worst keyboard ever?

[o2dazone]

lmao

[quadibloc]

In terms of layout, which is, admittedly a personal taste, not the tactile quality of the keyboard (with which I am not acquainted), the Sanyo MBC-555 keyboard is one I particularly disliked due to the location of both shift keys, Enter, and backspace. That layout was enough to decide not to make that machine my first PC.

Ironically, though, the keys looked nice... and it even had a red BREAK key! So no keyboard is all bad.

[banyanleaf]

If laptop keyboard counts, my vote is absolutely HP Pavilion ze5300. The one that I hate so much that I even carry a desktop keyboard in my car.

[lost eden]

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Saitek Eclipse I & II (haven't tried a III).

I got this keyboard (the first series), and after about a month, I convinced my brother to buy one. He got the II. It's a cool keyboard for finding a home row, but it was more about the ambient light it casted that allow you to do simple tasks in a dark room. After about two months, my brothers failed, and a month after that, mine failed. The backlighting would flicker and more and more, the keys would just stop failing. My dad also grabbed one up and it failed on him too - same manner. The switches were rubber dome, nothing fancy, but I threw up about $70 for mine. After that I bought a pos rubber dome from Best Buy (because having a crappy board is better than having no board) and it lasted longer than my Saitek did.

There's something to say about the longevity of a keyboard, but it just comes assumed that it will last you a very long time (at least long enough until the peripheral plug technology expires) as long as you treat it right. I don't eat at my computer, or spill stuff...hell I even be sure to pop keys off and clean stuff inside, just for fun. But yeah, I was pretty upset when I found out that despite paying out the ass for a rubber dome, it didn't last any longer than crappy ones. I guess thats when my search for a reliable keyboard started lol

I bought one of the original Eclipse about 4 years ago & used it pretty heavily for about 3 years until I found an old NTC with Alps switches & later the G80's I'm using now, but I never had any problems with my Eclipse except that the left shift key is a bit stiff if you don't hit it directly from above. I still use it for gaming & stuff it into a backpack when I'm going to a LAN party & it's so far held up through all the bad treatment I've given it. Maybe quality of these particular boards is somewhat inconsistent?

[o2dazone]

I bought one of the original Eclipse about 4 years ago & used it pretty heavily for about 3 years until I found an old NTC with Alps switches & later the G80's I'm using now, but I never had any problems with my Eclipse except that the left shift key is a bit stiff if you don't hit it directly from above. I still use it for gaming & stuff it into a backpack when I'm going to a LAN party & it's so far held up through all the bad treatment I've given it. Maybe quality of these particular boards is somewhat inconsistent?

Possibly so, either they got better or worse. I just know after 3 from the same company, they all failed in a similar fashion. I wish I had hung onto it, just to repair it, or perhaps swap some of the "lighting" portions into another keyboard or something. Could have been a fun project.

[Rajagra]

I've had a Saitek Eclipse and Logithech G15, and the amazing thing about both is that the illuminated keys are harder to read *under all lighting conditions* than a normal keyboard.

(Unless it's pitch black and you shield the normal keyboard from the screen's light.)

[timw4mail]

I've had a Saitek Eclipse and Logithech G15, and the amazing thing about both is that the illuminated keys are harder to read *under all lighting conditions* than a normal keyboard.

(Unless it's pitch black and you shield the normal keyboard from the screen's light.)

On the other side of the spectrum...are blank keyboards.

[ch_123]

I always wondered about the sort of simpleton who would buy an overpriced backlit keyboard of low quality for playing in the dark, but would never think of turning the lights on. >.>

[Rajagra]

Ooh - I don't think anyone has mentioned the Dell Vostros that were shipped like this (look closely):



http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/05/02/dell_keyboard_blunder_vostro/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jacobgordon/2455618195

[erricrice]

Ooh - I don't think anyone has mentioned the Dell Vostros that were shipped like this (look closely):

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http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/05/02/dell_keyboard_blunder_vostro/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jacobgordon/2455618195

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

+1 to that man!

[o2dazone]

I always wondered about the sort of simpleton who would buy an overpriced backlit keyboard of low quality for playing in the dark, but would never think of turning the lights on. >.>

Because they(I) didn't know any better

[clickclack]

Think back to the G3 days. I had a bubble iMac that came with an Apple spacesaver keyboard....

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Any fancy mac related keyboard is just a pain to rip apart, if nothing else! UGH! (of course this is coming from someone who is taking hundreds of them apart...but still...)

