Cherry HUMUS wNv Special Edition

[sixty]

After a long search I was finally able to track down the source of Cherry Corp RED double shot ESC keys.

They were taken from a special edition of the G80-1863 (a.k.a. the Raptor Gaming K2). The board is called the Cherry G80-1863HUMUS-2 wNv. It seems to be marketed under the name of "HUMUS", which is simply taken from the boards product number.

wNv appears to be the top Chinese Counterstrike pro-gaming team and this is their own keyboard.

The keyboard was released in late October 2009 in limited quantities. I don't know many they made exactly but all of the Chinese auction sites are flooded with them, so there should be plenty available for now. The keyboard currently goes for about 1200 Yuan (~180,00 USD).

A friend helped me to translate most of the press release, but I'm too lazy to write it all up, so here are just the important facts:



* Limited Edition Keyboard
* Full N-Key Rollover
* All keycaps are double shot
* Blue LEDs
* Available with black or brown Cherry MX
* ESC, W, N, V key are in bright red
* 2 USB ports on the back for headset and mouse
* W keycap is raised about 2mm higher than all other keys. According to studies by Cherry with Chinese progamers it appears to be the most frequently used key that gets the most pressure in average gaming. Raising it above the other keys guarantees that you will be able to instantly find the forward movement key without looking at the keyboard.

Cherry announced that the launch of this is just a pre-taste of what is up to come for the Chinese market in 2010 and that their marketing strategy is about to change massively. What this means is yet unknown, it is being speculated that Cherry may launch another mechanical gaming keyboard later this year. And what all of this means for us poor souls stuck in the Western world is probably that all of Asia once again gets the cool stuff, while we are stuck with our POS equipment. Oh well!

Pics:




Raised "W" key






wNv at the WCG 2009

[spolia optima]

looks like it's pcb mounted
I wonder if this asian marketing strategy will result in relatively low priced nkro keyboards? this is pretty cool news.

[sixty]

I wonder if this asian marketing strategy will result in relatively low priced nkro keyboards? this is pretty cool news.

Considering that this one is $180, probably not

[rdjack21]

Have to admit that is one nice looking board. Now if they would just chop the num pad off it I would start looking for one

[majestouch]

Very cool board, but I'm having a hard time figuring out the relation...

[HaaTa]

ooo, 1800 layout with browns. Maybe I should pick myself up one of these...

Shopping List:
Humus
HUMUS

[watduzhkstand4]

so why the V and the N keys red too?

[sixty]

so why the V and the N keys red too?

wNv is the name of the counterstrike clan. Just a gimmick they picked I suppose. Kinda like we would make GH keys red on a imaginary geekhack keyboard.

[lowpoly]

Looking good.

[meltie]

What a cool looking keyboard. And it has got brown switches.

I once had a Raptor K1 with brown switches, but 90 % of them have black switches. I still regret I sold the one with browns.

I really hope Cherry will make this HUMUS and the other cool new products they might be planning available to the european market. All they ever publish in Germany are even more bad quality scissor switch boards, while brown switches and other cool stuff go someplace else.

[ch_123]

According to studies by Cherry with Chinese progamers it appears to be the most frequently used key that gets the most pressure in average gaming.

They needed studies to figure this out?

[Mental Hobbit]

They needed studies to figure this out?

They needed a PR guy to call it studies.

[D-EJ915]

I like the white & black look to that

[Eclairz]

I still have my raptor, swapped in blue cherry switches and used some grey(steel series g6) and white key (g80-3000) and double shot black(another g80-1800 varient) caps to add to the look. I don't really like the white housing of the humus though, i'd love it in grey though the matt grey like the steel series keys. That would look unique

[itlnstln]

Get these, majestouch, in Cherry browns.  This is the best keyboard EVAR.
 
Mmm... Hummus.

[itlnstln]

Doing a Google search for "Cherry G80-1863HUMUS-2" shows tons of stores that sell them (including non-wNv versions).  Unfortunately, I can't read the various languages the store-fronts are composed in.

[elbowglue]

Same as g80-1800, just transplant the switches for brown switches, and add funny keycaps for some of the letters.  Spacebar is too much to the left side of the keyboard too.

[itlnstln]

Hell, I wish I could even do that.  I haven't been able to find a G80-1800 in an ANSI layout.

[bsvP585hUO2Y6]

elbowglue wrote on 5980 September 1993:

> Same as g80-1800, just transplant the switches for brown switches, and
> add funny keycaps for some of the letters.

Not quite.  Vanilla G80-1800s don't have an USB hub.

[itlnstln]

I don't think they have NKRO, either.

