Keyboards

As you can probably guess from my posting volume, I type quite a lot. That means I'm also quite picky about keyboards.

The trouble is that I really can't seem to find one that I genuinely, truly like. Perhaps a part of the problem is that my first keyboard was an IBM M series -- it was with an IBM PC XT I used for my first paid programming job, at the mature old age of 14. Back then serious keyboards seemed better anyway -- the M series was a bit *too* clicky, perhaps, but I remember liking some of the older Apple Mac boards.

Since then, I've gone through way too many of them. At one point I had one Logitech cordless desktop, then another one. Didn't like either of them much -- they were creaky and squeaky, the batteries eventually ran out, and the hand-feel wasn't great.

The best keyboard I've mainly been using is, somewhat surprisingly, the Dell on my office computer. It's one of the ones with an integrated smart card reader, and it's not too bad.

At home, I've been using a Saitek II for a couple of years now, but I never liked its feel -- it's "soft" and somehow not positive. What's more, after about two years of use, the paint has worn off many of the key caps, and worse, lately it's started to drop keystrokes.

My latest acquisition is a Das Keyboard II -- it's a blank, black keyboard with a standard layout; it's designed in Texas and manufactured by Cherry in the Czech Republic. I just got it and am typing this message on it, so it's rather early for me to say what I really think of it.

Some first impressions, though:

(1) The hand-feel is good. There's very nice tactile feedback, and the overall feel is very positive and reassuring. In this respect, this one is clearly the best I've used in years. I don't have a Series M around to compare against -- if I start to hate this one, though, I'll probably have to try to find one of those -- but overall it's not bad at all.

(2) The f and j keys are scooped out so the hands fall naturally where they should; this is subtler, more comfortable and generally better than the little dimple or ridge they usually put on them.

(3) It's pretty loud. Each key-press is a combination of a hiss, tick, and clack; the more force I use, the louder the clack, while the hiss and the tick stay the same volume. It's entirely conceivable that my wife will tell me to get rid of it. (In that case, I'll take it to the office and torture my colleagues instead. Screw them.)

(4) Build quality is OK but not as good as some reviews make it out to be. If you pick it up and twist it, it flexes quite easily; no real force needed.

(5) The logo is ucking fugly. It just says Das Keyboard in white, in the top left corner, in slightly compressed Helvetica Bold, with bad kerning too. I'll have to see if I can remove it somehow.

All in all, my initial impressions are fairly positive -- the essentials are there (the key-feel of the mechanical switches, presumably also the durability), and the blank Darth Vader look is amusing. Is it worth the 80-bucks-plus-shipping they're asking for it? I'd say that if you have to ask, probably not.

I´m also quite picky when it comes to keyboards. My observations:

5-7 years ago cheap keyboards were unbearable, Cherry was good to great depending on budget, Logi and MS were okay but only as good as Cherry´s entry level stuff (G83). The big OEMs had already stopped manufacturing their own keyboards. Unfortunately because IBM, Siemens, NEC and Epson made some fine stuff.
Since then Cherry has decreased in quality but is still the best if you are careful what you buy. Logi and MS have gotten a bit better - and started to produce crap for entry level customers. The crap got better, which means there is a decent chance to buy a tolerable keyboard for 5 bucks.

What would I do if I had to buy a new keyboard now? I don´t need all those useless multimedia & windows keys. I would look on eBay and buy a lot of 10 pieces Cherry G80 with gold contacts. One of them will be in good condition.

When I saw the post title, I was immediately going to suggest Das Keyboard (good thing I read before I post, huh?). I've heard good things from people I know that have it, and I'm getting it as soon as I figure out how (sending money from Serbia? Madness).

As for right now, I use a generic keyboard, from Samsung apparently. It's really the most basic thing - no extra buttons or anything fancy, but I like it. Whenever I'm somewhere else, I get annoyed by how "soft" other keyboards are (or I get annoyed by how curved everything is).

It's quite pricey for what it is, though. I'm sure you could get essentially the same mechanism for a lot less -- for example by doing what Gorath suggests. Hey, you could even steelwool off the key caps.

I'm very picky too. It has to be exactly the way I want it.

I found true love with Microsoft Digital Media keyboard 1.0A



The zoom slider is actually handy. I like the volume buttons too. Has some useless buttons too but I don't care - they can be easily disabled.

I'm using a cheap (30 euros?) Microsoft comfort curve keyboard. I find it's fairly comfortable to use, but durability is crap. I had dead keys after about 11 months (one year warranty), got a replacement, and had dead keys on that one as well after less than a year. Then I asked for a different (cheaper) replacement, but they sent me yet another one.

Prime Junta said:

Hey, you could even steelwool off the key caps.

Click to expand...

Nah, that comes with use - plus I can easily see which keys I use the most.

