Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 07:58:15
Sign up here: Currently closed.
Status of Tours (#post_Status)
Updates (#post_Update)
Rules (#post_Rules)
UPDATES
Update 7/6/15 - On the move again! (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1792330#msg1792330)
Update 6/22/15 (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1784670#msg1784670)
Update 6/1/15 (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1765346#msg1765346)
Update 5/28/15 (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1761334#msg1761334)
Update 4/30/15 (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1732578.msg#1732578)
Update 4/15/15 (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1717493#msg1717493)
Update 4/5/15 (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1706220#msg1706220)
Update 3/30/15
More
The tour now will become two concurrent tours: Alpha (first damaged keyboard) and Bravo (second keyboard). Alpha Round 2 will be the next round of touring. Bravo is now the remainder of Alpha Round 1.
Mkawa has provided us with a second keyboard. Signups are open for Alpha R2 tour. Please fill out the Google Docs Form here (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1MQar8KmzwwZb45arNK9hqwDHZcgXmHwtHPct0PSAnDs/viewform) AND post in this thread. Failure to read the rules and follow directions will lead me to not adding you to the tour. Thanks for helping making this tour go smoothly :). Signups will be opened for a week. I'll add pictures of Bravo board with a list of keycaps available soon.
Mkawa has provided us with a second keyboard. Signups are open for Alpha R2 tour. Please fill out the Google Docs Form here (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1MQar8KmzwwZb45arNK9hqwDHZcgXmHwtHPct0PSAnDs/viewform) AND post in this thread. Failure to read the rules and follow directions will lead me to not adding you to the tour. Thanks for helping making this tour go smoothly :). Signups will be opened for a week. I'll add pictures of Bravo board with a list of keycaps available soon.
Check out this thread. It's the Novatouch passaround tour!!
(http://i.imgur.com/tfx6iXs.jpg)
Novatouch with Galaxy Class keycap set (DSA)
(http://i.imgur.com/VtInj3B.jpg)
Stock Caps
(http://i.imgur.com/YHDE7gD.jpg)
Some form of BSP caps, with printing by imsto
(http://i.imgur.com/nihITkM.jpg)
Granite DSA
(http://i.imgur.com/vLpkh1c.jpg)
Some form of DSA novelties
If you don't know what a tour is, it's simple. You sign up, someone sends you a keyboard to play with, you review it, then you send it to the next person on the list. The review doesn't need to be anything crazy; a few paragraphs is fine.
Mkawa managed to get two sample Novatouch keyboards from CM Storm. Unfortunately USPS lost one and I only have one left. I think Rajiv is the person we have to thank for this tour.
Tour Rules:
- You must have 100 posts and be active on Geekhack.
- You get one week with the board...then you must mail it (with tracking) to the next individual on the list.
- It must be shipped in it's original package or another game board USPS large flat rate box. This costs $15.80 if purchased online and I believe about $18 if purchased in store.
- You must post a review of the board.
- Tour is CONUS only.
- I reserve the right to shift around tour participants in order minimize the keyboard's time in-transit.
- I reserve the right to screen people and skip them if needed
- Tour will restart 6/29/15
This isn't my board but I'm in charge of it through the tour which is why there are these rules. I feel the need to take care of the board. I don't want there to be delays so please do not sign up if you don't think you can meet these requirements. I am open to changing the post count requirement but I'm afraid that a lower post count might mean the tester isn't as active which may lead to delays and further issues. Please feel free to comment on the rules if you feel they need to change.
Tour Participants and Reviews
- CPTBadAss (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1554201#msg1554201)
- ComradeSniper (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1565879#msg1565879)
- Gameaholic (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1573782#msg1573782)
- Badwrench (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1581289#msg1581289)
- nubbinator (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1608341#msg1608341)
- MythicalWagyu (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1619962#msg1619962)
- SonOfSonOfSpock (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1645916#msg1645916)
- Jixr (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1691836#msg1691836)
- keymaster
- osman99 (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1786408#msg1786408)
- strict
- Lurch
- iamtootallforthis (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1822302#msg1822302)
Upcoming Tour Participants
Computer-Lab in Basement
- abjr (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1905054#msg1905054)
- DrHubblePhD (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=74848.0)
- AuRinBei (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1857697#msg1857697)
greath
- LXXXIX (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.msg1901827#msg1901827)
- calvinhousecat
- heedpantsnow
More
- billnye29
- ApocalypseMaow
- ctm
- hwood34
- Nai_Calus
Sign up here: Signup form for Alpha R2 (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1MQar8KmzwwZb45arNK9hqwDHZcgXmHwtHPct0PSAnDs/viewform)
Not accepting any signups from 6/22/15 on.
First Tour Keyboard - Lost by USPS
(http://i.imgur.com/BrsTqlL.jpg)
Keyboard with new caps on it (Photo thanks to ComradeSniper)
(http://i.imgur.com/PQx9JTO.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/Az55z0d.png)
- ApocalypseMaow
- ctm
- hwood34
- Nai_Calus
More
Sign up here: Signup form for Alpha R2 (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1MQar8KmzwwZb45arNK9hqwDHZcgXmHwtHPct0PSAnDs/viewform)
Not accepting any signups from 6/22/15 on.
First Tour Keyboard - Lost by USPS
(http://i.imgur.com/BrsTqlL.jpg)
Keyboard with new caps on it (Photo thanks to ComradeSniper)
(http://i.imgur.com/PQx9JTO.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/Az55z0d.png)
Post by: SpAmRaY on Thu, 23 October 2014, 07:59:15
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:00:09
Anyways, I've added you to the list Ray.
Post by: slickmamba on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:27:28
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:28:17
Post by: ComradeSniper on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:28:23
Post by: strict on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:37:10
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:38:16
I should also point out that I'm not exactly sure when I'll be getting the Novatouch. Last I spoke with dorkvader, I was under the impression it was within the next two weeks. I'll get in touch with him to confirm.
Post by: dante on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:41:09
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:43:30
Post by: hwood34 on Thu, 23 October 2014, 08:47:54
Post by: Vizir on Thu, 23 October 2014, 10:20:29
Post by: slickmamba on Thu, 23 October 2014, 11:21:02
Added you too slickmamba :D
woo! Hope penumbra comes in before the board :)
Post by: billnye on Thu, 23 October 2014, 11:23:01
Post by: Lurch on Thu, 23 October 2014, 11:25:29
Post by: dorkvader on Thu, 23 October 2014, 11:26:39
Post by: tjcaustin on Thu, 23 October 2014, 11:30:45
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 11:32:12
Also, this board is completely stock other than the keycap swaps.
Post by: telegraphist on Thu, 23 October 2014, 11:56:11
Definitely a good idea: to test drive before committing ;).
I wanted to like the Novatouch, but my current WASD V2 kb with browns and these thick PBT keycaps:
(http://cdn2.bigcommerce.com/n-arxsrf/cv5cj/products/40/images/170/1512266_608337945900586_148207889_o__25215.1405364044.1280.1280.jpg?c=2)
mounted with nice and thick blue O-rings feels much better to me :thumb:, so much better in fact, that had to sell my Novotouch after having it for a couple of weeks.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 12:13:21
Ah, now I'm seeing what train of thought is. Apologies.
Post by: dorkvader on Thu, 23 October 2014, 12:31:15
(https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3937/14989240053_c9ff87d34d_o.jpg)
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 12:32:10
Post by: dorkvader on Thu, 23 October 2014, 12:42:00
What, you can't drive on the lawn?! Or through that little opening behind that dumpster? Come on dorkvader!
on the other side of the mailbox is a large stand of trees. I can't get over the dirt pile they have near the skip or I'd go out that way. I cant go over the lawn to the left because there is literally a 12' deep hole where the road should be.
Also: I'm not walking all the way to the post office. Y'all can wait.
Post by: tjcaustin on Thu, 23 October 2014, 12:43:19
What, you can't drive on the lawn?! Or through that little opening behind that dumpster? Come on dorkvader!
on the other side of the mailbox is a large stand of trees. I can't get over the dirt pile they have near the skip or I'd go out that way. I cant go over the lawn to the left because there is literally a 12' deep hole where the road should be.
Also: I'm not walking all the way to the post office. Y'all can wait.
I see a mailbox with a flag on it. Just shove it in there.
Note: Do not shove it in there, it might get wet.
Post by: dorkvader on Thu, 23 October 2014, 12:45:23
What, you can't drive on the lawn?! Or through that little opening behind that dumpster? Come on dorkvader!
on the other side of the mailbox is a large stand of trees. I can't get over the dirt pile they have near the skip or I'd go out that way. I cant go over the lawn to the left because there is literally a 12' deep hole where the road should be.
Also: I'm not walking all the way to the post office. Y'all can wait.
I see a mailbox with a flag on it. Just shove it in there.
Note: Do not shove it in there, it might get wet.
I thought about that, but I had to rebox it to fit the extra keycaps, so it won't fit.
Post by: iamtootallforthis on Thu, 23 October 2014, 12:46:18
Post by: Vizir on Thu, 23 October 2014, 15:44:57
Post by: Puddsy on Thu, 23 October 2014, 15:51:30
Although, it might end up how it did with the nubbs tester and stay and extra week or 2 at my house because I was in Cuba. There's a lot of time between now and then though, so we'll see.
Post by: awhitedev on Thu, 23 October 2014, 17:39:41
Post by: MythicalWagyu on Thu, 23 October 2014, 18:14:10
Post by: keymaster on Thu, 23 October 2014, 18:29:59
Post by: exitfire401 on Thu, 23 October 2014, 18:32:08
Post by: gameaholic on Thu, 23 October 2014, 18:39:00
Post by: osman99 on Thu, 23 October 2014, 20:43:24
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 23 October 2014, 20:44:21
Post by: calvinhousecat on Thu, 23 October 2014, 21:47:29
Post by: dante on Thu, 23 October 2014, 22:08:31
Alright time to grind out 90 posts....
Post requirements for keyboard tours are GH's equivalent of WoW.
Post by: Vizir on Thu, 23 October 2014, 22:28:57
Alright time to grind out 90 posts....
Post requirements for keyboard tours are GH's equivalent of WoW.
haha! although blizzard now has the character boost service, wonder if GH has an equivalent one?
Post by: SonOfSonOfSpock on Fri, 24 October 2014, 00:43:17
Post by: katushkin on Fri, 24 October 2014, 00:47:55
I'd sign up, but I'm going to play with Hoff's all weekend
I don't think you were meant to tell us that....
CONUS only makes me sad. Maybe the last person could send it to me and it could stay in the UK for research or something or other...
Post by: HoffmanMyster on Fri, 24 October 2014, 02:50:24
I'd sign up, but I'm going to play with Hoff's all weekend, so I'm sure that will make my purchasing decision for me.
:O
What happens in my bed stays in my bed!!
Post by: Jixr on Fri, 24 October 2014, 10:08:12
I'm active on OCN and have been in talks with CM to try to get a unit from them but so far no dice.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 24 October 2014, 10:52:00
Post by: Vizir on Fri, 24 October 2014, 11:01:42
Vizir, I'm sorry but I'm not doing provisional sign ups. If you hit 100, please come back and show your interest. Thanks.
on it!
Post by: CM-Rajiv on Fri, 24 October 2014, 11:30:13
Post by: Badwrench on Fri, 24 October 2014, 12:01:43
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 24 October 2014, 12:22:42
Enjoy guys :) Please do let us know what you think and post your detailed reviews!Thanks so much for doing this Rajiv!
Post by: dante on Sat, 25 October 2014, 15:23:40
Post by: HipsterPunks on Sat, 25 October 2014, 15:28:42
Post by: nubbinator on Sat, 25 October 2014, 15:55:51
Post by: AuRinBei on Sat, 25 October 2014, 23:47:32
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 27 October 2014, 06:38:22
Post by: Demetrium on Mon, 27 October 2014, 12:15:29
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 31 October 2014, 13:02:10
Post by: dante on Sat, 01 November 2014, 22:12:18
Post by: Lu_e on Sun, 02 November 2014, 01:20:41
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sun, 02 November 2014, 01:36:56
Whats the estimation or average shipping cost?
I'll be shipping this board in a game board shipping box. Costs $15.80 online and comes with tracking as well as $50 insurance. I'd like everyone else to do that as well. Should add that to the OP.
Post by: dante on Mon, 03 November 2014, 21:38:26
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 04 November 2014, 05:02:31
Post by: dante on Tue, 04 November 2014, 08:13:55
Dante please stop bumping this thread.
Sorry; thought I was helping. :(
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 04 November 2014, 13:23:55
Post by: dorkvader on Tue, 04 November 2014, 13:27:52
Good 'cause the box I mailed it to you in was used for my WEY kb shipment and has seen serious use previously for xerox. You should recycle the cardboard.Whats the estimation or average shipping cost?
I'll be shipping this board in a game board shipping box. Costs $15.80 online and comes with tracking as well as $50 insurance. I'd like everyone else to do that as well. Should add that to the OP.
Post by: osi on Wed, 05 November 2014, 09:37:00
Thanks br0s
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 10 November 2014, 09:42:40
I'll be holding on to the board for a week or two to test drive myself and to put different caps on it. Then I'll PM everyone to verify they're still interested and to gather addresses.
Please try to test the board in a timely manner and to keep in touch with us through the thread or with me in PMs. That will help keep things running smoothly. Thanks to everyone who showed interest. There will be more rounds later.
Post by: slickmamba on Mon, 10 November 2014, 13:00:48
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 10 November 2014, 16:46:08
Post by: keymaster on Mon, 10 November 2014, 16:47:35
Thanks for setting this up for us.
Post by: SpAmRaY on Tue, 11 November 2014, 14:02:17
I'm in.
Please remove me from the list.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 11 November 2014, 14:49:54
Got it.I'm in.
Please remove me from the list.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 13 November 2014, 13:11:13
Post by: hwood34 on Thu, 13 November 2014, 13:28:16
Post by: slickmamba on Thu, 13 November 2014, 13:31:15
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 13 November 2014, 13:34:24
Post by: Ngt on Thu, 13 November 2014, 20:06:16
Post by: dorkvader on Thu, 13 November 2014, 20:08:22
That's a pity we don't have these tours in Europe too! Even though I'm not even close to the 100 posts requirements.
you should buy a novatouch and start a tour with it!
Post by: Ngt on Thu, 13 November 2014, 20:11:11
That's a pity we don't have these tours in Europe too! Even though I'm not even close to the 100 posts requirements.
you should buy a novatouch and start a tour with it!
Did Rajiv buy it on himself or did he get it for free (as part of his job perhaps, if he works at CM) ?
Post by: dorkvader on Thu, 13 November 2014, 20:18:42
But there's nothing stopping you from starting your own tour. I'm just sayin'. There's loads of GH'ers in France and other parts of Europe that'd probably be really grateful.
Post by: Ngt on Thu, 13 November 2014, 20:30:13
I dunno, I got it from Mkawa.I was going to say money but one would be crazy to whine about it and like mechanical keyboard
But there's nothing stopping you from starting your own tour. I'm just sayin'. There's loads of GH'ers in France and other parts of Europe that'd probably be really grateful.
.And I just noticed that my local store has some since 11/11. Last time I checked you had to import one from USA which is pretty expensive and you had only ANSI layout.
Now I am wondering is there a feeling difference between novatouch switches and the realforce one considering the same strength of activation?
Post by: Veridis on Thu, 13 November 2014, 22:15:13
I dunno, I got it from Mkawa.I was going to say money but one would be crazy to whine about it and like mechanical keyboard
But there's nothing stopping you from starting your own tour. I'm just sayin'. There's loads of GH'ers in France and other parts of Europe that'd probably be really grateful.
And I just noticed that my local store has some since 11/11. Last time I checked you had to import one from USA which is pretty expensive and you had only ANSI layout.
Now I am wondering is there a feeling difference between novatouch switches and the realforce one considering the same strength of activation?
The switches are identical, but typing feel is different because of case construction, keycaps, etc. I find that keycaps can really change the feel of the Novatouch.
Post by: hwood34 on Thu, 13 November 2014, 22:27:30
Post by: dorkvader on Thu, 13 November 2014, 23:16:20
The switches are identical, but typing feel is different because of case construction, keycaps, etc. I find that keycaps can really change the feel of the Novatouch.I packed a mostly full set of thick cherry POM that should change things up significantly.
If you can get your hands on it, try out SA. It's a big difference.
Post by: Veridis on Thu, 13 November 2014, 23:24:04
Have waiting for a chance to get some SA keycaps! So hard to come by. Doesn't help that I live outside of the US.The switches are identical, but typing feel is different because of case construction, keycaps, etc. I find that keycaps can really change the feel of the Novatouch.I packed a mostly full set of thick cherry POM that should change things up significantly.
If you can get your hands on it, try out SA. It's a big difference.
So far I feel the grippier and taller the keycaps, the more horizontal tension on the switch. This tension provides a nice pop to the top of the keypress.
You can try this by attempting depressing a keycap diagonally instead of directly down.
Is this the same thing that is happening with SA profile keycaps?
Post by: Ngt on Fri, 14 November 2014, 03:15:48
Alright. I guess I'll just have to try one but first I need to sell my current board.I dunno, I got it from Mkawa.I was going to say money but one would be crazy to whine about it and like mechanical keyboard
But there's nothing stopping you from starting your own tour. I'm just sayin'. There's loads of GH'ers in France and other parts of Europe that'd probably be really grateful.
And I just noticed that my local store has some since 11/11. Last time I checked you had to import one from USA which is pretty expensive and you had only ANSI layout.
Now I am wondering is there a feeling difference between novatouch switches and the realforce one considering the same strength of activation?
The switches are identical, but typing feel is different because of case construction, keycaps, etc. I find that keycaps can really change the feel of the Novatouch.
Regarding build quality, is the realforce better?
Post by: tutuling on Fri, 14 November 2014, 03:27:07
Post by: Ngt on Fri, 14 November 2014, 04:15:33
Great idea. Good for people who can try it out. Does conus include Canada?
According to Wikipedia:
Quote
CONUS and OCONUSSource (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contiguous_United_States#CONUS_and_OCONUS)
CONUS, a technical term used by the U.S. Department of Defense, General Services Administration, NOAA/National Weather Service, and others has been defined both as the continental United States, and as the 48 contiguous states.[13][14] The District of Columbia is not always specifically mentioned as being part of CONUS.
