By Jean-Christophe Hemes // on August 17, 2011
48 Comments
+ 8 Replies
Filed: News and Announcements, PC Peripherals, Product Videos
Earlier this summer we introduced the Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard K750. Not only was it named Green Gadget of the Week by ZDNet, it’s gotten great reviews from customers as well. They’re saving money on batteries while enjoying comfortable typing and a knockout design.
Now Mac users can take advantage of the benefits of this eco-friendly keyboard as well – and we’ve even got some exclusive colors for you.
The Logitech® Wireless Solar Keyboard K750 for Mac features a standard Mac key layout– so all the buttons are in the right place – and a concave key cap design so you’ll enjoy faster, quieter, feel-good typing. It also works with your Mac laptop or desktop right out of the box so you don’t have to install software.
With its energy-saving design, the device charges with ambient light in the room, but can operate for up to three months in complete darkness – you’ll never have to hassle with the expense or inconvenience of batteries, power bricks or charging cables again. In addition to eliminating battery waste, its PVC-free construction and fully recyclable box helps minimize its ecological footprint.
Mac users, it’s your turn! We want to hear from you about how you’ll use your new solar keyboard and which color is your favorite in the comments.
Tags: Keyboards, logitech, mac, solar
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
48 Comments + 8 Replies Add your own comment >>
Jamie McDaniel | August 17th, 2011 at 05:57
Great news! My diNovo Mac Edition was a great keyboard, early failure not withstanding. Logitech honored the 5-year warranty, but was only able to offer a refund since there were no Mac keyboards currently being produced. I reluctantly started using Apple’s wired keyboard with the “chiclet” keys. I think I have about got used to it, but I believe I am using the backspace key more frequently due to typing errors. I miss the concave keys of my old diNovo. So yes, I believe I will be ordering one of these new K750s for Mac.
Don Myers | August 17th, 2011 at 06:09
Does it do bluetooth?
abs | August 17th, 2011 at 06:35
Ooooh, another wire to soon be rid of…. Sweet
Been using a logi wireless keyboard for the PC for years… cant wait to get one for the mac – do you have a wireless mouse for the mac ?
Mr. Fox | August 17th, 2011 at 07:32
I somehow missed this when it came out in PC flavor. This is a fantastic application for solar, it eliminates the hassle of batteries I’ve had with wireless keyboards in the past. My biggest use for this is when I use my drawing tablet/screen for work, it obscures my keyboard and I can’t type as easily as the cord is a hassle, either too short or tangled under the tablet legs. Looking forward to trying this out.
Jean-Christophe Hemes | August 17th, 2011 at 14:37
Thanks for the feedback!
Jon | August 17th, 2011 at 08:00
Would be awesome if there are backlit keys.
John | August 17th, 2011 at 08:21
After the demise of the diNovo Mac Edition, I’m pleasantly surprised to see Logitech make another attempt at a keyboard with a true Mac layout.
However, what I truly desire is Mac driver support for your gaming mice, like the G400. The last model to have Mac support was the MX500.
I’d purchase one tomorrow if that were the case, even though I’m not a gamer. I just like its durable, classic hardware design that is missing in today’s models, especially in regard to the scroll wheels.
John | August 17th, 2011 at 10:45
Why not use Bluetooth instead of yet another Unifying receiver? Logitech’s apparent disdain for Bluetooth is why I switched back to Microsoft mice. My MX1100 was much nicer to use, but the freaking huge-arse dongle was entirely too unwieldy; I prefer my USB ports unbroken.
Yort | August 17th, 2011 at 12:42
Does it use Bluetooth or not? Can’t afford to devote a USB port to a special receiver — that’s the point of having a wireless keyboard. Also: Do you have a version without the numeric keypad? Please don’t make me reach around the keypad for a mouse.
Jean-Christophe Hemes | August 17th, 2011 at 14:36
Using our Advanced 2.4 GHz wireless is one of the ways we’ve optimized energy management within the keyboard, so no Bluetooth. Great feedback about the numeric keypad — we’ll keep it mind for future products.
Stephen Charchuk | August 17th, 2011 at 13:31
Wouldn’t the one for the PC also work on a Mac with the correct drivers as well? BTW, I have the one for the PC and I love it.
