Readers might have the perception that I’m an unapologetic Apple fan boy these days. Well, it’s just not true. I happen to think - right now - they produce the best kit for my purposes. But we’ve all seen companies (Apple included) “jump the shark“, and loose the plot. I’m suspecting Longhorn might well be Microsoft’s long drawn out jump, and we all know that Intel are in mid flight right now with their paltry 64 bit offering, itanium.
Apple are a long way off, that much is true. iPod continues to grow apace, and I (personally) think the Mac Mini could - in a year or two - be growing as a solid, and very popular, home computer. Heck, I wish they’d been released before I picked up an iBook for my parents. So, yes I’m a fan. I’m probably even a fanboy by many peoples measure, but scary as it might sound, I was rather impressed with Windows 95 when it first came out (well, wasn’t everybody after Windows 3.1?). So my enthusiasm does need to be taken in context 
Anyway, to the cause of my grief. Some time ago, I picked up a super iMac G5. And I’ll say now that I’m very very very happy with it. I recommend it very highly to anybody who asks. To me it’s the ideal home computer: Short on desk space usage; Extremely powerful; Very easy to use; Does everything I want.
But.
Don’t buy the Bluetooth keyboard and mouse. Whilst it works perfectly 95% of the time just fine, it’s that 5% of the time when I have a problem that really really niggles.
But let’s start with the basics. Wireless keyboards and wireless mice aren’t - despite Apple’s hardware prowess - perpetual energy machines. They need batteries. Please weigh up very carefully whether the initial “coolness” of wireless (which is considerable, I’ll grant you) outweighs the need on a weekly basis to recharge the batteries (and you do want rechargeable batteries, unless you have a sizeable pile of Apple shares to sell to pay for normal batteries).
That said, it’s a minor cost outlay, and with 12 rechargeable batteries, you can always have some standing by ready to drop in. But here’s the next thing, unplug the batteries from a mouse when it starts to complain of a low battery (via the Bluetooth icon in the menu bar) and you will loose the pairing. So you need to “rediscover” your mouse (throwing it across the room doesn’t help: I know; I tried). Press CTRL-F2 to get access to the menu’s on the keyboard, and select system preferences; Select “Keyboard & Mouse” (hit K to jump there); Tab to the bluetooth tab (press space to select); then tab down to setup new device, etc.
A similar thing can happen with keyboards too. Not all the time (as they’re seemingly more closely ‘paired’), but just every now and then. And for me at any rate, it always seems to happen at the worst possible moment: Just as I’m doing a release or wanting to reply to an important e-mail.
But it’s the power-down pairing loss that annoys me most. If I switch off the iMac completely, it can sometimes loose the pairing on startup. No keyboard and mouse can make logging in rather difficult. The only recourse is to power off the machine (holding down the power button for 5 seconds or so), and start it again. This seems to get the bluetooth devices paired up again in most cases. Failing that try frantically pressing keys or wiggling the mouse (or both) to get things back in to life: That’s worked for me too.
I’ve heard tell from a colleague that having the Bluetooth option (in System Preferences/Keyboard & Mouse again) “Allow Bluetooth devices to wake this computer” can cause problems, and I’ve recently disabled that (which means pressing the power button briefly to restore the machine from sleep) to see if it helps.
All in all it’s a royal pain, to the extent I’m now regretting having replaced my keyboard with another wireless one, after wrecking the first. I’m all but set to buy a wired keyboard and mouse in the next few weeks and reserve the wireless one for showing off on occasion. Heck, I could use the extra USB port that comes with it!
In summary, if you’re considering buying an iMac (or another Bluetooth equipped Apple, or other make I suppose) - I’d caution you against the Bluetooth component. It’s still rather shaky, to the extent you’ll find it gets in your way every now and then, and you will come to regret the wireless keyboard in the long run. You won’t regret the computer itself, oh no. And if your desk is as cluttered as mine, the lack of a few cables really isn’t that significant in the long run.
Update, 15/Feb/05: It might well be USB related: See “More on Bluetooth problems”
Update, 20/Feb/05: YES. It is USB related in my case. Three reboots and three working Bluetooth sessions (Previously a reboot always lost Bluetooth). The solution is simply to buy yourself a USB hub and attach devices to that, or unplug your USB devices.
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January 21st, 2005 at 4:56 pm
I think there’s something fishy going on with your setup. What, exactly, that might be I’m not sure of. Swapping batteries on a weekly basis is a sure sign of a problem. I use the Apple Bluetooth keyboard & mouse with my eMac (and D-link USB Bluetooth dongle) and I’d say that one set of batteries in the mouse lasts me about 2.5 months on average. I’ve had the keyboard & mouse for around a year and I think I’m only on my second set of keyboard batteries (MAYBE my third). For replacement batteries, I bought the exact same brand/type of batteries that Apple included in the box. For the keyboard, they are Energizer e2 Titanium and the mouse had Energizer e2 Photo Lithium (something like that…)
The eMac gets about 4 hours of use per day on weekdays, 8-12 hours on Saturdays and Sundays. I never turn the keyboard & mouse off unless I am going out of town for several days (recommended in Apple’s instruction manual).
I have endured the occasional loss of pairing, resulting in much grumbling as I dig the USB mouse and/or keyboard out of the closet, but I’d say that the wireless gear works correctly more like 99.985% of the time. I have the “allow devices to wake this computer” option selected and it works as advertised. One hint: when changing batteries (just BEFORE the device dies on you), my strategy is to shut the computer down, turn off the device, change the batteries, turn the device back on, then power up the computer. That’s always worked for me.
