP), File Transfer Profile (FTP), Objective Push Profile (OPP), Dial-up Networking Profile (DUN), Synchronize Action Profile (SYNC), Fax Profile (Fax), Personal Area Networking Profile (PAN), Human Interface Device Profile (HID), Headset/Audio Gateway Profile (HSP), Hardcopy Cable Replacement Profile (HCRP), Basic Imaging Profile (BIP), Basic Printing Profile (BPP), Generic Audio Video Distribution Profile (GAVDP), Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP), Auto Video Remote Control Profile (AVRCP)
One year limited warranty

This package includes three of Rockerfish's products. Included are the keyboard (model #: RF-BTKB2), mouse (RF-BTMSE2) and blutooth dongle (RF-BTAPDT).

Package Contents

Keyboard
Mouse
USB Bluetooth adapter
CD driver
User manual
4 AA batteries (2 for keyboard; 2 for mouse)

The use of the silver, red and black color scheme makes a nice first impression and provides a sleek, stylish appearance. Rugged black rubber nicely accents the sleek design while providing surfaces that can be easily gripped.

Further inspection of the rubber, reveals a leather grain-like pattern, which adds a nice, fine detail to both the keyboard and the mouse.

Installation was extremely simple. I just put the 2 AA batteries in the keyboard and the mouse, plugged in the USB Bluetooth adapter, turned on the mouse, my computer immediately recognized the new hardware and both devices were functional.

I was surprised that I did not have to go through any pairing process to connect the devices, but, just in case, this process is explained in detail in the user manual.

In regards to the manual, it is well put together with detailed drawings with callouts. The user manual appears to be too big but upon closer inspection you will see that it is repeated 3 times, in English, French and Spanish.

An electronic copy of the manual is also available on Rocketfish's web site, along with the necessary drivers and warranty information. The warranty covers the product for one-year.

In comparison to the Microsoft wireless keyboard I was using, the Rocketfish is not as deep and feels lighter. Weight is not a huge factor because the majority of the time users will have the keyboard sitting on their desk but I often sit away from my desk a little and type on my lap, so even a few ounces less is noticeable.

The black, leather grain-like rubber, mentioned earlier, is on the keyboard's built in palm support. The contrast from the plastic to the rubber is noticeable, in a nice, comfortable manner.

Ten one-touch multimedia buttons are positioned on both sides, flanking the 104 keys in the middle. The multimedia buttons are labeled with icons for easy identification. To utilize the functionality of these keys you have to do an extra installation step.

On the left side (top to bottom): Home button, Search button, Email button, Increase volume button, Decrease volume button.

The right side (top to bottom): Play/Pause button, Stop button, Next track button, Previous track button, Mute button.

A status LED is positioned in the upper-right section of the keyboard. The indicator descriptions are: Green = System is ok Flashing Red = Low battery Flashing Red and Green = Pairing mouse and keyboard

The underside of the keyboard has the normal rubber-stopper feet, located beneath the palm support, and the two extendable legs in the back.

I found the keyboard to be too flat and preferred to have the legs extended while using it.

Between the two legs, you will find the connect button to pair with your PC and the battery location for the two AA batteries.

Moving from the keyboard to the mouse, eight features are located on the top of the mouse. These features include the basic three: Left mouse button, Scroll wheel button, Right mouse button.

And four additional multimedia features: Play/Pause button, Previous track button, Next track button, Stop button.

Lastly another status LED is included on the top of the mouse, closer to where your palm would rest. The status indicators are the same as described for the keyboard.

The bottom of the mouse is where you will find the optical laser, an on/off switch, battery compartment and pairing button.

I really like the feel of the mouse. My hand just seems to cup around the mouse nicely and the rubber on the sides just adds a nice contrasting feel.

Another feature of the mouse, that my old one lacked, was the 4-way scrolling ability. Having the ability to scroll from left to right is not something that I would use everyday but I could definitely see that feature being useful.

For example, if you have a spreadsheet with multiple columns and rows, you can use the scroll wheel to navigate around the file, side to side and top to bottom.

In terms of use, the keyboard and mouse perform their duties like any other pair. The only issue that I experienced was when my computer was inactive for a period of time.

I found that if my computer was inactive for a period of time, before it entered standby or sleep mode, the mouse and keyboard would give a 2-3 second delay in responding to my commands.

I found the delay very annoying, especially since my wife and 4 year-old girl noticed it and continued to remind me of it and how it was affecting them.

I even tried to turn off my standby and sleep options, but that failed to improve the delay issue. This was very disappointing because I doubt that I would ever get use to the delay. I am an instant gratification person.

A positive of this package is the capability the USB Bluetooth adapter gives. By plugging that adapter in, the doorway to Bluetooth technology is opened on your computer.

That adapter gives you the capability to connect other Bluetooth devices to your PC. So this package offers functionality outside of the basics from a keyboard and mouse. Great!

In conclusion, I like the sleek and stylish design of the keyboard and mouse combo. Plus the extended functionality from the 10 multimedia keys and the USB Bluetooth adapter are a definite positive.

That said the response delays that I experienced were too much to overcome. That was the only negative that I found but, unfortunately, it was enough for me not to recommend this package.