I have a really good keyboard for this thread, and its a mechanical switch too!!!! It not only fights back, but you dont even stand a chance against it. It would fail any attempt with the patented "ripometer" by not only scoffing but erecting a tower of nickels a that would make King Kongs dong dangle!
It is currently under a few hundred pounds of stuff atm (about the only object I would subject to that!) so I will get the info for it soon and post it.

[ak_nala]

There is a special level of Hell where every computer work-station is populated by nothing but Apple Design Keyboards.

If it's possible for a keyboard to have anti-feedback, that would be the one. There were times when I would swear I had gotten feedback from a key that it had bottomed out and should register, but nothing on the screen - and this was normal for these things over the several I had the misfortune to use, even brand new (other people's boards, I might add - no, I was never dumb enough to buy one). Then there was the occasional bounce.

Keys were mushy AND stiff, with inconsistent switching points as well. It was the typing equivalent of Russian Roulette. To come down from the marvelous AEK and AEK II boards that they eventually superseded made them seem even worse.

Honorable mention has to be given to the original G3 iMac keyboard that Apple also shipped with the Pro Models for way too many years. Not as truly, brain and finger hurting awful as the Design, but still not a great experience to type on for any length of time. I agree that the only reason people didn't complain more about them is we were preoccupied with dealing with the Hocky Puck of Doom - a mouse only Wrongway Goldfarb could have loved.

Oddly enough, the newest Apple Aluminum Keyboards, both stand-alone and those on the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros, are a whole different story IMO.  

Upon seeing them I just knew I would absolutely hate them to actually use - flat little chicklet-like keys with almost no travel - pure form over function. I forced myself to try them out, however, and couldn't quite believe the experience, so I had to go back and try them again. It came as an unexpected and rather pleasant surprise - I liked them.

Mind you, if you try to just plain type on them, forget it, but I found in very short order that I was adapting my typing style to sort of glide over the keys, almost caressing them instead of pounding away on them like a normal clicky keyboard.  The end result was quite fast and accurate typing with much less fatigue than a normal keyboard. Crisp and precise, yet still soft was the impression I got.  I do wish there was a bit of curvature to the keys, but despite this I didn't find my fingers wandering any more than usual - it just required a bit more control and finesse, which came fairly naturally with the soft gliding typing style they seemed to encourage.

I think it's a matter of you either love 'em or hate 'em, with very little in between. I'd have to live with one for a few weeks to know on which side of the fence I'd finally settle, but I'm pretty sure where I'd end up.

[quadibloc]

The Vostros, having a major manufacturing defect, certainly beats my suggestion. And, although I felt the Sanyo keyboard had a terrible layout, having cupped keys, a red Break key, and centered characters on the key, for that pre-PC retro look, in some ways is very good instead of bad. I wonder if anyone knows what kind of key mechanism it used; in any case, I'll have to keep an eye open for some at garage sales now!

[InSanCen]

Ohhh.... I know this one!

It simply *has* to be the "rubber key" 48K Sinclair Spectrum.

Completely hideous.

And I'm biased towards Sinclair, I own most of them ;-).

[D-EJ915]

got to love the mini rainbow on it haha.  Those rubber keys are awful and seem to be on a lot of calculators as well...I hate them too

[cmr]

A situation came up at work today where, without the serendipity of my newly-acquired Tactile Pro, I'd have been forced to type on an aluminum Apple keyboard. I am thankful I had something else with me.

[shortround]

A situation came up at work today where, without the serendipity of my newly-acquired Tactile Pro, I'd have been forced to type on an aluminum Apple keyboard. I am thankful I had something else with me.

+1 on the wafer thin apple boards, they're terrible.  I guess the only thing good about those things is that it inspired me to find a good keyboard.   I hear that they taste good if dipped in milk though.

[timw4mail]

+1 on the wafer thin apple boards, they're terrible.  I guess the only thing good about those things is that it inspired me to find a good keyboard.   I hear that they taste good if dipped in milk though.

Really, they aren't that bad, especially compared with the previous round of Apple keyboards...those were uncomfortable, loud rubber domes.

[Rajagra]

I have a crazy theory that even ultra-thin keyboards can have decent travel if the keycaps pass through the  keyboard into the empty space beyond. It does present some err... technical challenges, however.

[microsoft windows]

I would have to say that recent Dell keyboards are even worse than those G3 Apple keyboards? Why? Because they're the extreme end of LOW QUALITY.