OCONUS is derived from CONUS with O for outside added, thus referring to Outside of Continental United States (OCONUS)
Sorry.
Post by: kaiteoki on Sun, 16 November 2014, 04:06:13
Post by: SpAmRaY on Sun, 16 November 2014, 09:54:42
!!!!!!!! can I be in too?Perhaps you should read the rules in the OP.
Post by: DrHubblePhD on Sun, 16 November 2014, 10:14:18
Post by: hwood34 on Sun, 16 November 2014, 10:15:24
Is it still possible for me to enter? I would love to be a part of this!
Just an update guys. I'll be picking up the Novatouch today. Sign ups are now closed.
Post by: DrHubblePhD on Sun, 16 November 2014, 10:16:13
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 17 November 2014, 13:42:19
- Stock caps
- Cherry POM
- Cherry doubleshot ABS
- SP SA
- SP DSA
- SP DCS
I managed to spend 40 minutes on the board before giving up. My hands hurt too bad to continue typing. I'll post a little more about this before I send it out. Still not a Topre fan.
Post by: dante on Mon, 17 November 2014, 13:44:45
I'm going to try and send this board out this week with (if my work schedule permits):
- Cherry POM
(http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2011/243/7/b/he_man_said_hey_by_cottommy-d48epne.jpg)
I'll be very interested to get your review before sending out. I've had the same experience on some Topre boards.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 17 November 2014, 13:58:34
Post by: strict on Mon, 17 November 2014, 14:08:16
(http://i.imgur.com/8DuFobr.gif)
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 17 November 2014, 14:11:24
Post by: Lurch on Mon, 17 November 2014, 14:24:52
Really happy that I had the chance to test this board out and to tour it :). Thanks again mkawa, dorkvader, and CMRajiv for the opportunity. And thanks all for your interest :D.
Form filled!
Can't wait to try topre with some gmk/cherry caps!
Post by: dante on Mon, 17 November 2014, 14:32:49
dante, are you not receiving PMs? Apparently I can't send you a PM? If you don't fix this, I'll have to drop you from the tour. Thanks.
Try sending a PM again.
Post by: SonOfSonOfSpock on Mon, 17 November 2014, 23:46:27
I'm going to try and send this board out this week with (if my work schedule permits):
- Stock caps
- Cherry POM
- Cherry doubleshot ABS
- SP SA
- SP DSA
- SP DCS
I managed to spend 40 minutes on the board before giving up. My hands hurt too bad to continue typing. I'll post a little more about this before I send it out. Still not a Topre fan.
That's a lot of different caps! I just got a little more excited about this.
Post by: ComradeSniper on Mon, 17 November 2014, 23:57:26
I'm going to try and send this board out this week with (if my work schedule permits):
- Stock caps
- Cherry POM
- Cherry doubleshot ABS
- SP SA
- SP DSA
- SP DCS
I managed to spend 40 minutes on the board before giving up. My hands hurt too bad to continue typing. I'll post a little more about this before I send it out. Still not a Topre fan.
Aww yeah, really excited to try out POM, SA, and DSA for the first time in addition to the Novatouch :D
Post by: dorkvader on Tue, 18 November 2014, 00:39:32
I only got to try it with POM for a short time but it was still pretty great.
Post by: dante on Tue, 18 November 2014, 07:40:56
I typed on it with SA for about a week: was awesome!
I only got to try it with POM for a short time but it was still pretty great.
Good to know! :D
Post by: SpAmRaY on Wed, 19 November 2014, 06:55:08
!!!!!!!! can I be in too?
you re one of this se that fell fr the low quality product with high marketting schemesGet a real topre S. Whats the point buying a half ass comercial "gaming" topre switch made by a company that isnt solely focused on real keyboards that include an abundant amount of gimmicky features that nobody uses like stupid ass 8x repeat rate and retard media keys with cheap ass stock keycaps. This severely gimped out overpriced keyboard is worth being bought by suckers like you. Cooler master did their homework on scamming fools such as yourself. You feel for their garbo marketting scheme.
The MX stems.
Oh so you are just a troll, noted.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 19 November 2014, 07:08:23
In related news, I've been working 60 hour weeks for the last two weeks. This week I may work more than that. Unfortunately that means I haven't had time to swap out caps or package this board. I will post a mini-review and update when I have a moment. Apologies for the delays everyone.
Post by: mkawa on Mon, 24 November 2014, 22:04:39
reason it's not in the mail today:BACKHOE DOES NOT CARE ABOUT YOUR FEELINGS, PUNY HONDAShow Image(https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3937/14989240053_c9ff87d34d_o.jpg)
BACKHOE DOES NOT CARE ABOUT FEELINGS, ONLY DIRT
Post by: mkawa on Mon, 24 November 2014, 22:06:39
Post by: iamtootallforthis on Mon, 24 November 2014, 22:28:39
Post by: Ngt on Tue, 25 November 2014, 01:36:14
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 25 November 2014, 18:55:38
Post by: dante on Tue, 25 November 2014, 19:50:48
Post by: hwood34 on Tue, 25 November 2014, 19:59:30
I know this is a played out excuse but this is the last week I'll have to work a 60-70 hour week. Apologies for the delays. I plan on having this board out no later than 12/6/14. Thank you all for being patient.Looks like I'm gonna have to drive up and get it myself ;)
Post by: dorkvader on Sun, 30 November 2014, 10:05:41
I know this is a played out excuse but this is the last week I'll have to work a 60-70 hour week. Apologies for the delays. I plan on having this board out no later than 12/6/14. Thank you all for being patient.Looks like I'm gonna have to drive up and get it myself ;)
You live the same distance from me as your do from CPTbadass. Just drive up here and borrow ours.
Post by: cephelix on Sun, 30 November 2014, 21:56:48
Post by: jackalope on Thu, 04 December 2014, 02:08:39
Post by: Heliosphere on Thu, 04 December 2014, 02:26:23
Curious what weight topre this is. Would love a chance to try topre in a fuller keyboard, really like the feel of it after using a HHKB as my daily driver for awhile now. If it's ok, please sign me up.
It's 45g Topre, same as the HHKB I believe: http://deskthority.net/wiki/Cooler_Master_NovaTouch_TKL (http://deskthority.net/wiki/Cooler_Master_NovaTouch_TKL)
Post by: jackalope on Thu, 04 December 2014, 02:30:33
Curious what weight topre this is. Would love a chance to try topre in a fuller keyboard, really like the feel of it after using a HHKB as my daily driver for awhile now. If it's ok, please sign me up.
It's 45g Topre, same as the HHKB I believe: http://deskthority.net/wiki/Cooler_Master_NovaTouch_TKL (http://deskthority.net/wiki/Cooler_Master_NovaTouch_TKL)
Thanks.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 05 December 2014, 06:01:22
Post by: Evo_Spec on Fri, 05 December 2014, 06:15:24
Post by: osi on Fri, 05 December 2014, 07:06:21
there will be two boards in circulation, now that i have purchased a board to replace my review copy (which is MINE ALL MINE). cptbadass will be managing the circulation of both boards, and the time of entry of board #2. we don't yet have the same variety of test caps for board #2, so we'll try to arrange for that before sending it around.
You da man kawa
Post by: hwood34 on Fri, 05 December 2014, 15:00:25
Just an update this hasn't been forgotten. I'll be sending this out tomorrow. I've got to tweak the list a little to try and make a decent shipping order. I'll post a review and the updated list sometime today. Thank you for being patient everyone and I'm sincerely sorry for the delays.Don't worry about it, just excited to give topre a second chance ;D
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 05 December 2014, 23:08:53
I've put the following caps on. I don't have any other PBT caps so if someone would like to add them, please let me know.
(http://i.imgur.com/Rmh9YLp.jpg?1)
Keyboard with new caps on it
(http://i.imgur.com/GEKwQax.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/OVi1xm7.png)
Mini Review
I didn’t really spend a lot of time typing on this keyboard so I don’t think I will do a longer review like I usually do. I’m simply going to focus on the switch feeling itself. The keyboard is minimalistic. It’s black, with a logo on the front side of the case, and has a smooth matte coating on the case top.
For me, the most important aspect of a keyboard is the switches. I’m drawn to keyboards because of their switches. Unfortunately I’m still not that into Topre switches. I’ve tried them multiple times in the past and this is my second longest period using a Topre board. My issue with the switches is that the bottom out, after the domes collapse, are very jarring to my typing style. The top of the actuation and the bump actually feel pretty nice. The switch feels smooth and the bump is pleasantly tactile. But when I bottom out, it feels like the domes collapse and I’m drumming my fingers on my desk. After 30-40 minutes of typing on this board, my fingers ache. After an hour, my hands physically hurt. This is 45g Topre and I know that I type pretty heavily. I’ve also tried 55g Topre which had the same issue. I really hate typing on keyboards which hurt my hands. These switches aren’t for me.
However, I do like the build quality and weight of the board. I think it’s as nice as the RealForce boards. I actually like it better than the HHKBs. I think that the HHKBs are very light and feel cheap.
I really look forward to reviews from people who use Topre much more than I do. I hope you enjoy the board :D.
P.S. - Most artisan caps fit except for BroBots.
Post by: Badwrench on Fri, 05 December 2014, 23:46:39
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 05 December 2014, 23:47:50
Do the o-rings on the home keys actually do anything?
They seem to dampen some of the sound and vibration. But they don't feel like MX switches + O-rings. The bottom out isn't changed.
Post by: MythicalWagyu on Sat, 06 December 2014, 00:01:48
Ok. I've rearranged the order in the OP. The board is going out west then back east. I hope there's no hard feelings about the order :).Nope, definitely makes sense to rearrange geographically rather than sending it along randomly; I'm just excited we're all lucky enough to get in on the tour!
<snip>
I don't have any other PBT caps so if someone would like to add them, please let me know.
I should have enough Granite caps to send along on the tour as well as a set of thick blue & grey PBT (DCS) from Feng so people can try out PBT on the board.
Post by: HoffmanMyster on Sat, 06 December 2014, 00:11:15
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/Rmh9YLp.jpg?1)
Keyboard with new caps on itShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/GEKwQax.jpg)Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/OA8fDEN.png)
What material/profile are the arrow keys? I'm not in this tour, I'm just here to rustle feathers apparently. :-[
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sat, 06 December 2014, 00:24:54
What material/profile are the arrow keys? I'm not in this tour, I'm just here to rustle feathers apparently. :-[
You're so needy...I've fixed the picture.
Nope, definitely makes sense to rearrange geographically rather than sending it along randomly; I'm just excited we're all lucky enough to get in on the tour!
I should have enough Granite caps to send along on the tour as well as a set of thick blue & grey PBT (DCS) from Feng so people can try out PBT on the board.
Sounds good!
Post by: HoffmanMyster on Sat, 06 December 2014, 00:27:02
What material/profile are the arrow keys? I'm not in this tour, I'm just here to rustle feathers apparently. :-[
You're so needy...I've fixed the picture.
:-[ Just trying to help... :-*
Post by: dante on Sat, 06 December 2014, 10:44:45
Do the o-rings on the home keys actually do anything?
They seem to dampen some of the sound and vibration. But they don't feel like MX switches + O-rings. The bottom out isn't changed.
This is going to sound crazy, stupid, and heretical all at the same time - but could the Novatouch be modified in a such a way that the travel distance is more like a scissor switch board? For example, thicker dental bands + DSA or G80-3800 style keycaps + o-rings?
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sat, 06 December 2014, 12:35:10
Post by: slickmamba on Sat, 06 December 2014, 12:40:36
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sat, 06 December 2014, 13:39:34
It's in its way to comrade sniper and should arrive by Wednesday.
Post by: spiceBar on Sat, 06 December 2014, 15:19:21
Do the o-rings on the home keys actually do anything?
They seem to dampen some of the sound and vibration. But they don't feel like MX switches + O-rings. The bottom out isn't changed.
This is going to sound crazy, stupid, and heretical all at the same time - but could the Novatouch be modified in a such a way that the travel distance is more like a scissor switch board? For example, thicker dental bands + DSA or G80-3800 style keycaps + o-rings?
The answer is no.
You can, for example, insert a landing pad inside the switch. This will reduce the travel distance by 1mm, and this is the most you can do.
If you were to insert 2 landing pads, or a landing pad plus some more material that is thinner than a landing pad, you run the risk of the switch being constantly activated.
I know this because I have done it on several Topre boards. On some of them, even a 1mm landing pad was too much and I would get dead keys. This is why I have developed the technique of slimming down the landing pads with a hot clothing iron.
A Topre switch is supposed to activate at 2mm (out of the 4mm of total key travel), but there is some tolerance on this. You can't significantly reduce the travel and get away with it.
Some notes:
- You can't use O-rings inside the switch. They tend to move up and down on the lubed slider and you end up with dead keys.
- Even with an 1mm landing pad inside, you remove the switch's tactility. You are left with a linear switch that doesn't feel at all like a scissor switch.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sat, 06 December 2014, 15:36:39
Post by: ComradeSniper on Sat, 06 December 2014, 16:34:50
Just a heads up guys, I shipped the board out today. It's not in a USPS flat rate box. You can opt to reuse the current box as long as it's in good condition or use a flat rate box. Shipping should be around $14-18.
It's in its way to comrade sniper and should arrive by Wednesday.
Sweet! I can't wait to give it a try. I've got some cherry thin lasered PBT that I'd be happy to throw in.
Post by: spiceBar on Sat, 06 December 2014, 20:49:02
What if you took the sliders out and cut them down with a band saw?
It would either do nothing to the travel, or you would lose the "Thock".
Post by: hwood34 on Sat, 06 December 2014, 21:00:00
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 11 December 2014, 06:06:47
Post by: ComradeSniper on Thu, 11 December 2014, 19:20:52
Post by: hwood34 on Thu, 11 December 2014, 19:28:56
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 11 December 2014, 23:00:26
So where should these reviews be put?
I was going to have you all post here then make links in the OP list. So if you check now, my name links to my review. If people would like a seperate thread, I can make one too.
Post by: SonOfSonOfSpock on Fri, 12 December 2014, 00:46:42
So where should these reviews be put?
I was going to have you all post here then make links in the OP list. So if you check now, my name links to my review. If people would like a seperate thread, I can make one too.
I think this works well.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 12 December 2014, 07:42:02
Also we discovered that the arrow keys, which feel like DCS, are actually dyesubbed PBT (http://www.originativeco.com/collections/keycaps/products/rupees). I believe from the Originative description that they're from SP. I think between those Rupee caps and the WYSE caps, you'll get a good feeling as to how DCS will feel on the board.
Finally, I can't remember what the Novatouch caps are. I think they're UV printed thin ABS caps? Or laser infilled caps with a coating. I could have sworn I saw a CM rep confirm what the caps are. Can someone confirm that for me so I can update the OP?
Post by: strict on Fri, 12 December 2014, 08:01:14
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 12 December 2014, 08:03:51
Edit: Now I'm second guessing myself on that coating. Could someone with a Novatouch chime in with their thoughts. I'm going by memory and bad pictures in this thread...
Post by: hwood34 on Fri, 12 December 2014, 11:31:11
ah, that's a good idea :thumb:So where should these reviews be put?
I was going to have you all post here then make links in the OP list. So if you check now, my name links to my review. If people would like a seperate thread, I can make one too.
Post by: ComradeSniper on Wed, 17 December 2014, 23:11:48
The Board
More
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7526/15852038728_5e902c8e0e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/q9MQQy)
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7486/16039486155_391bd93b3e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qrmyqK)
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8584/15853319009_296bfb63d1_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/q9Upqn)
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7486/16039486155_391bd93b3e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qrmyqK)
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8584/15853319009_296bfb63d1_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/q9Upqn)
The board has some decent weight to it for a plastic cased TKL. My one complaint with my favorite Topre keyboard, the HHKB, is that it's so light that it feels like a toy. That's not a problem with this board. That's not to say that it's heavier than any other standard TKL, but it's certainly not flimsy feeling either. The flip out feet have rubber bits on the end, which keep it static on my desk, adding to that solid feel.
The shape of the case is a little different from the usual. The angles on the sides and back remind me a bit of a Korean Custom and add some character to the board. Also, the only writing is on the back and underside of the keyboard--out of view--giving the keyboard a sleek look overall.
The Novatouch uses a Micro USB connector as opposed to the more commonly used Mini USB. Considering the info I've seen recently regarding the greater longevity of Micro USB, I think this is a good move.
The Switches
More
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8622/15419714753_b81ebc71ac_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/puA4YV)
I was pleased to find that the switches feel almost indistinguishable from those on a 45g Realforce. They're perfectly smooth, and bottom out with a nice "thock." I did notice that some of the keys, most notably backspace and enter, but also some others, had more of a "clack" to their bottom out. This is something I've experienced with both the Realforce 87ub and Leopold FC660C, so it's not specific to this keyboard. I don't think it's very detrimental to the overall feel, but it is somewhat odd, and I see how it could bother some people.
The Keycaps
More
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7519/16045561461_30a38d6603_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qrTGpp)
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7484/16046809652_1b50a810a2_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qs16rW)
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7484/16046809652_1b50a810a2_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qs16rW)
The stock keycaps aren't great, but I imagine most people would purchase this board with the intent of replacing them anyway.
I've never been very fond of o-rings, but on the Novatouch I think they emphasize the muted feeling of the Topre bottom-out very nicely. I'll probably add o-rings to all the keys if I buy my own.
My favorite keycaps are probably the Cherry Doubleshots. Somewhat similar to the change in feel that the o-rings bring, the greater thickness of the doubleshots compared to the other caps makes the bottom out and tactility more pronounced. SA Profile has a similar effect, but I find the cap height to be too much for my liking.
As a sidenote, this is my first time feeling POM, and it's certainly interesting. I find it to be like a bridge between Cherry ABS and Cherry PBT, in that it's a bit more smooth than ABS, but not silky-smooth like PBT.
Conclusion
More
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8600/15860061368_da38e93955_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qauXFW)
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8671/16038667602_eaabec425a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qrhn6L)
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8671/16038667602_eaabec425a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qrhn6L)
Altogether I'm very pleased by the Novatouch. Cooler Master did an excellent job at maintaining the great Topre feel, while adding MX compatibility and putting it all in a nice looking package. I'm quite tempted to buy one, and if a 55g version ever surfaces, I'm positive that I will.