[sixty]

elbowglue wrote on 5980 September 1993:

> Same as g80-1800, just transplant the switches for brown switches, and
> add funny keycaps for some of the letters.

Not quite.  Vanilla G80-1800s don't have an USB hub.

nor n-key rollover

[ch_123]

nor n-key rollover

Has anyone pointed out that this is a USB keyboard that supposedly has NKRO? Maybe it comes with a PS/2 adapter?

[itlnstln]

Has anyone pointed out that this is a USB keyboard that supposedly has NKRO? Maybe it comes with a PS/2 adapter?

It's probably 6KRO since it's USB.  There are diodes on all the switches, so it might be adaptable to PS/2, but on a similar product's page on the Korean site, there was a big "USB Only" label on one of the pics, so who knows?  Using it as a PS2 'board would make the USB hub pretty much worthless, though.

[sethstorm]

What are they exactly thinking by making the quality stuff "unavailable" here, but ship boatloads of (relative and absolute) junk?  That is, intentionally making it near-impossible to find equivalents here in the US.

It just seems to be a departure from when it was a lot easier to not find junk in the US.

[cheater1034]

where can i buy it

[keyb_gr]

I really hope Cherry will make this HUMUS and the other cool new products they might be planning available to the european market. All they ever publish in Germany are even more bad quality scissor switch boards, while brown switches and other cool stuff go someplace else.

Yeah, I don't get that part either. Cherry (still) is one of the better-known and -reputed keyboard brands here, but they also sell a load of what seems to be cheap rebranded stuff. Not sure whether that is good for their reputation in the long run. Besides, their retail presence is pretty low these days.

Sure there's the Raptor-Gaming models, but isn't that a bit... limited?

[sethstorm]

One word: demand.

Hard to say that when they go out of their way to not produce for some regions(e.g. cherry red switches?).

[sethstorm]

One word: demand.

Hard to say that when they go out of their way to not produce for some regions(e.g. cherry red switches, region-limited electronics?).

[ricercar]

I'd pay large money for Cherry browns in this layout.



I've bought  $1 and $5 Cherry MY boards in this layout. MY feel sucky and the hardware fails, but the cap harvesting is worth it.

[ricercar]

Rip, here's where they hide the hi res photos. Can you tell if the win key is double-shot?



I want mine all in black with brown Cherries like shown.

[didjamatic]

If it came with a full set of black and a full set of red 2 shot keys, then you'd be talking.  Many of us aren't gamers so WASD kits mean nothing.  A red Esc key is very cool, a full set of a second color would be even better.

As for the 2 shot Win keys, those are definitely different than the painted/laser keys that I have on Cherry H keyboards, including a MY7000 with identical layout to this board and H keys.  I hope they really are 2 shots.

They're too narrow for a Filco front row, but if you owned this board you might not need the Filco.

[sethstorm]

I'd pay large money for Cherry browns in this layout.

Show Image

I've bought  $1 and $5 Cherry MY boards in this layout. MY feel sucky and the hardware fails, but the cap harvesting is worth it.

Strip the wnv bits off of it in every possible place, then I'd be fine.

Otherwise:
Until MX boards get to saner price points(w/o quality sacrifices or changes in product origin), I'll be glad to refit my non-territory-exclusive MY board.

[AndrewZorn]

looks pretty nice, but i don't know if id ever get over the way that the USB ports are labelled "headset" and "mouse"... don't mix them up!

and including 5 black keys would be nice too

but seeing a layout done RIGHT is great

[sethstorm]

looks pretty nice, but i don't know if id ever get over the way that the USB ports are labelled "headset" and "mouse"... don't mix them up!

and including 5 black keys would be nice too

but seeing a layout done RIGHT is great

...aside from the Windows/right click keys making other modifier keys single width.

[ricercar]

Why should modifiers be any wider than the more-often-used letters E R T L N S ? It's illogical on frequency-of-use basis alone.

*raises pointy eyebrow like Mr. Spock*

[msiegel]

Because of the greater width of thumbs, dammit!
You green blooded...

[ricercar]

Surely one doesn't use thumbs for anything aside from the space bar...?

[sethstorm]

Surely one doesn't use thumbs for anything aside from the space bar...?

If they're close enough to the space bar.  I might have hat keys on my daily-use keyboard, but that's as close as I want to get to single-width keys.

[elbowglue]

I'd pay large money for Cherry browns in this layout.

Show Image

I've bought  $1 and $5 Cherry MY boards in this layout. MY feel sucky and the hardware fails, but the cap harvesting is worth it.

