Cherry G83-6105: The Shame of Germany

[Ulysses31]

Not long ago my venerable ten year old Logitech keyboard lost the reliable use of a few important keys.  I could probably fix them but I though what the heck, it's just a rubber-dome keyboard - I might as well get a no-frills Cherry to tide me over.  I had heard good things about this model; how it was very reliable and the universally positive customer reviews.  Since I know that recent Logitech and Microsoft boards are pretty abysmal, having tried several of them, I thought i'd go for a cheap and cheerful Cherry.  Sure i'd like to get a truly "mechanical" keyboard but with the economy as it is, it would be a huge gamble to pay so much for something I couldn't even try out first.

Anyway, this keyboard arrived today.  I immediately noticed how light it was compared to my old Logitech.  There was no steel back-plate, and a lot of flex.  I plugged it in and tried it out and from the very first touch, I can't really explain it better than this, but I recoiled.  Or rather, my fingers did.  The key-tops are extremely slippery, even though they're textured.  Imagine that Teflon coated frying pans are also textured but slippery and you'll get the idea.  Furthermore, these keys have a much shallower "scoop" in them, so in combination with the slippery texture, it's very easy to hit the wrong key by mistake unless I am looking directly at the keyboard which I don't usually have to do.  I pried a cap off to see if I could explain the hollow, unsatisfying "thunk" that the keys made.  I almost broke the damn thing because these keys are made from the lightest, thinnest and cheapest plastic I have ever seen.  Imagine melted-down black bin-liners and you'll understand what this keyboard appears to be made from.  In comparison with my old keyboard this Cherry has key-tops that appear to be half the thickness all around.

In its favour... um, well... the keys do something when I press them!  The whole thing has this cheap feel to it; the plastic is injection moulded and you can see the swirls where the plastic was not mixed properly.  

I got this keyboard to tide me over while I consider what kind of "real" keyboard to purchase.  It succeeds in the sense that the keys are functional.  In every other measure, it is far inferior to my previous keyboard, and it's a horrible experience having to use it.  If anything it has hardened my resolve to find a decent "clicky" keyboard made by someone who actually gives a damn about what they are selling, rather than about profit margins.  

I read a review someone else posted on their recent purchase of a black Cherry G80 and that also had some of the flaws i'm seeing here, so it seems that you can't escape shoddy manufacturing from Cherry simply by handing over more cash.  It's very disappointing really.  

I'll get used to this thing if I can but I don't rate my chances.  I am amazed that consumers give this keyboard good reviews, when it can't even hold a candle to a rubber-dome keyboard of a decade ago.  I apologise for any typos but I have become less accurate thanks to this wretched device.

In closing:  Cherry G83?  You look bad and you should feel bad!  You'd do better as a frisbee than as a keyboard.

[Bluemercury]

How about going to a G80-3000 instead??i dont even know what model is that.......

[Chloe]

I think with the Cherry boards you're really paying for the switches. I have wondered how the Cymotion range compare since they're aimed at a different market. Can you return this one? There's a new Cherry with linear switches on Ebay UK going really cheap if you're interested.

[Ulysses31]

Well that's the one with clicky switches in it, but as another reviewer here mentioned, he was no more satisfied with the quality than I was.  The key action was undoubtedly better but the build quality and size of the G80 is off-putting.  I am one of these people who lives by the mantra "once bitten, twice-shy".  If I am dissatisfied by a product, I tend to go nuts and get something much more high-end, that covers all the bases.  That's how I ended up replacing my old CRT with an NEC 2690 lol.  I think the Filco with browns sounds like the only candidate.  I understand it has a light touch, which is another problem I have with this G83.  I find myself not registering key-presses because they need a lot more force.  The result is that I am slowed down and can't "fly" across the keyboard like I prefer to.  

EDIT: I could return it but it'd cost more to return than i'm willing to pay.  It can be a nice back-up keyboard just in case my old one has a critical failure.  It's also nice and clean so guest users can hammer on it

[CX23882]

The Cymotion sound like the complete opposite to the G83.  They're heavy overall, have a light and slightly clicky key action, thick key caps, and a well-moulded case that's screwed together rather than clipped.

Looking at the price of the G83, you can get a Cymotion Expert for less.  Try it - you won't be disappointed with that.  But don't go overboard - get the cheapest Cymotion Expert and not the more expensive variants (which I find inferior in terms of feel).

I was disappointed by the quality of the G80-3000 case.  The Cymotion is good all round.  The G80 has a nice key action, but in my opinion sub-par case (although it doesn't have any visible anomolies - it's just a bit too flexible, light and hollow sounding).

[lowpoly]

It feels like Cherry is capitalizing on its good name but they've done so for a long time. It's a big company. If they can make money selling cheap rubber domes they will.