Sidenote--I noticed that the enter key is very wobbly. I thought perhaps it was just the POM enter, so I put a Cherry PBT enter on there and it didn't change anything. It's not all that annoying and I got used to it quickly. Still strange.
More
(http://i.imgur.com/NmikwMg.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/7sJcdUE.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/7sJcdUE.jpg)
Also, I'll be including a WYSE Doubleshot and Cherry Lasered PBT set in the box with the board. There are already a few keys from both sets on the board, but I thought I'd include the full sets just in case anyone wanted to swap out some more caps.
Post by: HoffmanMyster on Wed, 17 December 2014, 23:20:09
I find it to be like a bridge between Cherry ABS and Cherry PBT, in that it's a bit more smooth than ABS, but not silky-smooth like PBT.
Is this what you meant to say? I've never heard PBT described as more smooth than ABS.
Great review, and really nice pictures. :) :cool:
Post by: ComradeSniper on Wed, 17 December 2014, 23:32:26
I find it to be like a bridge between Cherry ABS and Cherry PBT, in that it's a bit more smooth than ABS, but not silky-smooth like PBT.
Is this what you meant to say? I've never heard PBT described as more smooth than ABS.
Great review, and really nice pictures. :) :cool:
Thanks!
Cherry PBT isn't like any other PBT I've felt, it's actually incredibly smooth. Compared to most PBT, POM is definitely much smoother.
Post by: Badwrench on Thu, 18 December 2014, 00:56:43
Thanks again for setting this up CPT :thumb:
Post by: Ngt on Thu, 18 December 2014, 03:27:32
Show Image
Show Image
Show Image
Show Image
Show Image
Show Image
Show Image
My week with the Novatouch is coming to a close, and I'll be shipping it out to Gameaholic tomorrow. In the meantime, here are my thoughts on it. I've never attempted to write a review before, so bear with me. I hope I didn't write too much :p
The BoardMore(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7526/15852038728_5e902c8e0e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/q9MQQy)
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7486/16039486155_391bd93b3e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qrmyqK)
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8584/15853319009_296bfb63d1_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/q9Upqn)
The board has some decent weight to it for a plastic cased TKL. My one complaint with my favorite Topre keyboard, the HHKB, is that it's so light that it feels like a toy. That's not a problem with this board. That's not to say that it's heavier than any other standard TKL, but it's certainly not flimsy feeling either. The flip out feet have rubber bits on the end, which keep it static on my desk, adding to that solid feel.
The shape of the case is a little different from the usual. The angles on the sides and back remind me a bit of a Korean Custom and add some character to the board. Also, the only writing is on the back and underside of the keyboard--out of view--giving the keyboard a sleek look overall.
The Novatouch uses a Micro USB connector as opposed to the more commonly used Mini USB. Considering the info I've seen recently regarding the greater longevity of Micro USB, I think this is a good move.
The Switches
More
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8622/15419714753_b81ebc71ac_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/puA4YV)
I was pleased to find that the switches feel almost indistinguishable from those on a 45g Realforce. They're perfectly smooth, and bottom out with a nice "thock." I did notice that some of the keys, most notably backspace and enter, but also some others, had more of a "clack" to their bottom out. This is something I've experienced with both the Realforce 87ub and Leopold FC660C, so it's not specific to this keyboard. I don't think it's very detrimental to the overall feel, but it is somewhat odd, and I see how it could bother some people.
The Keycaps
More
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7519/16045561461_30a38d6603_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qrTGpp)
(https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7484/16046809652_1b50a810a2_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qs16rW)
The stock keycaps aren't great, but I imagine most people would purchase this board with the intent of replacing them anyway.
I've never been very fond of o-rings, but on the Novatouch I think they emphasize the muted feeling of the Topre bottom-out very nicely. I'll probably add o-rings to all the keys if I buy my own.
My favorite keycaps are probably the Cherry Doubleshots. Somewhat similar to the change in feel that the o-rings bring, the greater thickness of the doubleshots compared to the other caps makes the bottom out and tactility more pronounced. SA Profile has a similar effect, but I find the cap height to be too much for my liking.
As a sidenote, this is my first time feeling POM, and it's certainly interesting. I find it to be like a bridge between Cherry ABS and Cherry PBT, in that it's a bit more smooth than ABS, but not silky-smooth like PBT.
Conclusion
More
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8600/15860061368_da38e93955_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qauXFW)
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8671/16038667602_eaabec425a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qrhn6L)
Altogether I'm very pleased by the Novatouch. Cooler Master did an excellent job at maintaining the great Topre feel, while adding MX compatibility and putting it all in a nice looking package. I'm quite tempted to buy one, and if a 55g version ever surfaces, I'm positive that I will.
Sidenote--I noticed that the enter key is very wobbly. I thought perhaps it was just the POM enter, so I put a Cherry PBT enter on there and it didn't change anything. It's not all that annoying and I got used to it quickly. Still strange.
More
Show Image
(http://i.imgur.com/NmikwMg.jpg)
Show Image
(http://i.imgur.com/7sJcdUE.jpg)
Also, I'll be including a WYSE Doubleshot and Cherry Lasered PBT set in the box with the board. There are already a few keys from both sets on the board, but I thought I'd include the full sets just in case anyone wanted to swap out some more caps.
Interesting review. I thinking more about getting a NT than RF now.
Post by: klikkyklik on Thu, 18 December 2014, 04:47:12
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 18 December 2014, 09:27:53
My week with the Novatouch is coming to a close, and I'll be shipping it out to Gameaholic tomorrow. In the meantime, here are my thoughts on it.
<snip>
Great review ComradeSniper! And as always, your pictures are on point.
Post by: _PixelNinja on Mon, 22 December 2014, 04:30:20
If you look at my potatoes in the link on my name in the OP list, you can see a bit of shine around the legends indicating a coating. I believe it's supposed to help with wear and protect the legends.Hi CPT,
Edit: Now I'm second guessing myself on that coating. Could someone with a Novatouch chime in with their thoughts. I'm going by memory and bad pictures in this thread...
Novatouch beta tester and owner here — the stock keys on the Novatouch are thin ABS with laser infilled legends.
Nice of you to organize this tour and I hope you all have fun with the board.
Post by: gameaholic on Mon, 22 December 2014, 22:00:23
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 23 December 2014, 00:53:47
Hi CPT,
Novatouch beta tester and owner here — the stock keys on the Novatouch are thin ABS with laser infilled legends.
Nice of you to organize this tour and I hope you all have fun with the board.
Thanks pixelninja!
Board received! First time touching Topre. First thought is: crap - I kinda like it. I might be in trouble. =P
I'm not responsible for any additional wallethacking that may occur.
Post by: Hogesyx on Tue, 23 December 2014, 02:28:05
Board received! First time touching Topre. First thought is: crap - I kinda like it. I might be in trouble. =P
Looking at the boards you owned, it is definitely about time to add a Topre.
Post by: gameaholic on Tue, 23 December 2014, 09:12:12
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 24 December 2014, 23:18:02
Post by: hwood34 on Wed, 24 December 2014, 23:21:02
Gameaholic told me he'll be shipping to Badwrench soonSo close, yet so far away
Post by: Badwrench on Thu, 25 December 2014, 14:52:46
Gameaholic told me he'll be shipping to Badwrench soon
Yay ;D
Pretty excited to give Thorpe a run.
Post by: gameaholic on Sat, 27 December 2014, 13:54:44
My first thought was "I like it". I definitely feel like I want some Topre in my collection now. I definitely want to try some of the other variants of Topre switch (different weights, uniform vs different weights on the same board) as well as the HHKB. The rebound of the switch is noticeably faster than my ergo clear cherry mx switches. I tried GMK keycaps on the wasd cluster and they seemed to fit fine. This was a concern because I remember reading a review that said that lower profile caps can be an issue. The only negative I find is that I miss the tactile bump I get with my ergo clears and I feel like I have to bottom out a lot more on the Topre switches. They almost remind me of a very smooth red. With the ergo clears I feel like I can press the switch down to activation where I feel the tactile bump and then release it. I find myself making a lot more noise on the Novatouch. I do like the smoothness but after using them I don't understand the hype over the Topre switch. Maybe a HHKB or a Realforce would be a better representation of the switch but part of me thinks the hype comes just because those keyboards have always been much more expensive. I definitely want to be on the tour when those keyboards make their rounds but for now I'm still a member of the church of the ergo clear (prepares for backlash from Topre fans). :thumb:
Post by: strict on Sat, 27 December 2014, 14:13:45
Official review.
My first thought was "I like it". I definitely feel like I want some Topre in my collection now. I definitely want to try some of the other variants of Topre switch (different weights, uniform vs different weights on the same board) as well as the HHKB. The rebound of the switch is noticeably faster than my ergo clear cherry mx switches. I tried GMK keycaps on the wasd cluster and they seemed to fit fine. This was a concern because I remember reading a review that said that lower profile caps can be an issue. The only negative I find is that I miss the tactile bump I get with my ergo clears and I feel like I have to bottom out a lot more on the Topre switches. They almost remind me of a very smooth red. With the ergo clears I feel like I can press the switch down to activation where I feel the tactile bump and then release it. I find myself making a lot more noise on the Novatouch. I do like the smoothness but after using them I don't understand the hype over the Topre switch. Maybe a HHKB or a Realforce would be a better representation of the switch but part of me thinks the hype comes just because those keyboards have always been much more expensive. I definitely want to be on the tour when those keyboards make their rounds but for now I'm still a member of the church of the ergo clear (prepares for backlash from Topre fans). :thumb:
Interesting review, I was curious for someone with ergo-clears to share their thoughts on the Novatouch since it has the 45g domes. When you say the Novatouch was pretty noisy, was it coming from stabilizer rattle or something else like bottom out noise?
Post by: melkenshawn on Sat, 27 December 2014, 17:04:43
Official review.
My first thought was "I like it". I definitely feel like I want some Topre in my collection now. I definitely want to try some of the other variants of Topre switch (different weights, uniform vs different weights on the same board) as well as the HHKB. The rebound of the switch is noticeably faster than my ergo clear cherry mx switches. I tried GMK keycaps on the wasd cluster and they seemed to fit fine. This was a concern because I remember reading a review that said that lower profile caps can be an issue. The only negative I find is that I miss the tactile bump I get with my ergo clears and I feel like I have to bottom out a lot more on the Topre switches. They almost remind me of a very smooth red. With the ergo clears I feel like I can press the switch down to activation where I feel the tactile bump and then release it. I find myself making a lot more noise on the Novatouch. I do like the smoothness but after using them I don't understand the hype over the Topre switch. Maybe a HHKB or a Realforce would be a better representation of the switch but part of me thinks the hype comes just because those keyboards have always been much more expensive. I definitely want to be on the tour when those keyboards make their rounds but for now I'm still a member of the church of the ergo clear (prepares for backlash from Topre fans). :thumb:
Interesting, i was deliberating between getting an ergo clear keyboard or a novatouch. It seems like in your case, you preferred the ergo clears a lot more?
Post by: gameaholic on Sat, 27 December 2014, 17:07:51
Post by: Carter on Sat, 27 December 2014, 17:43:30
I was helping on the development on our Case / Power / Cooling team for a bit, and was quite busy trying to balance it all.
I am back focusing on peripherals and am so happy to read / be apart of this Novatouch "around the world" game.
Just know that all the comments / remarks are being heard!
On behalf of CM, we love and thank GH for all the support!
Personally, DSA PBT profile w/ o-rings is absolutely perfect on this board.
Post by: gameaholic on Sat, 27 December 2014, 18:48:32
Post by: Dihedral on Sun, 28 December 2014, 07:29:13
Just want to stop in and say.......... you will be hearing a lot more from me again!
I was helping on the development on our Case / Power / Cooling team for a bit, and was quite busy trying to balance it all.
I am back focusing on peripherals and am so happy to read / be apart of this Novatouch "around the world" game.
Just know that all the comments / remarks are being heard!
On behalf of CM, we love and thank GH for all the support!
Personally, DSA PBT profile w/ o-rings is absolutely perfect on this board.
Sorry for OT
I love my QFR but is there a chance in hell that you will change the font? The novatouch font would be fine. It's the only thing wrong with an otherwise practically perfect product!
Post by: Hogesyx on Sun, 28 December 2014, 09:47:08
Noise was from bottoming out. People describe it as a "thock" but I feel that there's gotta be a better onomatopoeia for it. It's like the best rubber dome I've ever typed on but that description kinda degrades topre switches so I wouldn't officially describe them that way.
I think I get what you mean, I solve it by filling the hollow region below the PCB with dense sponge material. I also had my Novatouch silenced by adding thin sponge to it.
http://imgur.com/a/qqHQD
Scroll all the way down to see the 2 material that I had used.
Post by: gameaholic on Mon, 29 December 2014, 08:50:34
Post by: Badwrench on Sun, 04 January 2015, 10:32:05
Sooooo, my first impressions: It feels like really snappy mx reds to me. The switches are very light compared to what I am used to (mx whites/buckling springs). I already bottom out every stoke on those switches, so with these, I bottom the crap out of them. It is not unpleasant though. There is a nice solid thud from the bottoming and since I have the board sitting on a mouse pad, it doesn't resonate through my desk. It is very quite to type on and I can now see what people mean when they mention the nice sound once in the rhythm. To me, the only distraction is the loud stabilizers, but I am assume that they could be quieted with some thick grease without changing the feel.
As far as the caps go, I much prefer the thick Cherrys and the Wyse 50 sets (thick abs). One note on the Wyse set: some of the keys get stuck while depressing them - particularly the f and j keys. They hang on the switch housing and need and couple taps to get them to release. I am sure with a tiny bit of dremel work to the inside of the offending keys, this issue would be resolved. The pbt has a thinness in the sound and feel that makes it feel cheaper. However, if you wanted a higher pitch sound in your typing, the pbt achieves that. DSA is still a no-go for me, too flat. The stock caps are crap, do yourself a favor and just buy your preferred keyset if you choose to buy this board. SA on this board feels good (mounted my Pulse set that I have been using on my QFR with blues), but I am making typos all over the place. I am not sure if it is due to the taller cap that I am still trying to bottom out or the soft actuation of the switch, or maybe a combo of the 2, but I make several errors per sentence if I try to type at my normal pace. Slowing down, I can limit the errors, but then I lose that lovely sound rhythm.
The overall design of the board is quite nice. I am still not a fan of the rubberized finish, but the sturdy feel, crisp corners, and nice flush finish of where the top and bottom of the case some together is quite nice. Of note: I love that it has a micro usb connector. For some reason they feel more secure than the mini to me. That and I have a ton of them laying around since everything uses them now.
I will continue to use the board for the week and see if any of my initial impressions change, but so far, I could see owning this board - particularly in a work place environment where a cherry/bs switch might be too loud or annoying to coworkers.
Post by: Ngt on Sun, 04 January 2015, 10:47:52
Ok, I have the board in my hands. Unfortunately, the board was damaged during shipping. It appears to me entirely cosmetic and after pm'ing CPTbadass and going over the options, It has been decided to just keep moving forward with the tour.
Sooooo, my first impressions: It feels like really snappy mx reds to me. The switches are very light compared to what I am used to (mx whites/buckling springs). I already bottom out every stoke on those switches, so with these, I bottom the crap out of them. It is not unpleasant though. There is a nice solid thud from the bottoming and since I have the board sitting on a mouse pad, it doesn't resonate through my desk. It is very quite to type on and I can now see what people mean when they mention the nice sound once in the rhythm. To me, the only distraction is the loud stabilizers, but I am assume that they could be quieted with some thick grease without changing the feel.
As far as the caps go, I much prefer the thick Cherrys and the Wyse 50 sets (thick abs). One note on the Wyse set: some of the keys get stuck while depressing them - particularly the f and j keys. They hang on the switch housing and need and couple taps to get them to release. I am sure with a tiny bit of dremel work to the inside of the offending keys, this issue would be resolved. The pbt has a thinness in the sound and feel that makes it feel cheaper. However, if you wanted a higher pitch sound in your typing, the pbt achieves that. DSA is still a no-go for me, too flat. The stock caps are crap, do yourself a favor and just buy your preferred keyset if you choose to buy this board. SA on this board feels good (mounted my Pulse set that I have been using on my QFR with blues), but I am making typos all over the place. I am not sure if it is due to the taller cap that I am still trying to bottom out or the soft actuation of the switch, or maybe a combo of the 2, but I make several errors per sentence if I try to type at my normal pace. Slowing down, I can limit the errors, but then I lose that lovely sound rhythm.
The overall design of the board is quite nice. I am still not a fan of the rubberized finish, but the sturdy feel, crisp corners, and nice flush finish of where the top and bottom of the case some together is quite nice. Of note: I love that it has a micro usb connector. For some reason they feel more secure than the mini to me. That and I have a ton of them laying around since everything uses them now.
I will continue to use the board for the week and see if any of my initial impressions change, but so far, I could see owning this board - particularly in a work place environment where a cherry/bs switch might be too loud or annoying to coworkers.
Thank you for your review! Good read. The hard choice now is to decide which keycaps set to put on. :D
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 05 January 2015, 09:22:01
Just want to stop in and say.......... you will be hearing a lot more from me again!
I was helping on the development on our Case / Power / Cooling team for a bit, and was quite busy trying to balance it all.
I am back focusing on peripherals and am so happy to read / be apart of this Novatouch "around the world" game.
Just know that all the comments / remarks are being heard!
On behalf of CM, we love and thank GH for all the support!
Personally, DSA PBT profile w/ o-rings is absolutely perfect on this board.
Great to see you Carter. Thanks for loaning us the boards :).
Ok, I have the board in my hands. Unfortunately, the board was damaged during shipping. It appears to me entirely cosmetic and after pm'ing CPTbadass and going over the options, It has been decided to just keep moving forward with the tour.
Just so everyone isn't surprised, this is the damage. Badwrench has assured me that the damage is cosmetic and the board is working so I'm going to keep the tour going. I hope you don't mind I used your pictures Badwrench.
