New Model M (UT40U4A)

[MJmusicguy]

I can find very little information and unicomps announcement and website is disgustingly useless so im hopeing someone has bought one of the newer keyboards hoping Chyrosran22 gets his hands on the neweer board and can do a review because information is sparse.

[Maledicted]

Is this kind of what you're looking for?

Unicomp Tenkeyless 6 week delay, and new Model M:

I'm personally a little curious about that Mini M, otherwise I should probably stick with my Model Fs anyway.

[MJmusicguy]

Yes that’s exactly the one that I’m talking about but the press release was very confusing mixing a delayed product announcement with a new launch  the order page has practically no information whatsoever so I ordered one based on   the fact that It have new tooling new moulding and a newly fabricated back plate that’s about all I know and despite hearing about the company’s amazing customer service they seem rather rude And evasive to any sort of intelligent technological question

[Maledicted]

Yes that’s exactly the one that I’m talking about but the press release was very confusing mixing a delayed product announcement with a new launch  the order page has practically no information whatsoever so I ordered one based on   the fact that It have new tooling new moulding and a newly fabricated back plate that’s about all I know and despite hearing about the company’s amazing customer service they seem rather rude And evasive to any sort of intelligent technological question

I have only communicated directly with them once. It was for a missing cap I ordered, out of an assortment of other caps I ordered. I sent a picture of the unopened bag sans one of my two Geekhack caps and the promptly sent me tracking information for the one they forgot, no questions asked.

I imagine they might get defensive if they think that you may be some kind of Model M purist, as a lot of people look down on Unicomps for their diminished quality vs an IBM.

[MJmusicguy]

They claim anyway  that the new model fixes previous concerns problems is I cannot dig deeper beyond what little they provide I’m hoping someone here bought one and can post a review on it that’s the only way will get to know this new model.

[Maledicted]

They claim anyway  that the new model fixes previous concerns problems is I cannot dig deeper beyond what little they provide I’m hoping someone here bought one and can post a review on it that’s the only way will get to know this new model.

The author of that thread I linked before will probably pick one up right away, and chime in on his thoughts. He's got a bunch of Unicomps.

[MJmusicguy]

Let’s hope
EDIT mine arrived today anybody want to know anything?

[Maledicted]

Let’s hope
EDIT mine arrived today anybody want to know anything?

How do you like it? It is your first buckling spring, right? How does the build quality seem? The whole point was mostly new tooling, right?

[MJmusicguy]

It has all new tooling and molding and newly fabricated back plate  IE no misalignment on the keys not a blemish to be seen in the body  feels very sturdy nothing like the old reviews that's why I was on the freaking fence so long I was afraid of the quality issues but this one seems perfect.

This was worth it but this is my first MK (i know its technically a membrane ) and also my first Unicomp but the new equipment really shines here

[Maledicted]

It has all new tooling and molding and newly fabricated back plate  IE no misalignment on the keys not a blemish to be seen in the body  feels very sturdy nothing like the old reviews that's why I was on the freaking fence so long I was afraid of the quality issues but this one seems perfect.

This was worth it but this is my first MK (i know its technically a membrane ) and also my first Unicomp but the new equipment really shines here

I own no Unicomps myself, but I imagine that a lot of the QC complaints were from some very picky IBM purists. I imagine it can be hard going from an early IBM 1390131 to even an early Lexmark. As time went on, materials were made thinner, legends less sharp, etc.

The switches themselves are every bit as mechanical as a Model F, the only functional difference is how they register. Arguments can be had as to what exactly should be considered mechanical anyway. We traditionally exclude things like scissor mechanisms, and rubber domes, but they are still mechanisms, even if they're cheap and feel terrible. You would have to get into flat membranes with nothing else, laser projection keyboards, etc, to be able to say that they'rer really not mechanical.

[MJmusicguy]

it is definitively a dream to type on I was also nervous of roll over i haven't  had a issue granted this is day 2 and i cant seem to find a proper keyboard checker tool ? the one recommended lead to a Korean websitw 

[Maledicted]

it is definitively a dream to type on I was also nervous of roll over i haven't  had a issue granted this is day 2 and i cant seem to find a proper keyboard checker tool ? the one recommended lead to a Korean websitw

I think a lot of people use this:

Aqua Key Test

If you like a Unicomp M, you may like an F exponentially more. Not that you should spend the money.

[ch_123]

The new Model M case seems to be a fullsize version of the SSK case - i.e. the bezels are the same proportion as the SSK. The original M cases have much more wider bezel at the top of the keyboard.

Aside from that, and the fact that the tooling is fresh, I would expect it to be similar to the standard Unicomp Model M. I wouldn’t be surprised if they phase out some of their other keyboard designs once they clear out the remaining inventory.

[depletedvespene]

It has all new tooling and molding and newly fabricated back plate  IE no misalignment on the keys not a blemish to be seen in the body  feels very sturdy nothing like the old reviews that's why I was on the freaking fence so long I was afraid of the quality issues but this one seems perfect.

