My G5 PowerMac’s been going on strong despite some hiccups. I can’t say the same for its peripherals.
As the PowerMac sits in my little music studio at home, I bought the Apple Wireless Keyboard and Mouse to cut down on wire tangle (they run on Bluetooth). The mouse required more frequent battery changes and I eventually replaced it with a Microsoft mouse which has been running more efficiently.
The keyboard fared much better. It was running fine until last month, when it kept on dying. I figured my super-heavy-duty Energizer e2 batteries had finally died after 2.5 years, so I replaced them. I didn’t have the same powerful batteries to spare, so I put in some cheap ones. The keyboard worked for a while but kept on dying. At least there was a bit of light in the indicator switch.
I swopped the batteries for rechargeable ones. I made sure they were fully charged before inserting them into the keyboard. No response – not a flicker of light. I thought maybe the dirt got to the keyboard. I shook the keyboard, knocked out the dirt and gave it a good wipe.
The keyboard remained as lifeless as Optimus Prime after his epic battle with Megatron.
I finally bought the same special batteries that cost several times more than normal ones, in the faint hope that the Wireless Keyboard was a fussy eater and that by some miracle it would resurrect itself. However, the new batteries had no effect whatsoever on it. I thereby pronounced it clinically dead.
Then I checked the Apple Forums to see what people said about the product. Darn! Pretty mixed reviews and those who were unhappy, were REALLY unhappy. Well I’ve become one of them. Previously I’d have rated the keyboard 4 out of 5… now that it’s died on me I can’t say much about its durability.
I made a mistake when I went to Mustafa’s department store and bought a keyboard which claimed to be Mac compatible. Firstly, it had the ‘Windows’ icon not the ‘Apple’ icon on its keys. Secondly, it wasn’t even a USB keyboard! And my G5 doesn’t have oldish serial ports! How could I have missed that!
So it really looks like I have to buy a proper Mac keyboard. And it’s probably going to be the wired one.
Comments
Man.. I had the same problem with my wireless keyboard.. now its sitting lifeless on the side. Didn’t know it was rampant.. thought it was just misuse on my part. 🙁
woah man…the things I would do if I ever have a MacBook or something..wished I can afford it man..but iNoMoney…
Just wondering yeah? How is the Apple support? I got a 1st gen iShuffle and the old 3rd gen iPod which broke down some months/years back and they gave me crappy support. In the end, I got another iPod..wat a sucker..uughh!!
Hey! A Transformers Movie reference! 😀
Sorry to hear about your wireless woes. But hey, a G5 PowerMac? /drool…
Heh, glad you caught the Transformers reference 🙂 Really… there’s no light, no matter how many fresh Energon cubes I insert in it.
It needs the Matrix, bad…