New member review posted - SMK85

[iMav]

Our first (of, hopefully, many) member-provided product reviews has been posted on the wiki.  

Check it out here.

If you wish to provide a review of a current product you own, PM me.  Soon, I will have a list up on the wiki of products needing reviews.  When that is available, if you are interested in reviewing a specific item, PM me and I will get it to you.  

Anyways, commence commenting on the SMK85 review!

[Whiskey in the Jar-o]

Nice review. But I don't think it's my type of keyboard (noise and actuation force).

 BTW, I'm sick of those supposedly professional online magazines that seem to like practically every keyboard they review. There's usually one measly little paragraph on key feel, and page after page gushing about multimedia keys and attendant software, drivers, and how curvy, backlit the damn thing is. This is a good jumping-off point for all that nauseum:

http://www.consumersearch.com/www/computers/keyboards/reviews.html

[xsphat]

Nice review. But I don't think it's my type of keyboard (noise and actuation force).

 BTW, I'm sick of those supposedly professional online magazines that seem to like practically every keyboard they review. There's usually one measly little paragraph on key feel, and page after page gushing about multimedia keys and attendant software, drivers, and how curvy, backlit the damn thing is. This is a good jumping-off point for all that nauseum:

http://www.consumersearch.com/www/computers/keyboards/reviews.html

Thank you, and I totally agree with you on professional keyboard reviews.

[mr_sf_applet]

So is there anywhere you can still get this version of the SMK85 (all black, Alps sliders)?

I can't find it available anywhere online. There's one site that lists it (Consumer Best Buys at http://www.cbbstore.com), but after my experience with that site, I'm convinced they don't have it either, and I strongly suspect they're not legit (and if you do visit the site, and you're using IE for your browser, you'd better be outfitted with really good anti-virus & anti-Trojan protection).

[xsphat]

Someone else I know had trouble with that store as well.

Try these companies (info from the GeekHack wiki):

DS International - sales@dsi-usa.com / 877.548.7003
Fentek Industries - info@fentek-ind.com / 800.639.0710

Get a hold of Karl at DSI, ask for old stock, he may still have some of these lying around. Mine is unbelievable, the best typing experience I;ve had to date. It feels better than the HHKB Pro 2, but I still love this keyboard.

[eugenius]

so why do you now have a topre realforce 86u?

[xsphat]

Because it rules.

[fkeidjn]

Nice review. But I don't think it's my type of keyboard (noise and actuation force).

This guy apparently took out the mechanism that causes the noise and actuation force.

[iMav]

Wow.  Talk about reviving an old thread.  

xsphat has gone through several different keyboards to end up with his current 'board of choice (and it is all documented here).  Some that he liked initially ended up not suiting him long term.  MOST of us continue to experiment with different keyboards and it is likely that our favorites today may not be our daily 'boards a year or two from now.  (or at least I hope there continues to be enough choice out there to support that)

Ask him [xsphat] why the SMK-85 fell from grace and I am sure he will give you a detailed answer (which should give you some good insight as to whether you'd like such a 'board).

[xsphat]

The SMK85 was / is a great keyboard, and if you turn up the sound on the video (which is sh*tty) you'll understand how it could be a loud board with a heavy typist at the helm. I liked it because it felt really good and I could type faster on it than any other keyboard I had tried at the time.

I got the HHKB Pro 2 and that keyboard was so different, my keyboard world, which at that time was mostly Alps and one Model M, was shaken to the core. The HHKB Pro 2 made me want to explore my options, which eventually led me to my first Macally MK96 with real Alps whites. That is how I found out there is rubber stopper or something at the bottom of the stem on the black Alps. The whites, which are the loudest switch I know of, do not have this rubber stopper thing. If you dig deep, there was a thread on this here. I started to notice the way it gave a slight pulling sensation and it bugged me.

So there you have it; That is how this keyboard, the SMK85, fell from grace. It was dealt a near-fatal blow by the HHKB Pro 2 and finished off by my first MK96.