geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: Findecanor on Fri, 11 February 2011, 15:34:39
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Anybody seen this before? Any good?
(http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15637&stc=1&d=1298654923)
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i dunno it isnt ibm m.
maybe a cherry?
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The funny thing about keyboard identification is that you either know what the keyboard is, or you don't.
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MIGHT have Alps, as most of them had large ReverseL enters, but could be a junky rubber dome.
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very similar with KB-6251/2(Alps switch). ;-)
(http://www.kbdmania.net/xe/files/attach/images/42106/702/259/001/img_4247.jpg)
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very similar with KB-6251/2(Alps switch).
(http://www.kbdmania.net/xe/files/attach/images/42106/702/259/001/img_4247.jpg)
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Most keyboards look pretty much the same, so guessing something which isn't well know is hard...
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Usually the back of the keyboard has a stamp that shows its producer and model number.
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Cross-linking this for future seekers of the Holy [F/Gr]ail. (http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?p=295535)
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I would post the question at RuneAzns new keyboard forum.
Needs the traffic.
If he can't answer, he can always show you some fruity Anime clip in animated-GIF format.
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So it's swedish? interesting.
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As I said in THE OTHER POST it's probably ALPS Taiwanese.
About as Swedish as the Das is German.
nice joke :D
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Hey, Watch It!
I can't. It's blocked at work.
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Woo-hoo. Cartoon pr0n!
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Review. Moved from Propac with AT plug and BigAss enter (aka bird? plane?) (http://geekhack.org/showthread.php?p=295535).
First impressions
(http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15637&stc=1&d=1298654923)
(http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15654&stc=1&d=1298665085)
It is actually not as yellow in real life as in the picture -- that is an artifact of lighting and camera.
The board was in practicaly new condition, and came in what I think is its original box with manual. The cable is coiled and very short. The manual has a picture of yellow water pouring down on the keyboard ...
It is awful to type on, and I think that is mostly because of the rubber splash-guard. The key travel is low with a very soft landing. If you press a key down too much, it takes longer for it to snap back up again.
The click sound is even more higher-pitched than on my (real) Cherry boards. They feel a bit less tactile, but I think that is also because of the rubber guard.
Key caps
The key caps are high, thin and double-shot.
(http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15651&stc=1&d=1298665085)
There is a rubber cup around each shaft.
Only the Space Bar and right Shift have stabilizers. The numpad has none.
All wide key caps have slots for Cherry stabilizers, though .., except for Enter.
(http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15655&stc=1&d=1298665085)
Two of the four stabilizer slots on the Enter key have been dremel'ed down and a plunger has been glued there. The plunger goes through a cup in the rubber sheet where an ANSI / key would be, but there is nothing on the inside. There is only the rubber sheet to provide any stability.
Inside
The switches are indeed clicky fake Cherries. Real Cherry key caps are very loose on them.
The manual specifies the actuating force as 90 +- 20 cN. I have no way of measuring, but without the rubber sheet they are definitely stiffer than my Blue Cherries.
The switches are of the plate-mount variety without fixing pins, and the rubber sheet was obviously designed to fit onto a plate, but there is no metal plate inside the keyboard!
The PCB has soldering pads for both ANSI and ISO layout.. Some holes for stabilizers have been drilled, but are unused, others were not drilled.
The controller is from Holtek. No diodes. All jumpers are in-between switches, none inside them.
Identification
Who made it is still a mystery ...
The box has a sticker that say "ARDOR" "keyboard of" "waterproof".
(http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15650&stc=1&d=1298665085)
The model number and the FCC-ID on the underside label is only "KB102". "Made in Taiwan R.O.C"
The PCB has the "PCB is KB-2101/2" on both sides, and that's it.
The PCB and key caps do not match any Chicony parts that I have seen on the web -- there are differences.
(http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15652&stc=1&d=1298665085)
The manual leaflet does not give any hint either.
What is it good for?
Much nicer to type on without the rubber sheet. However, it must obviously have been part of the case design because the PCB is not stable inside the keyboard without it, and rattles quite a lot. This may be why I couldn't identify the case before.
Keycaps are relatively nice, except for the broken Enter key.
I think that if I cut off the domes from the rubber sheet, I could use it for dampening in boards with plate-mounted Cherry switches.
(http://geekhack.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15653&stc=1&d=1298665085)
Seen here with a real Cherry switch, that I used just for testing. You can see that it was designed to rest on a plate.
I'll likely use the switches for testing mods.. Maybe they would be better lighter springs. Too bad that no metal plate was included.. I want one for a build.
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I have figured out why the keys can take a long time to snap back up when I have bottomed out.
When the key reaches the bottom, the bottom of the key cap seals against the rubber sheet and there is suction!
I tested this out by cutting away the rubber sleeve around the switch, leaving a hole. The key feel was nicer, and it the rubber sheet did dampen the clack, but the suction was still apparent.
This effect might be something to consider when looking for new ways to dampen "clack" when bottoming out.
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Hmm...a BigAss Enter key old waterproof rubber dome.
Well, that's different. You could use the PCB for future mods. It's real easy to pull leads off a PCB rubber dome keyboard.
Except it has Taiwan white copycat Cherries.
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I think the copycat cherries do feel a little more tactile than the Cherry's originals, but it may be just because the spring is different.
I noticed an identical-looking keyboard on eBay.co.uk. I sent the seller a question for identifiable markings and specific features of this board.