(http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i243/aaron_maurice/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2979_zpsc649ac3f.jpg) (http://s74.photobucket.com/user/aaron_maurice/media/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2979_zpsc649ac3f.jpg.html)
(http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i243/aaron_maurice/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2980_zps17526853.jpg) (http://s74.photobucket.com/user/aaron_maurice/media/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2980_zps17526853.jpg.html)
(http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i243/aaron_maurice/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2981_zpsba6e395e.jpg) (http://s74.photobucket.com/user/aaron_maurice/media/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2981_zpsba6e395e.jpg.html)
(http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i243/aaron_maurice/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2984_zpscffa9096.jpg) (http://s74.photobucket.com/user/aaron_maurice/media/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2984_zpscffa9096.jpg.html)
(http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i243/aaron_maurice/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2987_zpsce2b7215.jpg) (http://s74.photobucket.com/user/aaron_maurice/media/Novatouch%20damage%20photos/SAM_2987_zpsce2b7215.jpg.html)
Post by: Ngt on Mon, 05 January 2015, 09:27:44
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 05 January 2015, 09:34:51
The key that is damaged, is a stock key right?
No, if you look at the pictures in the OP, you can see what caps are which. It was a Cherry Doubleshot.
Post by: dante on Mon, 05 January 2015, 09:45:41
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 05 January 2015, 09:57:39
Post by: Ngt on Mon, 05 January 2015, 10:10:48
The key that is damaged, is a stock key right?
No, if you look at the pictures in the OP, you can see what caps are which. It was a Cherry Doubleshot.
Indeed, my bad. I forgot the description in the OP.
Post by: Badwrench on Mon, 05 January 2015, 10:21:12
The board is working perfectly. I switched caps back to the lasered pbts last night to see if they will grow on me a bit. So far, not so much. They just feel too slippery and light. Gonna use them the rest of today at work so they will definitely get some hours of use while i catch up on 2 weeks of emails.
Post by: dante on Mon, 05 January 2015, 12:16:42
I would sell the board as "well loved" ;)
Have any idea on what you would let it go for?
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 05 January 2015, 12:28:58
I would sell the board as "well loved" ;)
Have any idea on what you would let it go for?
It's not for sale. I believe it was a sample donated to Geekhack from Carter. It is the property of the Geekhack community with Mkawa and I as the caretakers. It's not mine to sell.
Post by: PointyFox on Tue, 06 January 2015, 19:12:15
Ok, I have the board in my hands. Unfortunately, the board was damaged during shipping. It appears to me entirely cosmetic and after pm'ing CPTbadass and going over the options, It has been decided to just keep moving forward with the tour.
Sooooo, my first impressions: It feels like really snappy mx reds to me. The switches are very light compared to what I am used to (mx whites/buckling springs). I already bottom out every stoke on those switches, so with these, I bottom the crap out of them. It is not unpleasant though. There is a nice solid thud from the bottoming and since I have the board sitting on a mouse pad, it doesn't resonate through my desk. It is very quite to type on and I can now see what people mean when they mention the nice sound once in the rhythm. To me, the only distraction is the loud stabilizers, but I am assume that they could be quieted with some thick grease without changing the feel.
As far as the caps go, I much prefer the thick Cherrys and the Wyse 50 sets (thick abs). One note on the Wyse set: some of the keys get stuck while depressing them - particularly the f and j keys. They hang on the switch housing and need and couple taps to get them to release. I am sure with a tiny bit of dremel work to the inside of the offending keys, this issue would be resolved. The pbt has a thinness in the sound and feel that makes it feel cheaper. However, if you wanted a higher pitch sound in your typing, the pbt achieves that. DSA is still a no-go for me, too flat. The stock caps are crap, do yourself a favor and just buy your preferred keyset if you choose to buy this board. SA on this board feels good (mounted my Pulse set that I have been using on my QFR with blues), but I am making typos all over the place. I am not sure if it is due to the taller cap that I am still trying to bottom out or the soft actuation of the switch, or maybe a combo of the 2, but I make several errors per sentence if I try to type at my normal pace. Slowing down, I can limit the errors, but then I lose that lovely sound rhythm.
The overall design of the board is quite nice. I am still not a fan of the rubberized finish, but the sturdy feel, crisp corners, and nice flush finish of where the top and bottom of the case some together is quite nice. Of note: I love that it has a micro usb connector. For some reason they feel more secure than the mini to me. That and I have a ton of them laying around since everything uses them now.
I will continue to use the board for the week and see if any of my initial impressions change, but so far, I could see owning this board - particularly in a work place environment where a cherry/bs switch might be too loud or annoying to coworkers.
I've noticed that Wyse 'F' and 'J' keys tend to have a rotation on them, like the stem is not aligned correctly rotationally. Maybe this is the cause?
Post by: Badwrench on Tue, 06 January 2015, 19:53:30
Ok, I have the board in my hands. Unfortunately, the board was damaged during shipping. It appears to me entirely cosmetic and after pm'ing CPTbadass and going over the options, It has been decided to just keep moving forward with the tour.
Sooooo, my first impressions: It feels like really snappy mx reds to me. The switches are very light compared to what I am used to (mx whites/buckling springs). I already bottom out every stoke on those switches, so with these, I bottom the crap out of them. It is not unpleasant though. There is a nice solid thud from the bottoming and since I have the board sitting on a mouse pad, it doesn't resonate through my desk. It is very quite to type on and I can now see what people mean when they mention the nice sound once in the rhythm. To me, the only distraction is the loud stabilizers, but I am assume that they could be quieted with some thick grease without changing the feel.
As far as the caps go, I much prefer the thick Cherrys and the Wyse 50 sets (thick abs). One note on the Wyse set: some of the keys get stuck while depressing them - particularly the f and j keys. They hang on the switch housing and need and couple taps to get them to release. I am sure with a tiny bit of dremel work to the inside of the offending keys, this issue would be resolved. The pbt has a thinness in the sound and feel that makes it feel cheaper. However, if you wanted a higher pitch sound in your typing, the pbt achieves that. DSA is still a no-go for me, too flat. The stock caps are crap, do yourself a favor and just buy your preferred keyset if you choose to buy this board. SA on this board feels good (mounted my Pulse set that I have been using on my QFR with blues), but I am making typos all over the place. I am not sure if it is due to the taller cap that I am still trying to bottom out or the soft actuation of the switch, or maybe a combo of the 2, but I make several errors per sentence if I try to type at my normal pace. Slowing down, I can limit the errors, but then I lose that lovely sound rhythm.
The overall design of the board is quite nice. I am still not a fan of the rubberized finish, but the sturdy feel, crisp corners, and nice flush finish of where the top and bottom of the case some together is quite nice. Of note: I love that it has a micro usb connector. For some reason they feel more secure than the mini to me. That and I have a ton of them laying around since everything uses them now.
I will continue to use the board for the week and see if any of my initial impressions change, but so far, I could see owning this board - particularly in a work place environment where a cherry/bs switch might be too loud or annoying to coworkers.
I've noticed that Wyse 'F' and 'J' keys tend to have a rotation on them, like the stem is not aligned correctly rotationally. Maybe this is the cause?
After putting the whole WYSE set on (the alphas and f-row anyways), I can now confirm it does it on multiple random keys. Just today the F3 key got hung up. I am pretty sure it is the thick walls binding on the stem housing. The thick cherry caps don't hang.
Post by: dorkvader on Wed, 07 January 2015, 17:39:49
WYSE keycaps are comptek(c?) which is the same as what DCS is now.
After putting the whole WYSE set on (the alphas and f-row anyways), I can now confirm it does it on multiple random keys. Just today the F3 key got hung up. I am pretty sure it is the thick walls binding on the stem housing. The thick cherry caps don't hang.
Hmm that's interesting. Those thick round stems are usually the best for off axis hits. If you have some krytox you can lube it, but it sholudn't need that.
Post by: pandather on Fri, 09 January 2015, 11:22:02
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 09 January 2015, 11:50:20
Post by: Badwrench on Sat, 10 January 2015, 17:12:23
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/Az55z0d.png)
WYSE keycaps are comptek(c?) which is the same as what DCS is now.
After putting the whole WYSE set on (the alphas and f-row anyways), I can now confirm it does it on multiple random keys. Just today the F3 key got hung up. I am pretty sure it is the thick walls binding on the stem housing. The thick cherry caps don't hang.
Hmm that's interesting. Those thick round stems are usually the best for off axis hits. If you have some krytox you can lube it, but it sholudn't need that.
I don't believe it is an issue with the stem, but rather an issue with the bottom of the key cap binding on the outside of the topre housing. When it binds, there is no movement at all. Usually it just took a couple of taps to get it loose, but one of them (f3) I actually had to lift up.
As my tenure with the board comes to an end, I want to give a few of my parting thoughts.
This has been a pleasant experience. I do enjoy the feel of the topre switch, but it seems to have a very one noted nature. It has a snappiness that I enjoy, but overall, the 45g is just too light for me (same reason I got rid of my mx reds), and I much prefer a very tactile switch (blues/whites/white alps/buckling spring). I could definitely see owning a topre board - probably something full size and firmer- for work, but until I am not sharing a work station, I wouldn't trust my coworkers with a multiple $100 keyboard. The only board I have left at work was an AT101 which a coworker shorted a switch by spilling some water on it.
The overall build quality of the board lives up the the price tag (other than the stock caps). With the Cherry POM caps, this was a very comfortable board to type on and I can see finally what the deal is with the topre thock sound - it encourages you to keep typing faster and faster. This was my first time typing on POM and I really liked the feel of them. I still prefer Cherry ABS DS or SP DCS - especially after they get a little shiny as I like the almost sticky feel where my finger tips don't move around as much.
Thank you again for allowing me to take part in this tour.
The board will be in Nubbinators hands tomorrow morning (meeting for beer and pizza at Pizza Port in Carlsbad) :thumb:
Post by: Ngt on Sun, 11 January 2015, 05:48:36
Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/Az55z0d.png)
WYSE keycaps are comptek(c?) which is the same as what DCS is now.
After putting the whole WYSE set on (the alphas and f-row anyways), I can now confirm it does it on multiple random keys. Just today the F3 key got hung up. I am pretty sure it is the thick walls binding on the stem housing. The thick cherry caps don't hang.
Hmm that's interesting. Those thick round stems are usually the best for off axis hits. If you have some krytox you can lube it, but it sholudn't need that.
I don't believe it is an issue with the stem, but rather an issue with the bottom of the key cap binding on the outside of the topre housing. When it binds, there is no movement at all. Usually it just took a couple of taps to get it loose, but one of them (f3) I actually had to lift up.
As my tenure with the board comes to an end, I want to give a few of my parting thoughts.
This has been a pleasant experience. I do enjoy the feel of the topre switch, but it seems to have a very one noted nature. It has a snappiness that I enjoy, but overall, the 45g is just too light for me (same reason I got rid of my mx reds), and I much prefer a very tactile switch (blues/whites/white alps/buckling spring). I could definitely see owning a topre board - probably something full size and firmer- for work, but until I am not sharing a work station, I wouldn't trust my coworkers with a multiple $100 keyboard. The only board I have left at work was an AT101 which a coworker shorted a switch by spilling some water on it.
The overall build quality of the board lives up the the price tag (other than the stock caps). With the Cherry POM caps, this was a very comfortable board to type on and I can see finally what the deal is with the topre thock sound - it encourages you to keep typing faster and faster. This was my first time typing on POM and I really liked the feel of them. I still prefer Cherry ABS DS or SP DCS - especially after they get a little shiny as I like the almost sticky feel where my finger tips don't move around as much.
Thank you again for allowing me to take part in this tour.
The board will be in Nubbinators hands tomorrow morning (meeting for beer and pizza at Pizza Port in Carlsbad) :thumb:
Thanks for your feedbacks.
Post by: Badwrench on Sun, 11 January 2015, 22:25:32
Post by: nubbinator on Mon, 12 January 2015, 21:36:54
Post by: nubbinator on Tue, 13 January 2015, 00:14:08
So far the one thing I notice about the Novatouch is that it seems louder to me than the HHKB. It really doesn't appear to be significantly louder, but it definitely is not as deep and rich of a typing noise as the HHKB. I'm going to try throwing some of my Triumph Adler PBT on it to see if it makes a difference in how it feels and sounds.
I don't have any significant niggles save for one so far, the modifier rattler. I swear the Enter and Backspace keys on this rattle louder than any Costar stabilized board I've ever used. And those keys also feel significantly different to strike than the Alphas. It's to the point of being immersion breaking and making me loathe having to hit either of those two keys because I know the feel and the sound will be less than awesome. The Alphas feel good though. The key presses don't feel as crisp and snappy as the HHKB, but they do feel more solid. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or just a neutral thing at this point.
I can, however, say that the Novatouch is far more pleasing to type on than the FC660C was. I can also say that I like it much more than the 35g Realforce I tried.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 13 January 2015, 06:32:23
Post by: nubbinator on Tue, 13 January 2015, 09:06:51
If you could just keep editing a post, that would be nice. If you do that, then I can just link you once in the OP like I've done with everyone else nubbinator. But it's up to you how you want to do your review.
I'll do a final wrap up and link to my thoughts along the way in it. I don't plan on doing a ton, only as things really strike me.
Post by: Ngt on Wed, 21 January 2015, 06:44:41
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 21 January 2015, 06:46:05
Post by: Ngt on Wed, 21 January 2015, 06:54:59
I have a right angled cable but it came in the retail packaging. I believe it's a retail unit.
Alright. I'm doubtful because I remember reading something alike on the CM NT thread where Carter participated. I should check that thread again.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 21 January 2015, 06:59:17
Post by: Ngt on Wed, 21 January 2015, 07:00:45
Post by: Ngt on Wed, 21 January 2015, 07:04:06
If not, it would seem that I'm just being doubtful for nothing. Better be sure! :p
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 21 January 2015, 07:06:54
I think the problem referred to some loose plunger on the right angle version. But I think it can be answered quickly maybe. As you had such a version, did you notice some loose plungers?
If not, it would seem that I'm just being doubtful for nothing. Better be sure! :p
I think you're being paranoid. I didn't feel any loose plungers nor did any of the previous testers alert me to any issues.
Also I can't actually remember if the cable was left or right angled. It was definitely angled of some sort.
Post by: Ngt on Wed, 21 January 2015, 07:19:09
I think the problem referred to some loose plunger on the right angle version. But I think it can be answered quickly maybe. As you had such a version, did you notice some loose plungers?
If not, it would seem that I'm just being doubtful for nothing. Better be sure! :p
I think you're being paranoid. I didn't feel any loose plungers nor did any of the previous testers alert me to any issues.
Also I can't actually remember if the cable was left or right angled. It was definitely angled of some sort.
Yeah probably I've just read too much threads about the Novatouch. I'll see how it goes once I received mine. The seller is trustworthy some told me so I don't expect him to screw over. It is just that it would be a pity.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 21 January 2015, 09:23:33
Post by: nubbinator on Wed, 21 January 2015, 09:27:24
Post by: _PixelNinja on Thu, 22 January 2015, 16:16:27
I don't remember but is this board a retail version or a prototype one? I ask because I'd like to know which one is it and which type of cable it has. IIRC the prototype version comes with a right angled cable and the retail version comes with a straight one. Can you confirm? I bought NT but I just noticed on the seller picture that it has a right angled cable hence I want to know which version I am getting.You should not have to worry. The issues should be fixed on your retail SKU. You will know right off the bat if you have been delivered a release candidate (which have non final retail packaging) as the first thing you will see when opening the box will be a velvet sleeve.
Post by: Ngt on Thu, 22 January 2015, 16:41:28
Alright thank you.I don't remember but is this board a retail version or a prototype one? I ask because I'd like to know which one is it and which type of cable it has. IIRC the prototype version comes with a right angled cable and the retail version comes with a straight one. Can you confirm? I bought NT but I just noticed on the seller picture that it has a right angled cable hence I want to know which version I am getting.You should not have to worry. The issues should be fixed on your retail SKU. You will know right off the bat if you have been delivered a release candidate (which have non final retail packaging) as the first thing you will see when opening the box will a velvet sleeve.
Post by: Computer-Lab in Basement on Thu, 22 January 2015, 17:01:45
Post by: hwood34 on Thu, 22 January 2015, 17:11:06
Is this still open? I have never felt oneness with cup rubber...
Sign ups for this round have been closed for a while. Mkawa or myself will be running a second round sometime.
Post by: Computer-Lab in Basement on Thu, 22 January 2015, 17:13:34
Thx. I should have just read through the thread... but I'm on tapatalk...Is this still open? I have never felt oneness with cup rubber...Sign ups for this round have been closed for a while. Mkawa or myself will be running a second round sometime.
Post by: gameaholic on Fri, 23 January 2015, 19:13:12
Ok, I have the board in my hands. Unfortunately, the board was damaged during shipping. It appears to me entirely cosmetic and after pm'ing CPTbadass and going over the options, It has been decided to just keep moving forward with the tour.
Sooooo, my first impressions: It feels like really snappy mx reds to me. The switches are very light compared to what I am used to (mx whites/buckling springs). I already bottom out every stoke on those switches, so with these, I bottom the crap out of them. It is not unpleasant though. There is a nice solid thud from the bottoming and since I have the board sitting on a mouse pad, it doesn't resonate through my desk. It is very quite to type on and I can now see what people mean when they mention the nice sound once in the rhythm. To me, the only distraction is the loud stabilizers, but I am assume that they could be quieted with some thick grease without changing the feel.
As far as the caps go, I much prefer the thick Cherrys and the Wyse 50 sets (thick abs). One note on the Wyse set: some of the keys get stuck while depressing them - particularly the f and j keys. They hang on the switch housing and need and couple taps to get them to release. I am sure with a tiny bit of dremel work to the inside of the offending keys, this issue would be resolved. The pbt has a thinness in the sound and feel that makes it feel cheaper. However, if you wanted a higher pitch sound in your typing, the pbt achieves that. DSA is still a no-go for me, too flat. The stock caps are crap, do yourself a favor and just buy your preferred keyset if you choose to buy this board. SA on this board feels good (mounted my Pulse set that I have been using on my QFR with blues), but I am making typos all over the place. I am not sure if it is due to the taller cap that I am still trying to bottom out or the soft actuation of the switch, or maybe a combo of the 2, but I make several errors per sentence if I try to type at my normal pace. Slowing down, I can limit the errors, but then I lose that lovely sound rhythm.
