Philips SPA5210B/27 Notebook SoundBar
- USB plug for power and play
- No battery or adapter needed
- Carrying pouch included
- Digital stereo sound
Screen-top Superstar. Just fasten me on top of your screen and I’ll sing for you! I’m a smart, compact, notebook USB speaker bar with a single convenient USB connection. Or put me next to your notebook and we can share your favorite sounds with everyone.
Rating: 
(out of 18 reviews)
List Price: $ 39.99
Price: $ 34.99
PlayStation 3 Wireless keypad
- Wireless Keypad for the PS3 turns your regular controller into a texting device with mouse input capabilities
- Attaches to any DualShock 3 or SixAxis wireless controller
- QWERTY keypad is designed for fast, thumbs-only typing
- Touchpad mouse allows for convenient scrolling and selection
- Designed with Bluetooth 2.0 and a rechargeable Lithium-ion polymer battery
The Wireless keypad for the PlayStation 3 system provides the freedom of easy to use texting and mouse input capabilities, all while maintaining full gameplay functionality in one easy-to-hold device. This Bluetooth device attaches to any Dualshock 3 or Sixaxis wireless controller and enables effortless internet browsing, e-mailing and instant messaging on the PlayStation Network and PlayStation Home. The unique touch pad feature allows for convenient scrolling and mouse input on the PS3 system
Rating: 
(out of 123 reviews)
List Price: $ 49.99
Price: $ 35.99
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Tags: Notebook, Philips, SoundBar, SPA5210B/27
Review by Jason Whitt for Philips SPA5210B/27 Notebook SoundBar
Rating:
The Philips notebook soundbar is a very good product as long as you keep your expectations reasonable. I am something of an audiophile and put a great deal of my disposable income and time into cultivating my critical listening room and home theater set up. This means that as a rule I don’t buy my audio components at the local big box stores.
On the other hand I am also a tech person who owns multiple video game systems, Ipods, smartphones etc. So I also appreciate the power and convenience of the digital age. I preface with this information to point out that I appreciate and recognize great sound, but also recognize that everything has its use.
Clearly, if you are buying a laptop soundbar you should not, nor do you have the right to expect it to sound like a large full range speaker. I don’t care how much you may spend on it. But comparing this soundbar to a full range speaker isn’t at all fair or apt. Philips doesn’t pretend that this product can deliver such dynamic sound reproduction or bass response.
What Philips intends for this soundbar to do is upgrade your audio experience over that which the laptop’s built-in speakers can deliver. It does that very well. No longer do I struggle to hear what someone is saying during a low quality Youtube video or a DVD movie. No longer do I need to max the volume to the point where everything becomes distorted just to hear what someone is saying. I run this soundbar at about 50% volume and it’s plenty loud and clear for me. I should point out that I have two young daughters (9 and 2) that are usually adding to the background noise so you may find that running the volume even less than 50% is sufficient.
Attaching the device couldn’t be simpler. Just slip it over the top of the screen and screw it finger tight. Then it’s just a matter of plugging in the USB. No software, no hassle. Just an instant audio upgrade from the tin cans your laptop came with.
Now for the downsides. I hesitate to even classify this as a negative, but I feel I must warn people that they should not expect surround sound or full dynamic range from this little guy. What you will get is a louder, clearer audio experience that is fairly treble heavy (higher frequency range). If the trebly sound quality proves bothersome to you, it can easily be remedied by going to the control panel of your laptop and adjusting the EQ to your liking. Just know that no amount of EQ adjustment will make this speaker thump or reach down into lower frequency ranges. It’s just not designed for that purpose.
Another negative is that depending on how loudly and how much you use the soundbar, it will definitely shorten battery life. That’s a very minor negative to me though because you should know going in that adding ANY peripheral to a laptop will cause a charged battery to drain faster.
Finally, the soundbar, while relatively small, is still large enough that one wouldn’t want to leave it on the laptop indefinitely. In addition, the laptop cannot be fully closed with the speaker attached (at least on mine). So after you’re done with it you pretty much have to remove it. They do provide a decent little carry bag. So there is the matter of repeated handling that may be bothersome to some.
Overall, the product does exactly what it is supposed to do simply and conveniently. At this price point I think the majority of people would be satisfied with it as long as their expectations are realistic.
