FIGURE B

The keyboard is finally underwater, where it belongs. Click picture for a larger image.

I gotta tell you, getting that rubber ducky to stay put was quite a challenge! In any case, I finally got all the elements together and left the keyboard underwater to soak for 15 minutes.

After the fifteen minutes were up, I rescued the keyboard, stuck it on the sink, and let it dry for about eight hours. I could have used a towel to dry it off, but, have I mentioned I'm a guy? It sat there until I got bored.

Still dripping a little water, I brought it near my test PC, tapped the Windows key, selected a text editor, and proceeded to write this review.

Even after flooding it in a bathtub, the Unotron Washable Keyboard took a sinking and came out typing. I only have one complaint. Take a look at the bottom of the keyboard, as shown in Figure C.

FIGURE C

The metal key is glued on. Click picture for a larger image.

As you can see, the way the keyboard stays waterproof is with a special waterproof battery door. To open the door, which is sealed quite tightly, you need to use the square metal key. This worked fine, although I am concerned that after repeatedly replacing batteries, the seal might degrade. But that's not the issue.

The issue is the key is attached to the keyboard with an adhesive glue blotch. The glue is not waterproof. So, when I removed the keyboard from the bathtub, the metal key was still in the tub, sitting on the bottom.

This doesn't impact the functionality of the keyboard in any way. But you'd think they'd find a mechanical way for securing the key to the keyboard. This is only a minor gaffe, but it keeps the keyboard out of five star territory.

Because this thing passed the most extreme torture test I could get away with (Denise wouldn't let me run it through the dishwasher), we give the Unotron Washable Wireless Keyboard a Titanic four out of five.

OUR RATING: 4 of 5

For more than 20 years, David Gewirtz, the author of Where Have All The Emails Gone? and The Flexible Enterprise has analyzed current, historical, and emerging issues relating to technology, competitiveness, and policy. David is the Editor-in-Chief of the ZATZ magazines, is the Cyberterrorism Advisor for the International Association for Counterterrorism and Security Professionals, and can be reached via email at david@zatz.com.