The cherry g80-11900 has the almost the same layout for the keyboard, except the numpad is set upwards making room for a trackpad on the right side.  We have a G81-11900 at work (same layout but not MX switches) - it is a good layout but whenever you hit the space key with your right thumb (which is every time) you are hitting the rightmost edge of the spacebar.  This may not be ideal over time.  The rest of the layout is good!

Anyhow you could get a g80-11900 (probably black switches) and swap browns into that layout and have all the same layout except numpad is set upwards.

[itlnstln]

The cherry g80-11900 has the almost the same layout for the keyboard, except the numpad is set upwards making room for a trackpad on the right side. We have a G81-11900 at work (same layout but not MX switches) - it is a good layout but whenever you hit the space key with your right thumb (which is every time) you are hitting the rightmost edge of the spacebar. This may not be ideal over time. The rest of the layout is good!
 
Anyhow you could get a g80-11900 (probably black switches) and swap browns into that layout and have all the same layout except numpad is set upwards.

Basically, what you're talking about is the G80-11800.  The other problem with this layout is the F-keys and the page navigation cluster.  For heavy numpad users like me, having it above the trackball/trackpad is a real PITA.  I wouldn't mind the layout as much if the pointing device were above the numpad.

[itlnstln]

I'd pay large money for Cherry browns in this layout.

You're damn-straight.  Speak it, brother!

[cheater1034]

I'm sure if they could get it on some US retailer websites like newegg, buy.com, tigerdirect, etc. They could make a pretty good profit - especially if they sell it as a "gaming" keyboard - and even more so if they keep the red keys

I mean, people actually pay $180 for a logitech g19 just because it has a screen on it and backlit keys, who needs either on a keyboard (especially a screen, i mean, really?)  - people would pay decent money for a keyboard that is actually good to type on, especially if it looks good and has a usb hub.

[quadibloc]

The fact that the W key is slightly higher than the others may make the keyboard useful for gaming, but it would seem to interfere rather decisively with typing. Interestingly enough, in my Google searching this morning, I came across a satirical web site which included one article claiming that one should never use the "W" key on one's keyboard, because that lets George W. Bush read one's mind.

[ricercar]

one should never use the "W" key on one's keyboard, because that lets George W. Bush read one's mind.

Apocryphal tale says the outgoing Clinton administration departed taking all the W keys from all the whitehouse keyboards. Maybe these stories are related.

[Mental Hobbit]

Apocryphal tale says the outgoing Clinton administration departed taking all the W keys from all the whitehouse keyboards.

We're so lucky. W might have missed the voice of god otherwise, with all the background noise.

[itlnstln]

The fact that the W key is slightly higher than the others may make the keyboard useful for gaming, but it would seem to interfere rather decisively with typing.

In the original pics, it appears that the 'board comes with standard-size keys for those letters.

[joneslee85]

You can buy it at taobao here

[rdjack21]

Well I just won a NIB one of these for a good price mostly because the seller miss labeled it, I've been trying to find one for a while now:




Earlier today though I ran across this board which the seller indicates is a MX board but does not say which switch is in it. I've sent a message asking the seller to pull a key and take a picture for me but the layout is very similar to the board being discussed here so thought I would post a pick of it. I'm not really interested in it myself but I may pick it up any ways and sell it here because it is not to expensive but after I pay all the expenses of getting to the US it will not be all that cheap. So if it does end up having something other than Blacks in it what would you realistically be willing to pay for it if I picked it up?





Oh I will post a update when or if the seller gets me a picture of the switch. Also just to get the ball rolling my guesstimate is that I would have to sell it here for the $50-$75 range to break even as long as the price does not go up to much but their are 3 days left on the auction so we will see what happens if it stays where it is or only goes up a little then the $50-$75 price range is pretty close.

[bsvP585hUO2Y6]

rdjack wrote on 5985 September 1993:

> Earlier today though I ran across this board which the seller
> indicates is a MX board but does not say which switch is in it.

This Cherry model looks really strange to me.  It lacks windows keys
despite being manufactured in 2001.  But Cherry kind of cheated here by
using the shrinked post-windows-key modifier keycaps and just plugging
the holes...  They still made full-size modifier keycaps back then for
the 102/103-key G81 models, so I suppose they did this to reuse the PCB
from 104/105-key G80s.  Another strange thing is that the board features
a DIN/AT plug in combination with a plain cord.  I'd say it is an OEM
board, but the label doesn't support this theory, so I'm afraid the
switches are likely black.

[rdjack21]

Yep turns out to be blacks in that board:



I was so hopping it would be browns but still not a bad board maybe a good mod board?