This is a newer Dell keyboard. They had a lot of these at work and they were awful. The keys stick and feel just AWFUL. If you have one of these, it is recommended that you immediately throw it away.

This keyboard is even WORSE. It has NO support brackets on any key except for some plastc thing on the spacebar. If you don't press a key excactly in the center, it will give you a hard time. These are truly pieces of plastic garbage which should be recycled to make plastic grocery bags.

See that? That's the best keyboard. I use mine every day. It's reliable, tough, and I have NEVER had a key stick even though there's over 15 years of dust underneath all the keys of mine (it doesn't look THAT pretty). And I like the trackball too.

[keyb_gr]

Actually these...

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which were made by NMB, still are pretty decent for rubber domes (at least the 2002 vintage samples I know). OK, they're mushy when compared to a Model M, but there's worse out there. They're supposed to develop sticky keys, would have to check that (those I know are in a PC pool and last time I checked were filthy as hell but functional).

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This keyboard is even WORSE.

Agreed. These are pretty lousy. Plus they're manufactured like this.

[itlnstln]

Those 'boards look pretty "Otaku."  I didn't know Dell sold blank keyboards.

[timw4mail]

Those 'boards look pretty "Otaku."  I didn't know Dell sold blank keyboards.

They must letter the keys when they are actually attached to the keyboard.

[redfish]

I absolutely hate the Logitech DiNovo blue tooth keyboard. it is one of those low profile laptop type keyboards. The space bar is uneven when you press it, which makes you have to hit it twice some times.  None of the letter keys have much of a problem sticking, and they do have a decent click to them for a rubber dome. The F keys are tiny of course. It has one of those retarded shutdown buttons up in the corner which I hit when I set a book or stack of papers on the edge of my keyboard. It also eats batteries, it made me buy my first set of rechargeable batteries. Over all, if I didn't have a 3,000 dollar monitor I would of probably broken it over my monitor back when I was using it.

[itlnstln]

I have never typed on a good Logitech 'board. That said, The Logitech Wave seems to be fairly nice for a standard rubber dome. It seems to have a lot lighter touch, but I have never used one for any extended period of time. The one thing that would royally piss me off about that 'board is that it doesn't have any indicator lights, so it flashes the status on the screen as Locks are turned off and on. This is completely unacceptable.

[hyperlinked]

I don't know if you ever used the Atari 800XL keyboard -- it was probably the same basic tech as the Atari XE line -- but it sounds like what you described as.  It's a horrible keyboard.  That being said, my only point of comparison at the time was the Atari 400 keyboard -- so it was luxurious back then.

OMG! We shared some similar trauma in the past. I never had to use the Atari 400 keyboard regularly, but I remember playing with that machine. I did have the misfortune of owning an Atari 800XL briefly before moving onto the original Atari 1040ST. The keyboard on the 1040ST was better than the finger-gym that was the 800XL keyboard, but it was still simply awful for something considered to be among the GUI driven mass-market "productivity" computers.

[Special K]

That's the keyboard I used for the longest time before I found geekhack.  I agree, the keys would get stuck all the time if you hit them even slightly off center and it drove me nuts.

[itlnstln]

I thought the coating was applied when the caps were mounted to switches.  This interpretation would lead to a variety of scenarios as to when they put the coating on.  It may be that they mount the caps to the switches, spray the caps, then mount the cap/switch assembly to the plate then PCB then the case.

[itlnstln]

That's certainly an issue.  That also begs the question as to why there is coating overspray on the bottom of the caps and not on the switches as well.  Hmm...
 
My guess is that you're right, and they do something like mount the keys to one of the plates as seen in the pic and do the printing and coating on it, build the rest of keyboard elsewhere on the assembly line, and marry the two near the end.

[sggsix]

The worst keyboard we have at work was a "Zoom 110M" keyboard. It's an ergonomic style keyboard with quite a bit of weight. Not as heavy as a Model M, but hefty. The number pad and cursors are all skewed funny, but the worst thing are the keys on both sides of the spacebar. Sorry for the crappy pic, it was from a cell phone.

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While it's hard to see, the keys on the left are "Close Application" and "Explorer". The keys on the right are "Maximize" and "Minimize". Guess which key gets hit the most, just when you don't need to? Yep. Close Application.

I tried to use it while repairing another workstation, since it was conveniently available. It lasted less than five minutes before I switched it for a Keytronic.

