When it comes to computing one of the pieces of hardware that you pay most of your attention to, but also the least of your attention to, is your desktop keyboard and mouse. Of course, you're always in the knowledge that they are present and serving you well as you merrily browse through reviews, and type up ingenious little comments. However, if the desktop set is to be a success, you shouldn't have to pay any real attention to it at all; it should all be done on auto-pilot as it were. If you can touch type, then you shouldn't even have to creek your head downwards; if you do have to, then maybe you need to change your desktop set now!

I'm not necessarily claiming to have the miracle solution right here (right now), but what I do have is a contender, and a strong one too; it's the Logitech Cordless Desktop Wave. Cordless desktop means you get your keyboard and your mouse, with both being wire-free (also known as wireless...). The 'wave' concept is an interesting one, and basically refers to the unique design of this line of keyboard. I shall be delving into this more later, but for now, let's see what we've got.

I bought my desktop set from Amazon at the end of 2008 for just over £40, which I'd say is a very reasonable price to pay. I must also say that when I was looking for a keyboard and mouse combo set I was not prepared to fork out any more than £50, for you have to be realistic when you're buying items these days, as luxurious as they are getting to be. You may think this too is getting a bit pricey, not really worth it perhaps. However, it's quality all round, starting right from the packaging.

Never have I been so impressed by a box before in my life. I hunted down the packaging for the purpose of this review (always keep the packaging, just in case you need to return it!), and I'm glad I found it. It's to be admired, as sad as I may sound. I won't dwell on it too long, but to avoid damaging the casing it opens via the Velcro-strapped lid, revealing a classy interior. Talk about making good first impressions. The box is covered with graphics inside and out, and, just in case you had forgotten what it is you had purchased, there are a whopping 16 images of the keyboard alone. Pointless, maybe, hilarious, certainly. All items arrived securely showing that the fancy box was more than just a funny sight. Accessibility was simple (from what I can remember), although it took me a while to realise that you could open the box from its side also, to retrieve the contents in the base of the box. I think that might have just been me though...

So what do you get in the box aside from the keyboard and mouse that have hopefully been included? First up it's the USB mini receiver. This is what picks up the signals from your keyboard and mouse and transfers the information to your computer, to put it simply. You also have a USB stand, which is the equivalent of an extension cable to the receiver. This is very useful because if you've got a desktop PC like me, then signal won't be rest received from the back a chunky computer tower. You also have two very generous packs of two Duracell batteries for both your keyboard and your mouse. None of these Tesco value 1 hour batteries - only the best here from Logitech. As well as the software for the keyboard and mouse, you also have a dust cover. I was confused when I saw this on the parts list because I didn't realise I even had a dust cover! However, upon looking at the instructions manual it seems that this is formed by cutting apart some of the packaging. Unconventional indeed, but certainly sustainable in the long run.

On with the installation! I'm not going to run it by step by step, that's Logitech's job. What I can say however, is that it's just as easy as setting up any wired keyboard or mouse you may have had in the past, if not easier. The package comes with a suitably simple step by step guide, which explains things very well indeed, as well as including the instructions in five other languages to the English. Black and white illustrations accompany the steps, and are useful but most importantly clear and easy to understand, as opposed to being pointless and pathetic. The installation CD is also fairly self-explanatory, with easy to follow instructions as you go along the set-up process.

So, it's all set up, seems to be working well and good, but does it cut the mustard? No, it's a keyboard and mouse, but it's still pretty good. Firstly you may be wondering, especially if you've never used a wireless desktop set in the past, if it really works that well. In my experience, it does. I very rarely have issues with signal, and it's not as if I'm constantly sat right next to the receiver; in fact I'm never sat next to the receiver! The keyboard works efficiently practically all the time, though I do very occasionally have issues with the mouse signals. This is usually just because I'm sat too far away from the receiver or there is something blocking the signal, but on the whole it's a very good performer. In terms of battery life, it's still good news. I can't recall changing the batteries for the keyboard since I bought the kit, and that was well over a year ago now. The mouse on the other hand has had to be changed twice, possibly thrice; either way, that's no power drainer, especially considering I spend a good few hours on my computer every day.