Jean-Christophe Hemes | August 17th, 2011 at 14:31
The primary difference between the two is in the layout — the Mac edition features a standard Mac key layout.
Michel Fiset | August 17th, 2011 at 13:39
Is you keyboard (for Mac) will still use the USB adaptor or you will go with the bluetooth technology (no adaptor to plug) as all the other Mac products. I think that if you go with the Bluetooth technology you will have the perfect keyboard and you will sell them as hot cake.
Michel Fiset
Jean-Christophe Hemes | August 17th, 2011 at 14:28
The keyboard uses our tiny Unifying receiver and our Advanced 2.4 GHz wireless connectivity. The technology is extremely efficient and one of the ways we’ve optimized energy management with this keyboard.
Brian Young | August 17th, 2011 at 13:54
Can the next solar keyboard be an upgrade to the Tablet Keyboard though? It would be fantastic to build solar into the Tablet Keyboard to reduce its thickness and well as extending battery life.
Also – for a quick want-list for generation 2 of these solar keyboards for all platforms:
1 – an indicator light for caps-lock and num-lock
light off = caps-lock not enabled and num-lock is enabled (reverse of standard) to conserve energy
light on = caps-lock enabled and num-lock is disabled
2 – a back-lit option using half a dozen energy efficient LED’s with fiber-optics routed to the keys. This should have a button in an easy spot (up by the power toggle) that turns on the back-light just for a few seconds (again to conserve power).
3 – replace the sticker key labels with fully-baked-in lettering for long-life use.
Jean-Christophe Hemes | August 17th, 2011 at 14:24
This is all great feedback — we’ll definitely keep it in mind for future products.
Mario | August 17th, 2011 at 13:54
I’ll be using an all white or black keyboard with a new Mac mini I’ll be purchasing next month. I wish this keyboard used Bluetooth 4.0 instead of RF. I hate usb dongles.
Syrus | August 17th, 2011 at 13:59
Is it available in Canada yet?
Jamie | August 17th, 2011 at 14:24
Just a shame that it’s not bluetooth and still requires a USB port
DC | August 17th, 2011 at 15:33
Does it have the new lion keys on it? for mission control etc? When does it ship?
Adam | August 17th, 2011 at 15:34
I really look forward to getting this. I have been using my white iMac keyboard since 2006 and the black one previously! I have been waiting to an alternative to the Apple wireless BT keyboard and you guys hove brought it! I have to say that Logitech makes great products and even think of us Mac users from time to time with these products! Thanks guys.
Simon | August 17th, 2011 at 16:52
Great keyboard it seems, but I have to throw my hat in as well: I also wish it would be Bluetooth. The Dongle, and need to use up a USB port may be a deal breaker. As this is a Mac-centric keyboard I really with Logitech would reconsider and make this Bluetooth
Joe | August 17th, 2011 at 17:35
The keyboard is amazing and I will purchase one of the 2 solid-colored keyboards. However my big gripe about the device has already been brought up by other commenters on this page: Mac users want Bluetooth! Macs are limited in the number of USB ports they have compared to PC’s, and peripherals that don’t require the use of a USB port is highly advantageous. We would gladly take the hit on battery performance not to forfeit a USB port. Please consider this for rev.2 of your product. Thanks for your time… I can’t wait to get my hands on one of these!
Chris | August 18th, 2011 at 05:27
With Bluetooth I would have thought about it, but buying a USB hub for a wireless keyboard (as I am using all my USB ports) seems odd to me.
And it is introducing yet another device using 2.4GHz (as Wifi, DECT, etc) which might affect quality of those transmissions as well.
Sad though, would have enjoyed the other benefits of this keyboard, but like that it seems like a 50% solution and a missed chance…
Phil | August 18th, 2011 at 07:25
No bluetooth is a deal breaker for me and a few Mac using friends I’ve shown this to.
I’m not sacrificing a USB port for a dongle. I’d gladly take a model that doesn’t last as long in total darkness for one that’s Bluetooth.
In fact I’ll take a performance hit for one that’s also backlit.
How many charge cycles does this one last, btw?
Anyways, no bluetooth = no purchase as I use USB ports for drives and software dongles and RSA keys already.
Hopefully Apple will make their own solar charged keyboards with Bluetooth in the future.
