Hello community, it's my first time posting so I apologize if my post does not conform to board standards. I am very interested in computers, and I encountered a weird problem from a simple situation and would really appreciate if someone can give me insight about it.
A few days ago, I replaced my old USB keyboard. It lost responsiveness on the 2WSX line and had to be disposed. I bought a budget USB keyboard that was around $5. It was a UNISO UWK-860 keyboard as labeled on the box. My target computer is a modest machine running WIndows 7 Professional on a A8-7600 + R7 graphics in a A68HM-K motherboard. The motherboard was running on stock firmware, and the OS was updated. Necessary device drivers were also updated.
The keyboard only has the basic QWERTY + numpad. It doesn't feature any shortcuts like for sleep/power, and it doesn't have any macro capability. It can only input 5 keys at a time (tested).
However, when I plugged the UNISO keyboard into my target computer, it started to repeatedly input random keys, especially function keys. It randomly opened the Search, Help and Support, and would sometimes open the start bar repeatedly. Sometimes it would put the computer into Sleep mode.
So I started narrowing down the problem.
First, this keyboard was tested by me on the vendor's site. It was tested on a Windows 10 machine. After the trouble above, I tested the keyboard on 2 separate laptops, on a Windows 10 and Windows 7. They all performed normally, but the Windows 7 laptop would prompt to install a Casue USB keyboard driver, and U+P keyboard driver first from Windows Update. Otherwise, the keyboard operated normally. Therefore, I ruled out that the keyboard was malfunctioning.
Next, I scanned my target computer for viruses using Avast. Then I scanned it for rootkits and malware using Malwarebytes. I got no detections, I checked the Task Manager for suspicious processes and found none. So I ruled out that it was caused by a malware/virus.
Next, I tested all the USB ports of my target computer with a borrowed USB keyboard. They were all operating normally. I tested them afterwards with USB storage devices, and my USB mouse and found no problems. So I ruled out the ports malfunctioning.
I uninstalled my USB Host controller (AMD USB 3.0 Host Controller) then restarted my computer to let WIndows reinstall it. Afterwards, I plugged back the UNISO keyboard but it was still malfunctioning as before.
Running out of ideas, I restarted the computer and went into BIOS then plugged my UNISO keyboard. As expected, the keyboard malfunctioned again while spamming the function keys repeatedly, making the BIOS impossible to navigate as it kept switching the menus. The I reset the BIOS to its default state then tried to plug the UNISO keyboard but it malfunctioned with the same symptoms.
I have exchanged the keyboard with another of the same model (the vendor's policy only allows to exchange products of the same models) but the symptoms were still the same.
So far, the only significant difference I can see with my target computer and the computers where the keyboard worked was that my target computer was an AMD chipset, while the other computers (including the vendor's testing PC) were Intel chipsets. However, I've never heard a keyboard malfunctioning due to different chipsets, especially from a USB device.
As of writing, I've spent 48 hours trying to fix this problem and have given up on making this keyboard work on my target computer with my own knowledge. However, I would like to gain insight on what is causing this malfunction and if possible, learn how to fix it.
One thing is for sure though, I'm not buying from that manufacturer again.
A few days ago, I replaced my old USB keyboard. It lost responsiveness on the 2WSX line and had to be disposed. I bought a budget USB keyboard that was around $5. It was a UNISO UWK-860 keyboard as labeled on the box. My target computer is a modest machine running WIndows 7 Professional on a A8-7600 + R7 graphics in a A68HM-K motherboard. The motherboard was running on stock firmware, and the OS was updated. Necessary device drivers were also updated.
The keyboard only has the basic QWERTY + numpad. It doesn't feature any shortcuts like for sleep/power, and it doesn't have any macro capability. It can only input 5 keys at a time (tested).
However, when I plugged the UNISO keyboard into my target computer, it started to repeatedly input random keys, especially function keys. It randomly opened the Search, Help and Support, and would sometimes open the start bar repeatedly. Sometimes it would put the computer into Sleep mode.
So I started narrowing down the problem.
First, this keyboard was tested by me on the vendor's site. It was tested on a Windows 10 machine. After the trouble above, I tested the keyboard on 2 separate laptops, on a Windows 10 and Windows 7. They all performed normally, but the Windows 7 laptop would prompt to install a Casue USB keyboard driver, and U+P keyboard driver first from Windows Update. Otherwise, the keyboard operated normally. Therefore, I ruled out that the keyboard was malfunctioning.
Next, I scanned my target computer for viruses using Avast. Then I scanned it for rootkits and malware using Malwarebytes. I got no detections, I checked the Task Manager for suspicious processes and found none. So I ruled out that it was caused by a malware/virus.
Next, I tested all the USB ports of my target computer with a borrowed USB keyboard. They were all operating normally. I tested them afterwards with USB storage devices, and my USB mouse and found no problems. So I ruled out the ports malfunctioning.
I uninstalled my USB Host controller (AMD USB 3.0 Host Controller) then restarted my computer to let WIndows reinstall it. Afterwards, I plugged back the UNISO keyboard but it was still malfunctioning as before.
Running out of ideas, I restarted the computer and went into BIOS then plugged my UNISO keyboard. As expected, the keyboard malfunctioned again while spamming the function keys repeatedly, making the BIOS impossible to navigate as it kept switching the menus. The I reset the BIOS to its default state then tried to plug the UNISO keyboard but it malfunctioned with the same symptoms.
I have exchanged the keyboard with another of the same model (the vendor's policy only allows to exchange products of the same models) but the symptoms were still the same.
So far, the only significant difference I can see with my target computer and the computers where the keyboard worked was that my target computer was an AMD chipset, while the other computers (including the vendor's testing PC) were Intel chipsets. However, I've never heard a keyboard malfunctioning due to different chipsets, especially from a USB device.
As of writing, I've spent 48 hours trying to fix this problem and have given up on making this keyboard work on my target computer with my own knowledge. However, I would like to gain insight on what is causing this malfunction and if possible, learn how to fix it.
One thing is for sure though, I'm not buying from that manufacturer again.
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