Author Topic: And... the ABS M1 gets reviewed, and we're mentioned! (Read 3784 times)

bhtooefr · « **on:** Wed, 25 March 2009, 21:42:42 »

http://techreport.com/articles.x/16616

Note that Cyril's source for the description of the black Alps behavior was... us.

ozar · « **Reply #1 on:** Wed, 25 March 2009, 22:16:28 »

Cool... thanks for the link.

I pretty much agree with all that he said, even down to the squeaky spacebar. I do like the build quality in the M1, but slightly prefer the feel of the switches in the Dell AT101W.

Parn · « **Reply #2 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 04:09:37 »

The M1 looks like Filco N-key rollover FKBN104

kyamei · « **Reply #3 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 04:21:45 »

Its made by Costar, the same OEM that makes Filco boards.

CX23882 · « **Reply #4 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 04:47:20 »

The Tech Report is probably my favourite hardware site, and once again, another great review from them.

Is anybody on here a writer for them?

FKSSR · « **Reply #5 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 06:50:26 »

Thanks for the link. I actually prefer the M1 to AT101Ws, but I still haven't done extensive writing on the M1. It will likely be going to my work soon, though. Then, I'll have a better idea.

itlnstln · « **Reply #6 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 06:54:33 »

Quote from: FKSSR;25530

Thanks for the link. I actually prefer the M1 to AT101Ws, but I still haven't done extensive writing on the M1. It will likely be going to my work soon, though. Then, I'll have a better idea.

I love mine, too, but I am quite disappointed in how fast the coating on the keys wore off. One of mine will be replaced with a Cherry G80-3000, and I am on the fence about a Filco with brown Cherrys (I don't really want the same experience with the coating coming off the keys on another Costar). Once I get the G80, I will see which one I like better, and maybe get another 'board (I might get one with blues instead).

FKSSR · « **Reply #7 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 09:16:19 »

I am going to get a Filco w/ brown cherries as well. It's going to be my real-time strategy gaming board, but I am curious as to whether I'll like it better than the M1 for typing, as well. Hopefully it is about the same so that I don't have to buy yet another board.

itlnstln · « **Reply #8 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 09:22:09 »

Quote from: FKSSR;25552

I am going to get a Filco w/ brown cherries as well. It's going to be my real-time strategy gaming board, but I am curious as to whether I'll like it better than the M1 for typing, as well. Hopefully it is about the same so that I don't have to buy yet another board.

I like my MX-11800 for typing. Actually, if it weren't for the layout, I would probably be using it now. My G80-3000 w/browns comes in tomorrow; I can't wait.

BTW, I am thinking about selling the MX, so if you want to buy it to try browns before you get a Filco, let me know.

patrickgeekhack · « **Reply #9 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 10:52:26 »

Quote from: bhtooefr;25474

http://techreport.com/articles.x/16616

Note that Cyril's source for the description of the black Alps behavior was... us.

A few days ago, I noticed Cyril's video on YouTube, but could not find any review on the TechReport. So, I e-mailed him he confirmed that he was indeed working on a review. I thanked for letting me know, and told him that I was a member of geekhack.org where people are crazy about their keyboards

I completely forgot to mention this on the forum though.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that Cyril was aware or unaware of this forum. I just told him I was a member.

That being said, it was nice to see geekhack.org mentioned in his review.

itlnstln · « **Reply #10 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 10:59:15 »

I would disagree with the "absence of... clear tactile feedback" comment. I think this may be caused by heavy typing. I think Cyril was coming from a Model M, so I think as he gets used to typing with lighter strokes, he might feel differently. I thought the same thing about Cherry browns, but the more I used them, I began to really notice the tactility and appreciate the lightness of the keys.

bhtooefr · « **Reply #11 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 11:44:50 »

Well, there was a Das Keyboard in there, too, although I don't know if it replaced his Model M. If it did, though, he's probably gotten used to the lighter strokes of Cherry blues.

itlnstln · « **Reply #12 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 11:50:41 »

I think the clicks of the Das could have been a mental "crutch." In other words, he felt more tactility in the Cherry blues because he heard the click. In using Alps blacks almost exclusively, I have been able to separate the sound from the feel in my head. When I first used the Dell, I thought the keys weren't very tactile. In actuality, they feel exactly like the white Alps, but without the click. I think this might be the same case here.

FKSSR · « **Reply #13 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 12:37:40 »

I do think the blues are lighter thank alps (and perhaps the browns are too, though I haven't tried those yet), but I do think that having the click does play with your brain a bit. The author even mentioned that when he was talking about how that can maximize speed and minimize typos.

itlnstln · « **Reply #14 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 12:43:42 »

Quote

The author even mentioned that when he was talking about how that can maximize speed and minimize typos.

It can definitely help there as the click is an additional clue that a keypress has been made.

zwmalone · « **Reply #15 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 15:45:16 »

Quote from: itlnstln;25574

I would disagree with the "absence of... clear tactile feedback" comment. I think this may be caused by heavy typing. I think Cyril was coming from a Model M, so I think as he gets used to typing with lighter strokes, he might feel differently. I thought the same thing about Cherry browns, but the more I used them, I began to really notice the tactility and appreciate the lightness of the keys.

You've also got an evolution (still loving mine

), how would you compare the tactility of the black ALPS to that of the white ALPS?

itlnstln · « **Reply #16 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 15:48:28 »

Quote from: zwmalone;25639

You've also got an evolution (still loving mine ), how would you compare the tactility of the black ALPS to that of the white ALPS?

ABS (fake black Alps) has more tactility than the Dell (real black Alps) which is equal to the Evolution. The only reason I don't use my Evolution anymore is due the ridiculous amount of noise it produces (due to the all-steel construction). One of these days, I'll get around to doing some sound deadening to it. I would really love to make it my daily driver again. I love the Evolution.

itlnstln · « **Reply #17 on:** Thu, 26 March 2009, 15:50:10 »

Come to think of it (maybe when I am on vacation next) I might replace the white Alps with blacks from one of my Dells. I may even try to replace the sliders with one with dampers if I can ever buy a keyboard that has them (I tried twice and failed).

pex · « **Reply #18 on:** Sat, 28 March 2009, 19:06:49 »

What kind of "an enthusiast and self-confessed keyboard snob" treats n-key rollover as trivially as this: "ABS also claims the M1 can register six simultaneous key presses, but I haven't been able to reproduce that consistently. Holding down "QWEASD" or "ASDFG" produces no output, although the device is happy enough with "ASDJKL." (For what it's worth, the Das Keyboard cheerfully registered as many keys as my fingers could hold down on the home row.) If you're wondering about those bad Newegg reviews where users say the M1 doesn't let them hit simple key combinations like "CTRL-S," I haven't run into any such problems. In my experience, the M1's key rollover is more or less average."? 'Average' is 3-key rollover and and the failure of ASDFG doesn't just run astray from what we know about USB but also falls short of ABS's actual marketing.

If you plug geekhack and yet don't know about the limiting USB HID spec, I would say that's rather jeopradizing of the integrity of the whole article.

bhtooefr · « **Reply #19 on:** Sat, 28 March 2009, 20:18:49 »

A lot of people haven't even heard of N-key rollover, though. I could definitely consider myself a keyboard snob before I found this forum, yet hadn't a clue about NKRO.

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Author Topic: And... the ABS M1 gets reviewed, and we're mentioned! (Read 3784 times)