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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: PRISONER 24601 on Thu, 19 November 2009, 02:06:57

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: PRISONER 24601 on Thu, 19 November 2009, 02:06:57

Das, Filco, and I think ABS are made by Costar
Cherry produces boards for tons of companies
What about the others?

A few months down the road, and I'll have some 30k to blow on starting a business. I'm considering the possibility of a company that specializes in solutions for businesses that deal with tons of data input.

I'm sure many of you have considered something similar to this :)

Your thoughts?

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: ch_123 on Thu, 19 November 2009, 03:14:58

Ask Unicomp to make 5,000 Model M Minis. Do it.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: TheSoulhunter on Thu, 19 November 2009, 09:35:38

I'd go for Costar and aluminum Filco clones! :D

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: itlnstln on Thu, 19 November 2009, 09:44:22

Quote from: ripster;134035

Did they ever charge you for those "samples". What a scam dude! You should train Nigerians.

I hope Soulhunter gets key transposition errors and shiny caps.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: PRISONER 24601 on Thu, 19 November 2009, 10:57:20

Maybe I'm just crazy and should invest in hedge funds like everyone else.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: itlnstln on Thu, 19 November 2009, 11:09:30

I don't know.  I would imagine that the quality keyboard market is pretty small.  Elite already has the market pretty much cornered in the US by providing the most popular 'boards.  You would have to differentiate your assortment enough that you don't overlap with Elite.  That means you would have to probably stay away from anything that might even resemble a Filco and carry stuff like Cherry Corp. 'boards and maybe a few others.  I think, though, that since Elite has the more desirable product lines, even if you did carry "something else," it would have to have enough appeal to get enough business to make it worthwhile, and I would suggest that it wouldn't.
 
Personally, I would look into another market to invest your money.  I don't think, currently, that there is enough room in the market for another US distributor.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: timw4mail on Thu, 19 November 2009, 11:09:58

Quote from: ripster;134049

P.S.  Don't you programmers take an Ethics class in college?

GAH! Thanks for reminding me that I have to go through such a course that likely encourages the kind of behavior that it is supposed to discourage.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: itlnstln on Thu, 19 November 2009, 11:11:00

I never took an ethics class.  I guess that explains a lot of my actions at work.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: timw4mail on Thu, 19 November 2009, 11:13:58

Quote from: itlnstln;134050

I don't know.  I would imagine that the quality keyboard market is pretty small.  Elite already has the market pretty much cornered in the US by providing the most popular 'boards.  You would have to differentiate your assortment enough that you don't overlap with Elite.  That means you would have to probably stay away from anything that might even resemble a Filco and carry stuff like Cherry Corp. 'boards and maybe a few others.  I think, though, that since Elite has the more desirable product lines, even if you did carry "something else," it would have to have enough appeal to get enough business to make it worthwhile, and I would suggest that it wouldn't.
 
Personally, I would look into another market to invest your money.  I don't think, currently, that there is enough room in the market for another US distributor.

Well, I'd think that with carrying different products, such as the Scorpius M10, and Cherry-brand keyboards, that there would be some demand. The real problem these days is that there is just not enough variety in the kinds of mechanical switch keyboards you can get anymore.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: msiegel on Thu, 19 November 2009, 11:29:26

one day, ripster... we're gonna catch you posting a lolcat
:)

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: TheSoulhunter on Thu, 19 November 2009, 14:58:46

Quote from: ripster;134035

Did they ever charge you for those "samples".   What a scam dude!  You should train Nigerians.

WAT? You make it sound like I got them for free...

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: rdjack21 on Thu, 19 November 2009, 15:10:34

Quote from: ripster;134062

I'm proud that of ALL my pics the only Lolcat I did was this one.  And at least I stripped the lolz.

Show Image

(http://forums.adobe.com/servlet/JiveServlet/showImage/2-2133909-8005/trashcat_410.jpg)

Cats are evil.  And LOLcats, well.....

What is really hilarious my 7 year old son and me are reading a book called Bunnicula. This book is written from the perspective of the family dog the family also has a cat and of course a rabbit named Bunnicula. Any ways the cat is a real nut case full of all kinds of conspiracy theories. We are on the 4th book of the series and in every one of them the family cat is a real nut case and the guest cats are even nuttier.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: ironcoder on Thu, 19 November 2009, 15:18:09

Quote from: ripster;134049

P.S.  Don't you programmers take an Ethics class in college?

Nah man, that stuff is for liberal arts majors. We go to the engineering college :lol:

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: microsoft windows on Thu, 19 November 2009, 16:23:37

LOLcats are a form of internet pollution. Seeing an obviously Photoshopped image of a  cat that says something like "I iS a stupyd Joke!!!!!!!!1" gets old after a while.

Title: OEM Keyboard Manufacturers?
Post by: ch_123 on Thu, 19 November 2009, 16:53:25

Just like posting "I like [Model Ms/Windows 2000]" in every thread also gets repetitive. But hey, no one's perfect, right?