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This review first appeared in issue 351 of PC Pro.
It’s hard not to fall in love with the Cherry KW 7100 Mini BT, in part because it’s so wee and in part because you get to choose from two eye-catching pastel colors: Cherry Blossom (pink) or Agave Green as pictured. Or you can opt for boring black. Despite its attractive price, the KW 7100 Mini comes with a travel pouch (made from recycled plastic), although it’s only offered in dark grey.
Build quality is up to Cherry’s usual high standards, with its SX scissor mechanism delivering a shallow but satisfying typing action similar to a good-quality laptop. It isn’t up there with mechanical keyboards, but it’s also much quieter. With big Enter, backspace and space keys, I don’t think you’ll struggle to hit high typing speeds despite its slim 295mm width.
The KW 7100 Mini should look just as good on day 500 as it does on day one, with the key lettering protected by a UV coating to guard against abrasions. Those keys are designed to last for more than ten million hits apiece, which is no doubt why Cherry feels confident enough to offer a three-year warranty.
A row of function keys sits at the top, all of which are customizable using the Cherry Keys software. This is almost charmingly basic, and it will take moments for you to assign actions or favorite websites. You also use the F1, F2 and F3 keys to switch between active Bluetooth connections; there’s no USB adapter here, and Apple devices aren’t supported either (it refused to pair with my iPad).
Aside from the sturdy feet that lift the rear of the keyboard for a better typing angle, that’s it for physical features. Backlighting isn’t present, merely LEDs to indicate which Bluetooth channel is active and if the Fn or Caps lock are active. These will also start flashing when the two AAA batteries run low, which will probably be months; all Cherry says about battery life is that it strongly depends on user behavior.
One final word for those who love matching accessories: you can buy a color-coordinated Cherry Gentix BT mouse, but its clicky keys reflect its low price: £16 from cclonline.com.
The KW 7100 Mini BT isn’t for those who love frills, then, nor is it for Apple fans. For everyone else, though, it’s a superb travel-friendly choice.
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