Review by Eric San Juan for Philips SPA5210B/27 Notebook SoundBar
Rating:
This easy-to-use, clip-on speaker for your laptop/notebook isn’t going to replace your home stereo system, but it’s not meant to. What it IS meant to do is upgrade your laptop’s sound from tinny and distant to relatively full and clear.
And for that, it works like a charm.
Whether listening to music while I write, watching YouTube videos in the backyard with my wife, or enhancing my video gaming experience, I was impressed with the sounds coming out of my laptop.
Setup is easy. Set it on top of your laptop monitor (I often don’t even bother to clip it), plug into a USB port, and boom, you’re done. It’s that simple.
The $40 might be a little steep depending on your needs — if you don’t need to travel, you can get a decent set of desktop speakers for the same price — but if you haul your laptop/notebook around and want better audio when you do, you may be pleased with the results.
Review by rampageous_cuss for Philips SPA5210B/27 Notebook SoundBar
Rating:
This is a neat idea, and as far as the clip-on aspect goes, it works PRETTY well. I have, however, encountered a couple of problems.
First, and most blatantly, don’t try to follow the installation instructions exactly, because Step 3 (illustration 4) should be Step 1 (illo 1.) Duh, perhaps, but you have to at least DEPLOY the USB cord BEFORE you attach the Soundbar!
The next obvious issue is that there’s no volume control ON the Soundbar; volume control is completely application-dependent. It’s a minor irritation, but that can make it hard to control the volume easily.
Another problem that took ME a little while to figure out is that if you unplug the Soundbar WHILE PLAYING something, you get NO more sound ANYwhere – even if you re-plug in the USB cord – until you re-start the laptop. However, if you STOP the play FIRST, you can unplug the Soundbar and switch to headphones, or the default sound system, or whatever! This was VERY frustrating for a while, and a simple trouble-shooting tip in the Soundbar’s documentation would have been a BIG help!
I wanted speakers mostly for listening to streaming video and DVDs. There’s no problem with DVDs or streaming audio, but on my notebook the Soundbar looks to be affecting internet performance negatively – streaming video REALLY slows down. I’m running XP on an older Acer, so maybe a newer laptop/better memory/etc won’t have these problems.
Last and least, you can’t leave the Soundbar clipped on when you close the notebook. Maybe there’s no way around that for a clip-on, but it’s an annoyance.
I can’t honestly comment on the sound quality – hey, it’s all off a computer after all – but I see few advantages over regular plug-in speakers.
Review by Kimba W. Lion for Philips SPA5210B/27 Notebook SoundBar
Rating:
These speakers are small, so you can’t expect miraculous sound out of them. Still, they are much better than the built-in speakers in my Dell laptop, and much, much better than the speakers in my netbook. However, the weight of this soundbar causes my netbook to tip over backwards, so they’re no use there.
The overall sound is a bit on the tubby side, apparently to compensate for the lack of real bass. But it’s not bad, really, and a definite improvement over the built-in speakers.
Installation was a snap; plug it in, wait a few seconds for the driver to load (first time only) and it works. And everything reverts to normal when you unplug it. (Windows XP, SP3) Couldn’t be better in that respect.
Review by SanjeevP for Philips SPA5210B/27 Notebook SoundBar
Rating:
This soundbar is great for a student in a dorm for watching a Netflix movie or a YouTube video or listening to music on Pandora. Volume is good enough for a small room or a dorm. Midrange quality is fairly decent but bass is weak. The soundbar gives you some stereo effect but nowhere close to the surround effect that you get from several fold more expensive Polk or Yamaha Soundbars.
Basically you plug in the self storing USB cord, tighten the clasp screw on the top and you are ready to go. For Windows XP ThinkPad, these speakers were truly Plug & Play: For MacBook Pro, I had to go in the sound settings and change the output to Philips SPA5210 from internal speakers. The speakers come with a nice storage bag too. So one more item to store in your notebook bag!
The main negative I found for these speakers was lack of hard volume control button. The only way to control volume on these is through the software on computer screen. A sliding volume switch on top of the soundbar would have made it a lot easier to use.
Competition audio for notebook is a cheaper Lenovo ThinkVision USB Soundbar PC multimedia speakers; and lot more expensive Philips HSB3280 – audio system – radio / USB flash player which adds a subwoofer but takes away the mobility.
Overall, I think this Philips Soundbar is good compromise between size, cost, performance and mobility.
