Topre 45g - Will i grow to appreciate it?

[Lunatique]

There are certainly high quality rubber dome keyboards, and I don't look down on them the way some people in the community do. It's perfectly fine to end up with a standard rubber dome keyboard as your favorite daily driver, even after trying out all the fancy mechanical keyboards--I wouldn't think anything of it. It's what you do with the keyboard that really matters, so if you have a fancy keyboard but do nothing worthwhile with it, then the keyboard becomes the focus of what you do. But if you are happy with a standard rubber dome keyboard but write amazing novels and screenplays or code awesome software on it, then that's far more meaningful than obsessing over the keyboard itself.

[Shayde]

There are certainly high quality rubber dome keyboards, and I don't look down on them the way some people in the community do. It's perfectly fine to end up with a standard rubber dome keyboard as your favorite daily driver, even after trying out all the fancy mechanical keyboards--I wouldn't think anything of it. It's what you do with the keyboard that really matters, so if you have a fancy keyboard but do nothing worthwhile with it, then the keyboard becomes the focus of what you do. But if you are happy with a standard rubber dome keyboard but write amazing novels and screenplays or code awesome software on it, then that's far more meaningful than obsessing over the keyboard itself.

I'm afraid I have way too many mechanicals to go back to rubber dome.  I only went back to it that day because it was preferable to the Novatouch.    Still a bit mushy for my liking.

But as a general message, yeah, I agree.

[Lunatique]

I want to clarify that I wasn't making any value judgments with what I said. The comment assumes that the hypothetical person is actually quite happy with a standard rubber dome keyboard, and feels no need for anything more, and is using it as a tool to do what is meaningful to him. It wasn't a judgment about whether keyboards are a meaningful hobby/passion, or even a career choice (becoming a keyboard designer/modder/manufacturer/retailer).

[RoflCopter4]

I'm one of those people whose initial response to Topre was, "This is it? It's just like a more solid/smooth rubber dome!" It took a few weeks of alternating between a few different switch types to start to really understand why some people claim Topre is the king of all switches, and now I'm a convert too.

4) Topre keyboards are historically by default, of very high quality (although some might say the recent development with the Novatouch has changed that somewhat. I have no experience with the Novatouch, so I can't say).

I'm a Topre convert too. I used to have an HHKB and Type S, and now I have a Realforce 45g, 55g, FC660C, and Novatouch and I plan to keep the 55g, FC, and Novatouch. None of the MX switches feel as good anymore after getting used to Topre.

Having disassembled a Novatouch and seen the insides, I can say that the build quality is actually very nice - better than a Realforce. Like I mentioned earlier though, it's very difficult to take apart the Novatouch versus a Realforce. I'll describe some of the details:

- The Novatouch case is secured by 4 screws, two of which are hidden, and the two halves of the case are held together by snap-in clips similar to CM's other mechanical keyboards in which you have to use a flat-head screwdriver or some thin lever to pry the case apart carefully.
- The Novatouch uses large continuous sheets of rubber domes, as opposed to the Realforce in which each key has an individual rubber dome.

The only thing CM cheaped out on is the keycaps, which look and feel cheap, but they're probably intended to be replaced by nicer sets with Novatouch's unique MX compatibility.

Jesus Christ man, are you Bill Gates or something?

[Heliosphere]

I'm one of those people whose initial response to Topre was, "This is it? It's just like a more solid/smooth rubber dome!" It took a few weeks of alternating between a few different switch types to start to really understand why some people claim Topre is the king of all switches, and now I'm a convert too.

4) Topre keyboards are historically by default, of very high quality (although some might say the recent development with the Novatouch has changed that somewhat. I have no experience with the Novatouch, so I can't say).

I'm a Topre convert too. I used to have an HHKB and Type S, and now I have a Realforce 45g, 55g, FC660C, and Novatouch and I plan to keep the 55g, FC, and Novatouch. None of the MX switches feel as good anymore after getting used to Topre.

Having disassembled a Novatouch and seen the insides, I can say that the build quality is actually very nice - better than a Realforce. Like I mentioned earlier though, it's very difficult to take apart the Novatouch versus a Realforce. I'll describe some of the details:

- The Novatouch case is secured by 4 screws, two of which are hidden, and the two halves of the case are held together by snap-in clips similar to CM's other mechanical keyboards in which you have to use a flat-head screwdriver or some thin lever to pry the case apart carefully.
- The Novatouch uses large continuous sheets of rubber domes, as opposed to the Realforce in which each key has an individual rubber dome.

The only thing CM cheaped out on is the keycaps, which look and feel cheap, but they're probably intended to be replaced by nicer sets with Novatouch's unique MX compatibility.

Jesus Christ man, are you Bill Gates or something?

More like a drug addict. I am in no way wealthy.

Edit: I also bought my keyboards at pretty good second hand deals too, novatouch at around 130, modded 55g at 180, and fc at 200. Paid way too much for a modded rf 45g, keyboard felt mushy.

[Lunatique]

More like a drug addict. I am in no way wealthy.

Edit: I also bought my keyboards at pretty good second hand deals too, novatouch at around 130, modded 55g at 180, and fc at 200. Paid way too much for a modded rf 45g, keyboard felt mushy.

Those are really good deals you got, so no guilt--just enjoy them! 

[minh278]

When i first got topre(i came from white alps) i was like for the first week "da heck did i pay $300 dollars from japan for ... ". I grew to like it alot and im ashamed of my first week using it. The topre took about 2 weeks for me to get accustomed to and truly appreciate it, and now im like "best money ever spent". Though i still believe my mx blacks are better for gaming. Pbt keycaps make a BIG difference in keyboard feel, your novatouch may feel better or worse with them on.

[rowdy]

Lenovo makes nice rubber dome keyboards, I really like the ones on my X220 - which actually feel surprisingly similar to dampened Topre. I agree that I did not like the Novatouch, even after using it for a week. The Novatouch felt and sounded terrible compared to other Topre keyboards. Silent modding the Novatouch changes the experience completely.

Normally we have those hideous Logitech K120's at work, so the Lenovo KB1021 was a pleasant surprise compared to those (and the Novatouch).  This is the board I'm talking about (if it's not blasphemy to publish a picture of a rubber dome!), but with the Lenovo logo, not IBM:

Show Image

I have a couple of these, including one NiB.  They are definitely amongst the better rubber dome keyboards I have used.

[Shayde]

I have a couple of these, including one NiB.  They are definitely amongst the better rubber dome keyboards I have used.

It was a pleasant surprise.  I guess even if they need to resort to making rubber domes, Lenovo/IBM make sure to do them well.

Do you know if the keys are PBT?

[rowdy]

I have a couple of these, including one NiB.  They are definitely amongst the better rubber dome keyboards I have used.

It was a pleasant surprise.  I guess even if they need to resort to making rubber domes, Lenovo/IBM make sure to do them well.

Do you know if the keys are PBT?

I would very much doubt it.  Not on a $10 keyboard.