This was worth it but this is my first MK (i know its technically a membrane ) and also my first Unicomp but the new equipment really shines here

I own no Unicomps myself, but I imagine that a lot of the QC complaints were from some very picky IBM purists. I imagine it can be hard going from an early IBM 1390131 to even an early Lexmark. As time went on, materials were made thinner, legends less sharp, etc.

To go with the "IBM purist" thing, an early IBM 1390131 is the kind of keyboard you beat DOOM's cyberdemon to gory death with. Later Lexmarks and Unicomps in general aren't as tough, so you'd use those to beat to death, at most, the cacodemons and the mancubuses (mancubii?). But the point remains: they're still somewhat tough keyboards.

However, Unicomp seriously dropped(*) the ball for several years regarding keycaps, where the dyesubbing became noticeably worse and increasingly-poorly aligned, to the point that some early Unicomp keyboards were scavenged for their caps (I wish I were joking). This, and some other rather visible QA issues were what gave a bad name to Unicomp's keyboards.

I really, really wish they have gotten better. For better or worse, I'm in line for one of those new SSKs, when they do come out. We shall see...



(*) As opposed to "marketing skills", where Unicomp never HAD a ball in the first place.

[MJmusicguy]

It has all new tooling and molding and newly fabricated back plate  IE no misalignment on the keys not a blemish to be seen in the body  feels very sturdy nothing like the old reviews that's why I was on the freaking fence so long I was afraid of the quality issues but this one seems perfect.

This was worth it but this is my first MK (i know its technically a membrane ) and also my first Unicomp but the new equipment really shines here

I own no Unicomps myself, but I imagine that a lot of the QC complaints were from some very picky IBM purists. I imagine it can be hard going from an early IBM 1390131 to even an early Lexmark. As time went on, materials were made thinner, legends less sharp, etc.

To go with the "IBM purist" thing, an early IBM 1390131 is the kind of keyboard you beat DOOM's cyberdemon to gory death with. Later Lexmarks and Unicomps in general aren't as tough, so you'd use those to beat to death, at most, the cacodemons and the mancubuses (mancubii?). But the point remains: they're still somewhat tough keyboards.

However, Unicomp seriously dropped(*) the ball for several years regarding keycaps, where the dyesubbing became noticeably worse and increasingly-poorly aligned, to the point that some early Unicomp keyboards were scavenged for their caps (I wish I were joking). This, and some other rather visible QA issues were what gave a bad name to Unicomp's keyboards.

I really, really wish they have gotten better. For better or worse, I'm in line for one of those new SSKs, when they do come out. We shall see...



(*) As opposed to "marketing skills", where Unicomp never HAD a ball in the first place.

this new model seems be just fine I have nothing to compare ot to as this is my first and only Unicomp but I had researched all the negatives and was actually going to  get the
Filco Majestouch 2  before unicomp announced this new model it is very nice and does not seem to have any of the issue i was concerned with.

[Maledicted]

It has all new tooling and molding and newly fabricated back plate  IE no misalignment on the keys not a blemish to be seen in the body  feels very sturdy nothing like the old reviews that's why I was on the freaking fence so long I was afraid of the quality issues but this one seems perfect.

This was worth it but this is my first MK (i know its technically a membrane ) and also my first Unicomp but the new equipment really shines here

I own no Unicomps myself, but I imagine that a lot of the QC complaints were from some very picky IBM purists. I imagine it can be hard going from an early IBM 1390131 to even an early Lexmark. As time went on, materials were made thinner, legends less sharp, etc.

To go with the "IBM purist" thing, an early IBM 1390131 is the kind of keyboard you beat DOOM's cyberdemon to gory death with. Later Lexmarks and Unicomps in general aren't as tough, so you'd use those to beat to death, at most, the cacodemons and the mancubuses (mancubii?). But the point remains: they're still somewhat tough keyboards.

However, Unicomp seriously dropped(*) the ball for several years regarding keycaps, where the dyesubbing became noticeably worse and increasingly-poorly aligned, to the point that some early Unicomp keyboards were scavenged for their caps (I wish I were joking). This, and some other rather visible QA issues were what gave a bad name to Unicomp's keyboards.

I really, really wish they have gotten better. For better or worse, I'm in line for one of those new SSKs, when they do come out. We shall see...



(*) As opposed to "marketing skills", where Unicomp never HAD a ball in the first place.

this new model seems be just fine I have nothing to compare ot to as this is my first and only Unicomp but I had researched all the negatives and was actually going to  get the
Filco Majestouch 2  before unicomp announced this new model it is very nice and does not seem to have any of the issue i was concerned with.

Personally, I don't much see how it matters anyway, other than maybe getting your money's worth, and the odd controller failure. I can't say I would care if legends looked perfectly crisp under a microscope, or if they looked like they were spray painted on with a rattle can. Touch typists aren't looking at the legends, and if they do, they just need to be able to tell what it says.

If you like it, enjoy it. Unless the Unicomp controller goes haywire, it should last you many years, and even if it does, they'll send you another one.