The overall design of the board is quite nice. I am still not a fan of the rubberized finish, but the sturdy feel, crisp corners, and nice flush finish of where the top and bottom of the case some together is quite nice. Of note: I love that it has a micro usb connector. For some reason they feel more secure than the mini to me. That and I have a ton of them laying around since everything uses them now.
I will continue to use the board for the week and see if any of my initial impressions change, but so far, I could see owning this board - particularly in a work place environment where a cherry/bs switch might be too loud or annoying to coworkers.
Hmm didn't think to put it on top of a mousepad to dampen the noise. Might feel nice on a corsair or razer extended mousepad.
Post by: Badwrench on Fri, 23 January 2015, 19:23:51
Ok, I have the board in my hands. Unfortunately, the board was damaged during shipping. It appears to me entirely cosmetic and after pm'ing CPTbadass and going over the options, It has been decided to just keep moving forward with the tour.
Sooooo, my first impressions: It feels like really snappy mx reds to me. The switches are very light compared to what I am used to (mx whites/buckling springs). I already bottom out every stoke on those switches, so with these, I bottom the crap out of them. It is not unpleasant though. There is a nice solid thud from the bottoming and since I have the board sitting on a mouse pad, it doesn't resonate through my desk. It is very quite to type on and I can now see what people mean when they mention the nice sound once in the rhythm. To me, the only distraction is the loud stabilizers, but I am assume that they could be quieted with some thick grease without changing the feel.
As far as the caps go, I much prefer the thick Cherrys and the Wyse 50 sets (thick abs). One note on the Wyse set: some of the keys get stuck while depressing them - particularly the f and j keys. They hang on the switch housing and need and couple taps to get them to release. I am sure with a tiny bit of dremel work to the inside of the offending keys, this issue would be resolved. The pbt has a thinness in the sound and feel that makes it feel cheaper. However, if you wanted a higher pitch sound in your typing, the pbt achieves that. DSA is still a no-go for me, too flat. The stock caps are crap, do yourself a favor and just buy your preferred keyset if you choose to buy this board. SA on this board feels good (mounted my Pulse set that I have been using on my QFR with blues), but I am making typos all over the place. I am not sure if it is due to the taller cap that I am still trying to bottom out or the soft actuation of the switch, or maybe a combo of the 2, but I make several errors per sentence if I try to type at my normal pace. Slowing down, I can limit the errors, but then I lose that lovely sound rhythm.
The overall design of the board is quite nice. I am still not a fan of the rubberized finish, but the sturdy feel, crisp corners, and nice flush finish of where the top and bottom of the case some together is quite nice. Of note: I love that it has a micro usb connector. For some reason they feel more secure than the mini to me. That and I have a ton of them laying around since everything uses them now.
I will continue to use the board for the week and see if any of my initial impressions change, but so far, I could see owning this board - particularly in a work place environment where a cherry/bs switch might be too loud or annoying to coworkers.
Hmm didn't think to put it on top of a mousepad to dampen the noise. Might feel nice on a corsair or razer extended mousepad.
I had it sitting on my OCZ XL mat. It is nice and thick. I actually put all of my boards on it since I don't like the resonance through my desk.
Post by: nubbinator on Fri, 23 January 2015, 22:59:39
Here's the tl;dr shorthand version: this board is confusing as hell and I have no clue what to make of it.
The Novatouch is a bag of contradictions to me. I love it and I hate it at the same time. It has so many awesome parts of it, but at the same time, it has some glaring issues to me too. I really have no clue how I feel about it. At $200, it is definitely overpriced, but at $130, I may be inclined to buy it.
So to start, the good things about the board. Although I railed on the cheap thin ABS it comes with stock, I'm not convinced it makes a huge difference what caps you use with it. The stock caps feel good on it and so do the POM and every other cap I tried on it. Each cap affects the feel a little bit, but the caps don't seem to make a massive difference in feel, leastways not a difference between feeling good and feeling horrible.
The Novatouch is also the single best feeling metal plate Topre boards that I have tried. I absolutely hated the Realforce boards I tried and the HHKB has been the apogee of Topre to me. It's definitely better than Realforce, but I still prefer the feel of the HHKB. The domes are nice and snappy and feel heavier than my HHKB domes though. I'm still not sure that's a good thing. It's incredibly pleasant to type on and just feels nice.
The case also feels solid and well built. While it looks cheap, the case is solid and doesn't seem to torque a lot.
Now onto the bad.
Even though the board feels good, elements of it just feel cheap or poorly thought out. First off, the modifiers rattle and clank unlike any other board I've ever used. I'm used to Topre taking on a pitter patter quality, almost like rainfall. The Novatouch completely ruins that sensation. It sounds and feels like a cheap plastic made in China toy at times. It completely ruins the immersion.
Secondly, there is no Caps Lock LED. I can't tell you how many times I accidentally tapped the Caps key and didn't know until I started typing. It's annoying and, IMO, just poor design.
The board also follows the Topre convention of a plug on the outside of the case, not recessed or really set up in a better way. Sure, there's a right angle cable, but it really doesn't address the issue.
Lastly, the domes almost feel too heavy. The metal plate, the age of the domes, something makes them less pleasant to type on than my HHKB. You will bottom out most of the time and it doesn't make for a pleasant experience.
This board really is an enigma to me. Part of me wants it, but part of me wants to chuck it into the ocean. It's terrible, but the best plate mounted Topre board I've ever tried at the same time. Maybe if I had it for long enough I would grow to love it, but right now, HHKB is love and the Novatouch follows a distant second for the title of best Topre board.
Post by: hwood34 on Sat, 24 January 2015, 00:43:09
Secondly, there is no Caps Lock LED. I can't tell you how many times I accidentally tapped the Caps key and didn't know until I started typing. It's annoying and, IMO, just poor design.That just seems like the oddest design choice to make
Post by: nubbinator on Sat, 24 January 2015, 00:49:26
Secondly, there is no Caps Lock LED. I can't tell you how many times I accidentally tapped the Caps key and didn't know until I started typing. It's annoying and, IMO, just poor design.That just seems like the oddest design choice to make
It really is. I have no clue why there isn't one, but it's ****ing infuriating to be used to the HHKB layout, accidentally tap it, and be yelling. It's one of those things that make no sense at all. Even the Realforce and FC660C have a Caps Lock light. The HHKB doesn't because it's on the Fn layer, but it makes no sense for a TKL keyboard to not have a Caps Lock LED.
Post by: _PixelNinja on Sat, 24 January 2015, 16:51:06
Post by: colomb on Sun, 25 January 2015, 17:44:55
I think I must be the only person around who likes the fact there is no LED indicators at all on the keyboard.
I don't mind the lack of LED indicators either. I've never used them, and now that set caps lock as a control key, I don't see any need for an indicator light there.
Post by: Ngt on Mon, 26 January 2015, 04:29:14
I think I must be the only person around who likes the fact there is no LED indicators at all on the keyboard.
I don't mind the lack of LED indicators either. I've never used them, and now that set caps lock as a control key, I don't see any need for an indicator light there.
Are there DIP switches on the Novatouch?
Post by: Ngt on Mon, 26 January 2015, 05:34:36
Post by: MythicalWagyu on Tue, 27 January 2015, 17:42:37
Ngt since you didn't post the answer to your question - I don't see any DIP switches unless they are hidden somewhere :thumb:
Post by: Ngt on Tue, 27 January 2015, 18:57:48
Quick update: picked up the Novatouch from nubbinator last night; I'll be using it as much as possible this week alongside my FC660C & HHKB JP, compiling my thoughts, making some photos and, time permitting, hopefully a quick video or at least audio recording so people can hear the difference between the Topre boards (no promises on the video!)
Ngt since you didn't post the answer to your question - I don't see any DIP switches unless they are hidden somewhere :thumb:
Oh yeah you're right I forgot to write the answer. I didn't see any DIP switches either. (http://emoticoner.com/files/emoticons/onion-head/big-eye-onion-head-emoticon.gif) (http://emoticoner.com)
I hope you'll enjoy the Novatouch as I am right now. I must admit that Topre switches are growing on me as I'm using it more and more. I may try to silence it to hide that loud upstroke. My PBT set is coming along as well so I could see if it dampens the sound a bit more than the stock ABS caps.
Post by: MythicalWagyu on Sat, 31 January 2015, 04:34:32
Initial impressions:
* I can't handle the stock pad-printed thin keycaps; my fingers seem to do terrible things to ink even if I wash my hands constantly - stock caps have to go ASAP!
More
(http://i.imgur.com/LJEclWF.jpg)
naked oh la la
naked oh la la
* Thick PBT from Feng feels much better (not sure of manufacturing origin - IMSTO maybe?) I'll definitely throw Granite DSA PBT on here as well before I'm done. I wanted to test drive SA profile as well but I think my Penumbra order is going to come just after this board leaves my hands... so close but so far, C'est la vie!
More
(http://i.imgur.com/RJtNaCt.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/ecgLAD5.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/rRRWbOZ.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/ecgLAD5.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/rRRWbOZ.jpg)
* Feels sturdy (no real flex when giving it the twist test) and the case is nice; smooth, matte finish that doesn't feel like cheap plastic but isn't rubbery feeling either. If the coating holds up over time, I'm a fan.
* I like the understated, subdued design (reminds me a bit of the KUL) but still don't care for the CM STORM #l33tgamer logo - I feel like putting a Novatouch logo/wordmark on the back & moving the CM branding to the bottom would've been a better choice.
More
(http://i.imgur.com/JkVMwHu.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/ptXOzvK.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/ptXOzvK.jpg)
* Micro-USB is nice (works w/my PS4 cables!) but I dislike the placement, seems to easier to accidentally damage it
- compared to the under-board designs like KUL ES-87, QFR; maybe it offers a wider range of compatibility with custom USB cables (many of which don't fit under my KUL b/c of the fat connector.)
* Dear God what is up with the stabilized keys?!? :confused: :'( :confused:
- They sound so unpleasant compared to the other keys, it's really jarring and detracts from the nice pitter patter of rapid typing w/Topre. I suck at typing so I backspace a lot, maybe it's just my crappy typing technique!
*Not compatible with (some?) MX-stem BroCaps - super niche complaint I know, but this is possibly a deal breaker for me as it means no BroCaps Topre or MX, or any other artisan cap that has a fat/non-round MX stem :'( :'(
More
(http://i.imgur.com/v3Ss8N2.jpg)
* No indication of CAPS lock anywhere >:D
* 660C feels like it has heavier switches & more "snap" to it, imo, and HHKB feels lighter than the NT... time to break out the nickels...
* If this were my own personal board, I would highly consider modifying it as outlined by spiceBar (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=65853.10;)- I think the horrible sound from the stabilized keys could be fixed (http://www.chesstiger.com/images/keyboards/Novatouch_fully_silenced.wav) with a little work. :thumb:
* Potential problems with GMK (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=65853.msg1540906#msg1540906) keycaps?
* I feel like CM either needs to lower the price point, offer better stock keycaps, or offer a "naked" version w/o caps for a reduced cost. Realforce boards have amazing keycaps and I don't think they cost a lot more (esp used?) IMO, increase the quality of the stock caps & dress down the packaging, or offer a naked version of the board (knowing that people will intend to add their own keycaps) and the Novatouch becomes a much more compelling keyboard.
///// still pending /////
short typing video while playing typing of the dead?
-- DISCLAIMERS --
I love my FC660C *and* my HHKB Pro JP, especially because they are different - I like them for different reasons and I like variety so having different keyboards lets me choose one that fits my current mood -- if you've already found your one true love (HHKB elite, Alps, Nixdorftaylorswiftgang or whatever) then the Novatouch is probably not for you as it is *not* a HHKB - YMMV
Post by: SonOfSonOfSpock on Mon, 09 February 2015, 18:43:02
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 09 February 2015, 18:49:09
Post by: Ngt on Tue, 10 February 2015, 02:54:24
Novatouch arrived in the mail. Everything looks in order.
I hope you'll enjoy it!
Post by: Jixr on Mon, 16 February 2015, 11:08:12
Very excited to give this thing a go, will be my first topre experience.
gonna put this thing through its paces. will be using it 8 hours at work a day, and then using it for some gaming sessions and everything else I can throw at it.
Post by: SonOfSonOfSpock on Tue, 17 February 2015, 23:39:20
This is my first time using Topre. So far, I’ve used a few different types of Cherry MX boards (red, blue, brown) and a Matias quiet click board. I can definitely see why people like Topre. The switches have a very smooth action. The end result of my experience is similar to CPTBadAss, for some reason with my typing style the bottom out is very jarring and end up causing aches/pains in a matter of minutes. I’m not sure why that is the case. The other Cherry boards I’ve used have light switches and I don’t have bottom out issues with those. I did notice that this effect was lessened with thinner key caps.
For the Novatouch, it is a very well-built board for the most part. It feels very solid and has a nice heft to it. The most glaring things I noticed being the stock key caps, the creaky modifiers, and the lack of caps lock indicator. These are things others in this tour have mentioned so this didn’t surprise me.
I really liked the POM caps included with the tour. I didn’t think I would like them from what I read. I might get a set next time I’m looking at caps. The only issue I had with key cap compatibility was that some of them from the WYSE set would get stuck in the down position.
Post by: SonOfSonOfSpock on Tue, 17 February 2015, 23:43:38
Post by: Jixr on Wed, 18 February 2015, 09:09:16
Post by: Jixr on Fri, 20 February 2015, 17:29:34
Everything seemed to arrive in good shape.
Typing on it now, it feels amazing, but my fingers are already starting to hurt.
Over the next week I'll be putting this thing through every test I can, 40 hours of office work, gaming, programming, general use, and for writing.
I've been very interested in this, and at the end of the week will determine if I'm going to be ordering one or not.
I'll get some pics up tonight.
Post by: MythicalWagyu on Fri, 20 February 2015, 17:40:19
Novatouch in hand! whoever threw the pretty blue/gray keycaps on this, they are amazing. ( anyone have a source for them )Thick PBT was purchased from Feng when I first started getting into mechanicals - glad you are enjoying them!
Everything seemed to arrive in good shape.
Typing on it now, it feels amazing, but my fingers are already starting to hurt.
Over the next week I'll be putting this thing through every test I can, 40 hours of office work, gaming, programming, general use, and for writing.
I've been very interested in this, and at the end of the week will determine if I'm going to be ordering one or not.
I'll get some pics up tonight.
That reminds me, I'm way overdue to finish up my review :eek: :p
Post by: Ngt on Fri, 20 February 2015, 18:27:20
Novatouch in hand! whoever threw the pretty blue/gray keycaps on this, they are amazing. ( anyone have a source for them )I had such pain on the fingers at the beginning but it all went away after some time using it. Keep going at it you won't regret it!
Everything seemed to arrive in good shape.
Typing on it now, it feels amazing, but my fingers are already starting to hurt.
Over the next week I'll be putting this thing through every test I can, 40 hours of office work, gaming, programming, general use, and for writing.
I've been very interested in this, and at the end of the week will determine if I'm going to be ordering one or not.
I'll get some pics up tonight.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 20 February 2015, 18:58:19
Post by: Jixr on Sat, 21 February 2015, 20:51:15
Post by: Jixr on Tue, 03 March 2015, 13:26:48
I'll have my review up shortly.
Post by: Ngt on Tue, 03 March 2015, 15:58:59
(http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n193/clayfinley/IMG_4437_zps4ae98510.jpg) (http://s112.photobucket.com/user/clayfinley/media/IMG_4437_zps4ae98510.jpg.html)
Sexy board baby!
Post by: dante on Tue, 03 March 2015, 16:35:08
Post by: Ngt on Tue, 03 March 2015, 17:26:59
Several reviewers have chimed in and stated the stabilizers sound like garbage. Is this something Coolermaster is looking at fixing?
I don't think we have any information on it so far. But I modded mine in order for it to be more silence. I think even without using the ladings pads, if you put some thick grease on the wire stabs it gets really quiet (at least better than the stock one).
Post by: keymaster on Thu, 12 March 2015, 19:31:25
Just stopping by to say that I received the board. There was some damage on the side of the case, but it looks like this happened a few shipments ago.
More
(http://i.imgur.com/ex2e9eF.jpg)
My first impression with the PBT keycaps is that I love it. I'll post a review after I have some more time with it.Thank you again for doing this tour, CPTBadAss.
Post by: Ngt on Fri, 13 March 2015, 03:31:38
Hello everyone,
Just stopping by to say that I received the board. There was some damage on the side of the case, but it looks like this happened a few shipments ago.MoreMy first impression with the PBT keycaps is that I love it. I'll post a review after I have some more time with it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/ex2e9eF.jpg)
Thank you again for doing this tour, CPTBadAss.
Thanks for letting us know. I'll be looking forward to read your review!
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 13 March 2015, 06:01:58
Hello everyone,
Just stopping by to say that I received the board. There was some damage on the side of the case, but it looks like this happened a few shipments ago.MoreMy first impression with the PBT keycaps is that I love it. I'll post a review after I have some more time with it.Show Image(http://i.imgur.com/ex2e9eF.jpg)
Thank you again for doing this tour, CPTBadAss.
That damage happened during shipment between ComradeSniper and Badwrench so it's fine. Functionally the board is fine I believe. What caps are on the board? Can you please take a picture? I saw jixr swapped the caps but I was hoping he'd put the caps back on before shipping it out.
Post by: Jixr on Fri, 13 March 2015, 10:08:24
Quote
I saw jixr swapped the caps but I was hoping he'd put the caps back on before shipping it out.Those were the caps that were on it when I got it, so I just left them on there, all the rest of the caps were in individually marked baggies.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 13 March 2015, 10:13:06
Post by: keymaster on Fri, 13 March 2015, 18:14:54
What caps are on the board? Can you please take a picture? I saw jixr swapped the caps but I was hoping he'd put the caps back on before shipping it out.
quick pic before I try these Vortex Doubleshot PBT (https://massdrop-cf2.imgix.net/resizer/1500x1000/r/MD-4850_20141216101231_b0892891025314f9.jpg?fm=jpg&q=70) on the NovaTouch
(http://i.imgur.com/ZnLIpnV.jpg)
Post by: Ngt on Fri, 13 March 2015, 18:56:39
What caps are on the board? Can you please take a picture? I saw jixr swapped the caps but I was hoping he'd put the caps back on before shipping it out.
quick pic before I try these Vortex Doubleshot PBT (https://massdrop-cf2.imgix.net/resizer/1500x1000/r/MD-4850_20141216101231_b0892891025314f9.jpg?fm=jpg&q=70) on the NovaTouchShow Image(http://i.imgur.com/ZnLIpnV.jpg)
There was no space bar in the set?