[Ulysses31]

The Cymotion sound like the complete opposite to the G83.  They're heavy overall, have a light and slightly clicky key action, thick key caps, and a well-moulded case that's screwed together rather than clipped.

Looking at the price of the G83, you can get a Cymotion Expert for less.  Try it - you won't be disappointed with that.  But don't go overboard - get the cheapest Cymotion Expert and not the more expensive variants (which I find inferior in terms of feel).

I was disappointed by the quality of the G80-3000 case.  The Cymotion is good all round.  The G80 has a nice key action, but in my opinion sub-par case (although it doesn't have any visible anomolies - it's just a bit too flexible, light and hollow sounding).

Do you mean this model? http://www.dabs.com/productview.aspx?quicklinx=3MHD
I was considering this one too but the broad key-tops and extra multimedia buttons led me to believe this was an unconventional keyboard, so I went with the "standard" G83.  Turns out it that it blows, but you live and learn.

[CX23882]

Yes, that's the one.

The larger topped keys aren't a problem for me, and I can switch between the Cymotion at work at the more conventional G80 at home without problem.  It does have multimedia keys, but it's pretty much a standard layout with the exception that:
- Esc and F-keys are half height
- Large gap between ESC and F1 - you wouldn't believe how welcome this is when using AutoCAD due to a tendency to hit F1 and bring up help when you simply want to cancel a command with ESC.
- 4 additional keys above the numeric pad
- Volume control at front, but it's recessed so you don't push it accidentally
Everything else is normal.

There is no silly F-lock as with Microsoft/Logitech (I absolutely hate F-lock) and the block above the cursor keys is normal, unlike the elongated delete key on some Logitech.  The multimedia functions are accessed by pressing and holding a modifier key whilst pressing the F-keys.  The modifier key is narrow, along with a narrower Windows key, so Ctrl, Alt and Space are still large.

I would like to add though that I do like my G80-3000 in spite of its negative aspects.  It is a lot lighter than I expected it to be (considering how much Model M boards weigh) but the most important typing feel is spot on, and I don't intend to use it to crack nuts or anything more stressful to the plastic than sitting on my desk.

[Eclairz]

It feels like Cherry is capitalizing on its good name but they've done so for a long time. It's a big company. If they can make money selling cheap rubber domes they will.

Well they may have been trading off their name for a while, but I think the reasoning is that cherry used to be well known for selling keyboards to many computer constructing companies. And they just filled a very large gap in the market for cheap reliable keyboards.
They are still cheap and reliable, and 50% of people using computers type just fine on them, my first cherry was a G83 I didn't find it bad and neither did I find it the greatest experience but it worked well and it still works to this day. If cherry didn't fill the market with cheap keyboards another company would surely done it in their stead and cherry might not exist anymore.
When mentioning Cherry keyboards to anyone I know the first thing that comes to mind is the card swiping keyboards, only real input aficionados like us really care about the quality. The reason that the black stem cherrys are so popular is due to durability and that is what made cherry's name well known and since mechanical keyboards are the most reliable.
I'm just thankful that cherry still make browns and blue stem switches, and that there are enough of us for cherry to continue making these switches and also selling these switches to other companies like filco and dsi.

[DMuk]

I read a review someone else posted on their recent purchase of a black Cherry G80 and that also had some of the flaws i'm seeing here, so it seems that you can't escape shoddy manufacturing from Cherry simply by handing over more cash.  It's very disappointing really.

I think you may be referring to me here, Ulysses. I was amazed that a keyboard from the famous Cherry could be so 'ordinary' for want of a better word. Like you, I probably won't buy another keyboard from them.

I wonder if emailing them would achieve anything? Probably be lucky to even get a reply...

[Ulysses31]

I don't think emailing them would help.  I didn't spend a lot on it so I am not too bothered.  Well no, I am bothered but i'm not that surprised.  I don't think i'll be buying anything from them again for the foreseeable future.  They make such a big deal out of how their rubber-dome keyboards are so much better than the others, because they're the mighty Cherry Corporation of Germany and they've sold millions of units etc.  Well it turns out a spade is a spade, regardless of who made it.  

Manufacturers look at a bell-curve of what most people want, or are willing to accept, and they make units to match their expectations.  If their expectations are already low, then why spend extra money on the proletariat?  They don't know better.  They don't realise that competition doesn't always make products better.  It's often a lot easier to raise profit margins and become more competitive by scrimping on materials and finding ways to build lower-cost products than it is to win more customers by innovating and improving the quality of goods.  How much crap will the consumer gladly purchase before they start to care?  It's a bit like a limbo contest - how low can you go?

[Chloe]

If enough people complained I think they will take notice. I think we are a small minority compared to the number of banks and other businesses that use Cherry, but there's no harm trying.