Disclaimer: A lot of the vies inmy review/s you may or may not agree with, but that's okay. Everyone is entitled to their own views, personal opinions and so on and so forth, these are my personal opinions, so please take them with a grain of salt. I always appreciate feedback, questions and so on, so please do not hesitate to do so.Supplier, shipping and customsSo to start off, the supplier that I went ahead and got this wonderful keyboard from was none other than
http://smartimports.net. Smart Imports are an exceptional company for the following reasons:
- They save you money on shipping by 'evaluating' the keyboard at a much lower price than it actually is
- They ship the next working day which is phenomenal
- They are very friendly and tend to answer any questions that you may have within a 24 hour period.
If you're importing into the United Kindgom, just be aware that once it enters customs, it may take a little bit of time to get through customs and this can add another 5-7 days onto the waiting time for your keyboard. This was the case for me and I had to wait an extra 5 days I believe? as it was just taking a long time to be cleared from customs and what not, so just bear this in mind if you are in fact importing your keyboard.
Parcelforce also handle this parcel and they are not the best in terms of speed, just just bear this in mind if you're looking to order from Smart Imports.
Adjusting to HHKB's layoutI think learning to adjust to the new layout is one of the most destrimental aspects of the HHKB. (I made the switch from a 75% - 60% board). It does in fact take a fair amount of getting used too, but you're willing to take that plunge when you go ahead and buy the board, personally though? i think it's worth and once you're used to the HHKB's layout, you wouldn't have it any other way. One of the issues that I do have though, is the fact that when you do get used to the HHKB when you try and switch to different keyboards, in my case, coding on the Macbook Pro, it can be rather tedious when you're constantly pressing the 'enter' button for backspace because of muscle memory, that's where you think it is. That can be a little... annoying.
One of the most amazing features surrounding the HHKB Pro 2 are the functions that are embedded within the keyboard, this is because it's a 60% board and it needs to have meta + [key here] in order for it to be a functional keyboard. So for example, if I were to press the META + 1 = F1 / META + I = Print screen. There are loads of different functions on this keyboard, take a look at the images below (In the images section) to see some of them.
Another great feature surrounding the HHKB is it's DIP switch functionality. This allows you to make small, subtle changes to your keyboard without really doing anything. For example, I have my DIP switch set-up as follows: 1, 3, 4, 6 are enabled. This essentially allows me to have to left meta key as a function key, delete as backspace, power on when keys are pressed and the HHKB Lite mode enabled. All amazing features, check the image below for more information on the dip switches.
Topre vs Cherry MXNow, I believe this is where the review is going to get a little bit controversial, but let's hope for the best.
Personally, I still don't know what I prefer, I think there are advantages to using both, without a shadow of a doubt the Topre is much better to type on, there's no question (I only use MX Reds btw, so I will only be referring to Reds in this comparison), but I'm going to split this up into bullet points, as I feel this is the best way to get my point across regarding this topic.
Topre:
- Much more enjoyable to type on
- Much less prone to typing errors (typos) which is much more enjoyable for me as I type a lot due to my field
- Feels better in certain situations e.g. Typing
- Would not advise for gaming
- Can be strenuous on the fingers after a while of gaming (constant tapping of the keys etc)
- Has a slight bump which I do not enjoy to be honest
- Unable to double-tap as well as MX Reds
- Can be quite loud in comparison to MX Reds (I bottom out constantly, yolo#)
MX Cherry Reds:
- Lighter key switch and I prefer it this way
- Better for gaming
- Enjoyable for typing, but prone to a lot more mistakes so that may be a hindrance to you, I know it is for me at times
- Finger fatigue not as prominent in MX Cherry Reds in my experience
- The light keys can be a hindrance at times e.g. Resting your finger on space bar can sometimes actuate it
- More satisfying noise imo
- Less noisy when bottoming out
AestheticsWithout a doubt the HHKB Pro 2 is one of the most attractive looking keyboards that I've ever had the opportunity to own and that was one of the deciding factors when I went ahead and bought the board. Perfect colour, perfect key caps, perfect font. It's just a fantastic looking board, end of story.