There's a runner-up at, also at work, which types just awful but at least it won't close your applications. It's an Adesso slim keyboard with trackpad. The only reason it was bought was because of the integrated trackpad. I try not to use it if at all possible.

LMFAO Epic failure!

[keyb_gr]

Yep, also "liked" that one. A good candidate for the top, err, I mean bottom 10. Whoever had the brilliant idea of putting a key for "close application" (guess it triggers Alt+F4) right next to the space bar must have been either asleep or smoking some strange stuff.

I chose my "hibernation" shortcut to be Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F12 for good reason...

[chrs]

The LK201 keyboards used on DEC's video terminals. Cool layout but very short travel and absolutely no tactility.

I'm pretty sure that's the same model that I ruined my wrist on.  Stiff, no tactility, didn't actuate until the bottom of the stroke, so you pretty much have to slam the key against the bottom of its travel where there was a hard stop.

[microsoft windows]

Of newer computer keyboards, I would say that Dell makes the worst rubber domes.

[ch_123]

Nope. Some of the cheap generic ones are much worse.

[bbranigin]

have these at work too - terrible terrible terrible

[Computer-Lab in Basement]

I have the newer Dell rubber domes.  The only good Dell rubber domes are the old Dell Quietkeys with rubber dome sliders.  They aren't that bad, they feel better than my Unicomp keyboard. (which is a rubber dome)

[Rajagra]

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have these at work too - terrible terrible terrible

These break my heart, because I love the way they have (virtually) no surround/bezel.

Edit> My neighbour has one. I tried it and it is pretty nasty to use. If I had a good, standard layout, Windows board I would give it to him.
He has a mouse with rubber ball too. >.< Again, if I had a suitable spare...
At least he doesn't know better. Ignorance is bliss, and he only uses the computer for email and his kid's stuff.

[Computer-Lab in Basement]

That is the only thing that is interesting about those boards.

[PRISONER 24601]

Actually these...

which were made by NMB, still are pretty decent for rubber domes (at least the 2002 vintage samples I know). OK, they're mushy when compared to a Model M, but there's worse out there. They're supposed to develop sticky keys, would have to check that (those I know are in a PC pool and last time I checked were filthy as hell but functional).

Agreed. These are pretty lousy. Plus they're manufactured like this.

agreed. my dad has one of those with his computer, and it's a few notches better than the really cheapo rubber domes. From what I can tell, the rubber gets harder with age, but is molded so that it still "pops" down uniformly. Like it's got a crumple zone. This is after 3-4 years of daily use. I prefer that over domes that get soft and squishy.

Some dome/membrane 'boards use paper thin rubber that seems to lose feeling over the years. others use rubber that gets harder. I don't know the difference, whether it's in materials, design, construction, or whatever... but i'd really like to know. One glance at Topre domes and I can tell they're one-of-a-kind, which is why I'm jonesin for one

[microsoft windows]

For rubber domes, try and find keyboards with linear sliders between the keycap and rubber dome. They are very good feeling keyboards and can last virtually forever without a cleaning.

[ch_123]

With mechanical keyboards available for so cheap, why bother.

[microsoft windows]

Well, when you get them for free, it doesn't hurt. In addition, they are quieter than some mechanical keyboards. At least from what I've seen, quiet mechanical keyboards tend to be more expensive than an old Compaq or a QuietKey.

[ch_123]

Life is too short to be digging **** out of skips when you can buy something good with your money.

[microsoft windows]

What does it hurt to like the high-quality rubber domes though? They're quiet, light, and reliable.

[1839cc]

Well, when you get them for free, it doesn't hurt. In addition, they are quieter than some mechanical keyboards. At least from what I've seen, quiet mechanical keyboards tend to be more expensive than an old Compaq or a QuietKey.

I like free stuff.

My old Compaq is a quiet mechanical.

[ricercar]

Life is too short to be digging **** out of skips when you can buy something good with your money.

Spoken like a man with a solid income. Some of us are not so fortunate. During my 42 weeks of unemployment this year, dumpsters looked more like treasure chests.

[microsoft windows]

I work in an IT department and it's part of my job to take the computer trash out to the loading area. I make sure they only throw away trash, not IBM M5-2's, working laptops, and other treasures.

[ironcoder]

what does typing on living octopus feel like?

It sucks :popcorn:

[ironcoder]

(cough) Chicony! (cough)