Quick Reviews: 5 Computer Keyboards

[oz]

Like the majority of other computer users, I've been using the widely manufactured and accepted rubber dome keyboards for years, now. However, an article I ran across about The Best Keyboard Ever Made spurred my curiosity regarding other types of key switch mechanisms.

After some additional searching and study, I decided that it was time to check out some alternatives for myself to see how they feel and sound when in actual use.

In each of the short reviews below, my comments were typed using the keyboard in question. I've not used any of these keyboards heavily enough to provide a full and detailed review, but did use each of them long enough to get a general idea about how they feel and sound, and long enough to learn some of the pros and cons of each. Note that there were no scientific methods of testing used to test the keyboards in these quick reviews.

For anyone not familiar with the different types of key mechanisms currently used in keyboard manufacturing, you can find a short but good description of the most common keyboard types and how they work here:

Mechanical vs. Membrane vs. Scissor-Switch Membrane Keyswitches on Keyboards

[oz]

Unicomp Customizer 104 Keyboard



The Unicomp Customizer is based on the older but very popular IBM Model "M" (clicky) keyboard, and uses the same type of mechanical key switches. In fact, the Unicomp folks purchased the rights to the buckling-spring design that was previously used by IBM.

The Customizer is really bulky, heavy, and loud, but it's also very easy to type on and has a wonderful tactile feedback and clickiness about it that might put a smile of the faces of previous model M users. On the other hand, the loud clicking noise made by the buckling-spring mechanical switches might become overly annoying to some users, or to anyone that happens to be nearby. I personally like the feel of the key presses and the sounds they make. Once you get into your rhythm with this keyboard, your typing speed will likely increase.

The plastic housing used for this keyboard is heavy-duty and the dull matte black finish helps to prevent fingerprints and smudges from showing. It should also help prevent minor scratches from showing. This is the heaviest and most sturdy keyboard in this collection of keyboard reviews.

The Customizer draws its power from an available computer USB port and requires no additional drivers. Just plug it in, and start typing. There are no special multimedia keys or internet keys provided on this keyboard. That's actually a plus for me, as I'm not a fan or user of such keys. It does come with a couple of feet that can be extended to raise the back of the keyboard a bit higher but I didn't use them.

Note that this keyboard was manufactured in Lexington, Kentucky. It's getting harder to find computer components that are actually manufactured in the USA. As for quality, the Customizer looks and feels like it should easily last for years, if not decades.

Computer users that want a clicky type keyboard might consider taking a look at the Unicomp Customizer because you get the clickiness and tactile feedback at a very moderate price compared to that of the Das Keyboard described below.

I ordered this keyboard online directly from the Unicomp folks late one evening, it shipped the very next day and was under my key-striking fingers just 2 days later, so they are really fast and serious when it comes to order processing, and shipment. They were very quick to email me with shipping/tracking information.

There would be no hesitation on my part to buy from them again in the future.

[oz]

Kensington Ci73 Keyboard



The Ci73 keyboard has a somewhat polished but compact look about it, and it doesn't take up much space on the desktop. It's a bit heavier than many of the current plastic keyboards on the market, and the four small rubber pads on the bottom of the keyboard help to keep it from sliding around on the desktop. The glossy black finish across the top and on the sides of the keyboard go well with my own computer equipment. Unfortunately, the glossy part of the finish scratches quite easily when you go to wipe dust from it, so clean it carefully.

This keyboard lies very flat on the desktop and has very low profile keys. I'm not certain, but believe it to be a high quality rubber-dome type keyboard. Not having used a keyboard like this before, or one with this key layout, I find myself missing the space-bar at times when typing. The row of F-keys across the top are not as tall as the F-keys on standard keyboards, and the smaller (more narrow) Home, Page Up, Page Down, End, and Arrow keys are a bit problematic for me, as well. I'd have been happier with this keyboard if they had used full-size keys in place of the narrow ones. I feel sure that I could get used to the difference in key placement after a few weeks of normal usage.

Typing on this keyboard gives very quiet and short key strokes. The tactile feedback of the keyboard is quite nice, too. The keys don't feel squishy and/or mushy the way they do on so many other keyboards these days. There are no "lock" lights for the number lock, caps lock, or scroll lock keys, but I'm not personally bothered by that. It does come with several multimedia keys, but I've not used them so can't vouch for how well they work. It also has a couple of feet that can be extended to raise the back of the keyboard, but I did not use them.

The pastel-blue colored lettering and numbering on the keys does compliment my computer nicely, but they might prove slightly difficult to see for some in a dimly lit room.

