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Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

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Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#241

For me, one nice thing about working from home all the time now is that I don't have to listen to everyone's annoyingly loud mechanical keyboards. I kinda hope this fad dies before I have to work in an office again...

Oh wow, do people really bring mechanical keyboards to the office? I thought that was generally considered a no-no.

When i joined my current company, IT asked me what keyboard i wanted, and when i asked for a mechanical one, they told me my manager would need to sign off on that!

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#242

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh wow, do people really bring mechanical keyboards to the office? I thought that was generally considered a no-no.

I’ve got a keychron at the office. No one bats an eye and it’s not like I pound the thing.

The fact that "no one bats an eye" doesn't mean they're not internally annoyed by the key sounds. In my office, there was this person who used a cheap noisy keyboard. It bothered us, for sure, but we didn't bring it up to his attention.

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#243
post #207

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your best bet for mechanical switches that aren't too noisy are probably Cherry MX Browns.

I’m using silent red and I don’t find them too noisy. One of the main advantages of a mechanical is that they are often programmable so you no longer have to rely on software based methods to change key mappings. Caps lock is Escape everywhere all the time.

I have Caps Lock mapped to Ctrl, like a UNIX-style keyboard. Otherwise, my requirements for a mechanical keyboard are simple:

1. High quality, tactile switches (Cherry MX Blues or Browns) 2. Programmable keymapping 3. TKL layout 4. 6NKRO 5. PBT double-shot molded keycaps (not ABS) 6. Steel baseplate with as little flex as possible 7. Removable USB-C cable 8. Black or grey (dark colours)

I don't care at all about RGB, that's a gimmick to me. I'm not a gamer. I need something I can blaze on when doing heavy Vim editing or writing (I type +/- 150 wpm) after a nap and a few cups of good coffee.

I also prefer a narrow bezel, something like this: https://www.duckychannel.com.tw/en/Ducky-One-Golden-grey-TKL

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#244

Topre switches are great! But can someone explain the draw of HHKBs? Aside from nerd street cred, that is. A lot of programmers swear by them, but I don't understand why. Let's talk about the layout. As a Vim user, I need my CapsLock->Esc. Fine, so I'll remap Ctrl—but inexplicably, there are huge gaps where the regular Ctrl keys would be. There are no arrow keys or nav cluster, which means you need to use layers or k…

I agree it's too minimalist, but it's fine for vi. Just use fast pressed double letters to escape insert mode like evil-escape does. The control position is horrifying as an emacs user, though, there's no way to palm press. Terrible fn position as well.

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#245
post #23

I paid through the nose for my Leopold FC660C because the specific one I wanted had to come from the US. Never regretted it ! I've added Hasu's board on it a few weeks ago and it's basically a perfect keyboard now.

Oh that reminds me to get one of those boards! I had ordered one right before most international shipping stopped last year and they had to refund me.

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#246

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Frankly, the old Thinkpad keyboard had the best combination of travel and feel ever put together. I can understand people preferring a different trackpad, and not particularly liking the TrackPoint, but the keys themselves were bloody amazing. Low travel, low effort, pre-bottom feedback with no unnecessary noise. (I used to use the USB version of the keyboard with my desktop machines, even though I needed a separate…

I think I remember the keyboard you're referring to- the keys had squared corners and slightly concaved shape? The newer Thinkpad keyboards have much different- and worse- flat keys with rounded corners, and mushy. I've actually come to prefer the much shorter Macbook style keys nowadays.

That's the one. And I'm not fussy one way or another about the keycaps - I loved the old ones, but I can see the arguments for the "island" style as well - it's the switches underneath that were the thing.

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#247

The notion that a capacitive switch is somehow expensive to manufacture because the PCB is allegedly "special" (doubt) seems odd to me. All other capacitive sensing stuff uses bog-standard PCBs with nothing special about them at all and it's not like the rubberdome is hard to manufacture either (considering that a more complex kind of rubberdome mat is the centerpiece in cheap rubberdome membrane keyboards). And then…

Re: "Rigorous Japanese Quality Standards," earlier this year I ordered a Leopold FC980C. It arrived with a warped case that would not lay flat on my desk (tested on multiple surfaces to make sure the problem wasn't with my desk). So much for legendary QA.

Leopold isn't Japanese, though?

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#248
post #161

The mechanical keyboard community is unfortunately really toxic. In addition to second hand accounts, I have a friend who’s a newbie in it who I encouraged to talk to people to get her bearings, and there was a basically unanimous chorus of “fuck off, until you have something to offer us you’re just a waste of time”. I think it’s partially because it’s largely gamers, and partially because it’s largely about perceive…

It seems toxic because we all started from nothing and learned things ourselves without having to make asinine posts asking the same questions over and over. The answers you seek are out there. Newbies are great until they start talking and pollute forums with low value discussions, and increasingly it seems even newbs never want to talk with other newbs, for these reasons.

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#249
I have never been a fan of the mechanical keyboards. Typing with so much noise in a public space makes me feel like an asshole. Pressing the keys feels better than the membrane though.

After enough persuasion from my friend, who loves mechanical switches, I bought a silent full-sized Realforce R2 PFU. This is not a game-changer but a nice upgrade of the workspace. Now I am more comfortable with it than with any mechanical switch I tried.

Re: Why Are Topre Keyboards So Expensive?

#250
post #102
post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree so much!! I've tried my best to like mechanical keyboards... but no, I hate them. The noise is distracting, they require too much strength on every key, and they are big and expansive! I thought I might have the wrong keytypes, so I even purchased key testers: the red keys are less noisy, but that doesn't solve the other problems. So I just can't find a reason to like them. My favorite keyboard is the Thinkpa…

Exactly the same sentiment. My yearlong experiment to try to love mechanical keyboards left me with a thousand euro hole in my wallet and physical problems spanning from fingers to upper body musculature. I loved the tactile feel, but hated what they did to my body. I think mechanical keyboards are just too high, with excessive travel. You sort of have to keep your hands floating in the air, which transfers stress to…

The mx keys is amazing. It feels so sexy to type on, and I can type far faster and more accurately than anything else I've used.

I've also not charged the thing in months and it doesn't seem to care, which blows my mind.

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