Is the Realforce 87u Portable?

[mrelectric]

Hey guys, I'm looking to buy a new topre board and was just wondering whether the 87u would be considered portable? I won't be walking all day, but maybe for 2~ hours overall and need something I can carry in my messenger bag with a laptop. My current choices are the Realforce, HHKB2 and FC660C, but i've crossed of FC660C because I live in England and for the price of getting one of those I can easily proxy over a realforce/HHKB2 Silent versions for a bit less.

I kind of need the arrow keys and I've become pretty accustomed to the standard layout, so I was just wondering whether the Realforce 87U would be considered portable? If not then can we discuss the learning curve for the HHKB2?

Thanks!!!!

[esoomenona]

What do you "kind of" need arrow keys for? The weight difference between a Realforce and a HHKB is significant. That being said, people tote TKL boards around all the time.

[mrelectric]

Browsing the internet haha , I suppose I can attempt to get used to the HHKB2 profile, then again i'm thinking of getting a tablet pc so maybe scrolling won't be that bad.

[daerid]

Depends on what you consider portable. They're not that much smaller than a standard board. If portability and arrow keys are that important, I'd spend the extra and import an FC660C. It'll be well worth it.

[spiceBar]

Depends on what you consider portable. They're not that much smaller than a standard board. If portability and arrow keys are that important, I'd spend the extra and import an FC660C. It'll be well worth it.

Agreed. The difference in weight and size in significant. In the long run, you are going to forget about the price, but not about the everyday inconvenience.

[mauri]

Comparing tkl to 60% or 65% seems a bit redundant, I don't think I'd be carrying my tkl around, perhaps 60% but definitely not anything bigger.

[jameslr]

A RF87U isn't meant to be considered compact. I think if you're looking for a compact board - the HHKB Pro 2 or the FC660C are your best bet in the Topre variety. My RF87U is also considerably bigger than my other TKL board (Filco MJ2 TKL).

[CommunistWitchDr]

I find tenkeyless to be pretty portable. I still usually carried around my poker (it had blacks) since my tkl has greens and when I'm using something portable it has to be quiet.

Ever since I got my edox I just use that and it's plenty portable.

[daerid]

Ever since I got my edox I just use that and it's plenty portable.

The classic case is surprisingly portable. I wouldn't really want to travel around with the full hand case though