When the computer sleeps, I’ve found the best way to wake it is by pressing the mouse button…if I press the space bar to wake it, sometimes there is a delay in mouse recognition (methinks it’s “asleep”) resulting in that “wiggle-wiggle-click-click” dance as my eyes scan the screen for any sign of the cursor.
Good luck with fixing the problem. The only thing I can think of off-hand is: a) make sure your Bluetooth software and firmware is up-to-date (check Apple’s site), b) try repairing disk permissions in Disk Utility, c) “Zap your PRAM” by holding down command-option-p-r at startup until you hear maybe 3 or 4 chimes (this will reset some of your internal system settings as well…not sure if you need to use a wired keyboard to do this) d) Maybe try re-installing the Bluetooth software? or the OS (long shot)? e) look around the support forums on Apple’s site, f) consider that there may be a hardware defect with your equipment.
Once again, good luck!
January 21st, 2005 at 6:24 pm
On my G5 Imac I must unplug and USB device before start up or else my wireless keyboard and mouse are not recognized. I learned this from calling in support. I agree that this is a royal pain and I think I may send it back and switch to a wired version.
January 22nd, 2005 at 12:02 am
I have a USB printer connected to my iMac G5 with Bliuetooth mouse and keyboard.
It gives me no grief and works well all the time.
When changing batteries I sometimes lose the connection but it always returns in about a minute (at the most). I’ve never had to re-pair the devices and I have the wake computer with keyboard/mouse option on.
My battery usage is the same as Matt’s.
I’ve recently started using rechargeables and get about 3 weeks for the mouse. The keyboard batteries last a long, long time!
Good luck with that!
January 23rd, 2005 at 7:23 am
RE: The use of BT keyboard
How do you boot into Single User Mode (holding down command-s at startup)?
I can’t imagine the BT peripherals work then, or do they? How would you do a fsck?
What about choosing the startup disk during, well, startup (holding down option at startup)? Will a BT keyboard work then too?
I’m considering a Mac mini with a BT kb and mouse and your response will help me make an informed decision. (I’m currently using an iBook and would have no access to a wired USB kb and m.)
Here’s a product waiting to happen: A BT keyboard and mouse, that with a standard USB cable can function wired. Wired or (BT) wireless, your choice.
January 23rd, 2005 at 10:36 pm
I’m interested in your comments. I’ve got an iMac G5 too, with wireless keyboard and mouse. I’ve had it only for a month now, so am on my first set of batteries, but certainly haven’t had to replace them on a “weekly” basis.
I wonder whether your strategy to use rechargable batteries may in fact be the problem. In the past many rechargable batteries in fact delivered a slightly lower voltage than normal AAs. This is not enough to cause device problems, it appears, but I wonder if the power management software might be prematurely considering them to be running out of current when they are in fact OK?
The other thing to consider is that these are essentially trickle drain devices. For certain applications, both where you are putting very high current drain on your batteries, and conversely at the other end of the spectrum when you are only using very small amounts of current and want a long shelf-life, traditional AAs are no good. I suspect that is why Apple ships the keyboard with Titanium batteries, and the mouse with Lithium ones (for additional weight considerations in that case also—lithium batteries are much lighter than other batteries).
So I wonder if you’ve in fact inadvertently caused this problem, by trying to avoid the percieved one of buying batteries too often?
My gripe with the Bluetooth keyboard is that you can boot into Open Firmware or Single User mode with it, but once there the computer can no longer accept keyboard input as the Bluetooth software controller is de-installed. I can understand why, but it’s a pain if you don’t happen to have a wired USB keyboard hanging around. Still, there are ways around that, doing most things you’d want to do there via higher level interfaces.
: )
April 13th, 2005 at 2:47 pm
I encountered many of the same issues regarding ny BlueTooth G5 iMac’s “sleep” and no wake with BT (no problems as relates to batteries yet). In addition, I access the web via the internal phone modem, and connections were “iffy” at best, and redials, once kicked offline, were useless. Your solution to remove USB devices resolved ALL my problems (I had a scanner and printer attached); however, how does a USB hub defeat the same events from occurring should I opt for one?
April 13th, 2005 at 3:31 pm
Hi Dean,
Thanks for the comment. The short answer is “I don’t quite known, but it does work”. I’m no expert on Mac internals, so the rest of my answer is really just some guesswork.
I think the root of the problem is that the Bluetooth interface sits on the internal USB hub (Run the System Profiler and look at the USB section: You’ll see Bluetooth HCI is on the USB tree), and perhaps the modem too from what you say (I’ve not used it, as I have the wireless module installed).
From what I can gather, it’s purely a USB 1.1 problem, so there must be something deep down which is interfering with the proper operation of this bluetooth component. Check your hardware manuals and try reinstalling them if you don’t yet have a hub (or use the ports on the back of the Apple wired keyboard?).
A USB hub must therefore insulate the USB operations/commands that are getting in the way of the bluetooth device. I’d suggest you make sure it’s a USB2.0 hub with 1.1 support, rather than a 1.1 hub!
I hope that in some way helps.
April 25th, 2005 at 2:33 am
Re. Bluetooth signal loss/problems with USB devices
I’ve had this problem and picked the brains of an actual Apple engineer. Turns out the problem is with USB output devices such as printers, flat-bed scanners and PDAs. The engineer basically told me that using such devices via USB actually takes power away from the Bluetooth module, thus resulting in an unstable/unreliable bluetooth signal. (I.E. wireless devices not working.)
The manager I spoke to advised me that it would most likely take a product redesign to correct the issues but couldn’t disclose more information than that at the time. Perhaps Revision B of the iMac G5 will shed some light.