CM Storm QFR w/ Browns - First Impressions

[paradox]

I received my first CM Mechanical Keyboard today: CM Storm Quickfire Rapid with brown Cherry MX switches.  I purchased it from Amazon 80$ shipped.  I was very happy to see that I received one of the unbranded ones.  Space bar has no markings, no words above the directional keys, only the single brand on the cable side of the board which you don't see.

I had a Filco 104-key with browns which was awesome but I really wanted a tenkeyless board.  So far I am very pleased.  The board feels very solid, keys have a great texture to them, and I'm not bothered by the weird 'futuristic' font.  One thing I noticed right away was the feeling of the spacebar.  It is definitely 'different' but I can't decide how I feel about it exactly other than I'm not too bothered by it.  It's has a heavy and firm feeling to it when pressed.

First thing I did was replace the primary 37 keys with some alternates I have on hand.  I'm kind of OCD about wearing out the original keys on boards.  I wear keys out fast so in case I ever decide to sell it I'll have them in like new condition.

I really love tenkeyless boards so for 80 bucks this was well worth the money.  I searched everywhere (available to a US user) for alternate TKL boards and my only other option were Filcos that were nearly twice as expensive at about 150$ (mostly only with linear switches).

I'll post up pics later if I can get out of my lazy funk.

[khaangaaroo]

Nice! I hope you were able to get in on the mail-in-rebate offer if you ordered it between 2/1 and 2/10. I take the original keys off as well, also for resale value and because I have other caps I like more. But I'm starting to think it doesn't matter very much cause I've seen stock QFR caps sell for as little at $10 in the forums. If you like the stock caps, you should just use em. It also might look weird later if you put the unused 37 back on next to the used num/modifiers...haha

[paradox]

I saw the thing about the 10$ rebate.  I'm eligible for it but they said they need the UPC code and a receipt.  Since I bought it online would I just print a copy of my order details?  As for the UPC code I'm having trouble finding it on the box.

Good point about putting the unused 37 back but I'm usually very careful with my keys.  It' s just that the ones that see the most action get worn out so fast.  The others usually for the most part stay pretty clean.  Hopefully I'll end up keeping this keyboard a long time now that I have a TKL with browns.

I guess while I'm on the topic I'll ask.  I have an old rubber dome keyboard I used to use and all the letters wore off and there were very visible oily smudges on all of the keys.  I read everything and tried various internet tips (warm water and dish soap, rubbing alcohol, 409 universal cleaner, Windex, etc.) but I could not get these keys clean.

[tp4tissue]

I saw the thing about the 10$ rebate.  I'm eligible for it but they said they need the UPC code and a receipt.  Since I bought it online would I just print a copy of my order details?  As for the UPC code I'm having trouble finding it on the box.

Good point about putting the unused 37 back but I'm usually very careful with my keys.  It' s just that the ones that see the most action get worn out so fast.  The others usually for the most part stay pretty clean.  Hopefully I'll end up keeping this keyboard a long time now that I have a TKL with browns.

I guess while I'm on the topic I'll ask.  I have an old rubber dome keyboard I used to use and all the letters wore off and there were very visible oily smudges on all of the keys.  I read everything and tried various internet tips (warm water and dish soap, rubbing alcohol, 409 universal cleaner, Windex, etc.) but I could not get these keys clean.

that's not oily smudge.. that's the abs plastic being "rubbed/ sanded" smooth by your finger friction.. No cleaning will return it to original texture..

The same will happen to your ABS keycaps... You can get PBT keycaps which would delay the process, however, they are "not" immune to shininess given "TIME"

[paradox]

Crap, that sucks.  I guess I'm going to start stocking up on spare key caps.

[tp4tissue]

Crap, that sucks.  I guess I'm going to start stocking up on spare key caps.

don't bother.. just get "bright colored" blank keycaps, and they look decent even with uneven shininess...

