One of the frustrations of the otherwise excellent Hx4700 is that it proved not to be compatible with my infrared Pocetop keyboard (who have not updated the driver). If you have to enter any amount of date on a PDA (i.e. using it for taking notes) the normal pen interface quickly becomes tedious. A good keyboard is an indispensable asset. Having searched around the best I could find is HP's own branded bluetooth keyboard the catchily named FA287A.

The keyboard is solidly made with the quality feel of an HP product. It folds neatly in half at which point it is about 20% bigger than the PDA. There is a neat pull out support that will support the PDA in either portrait of landscape mode. It has a comprehensive keyboard layout with most of the symbols you would want and a few you might never use (though I did struggle to find the "?" which is displaced to the right). Function keys provide quick access to programmes such as Word, Excel and Calendar and a number of keys can be individually programmed.

When unfolded the keyboard is pretty much the same size as a normal keyboard (minus function keys and numeric pad) so it lends itself to fairly rapid touch typing.

A programme downloaded to the PDA provides for set-up and connection. The bluetooth connection programme works well with a bit of practise but you might be surprised to find how many other devices in the vicinity that it detects (what strange names some people have for their mobile phones!). It is a good idea to give your keyboard its own name so that if there are others yours will be evident. Once connected it functions well. You can even turn your PDA off but doing so kills the bluetooth connection so you cannot turn it back on without going through the connection programme.

The keyboard runs on two AAA batteries which have a claimed life of 1000 hours which is pretty good. I found the original batteries did not do that well though I expect new ones to be better. It is easy enough to carry a couple of spares.

At around £82 from Dabs.com it is a bit more expensive than the cheaper infrared versions but if you use a keyboard, given the flexibility and quality of this one it is definitely worth the extra.