Review by A. Dent for PlayStation 3 Wireless keypad
Rating:
The following are my conclusions and observations following several hours of testing. It is possible that I missed a feature or two but I am quite confident that I was able to test all the major ones.
The setup and first impressions:
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I don’t know why, I imagined a bigger device. I am pleased to note that the keypad is a lot thinner than I imagined – about half an inch thick and pretty light.
It fits nicely on top of any standard PS3 controller thanks to a clamp that, once it clicks in, it makes the keypad appear as if it was part of the controller’s body. The three controller buttons that it covers: PS3, Select and Start are present on the pad at their expected locations but they only work when the keypad is attached to the controller. All other buttons work regardless of the keypad being attached or detached.
The keyboard is okay but it’s better suited for larger hands (or long thumbs). As a Blackberry user, I find this keyboard less comfortable than that of a classic Blackberry – but I’ve been using Blackberies for almost 10 years already so I may be a little bit spoiled or maybe biased toward their ergonomics.
As far as workmanship is concerned, my impression is one of a well-built, durable device. It integrates well, visually and functionally with the PS3 controllers.
The setup:
———-
After a couple of hours of charging through the USB port (cable not included), the keypad is ready to use. Once the On/Off switch is set to On, all that’s needed is for the keypad to be connected to the PS3 through a USB cable and the pairing is done automatically.
The workings:
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The keypad operates in two modes: as a keyboard or, interestingly, as a touch pad.
In keyboard mode, you get a QWERTY keyboard with well separated, round little keys. The letters, numeric and punctuation keys are where you would expect them to be but the special keys are not exactly at their familiar places and some of the less essential ones (PgUp, PgDn, End, Home and the function keys) are missing. Special characters can be entered with the help of 2 modifier keys (the Blue and the Orange).
Three special keys allow you to enable the touch pad mode or quickly jump to your PS3 message box or friends list icons – I did not find the last 2 very useful.
Until you make yourself familiar with some of the less obvious key combinations it’s a good idea to save the instructions pamphlet (a 17″x11″ folded sheet) found in the package.
The touch pad mode is very interesting in that, after pressing the ‘touch pad key’, the keyboard is disabled and a section of the keyboard emulates a laptop’s touch pad and the 2 cursor keys emulate mouse buttons and you can interact with your environment as if you were using a mouse.
I am a ‘knob’ person as far as mouse emulation is concerned but, based on my testing, the touch pad mode, while interesting and innovative, is not very well implemented. For example, while in Browser mode, it does not allow you to scroll down your browser window, something that is easily and intuitively accomplished with the R3/L3 analog sticks. The cursor, when controlled with the touch pad was jumpy, either moving from one corner of the window to another or, sometimes, not moving at all. The good news is that all the controller buttons, including the sticks, are fully functional all the time so, people like me, won’t have to use the touch pad.
Brief evaluation:
—————–
+ Bluetooth device, does not require dongles or wires
+ Replaces a full-size keyboard, well suited for entering passwords or brief messages
+ Perfectly integrated, physically and functionally with the PS3 controller – generally, it does not interfere with game play
+ Rechargeable battery
+ According to Sony (not tested by me) it can be paired with other Bluetooth devices (don’t lose that manual)
- Adds weight to the controller
- Some of the special keys are placed at unfamiliar locations
- Keys ‘real estate’ wasted by assigning 2 keys to jump to the message box and the friends list
- Touch pad does not work very well
- Small hands may find it a bit uncomfortable
Before I started writing this review, I thought I was going to award this keypad 3 stars but, once I listed the pros and the cons I see that the negatives are relatively minor. The major disappointment is the touch pad but it’s not something that I am going to miss because I am already happy with the R3/L3. 3.5 stars should be the fair score but I am rounding it up to 4 because my overall impression is positive.
With HOME now a reality, this is likely to become an increasingly useful add-on.
Review by L. T. Beasimer for PlayStation 3 Wireless keypad
Rating:
Before I received this keypad, I had a keyboard wired to the PS3 while playing games on the couch. Whenever I wanted to type a message I would get off the couch, sit on the floor, and type. When I saw this keypad I had a few reservations, but I knew I this would be a better solution.
From pulling the keypad out of the package and putting it to use is pretty simple but takes a little time. Pairing and charging work just like the controllers do. This product comes with no charge, so plug it into the PS3 and let it charge up. When ready the keypad clamps firmly into place resting on the controller with the keys away from the body. Turn the power on and it is ready to use. After calibration the keypad can be used as a touchpad with the touch of a button. Plus a couple shortcut keys are included for checking messages and viewing friends.
