Logitech Cordless Desktop MX5500 Revolution Review


Bluetooth Keyboard with Integrated Display

Logitech MX5500

To my knowledge, this is a reasonably new keyboard from Logitech, but it doesn’t really bring anything to the table that we haven’t seen before. Easily the most eye-catching feature is the LCD display located near the top of the wireless keyboard. This display is always on, which can’t possibly be good for the battery life. Unlike the mouse, which comes with its own charging stand, the keyboard runs on four AA batteries.

The monochrome display can serve several purposes. After installing the provided SetPoint software, you can get it to control your media player, remind you what you have saved to the four favorites buttons, inform you of incoming email, check the time and date, check the ambient temperature, and keep track of your total number of keystrokes. Interestingly, the calculator button above the numeric keypad activates the calculator in this display, rather than launching the calculator application in Windows. This can actually be pretty handy, because it means that you have access to a calculator even when the computer is off.

Logitech MX5500

Other hot keys include three below the numeric keypad (Media Center, Photo Gallery, Gadgets), Vista controls along the left side (Flip 3D and zoom), and media controls on the left as well (play/pause, back, forward, volume, mute). The narrow function keys can also be mapped to launch applications like Word, Excel, and Internet Explorer. These are represented by a series of orange icons.

Logitech MX5500

In terms of the keyboard itself, the rubber wrist rest of quite comfortable, but it’s not actually padded. As expected, you can flip out a couple of stands in the back for a more ergonomic typing angle. The keys themselves are a little “mushy” when you type, but this actually provides a fair level of comfort over time. Because of this “mushy” feeling, the keyboard is also very quiet. No click-clacking here.

Logitech MX5500

All in all, the provided Bluetooth keyboard comes with a good number of multimedia controls and the extra display is an added bonus, but I wouldn’t put it on par with some of the higher-end keyboards on the market.

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