The Apple Wireless Keyboard doesn’t require heavy hands, making it a fast keyboard to type on.

Apple’s new wireless keyboard certainly looks fashionable, and it’s quickly becoming one of the more popular designs to come from the Apple design team. It’s Apple’s best keyboard to date.

The Wireless Keyboard has a narrower, more compact key layout than its wired brother. It uses the same ultrathin aluminum base and same key shape as the wired board, but has only 12 function keys compared to the wired keyboard’s 19. The trimmed-down Wireless Keyboard also lacks the wired option’s right-hand numeric keypad and pair of USB ports. But with this smaller keyboard, you can put it on your lap and work from the other side of the room.

The keyboard is raised a few millimeters higher off the table than the wired keyboard, not that you’d notice from the way it looks or feels in use. It still lies nearly flat on your desk, with the only raised element being the battery bay, which houses three AA batteries.

The amount of pressure needed to press a key is a fraction of that needed by most keyboards, and because the keyboard is so slim you don’t need to exert much effort to get your hands over the keys. It’s comfortable and extremely fast to type on. Because it’s compact, you get more desktop space too, and if you use a graphics tablet, we found you get a more ergonomic desk position for the tablet thanks to the space saved.

Next to the regular keys are some new arrivals. You get new Dashboard and Exposé shortcuts, plus track-browsing keys (previous track, pause/play, next track) that work really well with iTunes.

The bottom line. The superb Wireless Keyboard is yet another design classic from Apple.

COMPANY: Apple

CONTACT: www.apple.com
PRICE: $79

REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS 10.4.10 or later, Bluetooth, three AA batteries
Lets you type fast. No wire.

No keypad.