Post by: awhitedev on Sun, 15 March 2015, 10:51:29
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 16 March 2015, 06:09:06
I know signups are over for now... are there any hopes to reopen them? I would love to get in on this and try out some Topre :)
I've got another Novatouch coming as soon as I get keycaps in. Shoutouts to mkawa. I'll open up another tour when I get the board. It'll probably be in this thread and I'll post the info in the OP.
Post by: justify on Tue, 24 March 2015, 16:23:59
Any chance of opening up the tour to us UK peasants?I know signups are over for now... are there any hopes to reopen them? I would love to get in on this and try out some Topre :)
I've got another Novatouch coming as soon as I get keycaps in. Shoutouts to mkawa. I'll open up another tour when I get the board. It'll probably be in this thread and I'll post the info in the OP.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 24 March 2015, 16:27:41
Post by: justify on Tue, 24 March 2015, 16:32:49
mkawa and I talked about it. It seems like we want to try and keep the tour as safe as we can. I have had really bad luck with UK mail and I'm uncomfortable with sending a board overseas. I suggest checking on DT to see if they're running any tours as they are more EU centric.UK mail is safe if done from within the UK, so if you sent it tracked/recorded/signed to a UK resident, once it arrives it will be fairly safe. I checked on DT and no one is doing anything with topre at the moment.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 24 March 2015, 16:34:29
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 24 March 2015, 20:06:46
I received the second Novatouch today. It has stock caps, 2 sets of DSA, and a DSA RGB set. The Galaxy Class set is incredibly beautiful in person.
Would the people on the tour like for me to send the board out to the rest of the 1st tour so that people don't have to wait anymore or would they mind if I opened up a second parallel tour.
Post by: osi on Tue, 24 March 2015, 20:11:45
Post by: Air tree on Tue, 24 March 2015, 20:14:12
Post by: Jixr on Tue, 24 March 2015, 20:46:03
Sorry for the Novel, and I'm not going to bother posting pics on here. You guys have all seen what it is.
Construction/Design.
I'm a huge CoolerMaster fan, and LOVE the QuickFire Rapid. ( I've owned 3 different ones, and a CM-XT ) Even as the QFR is a budget board, I never felt that it was entirely lacking in construction, but the novatouch completely blows it out of the water. By far, this is the most solid mass-produced commercial keyboard I've ever used.
The rubber coating on the case is something I've always liked, but with past CM keyboards the corners can become a bit worn after time. Though so far, this one has no worn out corners, so maybe the rubber formula has been improved ( rumor has it that CM revised their coatings when they introduced the CM-XT )
The only logo is on the bottom of the case, and on the back side, presenting a very clean, minimalist keyboard offering no gamer-y logo's, branding, or other nonsense.
This keyboard would fit in well at any office environment, or at the helm of a powerful gaming pc.
Ascetically, the keyboard is very pleasing, nice lines, and the only bit of flair on the back side, which is out of view from a typing position.
The keyboard uses mini usb instead of macro usb cables. while it stinks that I can't easily swap keyboards without having an extra cable plugged in, many people already have tons of these cables laying around for their phones. A really cool thing is its easy to get sleeved and colored cables off amazon for cheap and in all kinds of lengths, so that's a big bonus. Allegedly mini usb is supposed to be more durable for multiple connections, but I've yet to have any issues with any of my old keyboards that use macro. Though I kinda feel like with a keyboard of this price point and durability, that I really wish it was a hard-wired cable. Since I'm not allowed to open this one up, I cant say if it would be like the QuickFire Rapid, which was super easy to convert to a hard-wired cable if you wanted.
The keyboard is a little on the tall side, but even without a wrist rest its not uncomfortable to type on, but is a little noticeable. I personally prefer slimmer and lower keyboards, as to me, its much more comfortable and some users may find that for extended use, a wrist wrest may improve their comfort with the keyboard.
Keycaps, are well, crap. But that's okay! The Novatouch's selling feature is its Topre switches, but having mx style stems, so you can put your favorite aftermarket keycap set on it. And so I put a nice keycap set on the keyboard as soon as I got it. A nice set of Thick PBT cherry profile keycaps. I did notice the side to side play of the keys is about on par with a cherry switch. I don't really like that side to side wiggle, but its not noticeably bad, and the sliders feel pretty smooth.
Feel.
The feel of the keyboard to me is quite nice, and is completely different than anything you can find in a cherry switch. While they are rubber domes, they feel like the best kind of rubber domes. much smoother, and the collapsing of the domes is very pleasant. Before trying this keyboard, I've always had a soft spot for membrane keyboards, I like the feeling of the collapsing domes, but every keyboard just felt cheap, and this is the complete opposite. I still get the soft landing of the rubber domes, but the feel is very uniform and crisp. Unfortunately its just one of those things you really can't convey with words unless you get your hands on one.
Compared to cherry, the closest thing I can say is it feels kinda like an mx clear, but with a longer more round tactile bump. If you like clears and browns, I'm sure you'd love this keyboard.
The one thing I've notice about the key feel, is that it feels a bit slow to type on. Compared to my favorite switch ( mx blacks ) it feels a bit sluggish to type on. Kinda like typing on marshmallows, squishy and comfortable, but not very quick. Though during my week with it I got pretty comfortable with it and my typing speed sped back up a bit.
Noise.
There is a difference between cherry and topre sounds, while most cherry keyboards sound very plastic-y when typing on them, topre is often described as having a "thock" sound. Its a nice deep sound, not the high pitched taps of a cherry keyboard. but if you're thinking this is a quiet keyboard, its not. It's not mx blue loud, but still above a normal cheap keyboard.
While the alphas are quite tolerable, I did notice quite a bit of rattle on the stabilized keys, the mechanism used has a 'wire rattle' feel that reminds me quite a bit of cherry PCB mount stabilizer rattle. Oddly, the spacebar does not have that problem.
Though like all keyboards, keycaps will affect the sound. Thick PBT sound lovely, while thinner abs and pbt sets sound much more plastic-y.
I have noticed some keys have a different sound than others, at least on the unit I have, some keys sound a bit more rubbery than others, and have a weird 'suction' sound of the rubber domes popping back up. I'm not sure if its just a fault with this particular unit, or if something more common.
Office Use:
I am architectural designer for my 8-5, and during my week, I used the novatouch everyday at work. General office work and typing, this thing has been nice, though it's still a little louder than I would prefer in an office environment, and my boss always jokes that he knows if I'm working or not because my keyboards are so loud.
One design flaw with this keyboard, is that it does not have a Caps lock indicator. For my design work, you use all caps when typing, and when I see an email notification pop up and reply to it with all caps, it's a bit annoying. If I owned this keyboard myself, I would definitely look into seeing if there was any way I could wire in an LED for a caps lock notification.
I don't think most people use the caps lock as often as I do and may not be annoyed by it as much, but when you type in a password a few times and can't figure out why its wrong, then try pressing the caps lock and trying again, it can be a bit frustrating.
Gaming.
Typically, I'm a FPS gamer, and while the slow feeling of the keys I mentioned above did not hamper my FPS playing, I can say that during a much faster paced game such as DOTA/LOL, SC2, etc, that the slow keys may get to you a little bit.
I don't generally believe that there is such thing as a "gaming switch" but for serious gaming, I would much prefer to play on cherry blacks than the novatouch.
Note: The keyboard is OSX friendly, and works just fine on OSX and in BIOS ( both things are important to me )
The keyboard also has full USB n-key roll over, so thats is a nice feature to have.
Conclusion.
Its a great keyboard, and there are very few things I don't like about it. Mainly the stabilized key rattle, and the lack of a Caps lock indicator LED. The feel is good, its a comfortable keyboard, the build is a 10/10 but would I buy one?
I can't say for sure.
The MSRP of $200, plus you'll want to replace the keycaps as soon as you can, easily pushes the cost of this keyboard into the $250+ range ( which at that point you could buy a HHKB ), and I'm not sure if thats a cost I can justify.
There are other cheaper 'electro captivate' keyboards on the market that are a bit cheaper, and come with much better stock keycaps. While I don't know the quality of those, the lower price makes them seem a bit more appealing to me.
I'm a bit conflicted, I've been wanting to get a new TKL lately, but I think I may be leaning towards a cherry keyboard and picking up alum. case for it, and coming out with something a bit more unique and custom for about the same price.
It's a really fun keyboard to type on, but I'm not sure if it's $250 worth of fun.
I love my 60% keyboards, and love my linear cherry switches, But I feel like if I bought my own novatouch, I wouldn't use it all that much, considering I already have more keyboards than I would need, and would continue to use my main keyboard, while all the others sat on my shelf, and I feel like the novatouch would join them on the shelf. Though, if I didn't already have a stack of keyboards, I would definitely pick one up, strip the body down, and paint it up like I have with all my other CM keyboards.
Thanks to Cap'n and everyone else who helped the tour go smoothly.
Post by: strict on Tue, 24 March 2015, 20:54:38
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 24 March 2015, 21:25:59
I will let everyone I PMed reply to me before I figure out what to do with the second Novatouch. Thanks to mkawa and anyone that donated caps for the second keyboard!
Post by: Nai_Calus on Tue, 24 March 2015, 21:57:46
Post by: jackalope on Wed, 25 March 2015, 06:13:09
Post by: ctm on Thu, 26 March 2015, 18:37:48
Post by: osman99 on Fri, 27 March 2015, 09:30:12
Post by: onehungrybear on Fri, 27 March 2015, 17:02:42
Post by: FoC_Tow on Fri, 27 March 2015, 21:05:41
Would totally be in if it wasn't for CONUS only! :)
Post by: wazup on Fri, 27 March 2015, 21:44:00
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 27 March 2015, 23:55:24
If you would like to change those rules, please feel free to contact me and mkawa in PMs. We can talk about it there. But please remember, I'm *borrowing* two sample keyboards from mkawa and Carter at CM Storm. If mkawa tells me he'd like stricter requirements, then I'm obligated to do so.
I will personally try to find a solution to allow for different rules in the future as well. Since nubbinator found a $30 Topre board, I feel that the board may be a good option for a Topre tour that I control. No further details or information will be given until I get the board in hand.
Post by: wazup on Sat, 28 March 2015, 17:10:20
Post by: AuRinBei on Mon, 30 March 2015, 18:31:03
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 30 March 2015, 18:35:33
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 30 March 2015, 18:52:25
The remaining people from the original Alpha tour will be getting the second keyboard, which I'm calling Bravo. I will post the cap selection that will come with the board soon. Bravo tour should be going out this week. I'll update the OP with more info as soon as I can.
If there are any questions, please let me know.
Post by: osman99 on Mon, 30 March 2015, 18:55:15
Post by: livingspeedbump on Mon, 30 March 2015, 18:58:59
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 30 March 2015, 19:00:52
Cool, ill send it out end of the week/ beggining of next to strict. Im not home now so i cant ship it out till then.
Thanks for the heads up.
Alpha Round 2 Signups Open everyone. Check the OP for more info!
More
I've made an executive decision. The current damaged keyboard, which I'm now calling Alpha, will go from osman99 to strict then back to me for damage assessment. I'll be opening signups for Alpha R2 which should happen in about 3 weeks. Please fill out the form (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1MQar8KmzwwZb45arNK9hqwDHZcgXmHwtHPct0PSAnDs/viewform).
The remaining people from the original Alpha tour will be getting the second keyboard, which I'm calling Bravo. I will post the cap selection that will come with the board soon. Bravo tour should be going out this week. I'll update the OP with more info as soon as I can.
If there are any questions, please let me know.
Post by: awhitedev on Mon, 30 March 2015, 19:05:20
Post by: Air tree on Tue, 31 March 2015, 16:10:27
Post by: LXXXIX on Tue, 31 March 2015, 21:47:20
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 31 March 2015, 21:48:35
Signed! I'm really looking forward to this. :cool:Unfortunately you do not meet the requirements yet.
Post by: ctm on Wed, 01 April 2015, 07:12:35
Post by: Computer-Lab in Basement on Wed, 01 April 2015, 07:48:57
Post by: cooldiscretion on Wed, 01 April 2015, 09:21:07
Post by: Touch_It on Wed, 01 April 2015, 10:26:20
Think of the children!
Post by: calvinhousecat on Wed, 01 April 2015, 18:53:49
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 01 April 2015, 21:56:01
But if I sign up and really really like it I'll have no choice but to purchase one. :D
Think of the children!
I'm not liable or responsible for any wallethacking that may occur. ;)
Post by: Nai_Calus on Thu, 02 April 2015, 00:57:49
But if I sign up and really really like it I'll have no choice but to purchase one. :D
Think of the children!
Pfft you have an F you need no other keyboards.
...Which didn't stop me from signing up, because you know, keyboards. Must try things.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sun, 05 April 2015, 09:22:28
Post by: Lurch on Sun, 05 April 2015, 09:42:33
Thanks for organizing this, CPTBro! ;)
Post by: awhitedev on Sun, 05 April 2015, 10:01:34
Cool, looking forward to trying MX caps over rubber cups.
Thanks for organizing this, CPTBro! ;)
I second this! I can't wait to try some cupped rubber :)
Post by: abjr on Mon, 06 April 2015, 11:01:46
Post by: Touch_It on Mon, 06 April 2015, 11:04:22
But if I sign up and really really like it I'll have no choice but to purchase one. :D
Think of the children!
Pfft you have an F you need no other keyboards.
...Which didn't stop me from signing up, because you know, keyboards. Must try things.
Exactly. For science!
Post by: LXXXIX on Fri, 10 April 2015, 10:47:01
Signed! I'm really looking forward to this. :cool:Unfortunately you do not meet the requirements yet.
What about now? :p
Edit. Sorry I missed one of the rules. Hopefully I can still qualify. :thumb:
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 15 April 2015, 07:50:53
Signed! I'm really looking forward to this. :cool:Unfortunately you do not meet the requirements yet.
What about now? :p
Edit. Sorry I missed one of the rules. Hopefully I can still qualify. :thumb:
Sure. Can you enter your info again into the form?
Post by: ApocalypseMaow on Wed, 15 April 2015, 08:05:08
Post by: greath on Wed, 15 April 2015, 11:02:39
I signed up for the rotation, and hopefully get to participate, but I get it that "just meeting the minimum requirements" might make me eligible for "I reserve the right to screen people and skip them if needed."
If I do get skipped no hard feelings. Otherwise, I look forward to seeing what all the fuss about Topre is about!
Post by: LXXXIX on Thu, 16 April 2015, 21:12:21
I'm still waiting for the caps from mkawa to show up so the signups are still open. Also the first board is still stuck with osman99. I'm not really sure what's going on but the turnaround times seem to have stalled with him. Working now to figure out what's going on.Signed! I'm really looking forward to this. :cool:Unfortunately you do not meet the requirements yet.
What about now? :p
Edit. Sorry I missed one of the rules. Hopefully I can still qualify. :thumb:
Sure. Can you enter your info again into the form?
Done! :cool:
Post by: strict on Mon, 20 April 2015, 18:28:52
Post by: osman99 on Mon, 20 April 2015, 18:29:12
Tour board arrived today. I'll be posting my thoughts sometime later this week :thumb:Sorry that took so long heh...
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 20 April 2015, 18:29:54
Post by: osman99 on Mon, 20 April 2015, 18:30:19
It's no problem. Glad it didn't disappear. But I will hold you all to reviews :PDont worry, ill do it ;)
Post by: strict on Mon, 20 April 2015, 19:22:35
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 30 April 2015, 07:08:01
Post by: Herothereu on Thu, 30 April 2015, 10:29:44
Post by: awhitedev on Thu, 30 April 2015, 11:15:15
Just an update. I finally received the imsto dyesubs I've been waiting on from mkawa. And strict is sending me the Alpha board back. I'll inspect the Alpha board and then package up Bravo then send them both out ASAP.
Do we know who will be on the list, and in what order, for Alpha R2?
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 30 April 2015, 11:15:52
Post by: Air tree on Thu, 30 April 2015, 17:37:08
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 04 May 2015, 08:10:29
Hey CPT, can you remove me from the list? I can't take it at the moment. :(
Will do.
I still haven't been able to update the list of people to the OP. Been busy lately. Apologies. I will get that out ASAP. Still waiting on the Alpha Novatouch to return to me.
Post by: chocomarshmello on Mon, 04 May 2015, 08:18:30
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 04 May 2015, 08:19:04
Is this a USA only thing?
CONUS only and 100+ post count. Please read the OP for more details. (https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=64602.0#post_Rules)
Post by: ghostjuggernaut on Mon, 04 May 2015, 08:19:46
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 08 May 2015, 17:13:34
Post by: strict on Fri, 08 May 2015, 20:05:21
So I'm not sure what's going on. Tracking number (http://9505521306815119000063) from strict says the board was dropped off at my apartment but I never got anything. Talked to the PO and they couldn't find it immediately. Going to go talk to them again tomorrow and see what's up. Sorry for the delays everyone.
Let me know if there's anything I can do. Hopefully it turns up.
Post by: omen7288 on Fri, 08 May 2015, 21:07:55
So I'm not sure what's going on. Tracking number (http://9505521306815119000063) from strict says the board was dropped off at my apartment but I never got anything. Talked to the PO and they couldn't find it immediately. Going to go talk to them again tomorrow and see what's up. Sorry for the delays everyone.
I recently had my Birth certificate overnighted to me because of emergency/expedited Passport needs. UPS DELIVERED IT to the neighbors side entrance which was clearly labeled a different unit. I remember seeing "delivered" status online and went outside, took 2 hours and calls to ups back and forth with driver to end up wandering around my neighborhood looking for it. Freaking anxiety attack.