Overall, I really like the feel and sound of this keyboard and would recommend it to other users. It would certainly make a good option in situations where very quiet keys are desired, or required.

The Ci73 certainly has a feel of high quality about it and it comes with a 5-year warranty. It's USB powered and requires no additional drivers to use it.

The Ci73 keyboard was manufactured in China.

[oz]

Anyware PK-205 Keyboard



The PK-205 keyboard is shaped very much like the Kensington Ci73 keyboard described above, but is a little thinner, and has an added folding palm-wrest. The plastic housing is a very glossy black and while it looks great, it does show fingerprints and smudges, and it scratches easily. The keys are set into the housing with a very low profile much like those of the Ci73. It's really a bit more sturdy and heavy than what I had expected from examining the online photographs at the time of purchase.

The keys have very short travel distance when pressed, and the scissors-key technology gives a nice tactile feedback with just a hint of clickiness. They aren't nearly as loud as those keys of the Unicomp Customizer, or Das Keyboard.

It has a small Delete key, on the same row with the undersized F-keys, but the Home, Page Up, Page Down, End and Arrow keys are all full-size keys, which varies from those on the Kensington Ci73. There are four multimedia keys, none of which I've used, and there are no special internet keys. There are four medium-sized rubber pads, two of which are under the palm-wrest when it's folded down for use, that keep the keyboard from sliding around on the desktop.

The smaller than normal space-bar doesn't bother as much as I thought it would, but the small F-keys and difference in key placement is a bit more bothersome than I thought it would be. The very flat profile feels a bit uncomfortable at first but I'd probably get used to it with some practice.

The PK-205 connects to your computer though its USB cable and comes with an adapter for those that want to connect through a PS/2 port.

The hinged palm-wrest doubles as a protective cover for the keyboard when folded over the keys. I do like to keep my keyboard covered when not in use, so this was a nice added feature.

I did have just a bit of trouble with the "N" key popping off this keyboard but was finally able to get it to snap back on properly, and stay on. I was afraid that it might break permanently because the scissors-key mechanism seems flimsy or overly delicate to me, but perhaps they are built stronger than they appear to be.

This keyboard was made in China.

I only gave $4.99 for this keyboard after rebate, so it's certainly well worth that and it might very well be worth the full list price of around $30 without specials and/or rebates.

[oz]

BTC 6100C Keyboard



I purchased the BTC 6100c keyboard mainly because it doesn't come with the extra rows of number keys typically found on the right side of standard keyboards, thereby giving it a minimal footprint on the desktop. This keyboard has a row of the shorter style F-keys, but all the other keys, including the keys on the right side of the ENTER key, are full-sized.

In addition to being very lightweight, it's thin and lies very flat on the desktop, and is highly portable for those needing that capability. It feels fairly sturdy, however. The BTC 6100C has notebook-style keys and it uses scissors-key technology. Key presses are quiet and they have a very short travel distance, but do provide a gentle tactile feedback.

This is another of those keyboards with a different key layout, so it gives me a few problems when keys aren't where I expected them to be. Again, it shouldn't take long with some practice to adjust to the differences. For some reason, I personally find this keyboard easier to type on than either of the other two low profile keyboards in this collection of reviews. It may be that laptop-style keyboards have more problems with the key caps popping off because the "E" key cap is popping off occasionally on this particular keyboard.

The plastic housing is finished with some type of silver coating and I have no idea how long the coating will last, or if it might begin to rub off in the future. The keyboard comes with a few special multimedia and internet hotkeys, and a sleep button, but I've not used any of them. It also has a couple of feet that can be extended to raise the back of the keyboard a bit but I did not use those, either. Unfortunately, the two rubber pads on the bottom that are meant to hold it steady on the desktop are rather thin, so it might slip around a bit for some users.

The BTC 6100C connects through a USB cable (there is a PS/2 version available) and does not require additional drivers for use, but special drivers are available from the BTC website for extended functionality. The keyboard comes with a paper version of a Quick Installation Guide written in several different languages.

The BTC 6100C was manufactured in China.

[oz]

Das Keyboard Professional



It's easy to see and feel that the Das Keyboard is of very high quality as soon as it comes out of the box. It's relatively heavy and seems very sturdy. The glossy black plastic finish looks great with the rest of my computer equipment. However, it has a rather delicate finish and starts to smudge and show fingerprints right away. It also scratches very easily with even the slightest bit of pressure, so take great care when wiping it down.

