'Best' keyboard for typing

Phenomenologica

Phenomenologica

Phenomenologica

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I've decided that for my next upgrade I want to replace my cheap nasty keyboard with something a little more usable. I have a fairly reasonable budget to throw at it (£50-£100 if you want some arbitrary figures), and I'm looking very much in the direction of a mechanical keyboard. But between choosing a switch type and finding somewhere that sells the darn things it's proving challenging. So I thought I'd pick your collective brains. :)

I do a reasonable amount of gaming, however much more time is spent typing with it, so I'm looking for a keyboard that's extremely comfortable for prolonged use (3+ hours of typing per day, more at the weekend). This seems to push me in the direction of the MX Blue switches, possibly the Razer Black Widow. However I'm not sure if the noise would irritate me, in which case finding a nice keyboard using the Browns would be a better bet. Youtube can only help so much, and there are no places nearby I can try them out.

So for those of you who have used one or more mechanical keyboards, which would you recommend for typing? Does the noise of the blue switches get to you or do you like it/tone it out? Any advice you can give would be appreciated!
 
dont think it's mechanical but i use a Apple aluminium keyboard, keys are very very nice and very easy to type on for hours on end :)
 
I use a Filco Majestouch keyboard with the MX brown keys. Like you, I was worried by the sound the blue keys make. The brown keys seem to be a good compromise. Filco also do versions of the keyboard with the blue and black keys, as well as versions without the numeric keypad. I liked mine so much I bought a second one to use at home. I bought mine from The Keyboard Company in Stroud.
 
Seraph said:
dont think it's mechanical but i use a Apple aluminium keyboard, keys are very very nice and very easy to type on for hours on end :)
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Thanks but I'm really looking towards mechanical at the moment!

stuartw_b said:
Happy reading

GUIDE
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I've had a good read through that already, I'm more looking for user opinions here.

dewi said:
I use a Filco Majestouch keyboard with the MX brown keys. Like you, I was worried by the sound the blue keys make. The brown keys seem to be a good compromise. Filco also do versions of the keyboard with the blue and black keys, as well as versions without the numeric keypad. I liked mine so much I bought a second one to use at home.
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I've had a look at the Filco ones, they look nice but are somewhat hard to get from common shops over here it seems. I'll browse the one you mentioned however I imagine it is a competitor so should probably be removed from your post. ;)
 
IBM Model M

I need to get one again, I miss it so badly. For typing there is absolutely nothing better.
 
I do quite a bit of typing, so a few months ago I decided to invest in the MX Blue switch Razer Black Widow Ultimate, my previous keyboard was the logitech G15.

My assessment - I absolutely love it. I am certainly typing faster and i'm finding it easier to type. The keys are certainly more noisy than my G15 (standard dome switches I believe) but it really doesn't bother me - it's just some nice feedback on pressing the key. That said, if you live with someone and they are within earshot when you are using the PC then it may well drive them batty.
 
'I' don't think they're is a 'best' keyboard for typing.

I personally think it's witch keyboard suits you best, like comfortable etc.
 
cmndr_andi said:
My assessment - I absolutely love it. I am certainly typing faster and i'm finding it easier to type. The keys are certainly more noisy than my G15 (standard dome switches I believe) but it really doesn't bother me - it's just some nice feedback on pressing the key. That said, if you live with someone and they are within earshot when you are using the PC then it may well drive them batty.
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Nobody is nearby when I'm doing any typing so that shouldn't be a problem. The only reservation I have about the widow is the font on the keys. It sounds petty but it's the kind of thing that would bug me if it wasn't right.
 
1000+ pages of user opinions in the link all pointing to the same thing - it depends what suits you :)

The razors tend to fail on quality compared to more 'standard' looking boards made for out and out typing plus the black switches are more suited (for many) to gaming and not typing. Cherry Blue's seem to be the choice for typing but again maybe not for you!

Your biggest problems is going to be the fact that will will almost have to buy blind as I can't think of any high street shops that stock a good range of keyboards.

You could always save up and buy a Topre!

*edit: opinion on the Razer isn't mine as haven't used one but detailed keyboard threads tend to have similar opinions on it. Given its price point I would fully expect a £100 keyboard with no frills to be made better.
 
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Phenomenologica said:
Nobody is nearby when I'm doing any typing so that shouldn't be a problem. The only reservation I have about the widow is the font on the keys. It sounds petty but it's the kind of thing that would bug me if it wasn't right.
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A major problem with keyboards like the Black Widow is that the keys themselves are pretty cheap. For anyone who uses their computer to game regularly (or even spends a lot of time typing) the paint / whatever it is they use on the keys can rub off. I had this with a Microsoft X6 and after half a year or so my space bar and wasd keys were clear in places. The Widow does this as well, sadly it is more common with cheaper backlit keyboards. With none backlit the key font rubs off quite quickly as well.

The overclock.net guide runs through this as far as I am aware... another good site to look at for mechanical keyboard information is geekhack.org.
 
Parsley said:
A major problem with keyboards like the Black Widow is that the keys themselves are pretty cheap. For anyone who uses their computer to game regularly (or even spends a lot of time typing) the paint / whatever it is they use on the keys can rub off. I had this with a Microsoft X6 and after half a year or so my space bar and wasd keys were clear in places. The Widow does this as well, sadly it is more common with cheaper backlit keyboards. With none backlit the key font rubs off quite quickly as well.

The overclock.net guide runs through this as far as I am aware... another good site to look at for mechanical keyboard information is geekhack.org.
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Iv had this exact same thing with my microsoft X4 keyboard. Shame because i quite like it to type on but really it was a cheap emergency replacement when i "cuppa tea'd" my G15 :( My WASD keys are wearing out. my D key is completely clear and my spacebar is showing pinhole gaps which will soon get larger with time. Also the macro key software is crud compared to the G15s.
 
Thanks all for the input you've given! I've definitely decided to go with the blues as I have come to the realisation I quite like the sound, and I'm extremely tempted by the black widow. It's very reasonably priced and since I wouldn't be getting the backlit version even if the keys wore down they wouldn't go clear. With the exception of the key wear the build quality seems to be solid from all I can see, plus I would make good use of the macro buttons. As to losing the font off the keys, from the looks of it the sooner the better! :p

I'm still umming and erring a bit over the model but that's the way I'm leaning at the moment.

Update for those concerned: I ordered the Black Widow. Got it for £66.50 shipped with guaranteed delivery by Thursday, so can't really argue! Will post back here then with my verdict I imagine.
 
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Phenomenologica said:
Update for those concerned: I ordered the Black Widow. Got it for £66.50 shipped with guaranteed delivery by Thursday, so can't really argue!
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I don't think you got it for that price from Overclockers. And you chastised me for naming a supplier for a keyboard that Overclockers doesn't even stock ;)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy your keyboard. That's a great price for a mechanical keyboard.
 
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