Mechanical Switch SMK 85 Keyboard
1/9/2009
In the interest of optimizing my art and design studio, I decided it was time for a smaller keyboard, so my tablet would no longer feel like it was barely making a home for itself on my desk.
I also researched mechanical switch keyboards and got fascinated with the idea of having a keyboard which was somehow a bit more like a typewriter. The keys make a nice satisfying click and clack, and the pressure needed on them is a bit lighter as well since they register before a complete depression occurs. Beyond that, they keys, all backed by springs, pop up faster, and although that seems a really silly thing to worry about, it does actually make typing faster if you are an already fast typist.
I have not tried to use it for design purposes yet, but I was considering customizing the keys to highlight Illustrator and Painter shortcuts, but I’m not certain how useful that will be at the moment. Anyone have a setup like that going on?
I also appreciate how non-branded the exterior of the keyboard is, and how square and minimalistic.
The Page up/down home/end keys are all aligned on the right in logical order, and it also makes browsing an ease.
The type of tools one has to get their jobs done I feel is somewhat of a Feng Shui thing, and also is a mark for the care and love they have for what they are doing.
I give this keyboard a check plus. It would get more plusses if it was glowy.
Cats: blog
1/18/2009 at 10:23 PM
I’ve been using keyboards since the Dawn of Time (roughly 1985 or so) and to be honest none of the keyboards I’ve used have ever been quite so liberating as the spring-and-click unit that came with the early IBM PC and PCjr. I miss them terribly. Apple has embarked on a pitiable failcruise with the last several units they’ve supplied with their machines. the Mac Pro keyboard (the white-keyed, clear-bottomed mostrosity that came with all the desktop models up until the Intel generation) is easily the most uncomfortable peripheral I’ve ever had my hands on–the throw on the keys is a mile long, they don’t actuate accurately, and the keysprings are far too stiff (My wrists act up after an hour on the bloody thing), not to mention the fact that the @($*&@#$ spacebar is a mile long and prevents easy use of the Command key…The new keyboards are no better.
I’ve been very very happy with, surprisingly enough, the Microsoft Wireless Desktop 5000. It’s amazingly comfy, the keys are proportionally sized, they actuate very nicely, there’s plenty of interesting media buttons to geek out over, and it’s comfy in the lap as well as under the hands. Not only that, it integrates perfectly with OS X, which floored me completely when I installed the drivers.
Yes, I’ve been seduced by the Dark Side, and it never felt so good. Mmmmmmm.
-k.