Hope you find out where it is. I hope you called, and they contacted driver etc.
Post by: awhitedev on Sat, 09 May 2015, 07:34:02
So I'm not sure what's going on. Tracking number (http://9505521306815119000063) from strict says the board was dropped off at my apartment but I never got anything. Talked to the PO and they couldn't find it immediately. Going to go talk to them again tomorrow and see what's up. Sorry for the delays everyone.
I recently had my Birth certificate overnighted to me because of emergency/expedited Passport needs. UPS DELIVERED IT to the neighbors side entrance which was clearly labeled a different unit. I remember seeing "delivered" status online and went outside, took 2 hours and calls to ups back and forth with driver to end up wandering around my neighborhood looking for it. Freaking anxiety attack.
Hope you find out where it is. I hope you called, and they contacted driver etc.
I've had this problem with Fedex and UPS before. It's actually written into their procedure to leave your package with a neighbor if you aren't home.Ridiculous.
If you live in an apartment they might have dropped it off with one of your neighbors or at the office.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sat, 09 May 2015, 10:21:31
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sun, 10 May 2015, 10:54:40
Post by: LXXXIX on Mon, 11 May 2015, 15:46:49
So the carrier doesn't recall where it is but he didn't leave it outside. The PO itself can't find it. But since I haven't picked it up, and both parties are pretty sure it's lost at the PO building, I think the package will eventually be returned to sender. When that happens it should be scanned outgoing and I can track it like that. I'm going to try and catch another carrier this week. Still don't have the first board in hand though.
Bummer
(http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/rr.gif)
Post by: awhitedev on Mon, 11 May 2015, 16:53:08
So the carrier doesn't recall where it is but he didn't leave it outside. The PO itself can't find it. But since I haven't picked it up, and both parties are pretty sure it's lost at the PO building, I think the package will eventually be returned to sender. When that happens it should be scanned outgoing and I can track it like that. I'm going to try and catch another carrier this week. Still don't have the first board in hand though.
Gotta love our wonderful postal service :rolleyes:
Post by: Nai_Calus on Tue, 12 May 2015, 01:05:50
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 12 May 2015, 08:28:50
/me sighs
If anyone has any ideas or tips, please let me know. I do have a second Novatouch that I can mail out but I'm going to bring it to Keycon.
Post by: greath on Tue, 12 May 2015, 08:39:18
I'm going to give it another week and then speak with the manager and call the regional distribution hubs. Maybe they package is elsewhere?
/me sighs
If anyone has any ideas or tips, please let me know. I do have a second Novatouch that I can mail out but I'm going to bring it to Keycon.
Was it insured?
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 12 May 2015, 08:40:39
Was it insured?
Yes but that gets me 1/4 of the money back and I want the keyboard.
Post by: greath on Tue, 12 May 2015, 08:58:49
Was it insured?
Yes but that gets me 1/4 of the money back and I want the keyboard.
Oh no doubt, I was just curious.
Apparently the "Delivered" scan logs the GPS of where the scan was taken. Maybe the Post Master can give you more information based on the GPS location?
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 12 May 2015, 09:04:35
Post by: greath on Mon, 18 May 2015, 09:21:17
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 22 May 2015, 08:51:23
I'm really sorry for the delays and inconvenience everyone.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 25 May 2015, 10:05:18
I've now lost this package and I've had another package returned. My local post office is apparently ****ing up big time.
I've talked to my actual carrier twice and complained.
I've had two people at the post office itself look for my package. Including the manager.
I still don't have the original Novatouch in hand. I'm still hoping strict will get it returned to him.
Tuesday I'm going to complain to the manager again and see if there's someone high up I can complain to. It's looking more and more like I'm just going to have to cash in the $50 insurance and consider the first Novatouch as a loss.
Sorry for the slow updates and progress everyone. I do have the second Novatouch in hand and I haven't forgotten about this. Just been playing the waiting game with everyone I've contacted because everyone tells me to wait or that they need time to look.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 28 May 2015, 09:40:13
I'm swamped this week with work and real life stuff but I will get this back on track with the other Novatouch I have left. The order will just have to continue as is. If you've been waiting for this, I'm truly sorry for the delays. I'll be sending out PMs asking who is still interested soon. Thanks for being patient with this. Again, I'm really bummed USPS lost the board. My local PO has been slipping lately and I had a talk with the Postmaster the other day to straighten things out.
Post by: greath on Thu, 28 May 2015, 09:46:21
I think raising insurance from $50 to $150 is only $2-3. Maybe we should require $150 insurance for the next round? I would imagine most people (myself included) would not mind the extra costs compared to being able to try out the board for simply the cost of shipping.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 28 May 2015, 09:50:42
Post by: LXXXIX on Mon, 01 June 2015, 09:11:57
Sad to hear that.
I think raising insurance from $50 to $150 is only $2-3. Maybe we should require $150 insurance for the next round? I would imagine most people (myself included) would not mind the extra costs compared to being able to try out the board for simply the cost of shipping.
Not a bad idea honestly. I'd be okay with this. I don't like seeing an angry/upset CPTBadass.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 01 June 2015, 12:15:45
I just need to tweak some things (probably more insurance) so that we can better replace lost boards. Right now I'm waiting to see if USPS will repay me the insurance money and I'll figure out how to best use that money after.
Once again, if you've been waiting, you've got my sincerest apologies for the delays and issues. I wish I knew how to better manage USPS issues. I'll definitely keep an eye on the tracking numbers more carefully next go around.
Post by: MythicalWagyu on Tue, 02 June 2015, 17:52:43
Bad news: I cannot locate the first Novatouch and put in a claim to try and get money from the insurance. I've spent hours talking to the manager of the PO, PO workers, carriers, etc. I cannot locate this and it's been long enough if it were returned, it would have been there by now.Well this is a bummer. I guess I can kiss my set of thick PBT from Feng goodbye :'(
I'm swamped this week with work and real life stuff but I will get this back on track with the other Novatouch I have left. The order will just have to continue as is. If you've been waiting for this, I'm truly sorry for the delays. I'll be sending out PMs asking who is still interested soon. Thanks for being patient with this. Again, I'm really bummed USPS lost the board. My local PO has been slipping lately and I had a talk with the Postmaster the other day to straighten things out.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 02 June 2015, 17:53:28
Well this is a bummer. I guess I can kiss my set of thick PBT from Feng goodbye :'(
If and when I get the insurance money from USPS, I will kick you and whomever donated caps back as much money as I can. I'm really sorry.
Post by: MythicalWagyu on Tue, 02 June 2015, 17:58:24
No it's all good man, none of it is your fault and you're already going to eat the loss of a board. I'm a little sad but I knew there was risk when I sent them along... GMK Hyperfuse should make me feel a little better :thumb: I know I hate dealing with the postal service when things go wrong, they have no friggin accountability at all, so I just hope you at least get your insurance claim paid.Well this is a bummer. I guess I can kiss my set of thick PBT from Feng goodbye :'(
If and when I get the insurance money from USPS, I will kick you and whomever donated caps back as much money as I can. I'm really sorry.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 02 June 2015, 18:04:00
Post by: greath on Tue, 02 June 2015, 19:59:04
I figured they might still be better than the stock caps, even as a hodge-podge. lol
Let me know if you want me to mail them to you CPT.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 02 June 2015, 20:33:56
I've got some OG ABS beige doubleshots I could throw on the board if you guys wanted. The bottom mods/caps would be off an old lasered set (the doubleshots are off a winkeyless board) and I don't have a matching profile spacebar that would fit. It's also got some shine... so no hurt feelings if they are rejected... but the offer is out there :P
I figured they might still be better than the stock caps, even as a hodge-podge. lol
Let me know if you want me to mail them to you CPT.
I'll get back to you on that. I've got a bunch of caps that people have once again graciously donated to mkawa. I also worked a really long day and I'm shot so I'm just trying to unwind. Thank you for offering.
I did just get a letter saying that my claim was denied by USPS because it was delivered. They want me to believe it was stolen out of my mailbox....which it never would have fit in. I really hope they weren't stupid enough to leave it on my front steps.
Post by: greath on Tue, 16 June 2015, 20:19:35
(http://i.imgur.com/mBJ76NE.jpg)
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 16 June 2015, 20:24:32
Post by: heedpantsnow on Tue, 16 June 2015, 20:45:36
Hope you're able to get the insurance issues sorted out!
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 16 June 2015, 20:47:23
I've decided I would love to be in on this. I filled out the form. What else do I need to do?
Hope you're able to get the insurance issues sorted out!
That's all you need to do for now. I've been slacking on this so I'll get updates in the OP out by Sunday night.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 22 June 2015, 20:08:08
Tour restarts in a week. If you're still interested or would like to be taken off the list, please let me know. I'll also send out a PM verifying your interest. The current list is too long so I won't be taking any more participants. If things change I'll post here.
Post by: ghostjuggernaut on Mon, 22 June 2015, 20:10:44
OP has been updated with what I have in hand. USPS refuses to reimburse me for the insurance on the last keyboard so I'm not sure if buying extra insurance even matters. I think I'm going to run it as is a be much more diligent about keeping an eye on tracking numbers.You can remove me from the list. I have sampled a few different types of Topre since signing up on the list. This way some other ppl can try it out sooner.
Tour restarts in a week. If you're still interested or would like to be taken off the list, please let me know. I'll also send out a PM verifying your interest. The current list is too long so I won't be taking any more participants. If things change I'll post here.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 22 June 2015, 20:13:01
You can remove me from the list. I have sampled a few different types of Topre since signing up on the list. This way some other ppl can try it out sooner.
Got it, thank you.
Post by: ghostjuggernaut on Mon, 22 June 2015, 20:13:52
No, thank you ;)You can remove me from the list. I have sampled a few different types of Topre since signing up on the list. This way some other ppl can try it out sooner.
Got it, thank you.
Post by: Nai_Calus on Mon, 22 June 2015, 20:57:57
Post by: osi on Tue, 23 June 2015, 06:40:12
Post by: LXXXIX on Tue, 23 June 2015, 19:43:37
OP has been updated with what I have in hand. USPS refuses to reimburse me for the insurance on the last keyboard so I'm not sure if buying extra insurance even matters. I think I'm going to run it as is a be much more diligent about keeping an eye on tracking numbers.
Tour restarts in a week. If you're still interested or would like to be taken off the list, please let me know. I'll also send out a PM verifying your interest. The current list is too long so I won't be taking any more participants. If things change I'll post here.
I'm still interested! :cool:
Post by: jerue on Tue, 23 June 2015, 21:20:21
So I'm not sure what's going on. Tracking number (http://9505521306815119000063) from strict says the board was dropped off at my apartment but I never got anything. Talked to the PO and they couldn't find it immediately. Going to go talk to them again tomorrow and see what's up. Sorry for the delays everyone.
I recently had my Birth certificate overnighted to me because of emergency/expedited Passport needs. UPS DELIVERED IT to the neighbors side entrance which was clearly labeled a different unit. I remember seeing "delivered" status online and went outside, took 2 hours and calls to ups back and forth with driver to end up wandering around my neighborhood looking for it. Freaking anxiety attack.
Hope you find out where it is. I hope you called, and they contacted driver etc.
I've had this problem with Fedex and UPS before. It's actually written into their procedure to leave your package with a neighbor if you aren't home.Ridiculous.
If you live in an apartment they might have dropped it off with one of your neighbors or at the office.
Have lived this experience. Very frustrating especially when neighbors are on a completely different schedule than you are. Lately everything is through "UPS Mail Innovations" for me, meaning USPS takes over. Hate it especially when retailers offer UPS/Fedex as a shipping option.
Lucky me, the way my condo is set up is 2 to a floor. So I immediately know who has my package :p
....or worse, it'll be sent over to the "other" address. I get some other guy's mail who also has the same address number as me and lives 1 street over. A short walk, but we both hate the post office together.
Post by: Carter on Tue, 23 June 2015, 21:23:45
Speaking of other boards....
Should we maybe discuss Quickfire XTi Tour, starting maybe....now?
More people need to be exposed to greeeenz
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 23 June 2015, 21:39:37
Chiming in, been crazy busy over the last 6 months. Just getting back from ComputeX and resurfacing. Can anyone give me some quick cliffs and do we need to throw in another board into the mix?
Speaking of other boards....
Should we maybe discuss Quickfire XTi Tour, starting maybe....now?
Tour went well but it was lost by USPS when it was on it's way back to me. Was going to have two concurrent Novatouches running at once. Now I only have one in hand. USPS refuses to admit fault and won't even give me insurance money back.
I haven't heard anything about the QFR XTi.
Have lived this experience. Very frustrating especially when neighbors are on a completely different schedule than you are. Lately everything is through "UPS Mail Innovations" for me, meaning USPS takes over. Hate it especially when retailers offer UPS/Fedex as a shipping option.
Lucky me, the way my condo is set up is 2 to a floor. So I immediately know who has my package :p
....or worse, it'll be sent over to the "other" address. I get some other guy's mail who also has the same address number as me and lives 1 street over. A short walk, but we both hate the post office together.
None of my neighbors have it nor does my landlady.
Post by: awhitedev on Wed, 24 June 2015, 18:19:25
I was very impressed with this keyboard. My wife typed on it too and I think her first impression is the best way I can describe it too. "Soft and smooth". The travel is smooth and when you bottom-out the key you are greeted with a nice soft landing. I'd highly recommend it. I think this may be one of my favorite keyboards to date.
Needless to say I am picking me up one of these boards. When Hyperfuse is delivered I'll most likely be using it with this keyboard. :cool:
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 24 June 2015, 18:21:51
Post by: osman99 on Wed, 24 June 2015, 18:45:38
Post by: greath on Thu, 25 June 2015, 08:34:01
Sounds good. I have always suggested Microcenter as a great place to try out keyboards. Glad it worked out for you too awhitedev :).
I know they don't have them at my local microcenter. I don't see them on microcenter's website either. Do you know if they'd take a special order and return? :)
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 25 June 2015, 08:44:52
Sounds good. I have always suggested Microcenter as a great place to try out keyboards. Glad it worked out for you too awhitedev :).
I know they don't have them at my local microcenter. I don't see them on microcenter's website either. Do you know if they'd take a special order and return? :)
I don't know.
Post by: heedpantsnow on Thu, 25 June 2015, 08:52:24
Thou hast amazing keyboards.
Thou hast cheap CPUs.
Thou let me rummage through and pick my own CPU bin/batch number.
Post by: awhitedev on Thu, 25 June 2015, 08:58:24
Sounds good. I have always suggested Microcenter as a great place to try out keyboards. Glad it worked out for you too awhitedev :).
I know they don't have them at my local microcenter. I don't see them on microcenter's website either. Do you know if they'd take a special order and return? :)
Here's the NT on the Microcenter website... you could change the location using the drop down at the top and see if there's any stock. You could check their online return policy too... it may be possible to order and return if you buy it and don't like it?
http://www.microcenter.com/product/438332/Storm_NovaTouch_TKL_Mechanical_Gaming_Keyboard_-_Hybrid_Switches
Post by: mkawa on Fri, 03 July 2015, 01:22:46
there are also a number of cap sets that are touring with the remaining board iirc. all of these were donated: massdrop donated the granite set, imsto donated the thick PBT set, and i'm sure i'm forgetting another one (dsa dolch?); as with dorkvader's review (which might be in the reviews forum..), i think the best set for this board is SA doubleshots. if someone can drum one up, it would be great to have that in the tour.
>>> oh, i missed carter's post on the last page! this is exactly what we talked about the first time we chatted. it's pretty darn awesome to actually see it happen! (ps, keep on them until you get 55g :))
Post by: mkawa on Fri, 03 July 2015, 01:28:24
Chiming in, been crazy busy over the last 6 months. Just getting back from ComputeX and resurfacing. Can anyone give me some quick cliffs and do we need to throw another board or 2 into the mix?i agree. if you do put more boards into circulation, it might be wise to have CPT bring in another member to help manage and track the concurrent tours.
Speaking of other boards....
Should we maybe discuss Quickfire XTi Tour, starting maybe....now?
More people need to be exposed to greeeenz
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 03 July 2015, 12:04:33
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 06 July 2015, 17:11:29
Post by: Lurch on Wed, 08 July 2015, 10:24:26
I'll post a picture of the box as soon as I can.
Thanks again for organizing this, CPTBro!
Post by: Lurch on Wed, 08 July 2015, 13:54:37
(http://i.imgur.com/nKgglhQ.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/f7Gbhva.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/dBwry6z.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/KnYXMkp.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/mvzuhZM.jpg)
:thumb: :thumb: :thumb:
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 08 July 2015, 14:15:49
Post by: Lurch on Wed, 15 July 2015, 08:26:52
There was no cable included when I received the board, so I threw in a micro USB cable to keep things moving.
Many thanks to CPTBadAss for organizing this! :-*
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 15 July 2015, 08:47:04
Post by: Lurch on Wed, 15 July 2015, 08:57:11
I forgot the cable? Ugh...my bad Lurch. Lemme know if you want me to send you some money or another cable.
No worry at all dude! I had some extras. ;)
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 15 July 2015, 10:58:04
If you're interested, the app is called Aftership. Works pretty good. Let's hope that "Delivered to front porch/door" doesn't really mean "About to be stolen off the porch".
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 16 July 2015, 11:34:55
Post by: iamtootallforthis on Thu, 16 July 2015, 11:40:07
Board is in the hands of iamtootallforthis.
No damage or issues with the board just as a heads up. Thought one of the keys was lost at first but just popped off and was in the bottom of the box. Will get around to playing with it some more tomorrow and this weekend as I don't have much time to use it during the week, unless I bring it to work, which I might do.
Post by: osi on Fri, 17 July 2015, 08:32:17
Thank you sir! :D
Post by: Computer-Lab in Basement on Wed, 29 July 2015, 17:02:42
Broke my Topre cherry, and my first impression: NOT ENOUGH CLICK!!! :))
I plan to bring it into work tomorrow and see if it grows on me.
Really loving the Galaxy Class keyset though...
