Most Americans haven't heard of Trust Computer Products, but after 20 years of doing business across the pond, this European computer-peripheral company is bringing its wares stateside. The first product I looked at from Trust, the Vista Remote Keyboard KB-2950, didn't impress me at all. This second product, the KB-1400S Slimline Keyboard ($25 street) fared a bit better, though it retains the KB-2950's biggest flaw and doesn't compare favorably with the best keyboards in its price range.

The KB-1400S is a slim USB keyboard that includes a PS/2 adapter. Its flat, silvery body looks stylish on a desktop. Of course, "flat" and "silver" are relative terms; the latest Apple keyboard and the Microsoft 8000 are much flatter and more silvery, though the 8000 costs $275 more and the Apple keyboard $25 more. The KB-1400S is light, but not nearly as cheap-feeling as the Vista Remote Keyboard KB-2950. Specifically, the KB-1400S's keys feel much better to type on.

Trust's keyboard has a row of quick-launch keys at the top for speedy access to e-mail, search, and the Web, along with volume controls and a sleep/wake button. Below that is the unwieldy jumble of keys that make this keyboard so unpleasant to work with: It's the same design that Trust used for the KB-2950, and it was also that model's major flaw. The F1 through F12 keys are located directly above the regular number keys. The Backspace, Tab, CapsLock, Ctrl, and Alt keys are all the same size as the keys around them. The Insert and Delete keys are in the same row as the Spacebar. These may seem like minor points until you start doing a lot of writing and e-mailing—and at that point you realize what a major speed bump keyboard layout can be. Sure, you could get used to it in time, but it would be awkward to switch back to a standard keyboard (or switch between two keyboards, say, at home and work).

Trust uses a more standard layout for its KB-1450 and KB-1350D keyboards, so if you really must have a non-ergonomic Trust USB keyboard, I'd go with one of those. For what it's worth, the KB-1400S with a standard key layout would probably fare better.

The only real adornment on the KB-1400S is a row of blue LED indicators for NumLock, CapsLock, and ScrollLock. The blue light is cool, but those LEDs glow like small blue suns: Don't look directly at them or you'll go blind from the brightness (of course, we exaggerate, but you get the idea). Again, it's a little thing that seems trivial until you've got a glaring blue light on your desktop and in your peripheral vision.

Having soldiered through the minor frustrations of this keyboard, it's tough to think of a good reason to buy one, especially when Apple's wired keyboard beats it handily in every way. (Yes, the Apple keyboard is compatible with Windows PCs). The KB-1400S is slim, but the Apple keyboard is nearly twice as thin. The Trust keyboard has a silver finish, but it's plastic, whereas the Apple keyboard is anodized aluminum. And the Apple keyboard comes with two USB 2.0 ports, a standard key layout, and a much better set of quick-launch keys. Sure, the Apple keyboard lists for twice as much as the Trust KB-1400S, but the difference is only $25. If you're looking for a slim, silvery, non-ergonomic wired keyboard, the Apple model is worth the price.

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