Using Bluetooth Keyboard/Mouse with Laptop

Day-to-Day Users
1

mike-h30 wrote on Tuesday, August 05, 2008:

I am looking to replace a couple of laptops in our office with newer ones.  Currently we have the laptops hooked up to docking stations.  The purpose of the docking station has been for use of a better keyboard/mouse for the user.  I am hoping to utilize Bluetooth technology and avoid purchasing docking stations this time around.  Is anyone using a Bluetooth keyboard/mouse with their laptop?  How is the performance?

-Mike

2

openemrhq wrote on Tuesday, August 05, 2008:

I’ve been using the Logitech MX5000 Bluetooth Wireless Desktop for a few weeks now and I’ve noticed absolutely no performance degradations at all. It’s a bit pricey if you’re outfitting an entire office so you might want to look at cheaper options but the MX5000 is always a very nice and attractive choice. Bluetooth is a fast technology so using a keyboard and mouse won’t even come close to taxing your performance as long as you have a decent laptop.

TigerDirect has some good options you should probably look at. If you’re interested in the MX5000, you can go here http://tinyurl.com/mx5000 and take a look.

Good luck!

Dave Kennerson
OpenEMR HQ, Inc.

3

mike-h30 wrote on Wednesday, August 06, 2008:

Thanks for the feedback Dave. 

What desktop OS are you running?  We are on OpenSuse 10.3 with GNOME moving to OpenSuse 11.0 with KDE 4.1 next month.  I want to verify that Bluetooth is working smoothly on Linux OS.  I am intending to utilize Sony VAIO’s ( I am looking at the CR series) with 4GB RAM and Core 2 Duo processors.

-Mike

4

openemrhq wrote on Wednesday, August 06, 2008:

Hi Mike,

We’re running a mixed bag of Ubuntu 8.0.4 and Fedora 9 with no Bluetooth troubles at all. If I remember correctly, one of the reasons I bough the MX5000 was because it was rumored to work very well with Linux.  So far, I’ve had no problems.

Hope this helps!

Dave Kennerson
OpenEMR HQ, Inc.

5

mike-h30 wrote on Wednesday, August 06, 2008:

Thanks again Dave.  I will give the MX5000 a try.

I tested Hardy Heron for about a week but resorted back to OpenSuse.  The issue with Hardy Heron was that I could never get output to an external monitor to work correctly. I was using a Dell 20" wide screen.  I did like the Hardy Heron interface though.  Are you using external monitors with Hardy Heron and your laptops?

-Mike