Das Keyboard

I decided it's time to change a keyboard. I've done two years with a cheap flat membrane-based Chicony, and since I'm going to write a lot, I think I need something better. A research I came across said that the original, mechanical, clicking keyboards I used to work with in the early 90's, are the best for typing; even professional typists notice improvements in productivity when using them. So there'll be a series of posts about keyboards, and the first one I came by is the Das Keyboard.

Their slogan is "The best keyboard on the planet. Period." Which is quite politically correct, as they don't specify which planet is that. The looks are there, no doubt, although I'm a bit sceptical about the blue LEDs. I hate this new fashion, frankly, blue is a complicated color, it shouldn't be a LED. Red would be so much fancier, and the most calm color, I think, would be yellow. But anyway, the keyboard is supposed to click like they used to, and the funny thing is that their online store also sells earplugs. I guess it does click!

The gold-plated mechanical key switches Das Keyboard uses are made by Cherry, the brand I know since I was a kid, and whose keyboard served me well for over 10 years. Unfortunately, Cherry has all sorts of keyboards, except the one I'd like to have (compact, USB, US layout). That's why my first post is not about a Cherry keyboard. The switches used in Das Keyboard are blue, which have a normal level of tactility and provide a normal amount of click feedback.

One thing important about a "high end" keyboard is the so-called "N-Key rollover" - it means you can press any number of keys simultaneously. Well, actually, you can press all keys on any keyboard, but with "N-key rollover" keyboard all the keys you press will be recognized and the input will be processed properly by the computer. It works only with PS/2 connection, and USB limits the number of simultaneous key presses to 6. Talk about USB superiority! I never liked that USB thingy, and now I have a new reason for that.

Das Keyboard is made by a Texas-based open source software company called Medadot, which is founded by Daniel Guermeur, who, as they say, "created" the keyboard. I wish I knew how to create keyboards, I'd create one for myself, for sure.

The guys behind Das Keyboard surely have a sense of humour, and it shows. In the description of the keyboard it says: "Glossy black upper enclosure with matching black USB cable, Darth Vader approved."

So, the keyboard is almost perfect, it's got Cherry inside, plus a US layout, plus a USB hub, and the "silent" version (that is also mechanical, but won't give my neighbours some unnecessary desires of lynching me) would be just what I need, but it costs $135 at their online shop. I'll have to go through some therapy to become ready to spare that much for a keyboard. But maybe other keyboards of this type cost no less, or even more! I'm going to find out, so stay tuned...