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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: Nikelu on Thu, 12 March 2015, 10:57:58
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Seeing them a lot lately and I have been wondering. I think they are pretty cheap but I would like to hear your opinions and experiences,if any Noppoo failed you etc.
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I have a Noppoo EC108-Pro, and I think the quality is quite good. It is feels solid and sturdy, the materials they use are very nice. The stock keycaps in particular are very appealing, nice thick caps made of a POM/PBT mix in Cherry profile. It is the only Noppoo I have, so I can't speak to their other products, but particularly for the price, it is well worth it.
Which model are you considering?
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I had a Choc mini. It was pretty crappy. The printing was awful, felt cheap, case didn't fit well, and sometimes had denounce problems.
Edit: dang phone autocorrect
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My TANK was built "tough but sloppy": pretty generous in terms of materials but without that aura of extreme precision that you get with, say, high-end Costar-manufactured products. It also didn't have the "tremble control" (debounce adjustment) of some Noppoo models, and developed key chatter issues after around a year.
Not sure if I would recommend the brand or not...Noppoo QC and construction standards seem to vary a lot from year to year and model to model. Some people have managed to get good ones and report very high quality. Other people have completely the opposite experience. Mine was somewhere in the middle.
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Well its got Poo in the name.
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I have a Noppoo Choc Mini since 2011 which was used a lot and has proven very reliable / high quality (MX browns).
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As long as you don't look at the soldering… I hear it's a hit or miss. It certainly sucks on mine.
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Well I guess this proves the hit or miss comment...I had a choc mini and hated it. Printing was soooo inconsistent and bad and the thing creaked like my grandpa's knees.
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From general comments, its hit or miss. If you do get a good copy (my Choc Mini proves to be, I have a long term review posted), they can be great performance for value. Mine is solidly built and the only complaints I have are related to the keycaps; some are wobbly (they don't fit on the stems perfectly, so they can lean a little if you hit one side of the key) and the side print legends don't hold up. Otherwise it's been my work board for two ish years now, and continues to serve its function perfectly (I've watched the rubber dome that gets plugged into my terminal when I'm not there slowly wither away).
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My choc mini was creaky and light. I didn't like to too much. Print wore off super easy too though maybe not an issue on the PBTs.
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Well, the thing is… it was an awesome keyboard for the price. Genuine Cherry MX switches, *thick POM* (or white PBT, respectively) keycaps, CapsLock-Control swap, a decent layout.
The creaky screwless case never bothered me. Neither did the unusual spacebar, because the stock keycap was already superb quality. However, the soldering, along with potential double tapping issues, made me consider ditching the PCB and hardwiring a matrix + a Teensy. Would it be worth it? Probably not.
You can get a Costar tenkeyless instead—with better build quality, compatibility with aftermarket keycaps, a replacement controller. Or a (custom) matrix keyboard with a customizable firmware.