I usually play the PS3 at night in a dimly lit room. The keypad is laid out mostly like a normal keyboard; however there are a few minor differences. Because of my playing environment, I would find backlit keys to be a big help. Additionally the touchpad feature works, but is a bit difficult to properly navigate the finger motion to what should happen on the screen. Perhaps the touchpad feature takes more getting used to than the rest of the features.
One of my reservations was related to where the keypad rests on the controller. Being away from the body and above the R3 and L3 buttons, I was concerned they would get in the way making the keypad difficult to use. I have to admit this is not the case for me at all. The buttons are laid out so that they can be used comfortably; I had no problems pressing the keys. The keypad doesn’t get in the way for game play either.
Overall this quality constructed product is designed well. While there are a few weaknesses, Sony delivers the functionality they claim. This keypad is priced in line with other Sony PS3 products and worth the expense for me. For those that type short messages and such, the PlayStation 3 Wireless keypad is worthy of consideration.
PROS:
Fits firmly on the controller
Easy to setup and use
Well designed quality constructed product
CONS:
Keys are not backlit
Touchpad feature not so easy to use
Review by Michael P. Daniel for PlayStation 3 Wireless keypad
Rating:
Once Sony flipped the switch on Home, I saw an ad for this keyboard in the Home mall. Two or three stunted interactions with fellow gamers (most likely teenagers who could kick the snot out of me in any FPS, with their eyes closed), I realized the hunt and peck method of data entry using the PS3 remote was aggravating at best, time-consuming at worst.
After striking out at all box stores in the days leading up to and after Christmas, I finally found the PlayStation 3 Wireless keypad on Amazon. Once charged up, I took it for a spin, using it to enter URLs while using the PS3 broswer.
Unless you have thin, delicate fingers, be prepared to fat-finger the hell out this thing… even with the extensive Blackberry Curve keyboard typing experience, I was a misspelling fool for the first day or two… My only complaint (aside from being cursed with apparently pudgy fingers, is that the alternate key values (accessed by shifting between two buttons on the top left and right of the device) do not “pop” against the black device background, forcing me to hold the controller to my nose to see if I was typing a : or a ;.
Pros: Device is well balanced and unobtrusive. I keep it on my controller even while playing games that do not require its use. Battery life seems to be of the same caliber of the remotes themselves, ensuring hours of uninterrupted play (or until the wife makes me shut down.) Pairing with the PS3 was quick and easy.
Buy it, get used to it, and you’ll be typing away in no time… just be prepared to use the backspace liberally.
Review by Steven C. Branson for PlayStation 3 Wireless keypad
Rating:
Quick Review: Snaps on quick, sets up quick, works great. Typing takes a bit of practice, like any new keyboard.
Highlight: A rarely mentioned feature is “Touch Mode” which lets you run your finger over the keypad like a trackpad. Nice, but not super useful on the PS3 (since you have two handy pointing devices on the controller).
Bonus Highlight: This device is compatible with Mac OS X in Bluetooth and USB – this means you can connect it to your Mac and use it as a wireless keyboard and trackpad. It even features right and left-mouse click functionality. Even if you don’t have a PS3, it makes a good mouse/keyboard/remote if you happen to use a Mac as a media server in your living room (Mac Mini in my setup) and want a keyboard/trackpad that fits in the palm of your hand. I even typed this review out with it!!
Just plug it in with a USB cable and the OS will detect it – for bluetooth follow included directions.
Definitely recommend this device for both its intended and unintended purposes.
Review by Aslam Jilani for PlayStation 3 Wireless keypad
Rating:
Well i just bought the Keypad for PS3 today and ive been hearing that people complain about the touch sensitive mouse is way too sensitive and almost unusable. Well i thought that too when i first got it and then i read the instructions. You have to seperatly calaborate the touchpad when in touchmode with ps3 for it to work properly. Heres the steps
1. Go to Internet Browser
2. Activate Touch pad(the hand with index finger pointing)
3. Hold blue and orrange shoulder buttons for 2 seconds until the ligh flashes
Now your touch pad should be calaborated. ENJOY!
Sorry if everyone already knows this just wanted people to know so they dont think its the keypads problem. READ THE MANUAL.