Mechanical Keyboards

What I have learned from this thread is how far that niche "RGB" keyboard market has progressed since the Das Keyboard 5Q "Kickstarter" back in 2015.
 


This is the type I use.
Manufactured by Steelcase.

(Photo of old metal and naugahyde chair, 1950s style with four caster "wings", not five.)

Hope it's not considered off topic but it has been mentioned in several of the above posts.
Yeah, I fell over while leaning back on a few of those. I am sitting in front of the matching tanker desk that I have used for over 40 years, but I am sitting in a modern chair. I have the chair adjusted high and use a footstool to keep the desk surface the correct height for typing.
 
Yeah, I fell over while leaning back on a few of those. I am sitting in front of the matching tanker desk that I have used for over 40 years, but I am sitting in a modern chair. I have the chair adjusted high and use a footstool to keep the desk surface the correct height for typing.
I've heard of that happening but have not had that happen.
I'm not a fan of swivel and rolling desk chairs don't trust them.
I like welded metal desk chairs have never had one of them fail.
 
Back to keyboards, what advantage is a $150.00 to $199.00 keyboard going to have over the standard oem keyboard that comes with most desktop computers.
For some reason I can't see spending that kind of money on a keyboard so what am I missing or not understanding.
 
Back to keyboards, what advantage is a $150.00 to $199.00 keyboard going to have over the standard oem keyboard that comes with most desktop computers.
For some reason I can't see spending that kind of money on a keyboard so what am I missing or not understanding.
That is a great question. This can be a huge rabbit hole with more technical detail than you could possibly want. I do not know much more than you.

For me, it is simply the feel and "clackiness" of the keys, which translates into accuracy and speed of typing. I can see accuracy and speed for myself.

If you get into all those details about the feel of keys, they will talk about how much force is needed, when the key is actually sensed, when it bottoms out, how it sounds, how far it comes up before you can press it again, buffering for fast typists, etc. etc. etc. A BIG rabbit hole. As I said, I never bothered. The keyboard feels right or it doesn't.

In addition, certain physical properties matter to me. I want a full size keyboard with a standard key layout including the 10 key pad. I want a heavy keyboard that moves when I move it, but not otherwise. The frame of this keyboard is metal and the keyboard is considerably heavier than @Condobloke's above.

I like certain key shapes more than others. Some key designs tend to keep your fingers in place better than others, and I think it makes for more accurate typing. I prefer home key bumps on F and J and miss them if they are not there, which is very rare. (Does anyone still put the bumps on D and K?)

I believe that expensive keyboards are less fatiguing over a long day than cheap ones. That could be me "drinking the koolaid" (believing the hype). All I can say is that I believe it - my hands feel much better and less sore at the end of a day with my preferred mechanical keyboards.

The worst, most fatiguing keyboards for me are the ones with flat keys that come on laptops and modern Apple keyboards. I used to dread seeing those at customer sites. Typing accuracy is lower and my hands hurt at the end of the day.
 
(Does anyone still put the bumps on D and K?)

All of my disposable keyboards have those bumps on them still - currently. I believe I've had a couple that did not have the bumps, but the few that I currently use all have the dots. (I use the one on the J to align my hands in the dark.)

Also, I prefer to do my computing in a fairly dark environment. As such, I have heavy curtains in my study that I often close before doing anything computer-intensive. My affinity for darkness might be why I'm not impacted by SAD.
 
My hands are mucked up from using pipe wrenches for many years.
My finger tips have little to no feeling in them at times serious carpal tunnel.
Didn't have ergonomic hand tools when I was working only big pipe wrenches and hammer wrenches.
I don't type I pick punch so if key pressure is the only real advantage with an expensive keyboard than what I have fits the bill.
I use a big sponge under each arm to keep pressure off of my wrists which helps with the numbness of my finger tips.
 
All of my disposable keyboards have those bumps on them still - currently. I believe I've had a couple that did not have the bumps, but the few that I currently use all have the dots.
I never notice that but I do have a horizontal line on the F key and the J key.
 
Back to keyboards, what advantage is a $150.00 to $199.00 keyboard going to have over the standard oem keyboard that comes with most desktop computers.
If you type sparingly, there’s no much advantage, but if you type a lot, everyday, every year, then you’ll get a much better experience, healthier for your fingers. My keyboard has brown switches that require me to apply a bit of pressure, and have a nice and comfortable “spring back”; those characteristics prevent my fingers to “hit” the keyboard backplate. They reduce the impact on my fingers’ joints.

This is like to buy a pair of shoes to walk to the train and then sit at a carpeted office, for $80, or buy a pair of shoes to walk miles and miles a week for $200.
 
I never notice that but I do have a horizontal line on the F key and the J key.
Those are the “return cues”. They allow you to put your hands back to the “rest position” without having to look at the keyboard. They support touch-typing.
 
I use a big sponge under each arm to keep pressure off of my wrists which helps with the numbness of my finger tips.

They make special gel-filled ergonomic wrist rests for keyboards and for mice. In my study, I have a mousepad that has that built-in, as I need to take care of my right wrist.

