I have a Bluetooth keyboard, Microsoft Wireless Entertainment Keyboard 7000.
So I decided to watch some anime this weekend (I have not watched them for over half a year). I dusted off my Intel NUC connected to the TV, reconfigured the network (I re-flashed my routers), and ran Windows Update. Then, I tried to pair it with my Microsoft Bluetooth keyboard.
Something weird happened.
If you have paired with a Bluetooth keyboard on a Windows computer before, you may know that the first connection Windows will ask you to type a bunch of numbers on the Bluetooth keyboard (and press Enter). I also did it before, so I was really surprised I failed 3 times in a row (I swear I typed the numbers right!).
“Huh.” I thought. Then I tried to pair again, Windows showed this:
(I use Japanese version. This basically means “Enter the PIN for your device”.
Wait…What??? Does this keyboard have a PIN???
I looked all over and didn’t find any PIN code. I never heard of such things, either. Maybe all keyboards with the same model have a default PIN? So I googled a little bit, and found that a lot of people had the same issue in the past – Windows 10 prompts them to enter a PIN during pairing process, but they don’t have one.
So…what is the PIN? Google results show that the default PIN could be 0000 or 1234. OK…I typed 0000, connect, no response after 1 minute. Typed 1234, connect, same thing.
I was like “You gotta be kidding me” – My keyboard is literally unusable now?
Since I didn’t have a clue about why it is, I started becoming more and more frustrated, and started pressing random buttons on my keyboard. Coincidentally, I pressed Enter key. The pairing process is immediately stopped.
HUH? WHAT?
I tried again – Yes, press Enter key during the wait for keyboard response will immediately stop the process, and show the following Error message:
(Again, I use Japanese version – “PIN is not correct”)
So, I started wondering, what if I typed a correct PIN?
Since I used 0000 as the PIN, so maybe I should type 0000 plus Enter? I tried, but failed. Then I found that I did it backwards – I should type the PIN into the box shown by Windows 10 and connect at first, then immediately type the same PIN code on Bluetooth keyboard (with an Enter key).
This completed the pairing process with my keyboard. Later experiments show that you can use any PIN (numbers only – other symbols will not work), as long as you typed the same PIN right after you click “Connect” button.
In short, when you see “Enter the PIN for your device” prompt like above:
- Type a number you selected in the box (using another keyboard or via remote desktop session)
- Click Connect button
- Immediately type the same number using Bluetooth to be paired, and press Enter key
- Windows should show you a “pairing successful” message
I don’t know why Windows shows such extremely weird user interface during the Bluetooth keyboard pairing process. I guess it’s a bug on the design.
The above I tested is on Windows 10 Version 1903 – Maybe later versions fixed such issues?