In terms of the actual quality of the keyboard and mouse there are no complaints. Both are robust little warriors that, whilst I've not exactly been playing catch with them, have been subject to a good battering over the past fourteen months, being dropped on numerous occasions; and yet they live to tell the tale! I find with some cheaper desktop sets the keyboard is liable to losing parts gradually as its life wears on, especially the battery pack lid, or the height adjustment clips. Again though, my keyboard is holding firm, and apart from the dust (I never bothered with the cover) it looks as if it's just been pulled out from the pack; as does the mouse, for that matter!

It all sounds good so far, but this wave design, does it work? Yes. And no. The basic design is that rather than the keys being laid out in the standard flat and simple manner, the keyboard adopts a 'wave', which means some keys are lower than others. You may be very confused at this point, so let's hand over to Logitech, for an (attempted) explanation; 'Your fingers vary in length. So with its gradual wave-shaped contour, this keyboard supports the actual, varied lengths of your fingers.' What? I've got to say, I've never really understood this theory. Your fingers can only be so much shorter than your others, and a keyboard's keys can only be so much lower or higher than the other keys, surely? Well, it's all down to comfort I suppose, and it's comfortable, it must be said. Together with the cushioned palm rest which works very well indeed, it's a good double team from Logitech, that work well to suit my comforting needs! Yet there is one flaw. I'm finding that some keys are getting stiff, and I don't think it's just the ageing keyboard, either (though that too would be a flaw). Whether it's a flaw in the specific 'wave' design or not I don't know, but I find that unless keys are pressed in the centre, then you use have to use much more force to get them to give in. This can be frustrating as sometimes you just don't type a letter at all, as you simply end up running your finger over the top of the key instead of pushing down upon it. It's rather annoying, it must be said.

Considering the rest of the design though, and it's very well put together. You'll notice that your function keys (they're your F1s, F2s etc.) are divided differently to your standard Microsoft keyboard, in sets of three instead of four. You may be put off by this alone, but you get used to it surprisingly quickly and I wouldn't disregard this product for that alone. Each of the function keys can have secondary functions assigned to them, which are accessible using the function key which sits near your space bar. These all have defaults with images on three quarters of them, but can all be customised (considerably so) using the software provided; again, it's easy and well explained by Logitech. Along the top of the keyboard you also have one-touch controls for media accessing, which include all your basic play controls including seeking back and forth. There are also one-touch controls on the left of the keyboard, which Logitech label as being 'Windows Vista features'. However, they work well on XP for me on the whole, though Vista would handle it much more efficiently, especially the purposely designed 'document flip'.

The mouse is also well designed, with a simple and yet largely effective layout. The shape works very well and is specifically designed to be very comfortable to hold between your fingers and thumb. The scroll wheel works perfectly, with the perfect amount of leniency in terms of pressure required. However, the side button are less effective. They provide a useful means of going back and forth between Internet pages and document folders, but can be far too easily clicked by your other fingers. After too many web page losses in which I'd lost a paragraph or so of form writing I decided to turn off this feature, which can be done easily using the software. You may handle it better, but for me it just turned out to be an annoyance.

One final issue that should be addressed. This desktop set is designed specifically for Windows Vista, though I find it works very well on my XP operating system. It also works with Mac, but not with Windows 7, which certainly surprises and disappoints me. All the more reason to stick with XP for now though!

Overall, this desktop set has served me well, and its robustness and slick design is unquestionable. It's well packaged, and well thought-out on the most part, though some aspects can be annoying at times, and if it weren't for the disobedient keys it would most certainly have received five stars from me. All in all though it is a solid and very suitable desktop set at a very reasonable price, with quality shining through that sensational box right from the off!