Here is what I get to set up again in a glorious space in my new house next week:



... oh, wrong keyboard!

I use exclusively laptops, and have been predominantly laptop based since ~'93 (Compaq LTE-Lite 20 and a Powerbook 140) ... currently using my Macbook Pro, Dell XPS M1710, and a new HP something or other at work. All decent, but the Macbook Pro keyboard is my fave - still not as good as the one of the TiBook, which was my fave.

I'm biased for Logitech myself, I've used a lot of different keyboards and have never seen a bad one made by them.

I'm using the G15 right now and it might be the best keyboard I've ever used. It has backlit keys for people like myself who like to game with the lights off, as well as a ton of extra features.

I *love* backlit keyboards ... it is something I have come to take for granted on my Mac keyboards that is a real pain on other laptops ...

I had Logitech Ultra Flat keyboard for several months. It's quite good, but never get used to the relocation of few keys including the Delete key, and easily get dirtied.

And yes, the G15 look interesting to me, however i'm not committed to get another keyboard when the current one still feel good to my hands (slim, compact).

Well, I've been using Das Keyboard for a couple of days now, and I like it more now. It really is very nice to type on, and the flexiness doesn't matter if it's lying flat on the table, as it should be. The little legs that are there to adjust the tilt are very solid too, much better than the ones on the Saitek 2 (they broke off ages ago).

Interestingly I find it slightly difficult to hit some control-key combinations, or keys when playing games -- it seems I can't always consciously recall where, say, the C, V, or X keys are. Funny, because when I type, my fingers find them just fine -- in fact, there's no real difference typing in that respect, since I didn't look at the keyboard anyway.

It's also slightly weird to type passwords. Go figure, since I can type perfectly well with my eyes shut. But the mind works in strange ways, sometimes. (I just tried typing this with my eyes shut, and it worked fine ... right?)

Another update: I'm back at the office after a nasty flu, and typing along on my Dell keyboard here.

After a few days on the Das... the Dell *sucks*. It feels springy, soft, sticky, and generally unpleasant.

So it isn't all hype. I think I might have to get one of these for the office as well.

I'm hard to please when it comes to keyboards. The only problem is that I'm usually too apprehensive of new ones to find one that I like. Right now I'm using a wireless Logitech something or another. Can't say I like it but... I also can't say that I want to spend an hour at some store fondling keyboards only to go away empty handed.

My home one has always been a natural keyboard to save my wrists. In work I use a standard multimedia one or whatever is available. Id like to get a second keyboard for home - somthing small, light and wireless.

I'll chime in with another thumbs-up for the natural keyboard. It was awkward getting used to at first, but it was definitely worth it. No more wrist pain ever.

Prime Junta said:

Since then, I've gone through way too many of them. At one point I had one Logitech cordless desktop, then another one. Didn't like either of them much -- they were creaky and squeaky, the batteries eventually ran out, and the hand-feel wasn't great.

Click to expand...

Yeah, my wife got me a combo package of cordless mouse and keyboard (The Wave) from Logitech. It's all right, but the keyboard seems to make a lot of noise when I type.

I much prefered my MSFT ergonomic that it replaced, but it was time to replace it. Several of the keys were sticking, and even after cleaning it thoroughly, it was still happening. Plus it didn't fit in my keyboard tray very well.

I too love the ergo keyboard. I type so much faster and with less errors on one. Too bad my company won't spring for one!

I'm using a very cheap keyboard.

Maybe I should buy me a better one.

Saitek Gamer's Keyboard

My favorite keyboard of all time, and I shudder to think of the day I no longer can depend on it. Nice soft keys, backlit, quiet, optional 9-key multi-mode keypad w/ programmable buttons, macros, etx. Paws-down the best keyboard Ive ever used. Not even on their site anymore, since theyre pushing their newer Eclipse boards and such, w/ no keypad. I also really dont want the keys themselves fully lit like their newer boards (i bought an eclipse), only their outline. When I do need to look, in a lighted environment, the lit keys are impossible to see. Even if the backlighting is turned off, the unlit characters are a bitch to see in a lighted environment. Plus I dont get my trusty keypad w/ their newer boards, really helpful for older games that have insane, non-configurable key schemes. I put all my passwords in there too.

No, I dont need any of them dang newfangled "gamer" boards the yutes of today are all clacking away on. Bout to order another backup one of these off Amazon before they fall off the radar and the only place you can get one is for 300$, used.

That's my previous keyboard (although I had the silver-on-black version), and (a) I thought it kinda sucked to start with, with a soft, springy rather than hard, clicky handfeel, (b) the paint wore off the key caps plenty soon, (c) the wrist rest and the tilt feet broke off pretty soon, and (d) after less than two years of use, it started to drop the occasional keystroke.

For its rather high price, I thought it no better than the generic ten-buck keyboards you can get anywhere.