Andre | August 18th, 2011 at 10:19
Hi – Great Keyboard and one I will be investing money in.
What I would love to see on it
– back-lit key’s (A Mac Must have)
- Numeric pad (no Idea why Mac removed it)
Any idea on a release date yet or how we can be kept in the loop as to when it becomes available
Andre
Jay | August 18th, 2011 at 10:53
When does Logitech expect to actually sell this product? I see it is available for preorder, but there is no expected ship date and none of the news websites seem to know.
I will be the one person to thank logitech for using the unifying receiver instead of bluetooth. I hate waiting for my mac to connect with bluetooth keyboards after it wakes up. I also hate having to use the bluetooth manager when it doesn’t work right. With the unifying receiver, I only have to use one port for both my MX anywhere mouse, which is the only mouse I have found that works on my glass table, and k750 keyboard. I am using the k340 now but am excited to ditch the key remapping software. I will chime in with everyone else and say that I would love a smaller version. I love the smaller size of the K340 and the fact that the number pad was retained. Smaller size without the number pad would be great too though. Small small small. Nice for using on the couch. Takes up less table space when I am using my Wacom in conjunction. We need small keyboards.
DT | August 18th, 2011 at 12:49
Does this keyboard feature Lion-specific key printing like the latest Apple keyboards?
Thanks!
Ann | August 18th, 2011 at 15:06
So when is it coming out and will it be available at retail stores for us to try out?
ALEX | August 18th, 2011 at 18:33
I have been waiting for this keyboard to come out for a Mac for a long while, but I am disheartened to learn it does not use Bluetooth.
I will not buy this keyboard until it supports Bluetooth v4.0 — I do not want to donate a spare USB slot to a dongle.
John | August 19th, 2011 at 07:32
I’ll second Jay’s question re: release date. I’ve already pre-ordered mine, and neither the emailed invoice nor the online status have a shipping date.
I guess I’ll have to buy another mouse to replace my MX1100 (unless Logitech has some way of making it compatible with Unifying receivers :^)
Tom | August 19th, 2011 at 12:42
Sounds great. I would order it today if it were available. However, I’m not going to pre-order when Logitech won’t even give an estimate of when it will be ready for shipping.
Jean-Christophe Hemes | August 22nd, 2011 at 16:43
Hi Tom —
The keyboard is scheduled to begin shipping in September.
Ricky | August 21st, 2011 at 13:00
There are 2 separate images of the keyboard layout. The image gallery shows a weird return key that is far away from my right pinky. The overview page shows a more standard return key with the backslash key above it. Which can we expect on the final product? I’d prefer the standard return key, my pinky is known to be lazy…
Jean-Christophe Hemes | August 22nd, 2011 at 16:39
This issue has been fixed — thanks for bringing it to our attention! If you are in the U.S. and look at the images now, you’ll see the standard “American” layout.
LeftShift | August 21st, 2011 at 19:35
On the main site, the left shift button configuration is standard. http://www.logitech.com/en-us/home
However, in the image gallery there are photos in which the left shift button is half-sized and it appears as if the tilde key is in-between the left shift and the z buttons. http://www.logitech.com/en-us/keyboards/keyboard/devices/wireless-solar-keyboard-k750-mac?modulename=k750-mac&moduleaction=learnmore
Which photo shows the correct configuration? I truly hope the standard size left shift button is the version which ships, particularly as I have already preordered the keyboard.
Thank you for your assistance.
Sam Cornwell | August 22nd, 2011 at 07:42
I guess the big question is when?
Jay Hannah | August 26th, 2011 at 14:24
The pics of the keyboard show the OLD Mac layout. Will this keyboard be revised with the OS X 10.7 Lion specific keys?
Tom | August 26th, 2011 at 14:55
The website now shows “Add to Cart” instead of “Pre-Order”
I trusted the change and ordered one. I hope they really are ready to ship.
Joey | August 26th, 2011 at 17:47
Call me stupid, but if your desk lamp can light your desk work and still have some extra light that would otherwise escape or float away if not grabbed by the solar key board, then couldn’t we have in essence light gutters around our desk to catch all the wasted light and feed the electricity back into my other electric devices? Like rain gutters around the house that catch run-off water for irrigation, couldn’t we have light gutters in every room of our home catching the run-off light and returning it back into my home power system? So is it possible to catch the light in our house, like a circulating pump in a fountain, and keep re-using it??
