There are two different types of keyboards; the totally customisable, mechanical, pro-gaming kind, complete with RGB lighting and swappable keys, or the super boring ones we all use all the time in our every day jobs.

They sit quietly on your desk, doing their thing—typing, clicking, and somehow surviving every coffee spill, keyboard shortcut disaster, and the occasional sports journalist angrily bashing away with their endearing, two-finger technique.

Well, in recent years, Logitech has created a bit of a niche for itself by introducing a third category of keyboard, somewhere in between. These are keyboards designed with the office in mind - but adding in some other tricks to enhance our productivity.

While the Logitech Signature Slim Solar+ K980 for Business is not going to brew your coffee or organise your meetings, it does something way cooler: it powers itself with solar energy. Which ultimately poses the question; why aren't more accessories powered this way?

First off, let’s talk about the design. The K980 is certainly slim, although with its full-full sized number pad and set of navigation keys, it's still as wide as any other traditional keyboard. It’s got a matte finish that resists fingerprints so you don’t have to worry about smudging your pristine, professional-looking workspace after eating a sandwich. The soft-touch keycaps give a satisfying feel, and the scissor switches—those magical little things that make the keys so quiet—mean you can type furiously without sounding like that aforementioned two-finger-pecking sports reporter.

But of course, its most distinguishing feature is the wide solar panel strip stretching across the top of the keyboard. And that doesn't mean the K980 only runs on sunlight - although that might make a good argument if you're angling for an office with a window - even the light from your fluorescent office bulbs is enough to keep it powered up. In fact, I've been testing it in the murky depths of the Newstalk ZB Control Room, during my daily Breakfast shift.

Interestingly, when you use the Logi Options+ app to set up the K980, not only can you see at a glance how much charge is left, you can also test if there's enough light in your work environment to keep things topped up.

I wasn't surprised when the message was "Insufficient light for charging..." I like to run things pretty dim when I arrive at 3:45am.

What DID surprise me was that message proved to be wrong. After using the K980 as my primary keyboard for more than a month, it still hadn't gone flat. Far from it, it was still at 100%.

How many times have you fumbled around looking for fresh batteries while your keyboard stares back at you, unhelpfully blinking a sad little “low battery” light? Even if you’re working in a basement office, this thing should still have enough juice to last you months - that's if it ever runs down at all.

And let's not forget, by going solar, you'll be saving the planet, several AAA batteries at a time.

The K980 connects via Bluetooth, so you can pair it with pretty much anything - your PC, Mac, iPhone, or Android device - really, if it has Bluetooth, this thing is good to go. 

It also ships with a Logi Bolt USB-C receiver - Logitech's latest tiny dongle that ensures a more lag-free, interference-proof connection.

Like many other Logitech mice and keyboards, the K980 also supports multi-device pairing, so you can seamlessly switch between your desktop computer, laptop, or tablet without having to re-pair the keyboard each time. There are dedicated 1, 2 and 3 keys to the left of the number pad so you can switch devices as quick as a flash. 

I love how most Logi keyboards have repurposed the functions keys for much more useful shortcuts, like media controls and my favourite, screen capture. But you can use the Logi Options+ app to customise all these keys and many others - even creating macros which can include keystrokes, time-delays and even app launches.

The real mystery here is why isn't the K980 just a bit better?

I'm not sure how much power it takes to run a tiny LED but I would have thought having one on the Caps Lock key isn't going to affect battery life too drastically. Unfortunately, there's literally no way of knowing if Caps Lock (or Number Lock for that matter) is on or off until you actually type something. Why does this matter? Well, if you've ever typed a whole sentence without looking up at the screen, you'll know how annoying it is to discover your capitals and lower cases were all around the wrong way.

But more importantly, passwords. I've been locked out of things for mis-typing my password too many times. If you don't know if Caps Lock is on, I reckon the risk of that increases by about 50%.

I wasn't expecting backlit keys but again, given I've never seen the charge level dip below 100% the whole time I've been using it, so I'm starting to wonder if Logitech was way too conservative with what could and couldn't be included on this keyboard.

How about something that can't have any effect on battery life at all? Legs. There aren't any. Although most of the inner workings of the K980 are enclosed in a panel running the length of the underside of the keyboard, the height of this alone is not quite enough to prop things up at the same ergonomically-friendly angle fold-down legs achieve on other keyboards.

Meanwhile, the typing experience on this thing is buttery smooth. The keypresses are quiet and soft, the scissor switches give just the right amount of resistance - it’s sort of like typing on a soft cloud of productivity.

However, if you’re the type who needs tactile feedback and that “clicky” sound that lets everyone know you're hard at work (even when you’re just trying to look busy), you may miss that. But for everyone else? The K980 will have you flying through emails and presentations without sounding like you're, well, a frustrated sports journalist. 

For business professionals who want a sleek, eco-friendly, and quiet keyboard that does its job without causing a ruckus (literally), the Logitech Signature Slim Solar+ K980 for Business is an easy win. Like all Logi gear, it's built to last, has that attractive, meant-for-business look and you get to customise keys to fire off your ideal shortcuts.

Best of all, you'll never have to charge it or replace the batteries and that's got to be a win - for you and the planet.

Click here for more information and pricing on the Logitech Signature Slim Solar+ K980 for Business.