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Home computer a little grungy? Logitech has invented a washable keyboard

If you're like most computer users, you could prepare a five-course meal with the food and beverage materials lodged between your keys.

It's not that people intend to get their keyboards dirty, but when we spend so much time clack-clacking away on a particular machine — in many cases sipping on coffee or picking at a muffin to get us through the school or workday — crumbs tend to find the quickest route to your "G" and "H" buttons and immediately sign a 12-month lease.

But as with anything mechanical, there's a fear that giving your "dirty qwerty" a thorough scrubbing could result in a pile of smoking short circuitry. So it's with some interest that the tech community has received Logitech's K310 — a keyboard that claims to be completely washable in up to 28 cm of water.

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"We've all experienced that moment of distraction - followed by panic, when a cup of coffee or a soda spills all over your keyboard," Reon Coetzee, country manager for Logitech South Africa, tells Biz Community.

"We all know that life happens, regardless of how careful you are you will spill. The company has designed the K310 to look and function like new, even over time."

It would be so much easier to just dump everything in the kitchen sink. And now you can. A product description reveals that the keyboard has been designed with drainage holes in the back to make for easy drying (eight hours is the recommended time to air it out).

And to ensure that you can still see what you're typing, the keys have been coated with UV reflection to prevent them from fading from repeated wash cycles.

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Despite its major sell factor, however, consumer tests appear to show that the keyboard is more than just a gimmick.

PC Magazine lauded the K310 for both its stylishness and durability, awarding the keyboard a four out of five stars.

ConsumerSearch took it a step further by producing a video that put the keyboard to the test.

After dumping the world's grossest lunch combo atop the device, the video's star proceeds to rinse off the mess under the tap. The keyboard appears to clean beautifully, returning to pristine condition before its placed on the drying rack.

While one review listed the cons as "mushy keys," that may be small potatoes compared to a coffee-stain-free digital writing apparatus.