I'm told an ergonomic trackball is a way to go for us folks with wrist issues, but I just can't get used to a trackball. Try as I might, I can't do it. I actually use the mouse less often than many people (I'm not full-keyboard only, 'cause my brain can only store so much and the mouse is faster for me for some things.)
 
I use a big sponge under each arm to keep pressure off of my wrists which helps with the numbness of my finger tips.
my 'weapon' of choice was hand/home made. It has proven to be remarkably successfully. Yes that is a curtain rod holder acting as the support underneath. I have covered it with a simple piece of soft cloth since making it, and secure the cloth with string. (Maybe I should patent it ?)
It is very strong. I can vouch for this, as I walked into it a couple of times....it didn't budge and my upper thigh complained for a day or two after the encounter.
I was encountering pain in my hands,wrists, lower arms. I also had pain my upper aarms/shoulders but this was related to bursars
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My physical therapist recommended a trackball said to try them out first before committing to one.
I have tried the gel filled pads but not enough the sponges are cumbersome but provide the cushion I need.

That's a nifty arm shelf you made Condobloke that's an option I can do to my dinning table.
I may get some foam and lay my keyboard on top of it like yours is which would keep my hands off of hard surfaces.

I took typing in high school but we didn't have electric typewriters.
I never knew or would have ever thought that the design of how the pressure and action of the keys on a keyboard would make a difference.
I'm going to look into trying some better keyboards and see if that would be of any benefit.

I went to a nerve specialist and he stuck these long metal acupuncture needles with wires on them into my arms in several different places and sent electrical signal voltages to test the condition of my nerves.
I have to discuss the results with my doctor to find out what can be done if anything.

I appreciate all of the advice and everyone's input about keyboards.
There's a lot of good information here that I never would have considered.

Thanks to all.
 
I gotta say something about @Condobloke's woodworking. I truly admire people like that who grab a few scraps, cut 'em on the chop saw, screw it together, and are back at work sipping coffee and eating a sandwich in less than five minutes. Extra credit goes out for not bothering to erase or sand the "here" and "not here" markings for the screw holes.

I would have taken ten minutes to make notes in my notebook, another ten to choose a block of wood from the scrap bin, five minutes to mark and measure (twice, of course!), drilled the wrong hole and gone back to the bin to find a clean new scrap so nobody would ever see the bad hole, ... chamfer the edges to hide the tearout ... sand ... (finish?) ... ... ... Done in a couple hours. :-(

So often I wish I could be more like Condobloke, but hopefully the world can use a few slow methodical people, too.
 
I think the best that I have used would have been an IBM, no idea if still available, (I tend to prefer small form factor keyboards).
M model keyboards FTW. I like the nostalgia and I like the noise! IBM Model F/M nerds should check out Wendell at Level 1 Tech's several videos and modelfkeyboards.com if you really want to use those keyboards again.
 
M model keyboards FTW. I like the nostalgia and I like the noise! IBM Model F/M nerds should check out Wendell at Level 1 Tech's several videos and modelfkeyboards.com if you really want to use those keyboards again.
I have a couple of these new in a box never used that a guy at a garage sale tossed to the curb while I was leaving so I grabbed both of them.
I had to use two different adapters a DIN to PS2 and PS2 to USB.

This video might interest you.
 
I gotta say something about @Condobloke's woodworking. I truly admire people like that who grab a few scraps, cut 'em on the chop saw, screw it together, and are back at work sipping coffee and eating a sandwich in less than five minutes. Extra credit goes out for not bothering to erase or sand the "here" and "not here" markings for the screw holes.

I would have taken ten minutes to make notes in my notebook, another ten to choose a block of wood from the scrap bin, five minutes to mark and measure (twice, of course!), drilled the wrong hole and gone back to the bin to find a clean new scrap so nobody would ever see the bad hole, ... chamfer the edges to hide the tearout ... sand ... (finish?) ... ... ... Done in a couple hours. :-(

So often I wish I could be more like Condobloke, but hopefully the world can use a few slow methodical people, too.
I can not speak for Condobloke but I build the same as Condobloke.
I'm into results and functionality and once that's accomplished than I can address the cosmetics.
No reason wasting time on cosmetics if it doesn't or isn't going to work.
As for the holes in the wrong place wood filler and nobody will see it after it's painted or unless they look underneath.
 
I had a mechanical keyboard for a while and it worked fine: Corsair K70 RGB MK.2
However at some point I missed my Microsoft Ergonomic keyboard so I through out the mechanical keybaord and got myself a new one of the one I had before.

Heh... That's the same keyboard (I think) that I've been reading a little about. It's even on sale, so I'll probably order one just to try it.

Then, at the same time, I love Microsoft's keyboards and mice (as mentioned earlier). They have some great stuff. I usually don't bother with buying them 'cause, while they're great, they don't last much longer than the cheap stuff. I think that speaks more to the quality (or perhaps my luck) of the modern cheap stuff than it speaks about Microsoft's hardware.
 
Heh... That's the same keyboard (I think) that I've been reading a little about. It's even on sale, so I'll probably order one just to try it.
The Corsair one of the Microsoft one?
 

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