It's only BLACK that looks HORRIBLE w/ shine.

[khaangaaroo]

For the rebate receipt: Go to your order history on Amazon, and click on the "invoice" link for your QFR order. That should take you to a printer-friendly page where you can print out a receipt for the order.

For the UPC: You need to cut out the barcode label from the side of the box. It'll be on the left-hand side if you're looking at the box from the front. There's probably two barcodes on the label. I would just cut out the entire label with both bar codes just to be safe. There's also a smaller barcode on the back side of the box sometimes, but that's not the UPC. You won't get your rebate if you submit that. I think it's just a serial number.

Also, before you cut the UPC off, be sure to test all the keys and make sure everything is working. Because once you cut it off, you can no longer do any returns/exchanges through Amazon. Same goes for any mail-in-rebate purchases that require cutting the UPC.

As for wearing down the keys: The only keys I can think of outside the 37 that might still wear out unevenly quickly are the 1-5 number row keys if you play a lot of FPS games and use them to switch weapons. I know because I wore down the WASD keys as well as QER, so replaced them. But even though the replacement WASD matched the rest of my untouched lettered keys, the 1-5 still looked very faded in comparison...haha.

PBT, or light colored keycaps do help though. The stock QFR keys fade pretty quickly.

[tp4tissue]

For the rebate receipt: Go to your order history on Amazon, and click on the "invoice" link for your QFR order. That should take you to a printer-friendly page where you can print out a receipt for the order.

For the UPC: You need to cut out the barcode label from the side of the box. It'll be on the left-hand side if you're looking at the box from the front. There's probably two barcodes on the label. I would just cut out the entire label with both bar codes just to be safe. There's also a smaller barcode on the back side of the box sometimes, but that's not the UPC. You won't get your rebate if you submit that. I think it's just a serial number.

Also, before you cut the UPC off, be sure to test all the keys and make sure everything is working. Because once you cut it off, you can no longer do any returns/exchanges through Amazon. Same goes for any mail-in-rebate purchases that require cutting the UPC.

As for wearing down the keys: The only keys I can think of outside the 37 that might still wear out unevenly quickly are the 1-5 number row keys if play a lot of FPS games and use them to switch weapons. I know because I wore down the WASD keys as well as QER, so replaced them. But even though the replacement WASD matched the rest of my untouched lettered keys, the 1-5 still looked very faded in comparison...haha.

PBT, or light colored keycaps do help though. The stock QFR keys fade pretty quickly.

By quickly he means 3 days tops.

[paradox]

For the rebate receipt: Go to your order history on Amazon, and click on the "invoice" link for your QFR order. That should take you to a printer-friendly page where you can print out a receipt for the order.

For the UPC: You need to cut out the barcode label from the side of the box. It'll be on the left-hand side if you're looking at the box from the front. There's probably two barcodes on the label. I would just cut out the entire label with both bar codes just to be safe. There's also a smaller barcode on the back side of the box sometimes, but that's not the UPC. You won't get your rebate if you submit that. I think it's just a serial number.

Also, before you cut the UPC off, be sure to test all the keys and make sure everything is working. Because once you cut it off, you can no longer do any returns/exchanges through Amazon. Same goes for any mail-in-rebate purchases that require cutting the UPC.

As for wearing down the keys: The only keys I can think of outside the 37 that might still wear out unevenly quickly are the 1-5 number row keys if you play a lot of FPS games and use them to switch weapons. I know because I wore down the WASD keys as well as QER, so replaced them. But even though the replacement WASD matched the rest of my untouched lettered keys, the 1-5 still looked very faded in comparison...haha.

PBT, or light colored keycaps do help though. The stock QFR keys fade pretty quickly.

Thanks a lot, man.  That's very helpful especially the bit about the smaller bar code on the bottom of the box.  I was about to use that one.

By quickly he means 3 days tops.

LoL, wonderful...I'm going key shopping as we speak.