The Das Keyboard uses German-engineered gold-plated mechanical key switches that provide good tactile and audio feedback. Once you begin to type, you'll find that the clicks aren't as loud as those of the Unicomp Customizer described above, and the key travel isn't quite as far. You don't have to push very hard on the keys to type, but it's very easy to tell when the key press has fully committed.

All keys, including the F-keys across the top are full-sized and easily accessed. I do understand how the blank keys version of this keyboard (Ultimate version) might be appealing to some, but I'm glad that I've chosen the Professional version for myself. I am a touch typist but do occasionally look at the keyboard for seldom used keys and don't care for the hassle of trying to figure out where certain keys are. Other than the missing lettering and numbering, the two keyboards are identical in construction.

This keyboard is heavy enough that it doesn't slide around at all on the desktop due to heavy typing. It comes with four wide (and thick) rubber pads on the bottom of keyboard that also help to keep it from sliding on the desktop. It also comes with a couple of feet that can be extended to raise the back of the keyboard a bit, but I didn't use them.

There are two USB 2.0 ports on the right side of the keyboard for plugging in cameras, flash drives, and other USB devices. No special multimedia or internet hotkeys come with this keyboard.

One odd quirk that I've noticed is that the number lock light stays on after booting into Linux, although the number keys don't work if I should try to use them. I can press the number lock key and the light goes off. Pressing it again makes the light come back on and the numbers work, but I never use them anyway.

This keyboard was designed in Austin Texas but manufactured in Taiwan.

The Das Keyboard is USB powered and no additional drivers are required to use it. The USB power cord is longer than most keyboard cords coming in at around 6.5 feet. The keyboard comes with a 3"x4" polishing cloth and a small two-paragraph insert with brief instructions for plugging it in to the USB port.

So far, I'm thinking this might be my favorite keyboard overall, but seeing as how people like different things in their personal keyboard, each person would have to decide for him/herself if it's really worth the hefty price tag. I think that it might be for me if I can get at least 10 years of good service from it.

This keyboard was ordered late one evening directly from the Das Keyboard Store, and I received it seven days later. Customer service was very courteous and helpful on the phone. Don't expect any order processing or shipping information from the Das Keyboard folks because they don't provide any. You only receive an email from the Yahoo Order Store indicating that the order has been placed. Processing and shipping took longer than expected considering that the Das Keyboard Store itself is only about 100 miles from my place of residence. They did, however, provide very nice professional packaging, and the order was double-boxed.

[oz]

During my keyboard searches, I ran across another interesting keyboard called the Happy Hacking Keyboard Lite 2. While it does look very interesting, I'm going to pass on it because I have too many keyboards on hand, now. If any of you have ever used it, I would like to hear your thoughts on it.

In the interim, I'm done buying keyboards but I've gotta tell you, I could easily adapt to any of these keyboards on a permanent basis with a little time, patience, and practice. That said, I'm really not sure at this point which type of key mechanism or keyboard that I truly prefer because it will take additional experimentation to make a final determination.

The entire experience has been worthwhile because it's made me realize that more thought should go into the purchase of such an important computer component. Hopefully, some of you will find some bit of information in these reviews that will help you with the purchase of your next keyboard.

Best of luck to each of you whichever route you should take.

oz

[Cabhan]

I've heard about the Das Keyboard before, and I keep considering picking one up, but they are rather expensive, and I'm rather partial to my media keys now (especially since I have it set up so I can access Terminal, Firefox, AIM, etc. all really easily). Good to know that it's of the quality that I had heard, though.

I also tend to be rather wary of super compact keyboards. I like for my hands to have space to wander .

Also, you missed out on an epic keyboard:
Space-cadet keyboard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I've actually seen one of those in person (one of my professors has one), and it's about as crazy as it sounds.


I'm now waiting for your mouse review. I just moved to a trackball, but I still love mice. But thanks for this!

[Geeth]

Das Keyboard Professional

One odd quirk that I've noticed is that the number lock light stays on after booting into Linux, although the number keys don't work if I should try to use them. I can press the number lock key and the light goes off. Pressing it again makes the light come back on and the numbers work, but I never use them anyway.

That is the same as what happens with the Logitech g15 keyboard to.

[oz]

@ Cabhan:

Also, you missed out on an epic keyboard:
Space-cadet keyboard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

That is indeed a a very interesting looking keyboard.

It looks like something straight out of an old sci-fi movie. Thanks for pointing it out.

@ Geeth:

That is the same as what happens with the Logitech g15 keyboard to.

It could be that it's a common occurrence among keyboards. I've never run into it before, though. Thanks for letting me know that it happens with other keyboards.