Screen Gem

Sydney Morning Herald

Saturday December 10, 2005

Simon Tsang

Dashboards are the latest craze in computing. Displays that show some vital stats at a glance have found their way into everything from operating systems such as Mac OS X's Dashboard Widgets to interfaces in internet security suites. Now keyboards have dashboards too. Logitech's Cordless Desktop MX 5000 Laser ($269, www.logitech.com) is a long name for a keyboard and mouse, but it's also the latest controller combo that has its own LCD screen. The default display shows the user account's name, battery level and even the room temperature. It can also display playlist info from iTunes, Windows Media Player and MusicMatch. New email and instant message notifications can be programmed to pop on the screen, and there's even a built-in calculator. The MX 5000 also has Bluetooth, so you can connect your computer to other wireless devices such as headsets and mobile phones.

ST

© 2005 Sydney Morning Herald

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