Today, all kinds of mobile gadgets are extremely popular, both among young people and among the older generation. From year to year they improve, become more technologically savvy, more functional and more productive. Due to the popularity and widespread use of such devices, interest in peripheral equipment that can work with them has simultaneously grown. We are talking about mouse-type manipulators, keyboards and joysticks.
Let's try to figure out whether it is possible to connect the keyboard to the tablet, how to do it and what we need for this. And at the same time we’ll find out what arsenal of knowledge you need to arm yourself with in this, though light, but at the same time confused enterprise.
Connection Methods
In total, there are three main ways to connect peripheral devices that are available to the ordinary owner of mobile gadgets. All of them allow you to correctly interact with devices to enter this or that information.
- Wi-fi wireless protocol.
- Connection via infrared or Bluetooth.
- Connect the mouse, keyboard to the tablet via cable.
Each of the above methods has a number of advantages and disadvantages, so what kind of connection to choose depends entirely on you and the capabilities of your device.
Connection via cable or adapter
Most often, a tablet (you can connect a keyboard, mouse or joystick) is connected to the peripherals via a special cable or USB port, if one is provided for in the gadget. For the correct operation of both devices connected via cable, the following requirements must be met.
Connection Terms:
- the device must support a connected manipulator, and vice versa;
- the mobile device must support OTG and USB-host technologies for interacting with third-party manipulators at the hardware level;
- On the mobile device must be installed the latest drivers for correct interaction with peripherals at the software level.
Be sure to take into account the above nuances before connecting a keyboard and mouse to the tablet.
The benefits of physical connectivity
The main advantage of this synergy method is the fact that you clearly know what exactly you have connected. It should also be noted that the interaction speed of both devices is limited exclusively by the speed of the slowest device. In general, peripherals connected in a physical way have the highest bandwidth, which is why experts advise synchronizing flash drives and 3G modems through a cable in order to maximize the return on data exchange between devices. Keep this in mind before connecting your keyboard to your tablet.
Infrared port and Bluetooth
This method is slightly inferior in popularity to the first, but, despite certain disadvantages, it continues to enjoy enviable demand. Before you connect the “bluetooth” -keyboard to the tablet, you must first establish communication at the hardware level, if it was not done in automatic mode.
To connect two devices using the Bluetooth protocol or via infrared, you must perform the following steps:
- Activate the infrared port or bluetooth adapter on the peripheral device.
- Enable wireless protocols on your mobile gadget.
- Sync with an external device.
If your peripheral device is equipped with only an infrared port, then before you connect the keyboard to the tablet, keep in mind that this technology has long been outdated and many modern mobile gadgets no longer support infrared protocols. As for the Bluetooth module, it continues to improve and is replenished with new samples and versions.
Advantages and disadvantages of wireless protocols
Connecting external devices via the Bluetooth wireless protocols and infrared ports has a number of indisputable advantages that physical synchronization of devices is deprived of.
The main advantages of connecting peripherals through the radio module and infrared port:
- independence and mobility of both devices - both peripheral and tablet / smartphone;
- convenience and compactness;
- simplicity of synchronization;
- the ability to connect multiple peripheral devices (if the capabilities of the adapter and the operating system of the mobile gadget allow).
As for the shortcomings, there are not so many of them, although some of them can become critical for a certain circle of users. Communication, although it is considered wireless, but has its own “leash”, which is limited by the capabilities of a tablet or peripheral device. You can also note a small, but still a delay in the response of the keyboard or mouse, which is unacceptable for most gamers. Keep this in mind before dealing with the prakic question: "How to connect a keyboard to a tablet?"
Nevertheless, this method of connecting peripherals is considered a compact and universal solution with maximum capabilities.
Connection via Wi-Fi adapter
Before connecting the keyboard to the tablet via Wi-Fi protocols, a number of conditions must be met. Otherwise, successful synchronization is unlikely to succeed or be impossible at all.
Connection Terms:
- The connected external device must be equipped with a Wi-Fi wireless module (best of the same standard as a mobile gadget).
- The keyboard or mouse should work without involving any additional network adapter (such as a router), otherwise this function should be taken over by the mobile device.
- At the software level, “masks” and IP addresses must match, which will allow devices to be combined into one network.
- Both devices must be able to independently and correctly process and send data to one side and the other.
Due to the specific and rather complicated synchronization procedure, it is very difficult to find a mobile gadget with the ability to connect peripherals via Wi-Fi protocols, and therefore printers or MFPs, that is, devices for which the speed of the return call is not so important, “use” this method difference from the same mouse or keyboard.
Mobile gadget and peripheral configuration
In order for external devices to correctly interact with the tablet, you need to take care of the latest drivers for the peripherals. This will help to correctly and quickly broadcast commands from one device to another and vice versa. Software can be installed both automatically and with the help of the user. For example, after correctly installing the drivers and connecting the mouse to the mobile gadget, a familiar cursor will appear on the screen.
Software
For the physical connection of any peripheral keyboard via the USB port, it is better to use the popular and well-proven utility ruKeyboard. This software is able to work with almost any type of keyboard, and therefore is in enviable demand throughout the Russian Federation.
To properly configure the utility, you need to perform the following simple steps:
- Install the downloaded software (it is better to use the official resources of the developers).
- Go to your mobile gadget settings.
- Select the menu item "Language and Settings".
- Place the beacon opposite the ruKeyboard position.
- Then, in the settings of the utility itself, select “Hardware Keyboard”.
- In the menu section "Layout Selection", find the item "External Keyboard" and make it active.
- Open any text editor or browser, and in the settings specify the input method "ruKeyboard".
- Connect the keyboard to your mobile device.
- Test the operation of all characters.
After performing these steps, both devices should work correctly. If something went wrong, it is better to start from the very beginning of the list and do all the actions again without missing anything.