Jay Hannah | August 27th, 2011 at 14:34
Judging by the pictures it looks as if this keyboard is using the OLD Mac Keyboard layout (Pre OS X 10.7). Is this a true statement? If so will this keyboard be updated to the new OS X 10.7.xx Lion specific keyboard layout?
Graham Jeffries | August 29th, 2011 at 00:49
May I ask if the new keyboard would work with a PC – I don’t see that the PC edition comes in white?
Many thanks.
Jean-Christophe Hemes | August 30th, 2011 at 16:52
The keyboard is optimized for the Mac. There are Mac specific keys that wouldn’t work in a PC environment, but the basic functionality would.
John | August 31st, 2011 at 16:08
FWIW, mine shipped on the 29th and I received it today. It wasn’t fully-charged (status light next to the frowny face icon), but I’m typing away without any issues at this very moment. It’s very svelte, sleek, and feels fairly solid.
The aluminum overlay isn’t quite flush on the left-hand side though; I can see the supporting tabs through the gap. It’s minor, but also a bit disappointing, considering it’s based on the previous K750 for Windows.
I’m putting in a request to add a Magic Trackpad (with a different name, obviously) to the next iteration of this keyboard. Maybe swappable from one side to the other depending on the user’s handedness. Then it would be perfect
allfredy | September 2nd, 2011 at 06:10
when is australia going to get the mac white keyboard?
David | September 3rd, 2011 at 00:18
I own and love my PC version and would’ve considered this if it had bluetooth connectivity. When I use my iMac, I want things to be as simple and uncluttered as possible and that includes not having to use a receiver on one of my USB ports. I like how your receiver dongles are small and unintrusive, but after using a bluetooth Apple Keyboard and Magic Mouse (which have excellent battery life btw) it makes me wish why doesn’t every wireless device have a bluetooth option so we don’t need to plug in USB receivers for different brands of wireless devices we use.
Son | September 6th, 2011 at 17:44
Where’s the multi-color iteration for the Windows side?
Hiral | September 7th, 2011 at 08:28
Hey, would you be making different colors for the PC version as well? ETA? Also, any chance of a future model having the blacklighting?
Thanks!
Dejan | September 8th, 2011 at 17:03
When can we expect that in Serbia?
Thanks.
Laura | September 16th, 2011 at 00:04
Same questions as Hiral. I would love to get one with different colors for my pc.
Jim | September 24th, 2011 at 06:48
Will they be available in canada?
Marty Marbal | September 26th, 2011 at 21:04
I purchased this keyboard for my iMac last week and I totally love it. It’s never dipped below a 100% charge yet. It has a great feel to it, looks very nice and I’ll never have to put a battery in it. As a software developer, I love having the keypad, page up/down, home/end and full-size cursor keys that Apple decided to take away. I like the solar app that shows the amount of light being taken in as well as the charge level. I wouldn’t be surprised if every keyboard that I ever own from this point on is a solar one. Pure genius.
Andrew | October 10th, 2011 at 04:50
Just going to say i love the power saving feature of the unifying receiver as i find it uses less power than constantly having my bluetooth on. and it is about time you guys made a mac specific keyboard using unifying the unifying receiver. I have been waiting for this ever since i got my anywhere mouse MX Last year. So a little slow logitech but by the look of the keyboard worth the wait
When will it be available on the australian market?
Scott | October 26th, 2011 at 08:01
Why doesn’t Logitech sell this item in Canada! I want one…
Theo | November 7th, 2011 at 11:29
The solar keyboard Mac/PC alike is revolutionary.
I haven’t had to buy batteries or run wires to my machines from the keyboard for a year now, and I can’t imagine ever going back!
Jeff | November 11th, 2011 at 19:16
I really like this keyboard.
It has the feel of my Apple keyboard, almost, without the hassle of replacing batteries, EVER!
There are only two things that I wish were different:
1. No use of the function keys without pressing the fn key as a modifier…big pain! But it can be worked with (but not totally fixed), by using third party software like Sparks or HotApp.
2. The little friendly reminder light that is on the caps lock key on Apple keyboards is absent here and I miss it.
But besides those two things this keyboard rocks!!!
I’d definitely buy it again.