Would I be right in saying...

[CaptCarrot]

That for standard use (read office / educational / home and NOT gaming), the best (personal preference I know) input devices have long since had their EOL production runs?

I am thinking that contenders for the best standard keyboard are easily Model M's - is there anything more recent that is as satisfying to type on and as indestructible as on original IBM model M?

And for the mouse I am thinking that the good ol' Microsoft IntelliMouse (with IntelliEye preferably) is probably one of the best basic mice ever produced.  The standard InteliMouse is pretty good, but the optical upgrade makes it outstanding IMO.

Is there anything that comes close to these historical giants of the 80's and 90's?

[vun]

for non-gaming I'd say a trackball or angled mouse is far better than a normal mouse. If we're talking something sturdy and well built I'd argue that the CST LTrac is probably the best bet for that, but then again that isn't a very modern product.

I think modern products are less about durability because our society is more about constant upgrading and buying more and more ****. Even if something works fine, after a few years people will want to replace it with something newer, simply because "new and shiny".

So you've got sorta the right idea, but due to ergonomics I'd say your suggestions are way off. And the fact that your suggestions also only look like they belong in a museum, so anyone wanting their workstation to blend in with the rest of the room is likely going to be annoyed by that.

[Hak Foo]

If you want a Model M, you can get a Unicomp.  The subtle differences in construction quality are trivial; it's still a very robust piece of kit.

[FoxWolf1]

Actually, I'm not so sure about this. I feel like a lot of the features of "gaming" products that are regarded as "gimmicky" can actually be much more helpful in non-gaming contexts than gaming contexts.

At times when my primary mouse was been something with powerful macro/scripting features, I always made use of them. But the purposes I used them for were never gaming-related; instead, they were always related to managing lots of documents, web browsing, etc. For gaming, I want my mouse to have as little mass as possible, which typically translates into very few buttons, but when not gaming, I like having more functions available. Likewise, I wouldn't say that the IMO is unmatched as a non-gaming mouse. Its main claim to fame is the high tracking quality of the sensor, which only really matters for gaming; otherwise, it's unexceptional.

For keyboards, as you say, preference has a big role. The durability of the Model M is very nice, true, but on the other hand, it's not without its disadvantages...

[iLLucionist]

That for standard use (read office / educational / home and NOT gaming), the best (personal preference I know) input devices have long since had their EOL production runs?

I am thinking that contenders for the best standard keyboard are easily Model M's - is there anything more recent that is as satisfying to type on and as indestructible as on original IBM model M?

And for the mouse I am thinking that the good ol' Microsoft IntelliMouse (with IntelliEye preferably) is probably one of the best basic mice ever produced.  The standard InteliMouse is pretty good, but the optical upgrade makes it outstanding IMO.

Is there anything that comes close to these historical giants of the 80's and 90's?

Pff, those IntelliMouse make me nostalgic. I had them all, they were brilliant. They never failed on me. The scrollwheel was magnificent. But you now, I was younger and I didn't think stuff through. Logitech mice were 'cooler', so I sold or gave away my Intelli Mice not realizing they were good ol' classics. Should've never done that..

Back in the day when I was really young, I also had a Model M. I was like 6-7 yo back then. Again, didn't think it through. Tossed it away. "Old heavy stuff."

After having gone through multiple boards on which the letters always wore off in half a year or so, I went to Apple, only to discover their keyboards really really suck. Admittedly, better than the usual crap that is delivered by Dell or HP, I still hate them.

So that drove me back to mechanical keyboards and consequently geekhack (which is awesome).

I agree on the keyboard-side. There are some really good keyboards out there. My daily driver are my HHKB and my Filco TKL with Browns. Love them. Aside from that I want to try Clears.

Concerning mice, I think it is extremely difficult to get a grip on a good mouse. After carefully skimming through reviews, I bought a g400s and my OCD was satisfied. Now, I am looking for something else as I will take my mouse to work. I thought about Steelseries, as I like their designs. But quality-wise, it is really crap (just read reviews on Amazon, it seems to be brand-wise). The only quality brands IMHO are Mionix and Roccat for as far as I have read reviews. Logitech used to be awesome, but recently it seems to be hit and miss. Just look at the g500s: laser, acceleration, high pitched noise emitting from the hardware.

But then I think that mice have always been a problem back in the days. I cannot remember myself having a really awesome mouse (aside from the IntelliMousee). It has always been suboptimal for me. But perhaps that's just me.

[Elrick]

The only quality brands IMHO are Mionix and Roccat for as far as I have read reviews. Logitech used to be awesome, but recently it seems to be hit and miss. Just look at the g500s: laser, acceleration, high pitched noise emitting from the hardware.

Actually I have 2 spare G500S's and they don't emit any noise at all when connected to various PC's.  Yes, the Logitech standard to which they achieved in the mid 2000's has now receded leaving people with somewhat sub-standard devices prone to breakage and whatnot.

But I never fail in buying their latest devices to see what they're like and so far haven't been that disappointed but then again I'm not a raving, hardcore mousing fanatic.  Any pointing device for a computer works for me  .

Mionix still make a decent product but are not cheap to say the least.  Also Roccat make extremely reliable mice that will last considerably longer than any single Razer Mouse ever created  .

I suppose if you want to paint a company with negative banners it will always be Razer Corp who still continue to produce and distribute poorly made devices because there is far too much money to be made from all the gullible's out there.

[iLLucionist]

The only quality brands IMHO are Mionix and Roccat for as far as I have read reviews. Logitech used to be awesome, but recently it seems to be hit and miss. Just look at the g500s: laser, acceleration, high pitched noise emitting from the hardware.

Actually I have 2 spare G500S's and they don't emit any noise at all when connected to various PC's.  Yes, the Logitech standard to which they achieved in the mid 2000's has now receded leaving people with somewhat sub-standard devices prone to breakage and whatnot.

But I never fail in buying their latest devices to see what they're like and so far haven't been that disappointed but then again I'm not a raving, hardcore mousing fanatic.  Any pointing device for a computer works for me  .

Mionix still make a decent product but are not cheap to say the least.  Also Roccat make extremely reliable mice that will last considerably longer than any single Razer Mouse ever created  .

I suppose if you want to paint a company with negative banners it will always be Razer Corp who still continue to produce and distribute poorly made devices because there is far too much money to be made from all the gullible's out there.

Would you say that Roccat is more reliable than Mionix?

[JaccoW]

I have had the original Roccat Kone and the Roccat [ + ]. The first one broke after heavy use (left button stopped working) and the second one had a problem with the scroll wheel (which was a known issue at the time, they seem to have fixed that issue now). Returned it and from the money I bought a Kova [ + ]. It's a bit small for my hands but it works quite well.
I loved the shape of the Kone line of mice and plan to get the Kone XTD Optical when it comes out.

[Flyersfan1]

I have had the original Roccat Kone and the Roccat [ + ]. The first one broke after heavy use (left button stopped working) and the second one had a problem with the scroll wheel (which was a known issue at the time, they seem to have fixed that issue now)
I loved the shape of those mice and plan to get the Kone XTD Optical when it comes out.

I still own and use a Kova [ + ]. It's a bit small for my hands but it works quite well.

I just picked up one of their new "Military Edition" versions of the Kone Pure Optical, I had heard many good things not only here, but also on OCN about the overall quality and reliability of Roccat mice.  I had a Logitech g502, but I just didn't like some of the button placement on it, and it didn't gel with the shape of my hand as well as I would have hoped.

[JaccoW]

That's always a personal thing. I have fairly large hands so for me the Kone was really nice.