I went with the white version with printed keycaps as I do not really like blank keycaps and I have no complaints what so ever. Advantages vs DisadvantagesAdvantages:- Fantastic looking keyboard
- Keycaps and overall board look/feel fantastic
- DIP switches are amazing for functionality
- 2 x USB Ports for accessibility
- Keyboard colour scheme is perfect and will save you costs on new keycaps perhaps?
- Detachable USB Cable
- It has Topre keyswitches
- Better for typing
- More enjoyable for typing (vs MX Reds)
- Increased WPM
Disadvantages:- The keys can feel heavy when coming from a lighter switch
- Spacebar is heavier than the other keys, not sure why this is (Maybe need to break in the board more)
- Keyboard feels a lot louder than I feel it should, e.g. Louder than MX Reds
- It has Topre switches (explained below)
- Harder to find keycaps for it's Cherry counter-part
- Very expensive
- Niche product/market
Why is Topre in both advantages and disadvantages?Well the thing is, even though I do enjoy this keyboard very, very much, I sometimes do not enjoy the Topre keys. This is mainly from a gaming standpoint though and not from an overall use/typing standpoint. This keyboard just like MX Blacks, Blues, Browns and Greens 'can' be used for gaming, but that is not to mean that it is beneficial for gaming, for example, if you use this or any other 60% board you're going to have a very hard time on RTS games because of the limited keys. (I guess this is where re-binding keys comes into play?)From my personal experience with Reds, I do not feel finger fatigue half as much as I do on Topre, maybe this is because I'm still not 100% used to the Topre switch and maybe I need my fingers to get used to it over time, but for example. I'm a pretty avid League of Legends player and on Reds when playing people like Udyr and LeBlanc etc, I would be used to tapping the keys over and over again to get off my skills, but if I do that on Topre, I get finger fatigue a lot quicker.On the other hand, Topre are flat out, without a shadow of a doubt, the best key switch to type on. You can better your WPM by typing on Topre, you make far less mistakes, so far I've only been able to hit 105WPM, but I've not had the chance to get that up because of my busy work schedule as of late, but it is an exception keyboard for typing on.
A lot of people have advised me to have two keyboards, one for gaming and one for typing, but for me personally? That's not really an option that I would like to exercise. I'd rather have one all round keyboard for everything, but it doesn't seem like that is going to happen when using the Topre board because as previously stated, they both have their advantages and disadvantages. You just have to work out what is the best option for you.Typing/General use vs Gaming! You make the decision!ConclusionTo conclude, I think that the HHKB is worth the money and it’s most definitely a great keyboard, there is no doubt about that what so ever, but with that being said I do have a few gripes with the keyboard and I think they need to be discussed, I don’t want to discourage a user from potentially buying a Topre board, but I think you need to buy it for the right reasons.
I wouldn’t buy it if you’re a heavy gamer, I just don’t think Topre boards are built for that, I think they are generally built for the typing consumer, the coder, the programmer, the developer, those types of people. Now, I’m not saying that you cannot game on this board, because you really can, but you are you going to have a much harder time doing so.
The main issue for me is that it doesn’t feel as light as MX Reds and that’s the keyboard that I’ve grown to adore over the years and I think that has a major factor into my decision making at the moment. Personally, I think I'm going to stick it out with this keyboard for at-least another 2-3 weeks, if I feel as if I will be better suited with MX Reds? then I'll switch back to my Noppoo, cut my losses and try and make some money back on here by selling the board.I hope that this will come to help some people in the decision making process, I’m sure that I’ve missed a lot of things out and what not and please, if you have any questions then do not hesitate to ask, I would love to reply to them!
Images:[Coming very soon!]