Post by: CPTBadAss on Wed, 29 July 2015, 17:04:05
Post by: iamtootallforthis on Wed, 05 August 2015, 07:54:31
Note: Prior Topre experience, 55g HHKB Type-S and 55g 23U
The board itself is solid with some heft to it which is definitely nice in my opinion. It came with the Galaxy Class set on it and my only issue was that when it arrived a few of the caps had popped off in transit. I don't if it was because they were not seated all the way in the sliders or what. The feel of the board with these caps is great though, great thock and feels great on the fingers. I didn't have any issues with the spacebar and would probably buy the board if it came in a heavier weighting. This board has really made me think about purchasing a RF 55g UB and getting some of Bunny's sliders and some silencing rings.
I highly recommend this board. Considering the price point, it is definitely a board that can be purchased as a starter without breaking the bank completely going all in on a RF board.
Thanks again for doing this CPT and again sorry for the slight delays, work has really been getting to me.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 07 August 2015, 07:23:08
Post by: Remenition on Fri, 07 August 2015, 09:37:52
EDIT: Saw the post said it was closed. Thanks! PS: Trying to do something similar for a Model M, just got linked this post. Would be honored if you can check out my post! :)
Post by: CPTBadAss on Fri, 07 August 2015, 09:40:52
Too late to sign up? Live in Long Island, NY
EDIT: Saw the post said it was closed. Thanks! PS: Trying to do something similar for a Model M, just got linked this post. Would be honored if you can check out my post! :)
Look at the OP's rules. You'll need about 80 more posts to qualify unfortunately.
Post by: abjr on Sat, 08 August 2015, 19:29:19
Board handoff between abjr and clib happening this weekend. Just an update letting everyone know this is moving along smoothly XD
I met up with CLiB today for lunch and took possession of the board. I typed this post on it and here is the obligatory potato pic:
[attach=1]
I'll reserve commenting on my impression of the board so far, but my here's my 7 year old son's review: "That keyboard's kinda funky." ;D
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 17 August 2015, 19:20:52
Post by: DrHubblePhD on Mon, 17 August 2015, 19:25:31
Just an FYI: Abjr and drhubblephd did a handoff on Sunday.
Im attempting to find a card reader so i can post the photo of the board in my possession :p
Post by: heedpantsnow on Mon, 17 August 2015, 19:39:35
Post by: DrHubblePhD on Mon, 17 August 2015, 19:52:02
Just what the doctor ordered :cool:
im looking forward to reviewing this and comparing it to other topre experiences!
Post by: AuRinBei on Mon, 31 August 2015, 23:47:07
Also, fun fact. In the box I found the Majora's Mask keycap I ordered from Imsto in like freaking December. I had forgotten about it, so that was a pretty big shock.
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 01 September 2015, 08:23:35
Post by: AuRinBei on Sat, 05 September 2015, 19:44:14
Case:
It's OK. I like it when cases have cable routing grooves, but it's not really a big deal that it doesn't. It seems solid and the feet are well designed. I don't use flip feet so I didn't have them flipped out when using it. The plastic doesn't feel Chinesey, but it's significantly lighter than an 87u. It slid on my admittedly terrible desk a few times. It probably wouldn't on a normal desk, but still, I give points when a keyboard can deal with a non-optimal surface. What I'm not sure about is the micro USB. Someone else called it a mini, but it's actually a micro. I don't know how sturdy those are compared to the standard mini that you see on most boards with detachable cables. The cable itself was very short and cheap. I don't know if that's the one that comes with it retail, but if so, make sure you have a USB extender. I have tons so it didn't give me any problems. Reasonable height and slope to the case as well. I type with my wrists floating though, so I'm probably not the best judge of that. My big issue with this case is that it has no dip switches. I guess that's a PCB thing, but I'm not doing a section for that, so I'll do it here. A lot of people like to disable the windows key, to the point where it's a pretty common feature in most keyboards even remotely advertised as "gaming" boards. You also can't swap control and capslock. Every board should have that feature.
Switches:
Yeah, like others have said, basically a 45g Topre. What I liked was how consistent it felt. I'm pretty sure all the domes were within 10g of each other for actuation force. I've never owned a Topre keyboard that I could say that about. And consistency is a big deal with rubber domes. A 10g difference on MX switches might be noticeable, but it doesn't really effect the feel of the switch much. Rubber domes, on the other hand, can feel quite different with even a small change in actuation force. I still prefer typing on my Topre though. It might be a slight difference in the switches or in the case material, and even just the sound probably has something to do with it. The Novatouch is pretty close though.
Sound:
This depends a lot on keycaps. With PBT, it sounds alright. It's got that thock, to a degree. Both my 87u and my (former) FC660C sound better though. The Novatouch just sounds a little higher pitched to me. IMSTOs sounded the best, probably because they were thickest. Also, while the stabilized keys feel pretty much the same as the other keys, the backspace sounds pretty rattley compared to everything else. Overall it's not a particularly loud board, about the same as an RF.
Games:
I can't really comment too much on this, even though I'd like to. I like games, but I don't play RTS or MOBA, which would be the genres that this board is best suited for. For FPS it works, but like any non-linear switch, you can't really float the actuation point easily, so I don't prefer it. Same deal with platformers, although I've moved to arcade stick for those recently. CM says this switch actuates at 1mm, which I think is part good part bad. The good part is obviously you don't have to push the key down as far before actuation. I noticed that I was a little more consistent at pressing 2 keys on the same frame than with my cherries. The bad part is that because this is a tactile switch with a non-linear force curve, I bottomed out pretty much each time I pressed a key, and instead of having to move back only 2mm (or usually less, in the case of linear Cherries) to de-actuate, it had to move 3mm. This is not really that huge of a difference, but it's not unnoticeable. So my overall opinion is that, for gaming, I might prefer it to Topre, but for the kinds of games I play, linear MX is a lot better.
Conclusion:
$200? Man that is steep. Considering the case is pretty bare bones, the stock caps are thin abs, and there are no dip switches, I don't really understand where this cost is coming from. It's a nice board, and at $130, or even $150, it would make a lot of sense for a lot of people, but $200? I got my 87u for only $15 more. I guess maybe it's because they had to buy the molds for the MX/Topre hybrid plungers? The problem is that you can get a Topre board for around the same price that already comes with fantastic keycaps. So if I had $200 to spend right now on my first Topre, I would probably just save a little more and get an RF, especially considering I would need around $50 to get the base set of caps I wanted for the Novatouch.
Also, not Novatouch specific, but DSA keycaps didn't work well with it. I think this is because they are non-sculpted and so as a result every row other than the top feels weird because all the caps are sloping down with the board.
I see on their website that they include a braided cable with the retail unit, so don't worry about the tiny cable I was talking about.
Post by: _PixelNinja on Sun, 06 September 2015, 03:15:24
FYI, you can deactivate the Windows key on the Novatouch with FN + F9. And +1 on being able to put Ctrl where is should on all keyboards :D
Post by: majnu on Mon, 07 September 2015, 08:55:33
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 29 September 2015, 13:04:36
Post by: calvinhousecat on Sat, 03 October 2015, 11:09:50
Tour isn't dead. It's currently stuck with greath though. Waiting on him to reply or ship the board to LXXIX.
Are Hwood and Heed out of the tour?
Post by: LXXXIX on Sat, 03 October 2015, 12:59:46
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sat, 03 October 2015, 17:42:28
I still haven't heard anything in weeks. I haven't gotten anything so far.
I haven't heard from greath either. I tried contacting him twice so far.
Tour isn't dead. It's currently stuck with greath though. Waiting on him to reply or ship the board to LXXIX.
Are Hwood and Heed out of the tour?
Yes
Post by: Hypersphere on Sat, 03 October 2015, 18:06:43
After trying many different keycap sets, including Leopold profile and various sets in Cherry profile, the best sets are Ducky dye-sub PBT in OEM profile. The Ducky caps look and feel great, and the OEM profile eliminates the down-stroke click. With these caps and the addition of internal silencing rings, typing on the NT is almost as good as typing on a silenced RF87U.
Post by: calvinhousecat on Sat, 03 October 2015, 19:43:39
I still haven't heard anything in weeks. I haven't gotten anything so far.
I haven't heard from greath either. I tried contacting him twice so far.Tour isn't dead. It's currently stuck with greath though. Waiting on him to reply or ship the board to LXXIX.
Are Hwood and Heed out of the tour?
Yes
Sweet its almost my time to try out that cup rubber :thumb:
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 06 October 2015, 13:48:03
Post by: LXXXIX on Thu, 08 October 2015, 12:47:04
I will give my write up soon enough.
Thanks again CPT for doing this for GH. :thumb:
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 08 October 2015, 12:49:01
Post by: heedpantsnow on Thu, 08 October 2015, 13:42:43
Tour isn't dead. It's currently stuck with greath though. Waiting on him to reply or ship the board to LXXIX.
Are Hwood and Heed out of the tour?
Yes
I apologize, I was on a work trip to the jungle for 3 weeks and didn't get Capt'n's PM until it was too late. I hope I wasn't holding you guys up. Hopefully it will get to me eventually at the end of the line. :-(
Post by: calvinhousecat on Fri, 09 October 2015, 00:56:52
Tour isn't dead. It's currently stuck with greath though. Waiting on him to reply or ship the board to LXXIX.
Are Hwood and Heed out of the tour?
Yes
I apologize, I was on a work trip to the jungle for 3 weeks and didn't get Capt'n's PM until it was too late. I hope I wasn't holding you guys up. Hopefully it will get to me eventually at the end of the line. :-(
No problemo. Just eager to try my firs Topre board in hopefully 2-3 weeks :thumb:
Post by: LXXXIX on Fri, 09 October 2015, 07:02:43
Tour isn't dead. It's currently stuck with greath though. Waiting on him to reply or ship the board to LXXIX.
Are Hwood and Heed out of the tour?
Yes
I apologize, I was on a work trip to the jungle for 3 weeks and didn't get Capt'n's PM until it was too late. I hope I wasn't holding you guys up. Hopefully it will get to me eventually at the end of the line. :-(
No problemo. Just eager to try my firs Topre board in hopefully 2-3 weeks :thumb:
To say the least I might be a converter to cupped rubber. :X
Post by: calvinhousecat on Fri, 09 October 2015, 22:27:00
Tour isn't dead. It's currently stuck with greath though. Waiting on him to reply or ship the board to LXXIX.
Are Hwood and Heed out of the tour?
Yes
I apologize, I was on a work trip to the jungle for 3 weeks and didn't get Capt'n's PM until it was too late. I hope I wasn't holding you guys up. Hopefully it will get to me eventually at the end of the line. :-(
No problemo. Just eager to try my firs Topre board in hopefully 2-3 weeks :thumb:
To say the least I might be a converter to cupped rubber. :X
Is the board already in your hands?
Post by: LXXXIX on Fri, 09 October 2015, 22:50:34
Tour isn't dead. It's currently stuck with greath though. Waiting on him to reply or ship the board to LXXIX.
Are Hwood and Heed out of the tour?
Yes
I apologize, I was on a work trip to the jungle for 3 weeks and didn't get Capt'n's PM until it was too late. I hope I wasn't holding you guys up. Hopefully it will get to me eventually at the end of the line. :-(
No problemo. Just eager to try my firs Topre board in hopefully 2-3 weeks :thumb:
To say the least I might be a converter to cupped rubber. :X
Is the board already in your hands?
Yes I'm typing on it right now.
Post by: calvinhousecat on Tue, 20 October 2015, 13:36:09
its here safe and sound.
I'm typing like a mad man on this thing
Post by: CPTBadAss on Tue, 20 October 2015, 13:37:01
Post by: LXXXIX on Tue, 20 October 2015, 22:50:50
I love the size of the Novatouch. This thing is thick and just the right amount of weight. I also tried to twist it a little and it held up like a champ. I also like that they hid the branding behind the board and wasn't visible when looking at the board while typing. Whatever they used to coat this thing was really pleasing to touch too. The little concave fender thing on the side of the board is a nice touch as it doesn't make it too minimal, and getting it into Razer territory. I also am glad the Novatouch doesn't have LEDs as it's always eventually going to have to get swapped and just keeping the board straight to the point. Though, if it had LEDs I think it would really be nice if they were white or possibly RGB. I really like the construction and look of this board, and I think they should attempt to make an all white limited edition model kind of like what Ducky's Shine 3 did with NZXT.
Feels:
Wow the Novatouch was a real joy to type on! I literally looked forward to coming home and typing on it while I was holding it. I've never experienced a board like that. When I received the keyboard it still had the BSP caps on them. These were a real treat to type and game on (another topic I will cover). I really like how "solid" the whole mechanism feels. The stems also do a great job at holding the caps, and it doesn't feel like anything "wobbles." Overall I was very happy with the switches while having a usual preference for my usual linear blacks.
Gaming:
So I tried this mainly with 3 different games. I'll start with the one I played the most with which is Final Fantasy XIV. Everything went really fluid during movements and even combat was a breeze. I played for many hours while I had it and I didn't feel very fatigued or anything. Though it did feel a little like I was on a membrane after a while. Next, I'll talk about Dota 2 which I think it was paired the best with. Since MOBAs generally have breaks from pressing skills thus, it felt almost as fun as typing. Lastly, I'll mention about an FPS that I cherish which is Quake Live, but unfortunately it fell the shortest in. The key presses were really weird (I guess) for very rapid movement which is a must for a fast paces game like Quake Live. After a couple of matches it was just strange to play on. I'm not sure how else to explain it.
Sounds:
The thock is definitely there, and it only intensifies when it's paired with some thick caps. I don't have too much to say except I find the sound of typing on the Novatouch more pleasant than MX switches. I'd prefer this over any other switch types if sound is a priority.
Final thoughts:
In conclusion, the Novatouch was a blast to type and play some games on. The overall look and feel of the Novatouch was fun, humble, and straight to the point. This a great board that I think would be an awesome board to have in an office environment and on the desk back home. Overall I think I may have to purchase one of these mainly since I want to slow down on buying boards. The Novatouch is honestly at a great price point if you can nab one if it's on sale (right now for a barebones kit for $129.99 on MD). At the end of the day the one thing that really stuck with me was that the Novatouch really requires some nice and thick keycaps to really enjoy it. The Galaxy Class set was really not that intriguing or fun to type on. So if someone were to ask me if they should purchase this board I would mention these pros and cons to them;
Pros:
- Great size.
- Looks and feels solid.
- Very easy to type on without fatigue.
- Easy to swap out keycaps.
- MX compatible stems.
Cons:
- Needs some quality keycaps to really get the most out of it.
- TKL?
- A bit pricey when not on sale.
- Not ideal for twitchy games or FPSs.
I also wanted to give a huge thank you to CPTBadAss for running the tour so smoothly :thumb:
Post by: abjr on Fri, 23 October 2015, 14:45:03
First, apologies to CPTBadAss. I should not have taken so long to write this up as writing a review is part of the tour.
Second, this review is from the POV of someone who has never used a Topre board before (or since) so I will not be comparing it to a Realforce, HHKB, etc. I have really only used Cherry MX Blues and fake ALPS Acer clones as far as mechanical switches are concerned.
So on to the review. I have to admit, I hated it at first. I think coming from MX blues, the feel and sound it made were just too different at first. A bit jarring actually. It also didn't really feel like there was any tactility to it at all. I definitely bottomed out on every keystroke (I do that normally anyway) but it felt, for me at least, that the 45g switches are a bit light. So after using it for the first day at home I brought it to work the rest of the week. I don't know how to really explain it other than it really did feel awkward to use at first. My 7 year old son loved it tho :-)
At work it got a lot of regular use and started to become more enjoyable to type on. It really does sound pretty cool when you are typing fast and in a good rhythm. That "thock" sound everyone makes reference to does start to grow on you after a while. It's noisier than I expected, but coming from MX blues, that doesn't really bother me. One thing I did notice is that the stabilized keys do sound a bit different. As well, if you are just pressing random keys here and there and let go quickly, to me it does sound like the keys rattle a bit. The tour did include a lot of other key sets, but I left the Galaxy Class (DSA) set on there. I don't know how any of the other caps would have affected the sound or feel of the board. By the end of the week I was wishing I could have kept it a little longer.
Pros:
- It does sound nice if you give it some time
- MX compatible stems
- Build quality seemed fine to me
- Nice weight to it
- TKL. My prefered form factor
Cons:
- That damned rubber coating. It does seem better (more resistant to smudges/fingerprints) than the coating on my QFR, but I really hate the coating.
- Right hand side micro usb port
- No underside cable routing
- No caps lock LED
- 45g too light?
- That damned rubber coating.
So all in all, I did like it despite some of it's quirks. The price is a bit steep, but I do think I could find myself buying one as a change of pace if the right deal came along.
-abjr
Post by: Hypersphere on Fri, 23 October 2015, 20:01:25
However, regarding the connector, I have become accustomed to using 60% boards that usually have a flush-mount mini-USB connector on the rear of the case, although it is usually on the left (as you face the keyboard) or near the center. Because I swap out keyboards fairly frequently, I don't want to have cable routing, and I find it difficult to connect and disconnect the cable from a recessed area on the underside of the keyboard.
Therefore, I found it refreshing when using the Novatouch to have the connector easily accessible on the rear of the case and not having to undo the cable routing when switching out keyboards. Nevertheless, I understand that many people apparently really like to have the connector on the underside of the case with cable routing.
I understand CM's rationale for choosing a micro-USB connector (it is supposedly longer-lived than a mini-USB connector), but because most of my keyboards use mini-USB, I needed to keep a micro-USB cable handy when connecting the Novatouch. On balance, though, I like CM's choice of connector and its location on the keyboard.
Post by: LXXXIX on Sun, 25 October 2015, 20:33:25
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 02 November 2015, 07:21:59
Post by: heedpantsnow on Mon, 02 November 2015, 09:38:36
Board is in heedpantsnow's hot little hands right now.
FTFY
Post by: CPTBadAss on Thu, 19 November 2015, 06:48:01
Post by: heedpantsnow on Thu, 19 November 2015, 13:50:36
The board arrived back at my home a few days ago. I'm going to look over what's in there and then the tour will go on a break until after the holidays when I'll restart it with some new stuff. Thanks to everyone for generally being great participants. There were only a few issues. Also if you haven't put your thoughts or a review up, please do so. Thanks.
Do I review here or in reviews section?
Post by: CPTBadAss on Mon, 23 November 2015, 08:46:48
Do I review here or in reviews section?
Wherever you want.