I really need help - *need* Sony VAIO notebook style keyboard

[henzen]

I'm despondent.

I've spent a bloody fortune on PC keyboards over the years trying to find something which feels similar to my Sony VAIO notebook keyboard.

They sometimes come close in feel, but then they're too "loose" and make a noise, etc.  ie, the quality is almost always lacking.

If you've worked on a Sony VAIO then you'll know what I'm talking about:  very low travel, lovely tactile feedback (those babies pop through with delicious tiny little orgasms), slightly concave, compact, quiet.

Problem is, I can only find keyboards online, so I have to BUY them to try them out, so invariably I'll wait in anticipation, then it will arrive and *look* wonderful, but never feel quite right... 

Can someone PLEASE weigh in with some suggestions?

I can't take this any more, but I need a few decent keyboards for the PC's I work on.

I refuse to compromise and settle on crap.

[oTurtlez]

What kind of price range are you looking at?

[henzen]

By now, I'm desperate enough to spend a couple of hundred dollars like a crazy fool.

Just found the Sony VGP-BKB1 - looks exactly like what I need, but reviews seem to complain about the bluetooth being unreliable.  sigh.

What's a bet I'll order the Sony VGP-BKB1 and it will not be the same quality as a regular Sony VAIO notebook keyboard?  For example, some keyboards have a close-enough tactile feel, low travel, etc, but if you lightly run your fingers over the keyboard the keys are loose enough to make a noise.

Anyway, something like the Sony VGP-BKB1 (or similar quality from another make) but with USB might be ideal.

[henzen]

replying to myself... bad form.

VGP-WKB13 might be the solution.  It Might Be The One.

[dorkvader]

You might be able to find one of those topre keyboards with low-travel switches. I haven't used one, but I imagine they'd be pretty good.

Another option to consider is the cherry G84. I really enjoy mine. It's quite tactile.

We don't see sony that much at my work (Computer repair) but I didn't think their keyboards were much better than any normal scissor keyboard (Like, it was good for a scissor, but I much preferred mech's).

I suppose I'd wait for someone with a sony to chime in, as I've not experience enough with them to related them to any mechanical (or other decent) keyboard I know.

[JaccoW]

Sony keyboards are supposedly slightly below Thinkpad. I'll find out in a few days. Just ordered an Vaio S13P.

Like Dorkvader said. Look at the cherry G84 and its Cherry ML switches.
The apple wireless keyboards seem to be highly regarded as well.

The way scissor-switch keyboards are made inherently makes them rattle as it is only to stabilize them on the rubber dome, not act as the actual switch.
Ever thought of modding the keyboard? Like putting a thin layer of foam underneath?

[Daniel Beardsmore]

I've used Sony VAIOs and I had an Apple Wired Aluminium. Sony keyboards are definitely better – there's a subtle but distinct degree of extra tactility in Sony's switches compared to Apple's. Both have a substantially less resistance than normal scissors, and I wouldn't take either over a proper scissor. I must get myself a cheap Cherry ML board one day for a proper comparison – the one I tried once had the same limp feel as island scissors as I recall, except they're meant to be linear.

The most recent VAIO I was working on (a couple of weeks ago) was an ultrabook or some such, so the switches were still tactile, but impossibly short travel, and by that point you're getting silly. It was a superb computer otherwise (especially considering that I am a Sony hater) but the keyboard completely ruined it. May as well have just printed rounded rects on the side of a cereal box and pretended. Either be a tablet, or be a respectable subnotebook!

(This message sent from Simplified ALPS Type IV switches ... hmm ... at least they're not as bad as XM ...................)

[JaccoW]

Might have been a Sony Vaio Z. Great laptop spec-wise: 1.2Kg + full HD 13" + full-voltage i7 quadcore + Raid-0 SSD, but a keyboard without any travel in it. It is a common complaint on that model, but most people can get used to it.

If you have tried so many scissor switch keyboards, why not let other people in on that experience and write a review about some of the keyboards you tried here?

EDIT: There is an ML G84 on deskthority right now. thread. Look at the pictures and read the discussion.

[Daniel Beardsmore]

I don't like scissor switches?

They're simply a necessary evil.

[JaccoW]

Whoops, thought you were the OP.

[cactux]

take a look at ebay, several years ago I got one for my srx-77

[henzen]

Sony keyboards are supposedly slightly below Thinkpad. I'll find out in a few days. Just ordered an Vaio S13P.

Like Dorkvader said. Look at the cherry G84 and its Cherry ML switches.
The apple wireless keyboards seem to be highly regarded as well.

The way scissor-switch keyboards are made inherently makes them rattle as it is only to stabilize them on the rubber dome, not act as the actual switch.
Ever thought of modding the keyboard? Like putting a thin layer of foam underneath?

Let me know how the S13P works out for you.  My VGPWKB13 is en route from the USA...  at almost triple the price.

...and yes, I've often thought about lifting each key and inserting a bit of foam to tone down the damn rattle.  Nice to hear I'm not the only person with such obsessive thoughts.

[henzen]

Might have been a Sony Vaio Z. Great laptop spec-wise: 1.2Kg + full HD 13" + full-voltage i7 quadcore + Raid-0 SSD, but a keyboard without any travel in it. It is a common complaint on that model, but most people can get used to it.

If you have tried so many scissor switch keyboards, why not let other people in on that experience and write a review about some of the keyboards you tried here?

EDIT: There is an ML G84 on deskthority right now. thread. Look at the pictures and read the discussion.

thanks - in hindsight I should have kept a log and posted reviews, you're right.  Anywho, I usually check 'em away mostly out of disgust and shame that I YET AGAIN spent money on crap.  My wife just shakes her head.

[JaccoW]

Thus far the S13P is really nice, even the keyboard. I can see what it is you are looking for. When I get some more experience with it (e.g. when classes start and I will be typing on it for longer stretches of time) I will try to comment on it a bit more.

[henzen]

Yup, the keyboard has a nice quality feel.

I finally got my VGP-WKB13, and it delivers nicely.

It has precisely the same feel and look as my vaio notebook keyboard.  Nice and quiet, tactile, etc.  Bloody hell, finally a keyboard I feel at home on.  I would have preferred a wired keyboard, but hey, beggars can't be choosers.

My *only* complaint is the letter P occasionally doesn't respond to my rapid typing.  Not sure what that's all about, but might improve with time.  Maybe if I stomp that sucker a bit, lemme see: pppppPPPppppppPPPpppppppp.  There, feels more responsive   

I can finally say I'm happy with my keyboard purchase.  I highly recommend the Sony VGP-WKB13 if you appreciate a low-profile notebook style keyboard with nice tactile feedback, and respectively quiet.

Cheers

[JaccoW]

Thanks for the feedback. It sounds like a nice keyboard. Enjoy